Typical all inclusive

Many wonderful things but a few minor problems. First the front desk was friendly and efficient. The cleaning staff were everywhere and had power equipment necessary to do the best job. The maid service was friendly and efficient. Our only complaint was they sometimes showed up early morning, and at other times mid afternoon. The food was generally pretty good. the small crescent beach was excellent for children. The water was shallow enough for children and there were no large waves as t [... read more]he area was reef protected. The hotel suffered from the problem that occurs at almost every resort which is people leaving towels on lounges and not returning for hours. A few problems with restaurants. The Italian restaurant listed two soups but only had only one. The menu listed seven pizzas but when I ordered one I was told that they were not available. The restaurant had no cappuccino or espresso but the bar near the lobby served same. They are must haves for Italian. One of the two buffets had a sign on the door saying "open at 6:30" but when we went there with a six year old granddaughter we were told it didn't open until 7.

Bahia experience

Grounds beautiful, good food, resort too big, rooms need updating, check in took too much time, a little far from airport, pool freezing cold, really difficult to reserve ala cartes for our group of 9.

A solid budget oriented choice

We stayed at the Bahia Grand from Feb 4 to 11. We are a a couple in our late 50s and usually prefer smaller, adult resorts where we can chill out and eat and drink well. We were apprehensive about the size of the Bahia but were pleasantly surprised how much we enjoyed our stay. Check in was quick and smooth. We were in our room on the 7th floor of building 23 with our luggage within 15 minutes of arriving. We were registered as Grand guests but our room was located in the Luxury Adult section [... read more]. We understand it is being used for overflow of adult Grand guests due to reno's in other Grand buildings. The room was large, clean, and had a great view over the quiet adult pool and ocean beyond. However, it was a bit loud at night until around 11 with music from the Luxury section lobby immediately behind our building. The room showed a bit of wear and tear but nothing that hampered our stay. The furniture was in good repair and the king bed was comfy. We loved the large private balcony. The property is quite large - over 1 km from end to end along the waterfront. We regularly got 12K + steps per day, despite all our poolside lounging! The grounds and public areas are very well kept. We spent our days at the quiet adult pool near the pool bar. It was easy to get a chair around the pool as long as you're there by around 10 am. Sadly, the hotel "no reserving" policy largely ignored by guests but the chair game wasn't nearly as bad as some resorts we have visited where you'd have to snag a lounger by 7 am! Because there was a cold front and the weather was a bit unsettled all week, we mostly stuck by the pool. We did a few beach walks to the far side of the resort but decided with the unsettled weather it was too far from shelter and facilities to set up for the day. It was a decent size beach though, with a sheltered and shallow bay. It looked nice so maybe next time! Dining at the a al cartes was good and we chose the adult oriented restaurants for our 3 included meals. Rodizio (Brazilian) and Takara (Asian Fusion) were great. The Don Pablo (French) was just "OK". The food was acceptable but the ambiance was lacking. We really enjoyed the Round Island buffet near the Jamaica sign for breakfast and lunch and the Activity Poolside jerk grill for a mid day snack and the best chicken ever. Yum. The major disappointment was the main buffet family side. We had no choice but to eat 4 dinners and one breakfast there. Ugh. What a zoo. Insufferably loud, chaotic, and poor quality food with limited choices. It reminded us why we really don't like large resorts! Avoid it if you can and, if you must eat there, request an outside table to reduce the chaos. Likes - By and large the staff were friendly and accommodating. They really made our stay! - Resort layout makes it easy to find an area to suit your preferences. E.g., Pool vs beach, active vs quiet. - Overall the food was good with the exception of the main buffet as noted . We loved the Round Island buffet breakfast and lunch - this is listed on the maps as a steak house but has been renovated to a modern multi station buffet with gorgeous ocean and pool view terraces for outdoor dining. We really wished it had also opened for dinner for our 4 buffet nights where we had to brave the main buffet! Bars everywhere with generally well made drinks and fresh Red Stripe on tap! The pool bar in the quiet section and the lobby terrace bar were our favorites. Needs improvement: Elevators - being on the 7th floor this was important. There was only one elevator for our area and it was slow and somewhat unreliable. We had to take the stairs a couple of times. Reservation app for a la cartes - sometimes it worked, sometimes it didn't, sometimes it lost your reservation. And I could suggest, guests housed in the adult section like we were should also be allowed to also eat in the adult side buffet close to the room, rather than in the "zoo" buffet!

Outstanding experience!

The resort was beautiful and clean; the rooms were clean and modern and even had added touches like drying racks on the balcony; the beach was beautiful with bars, grills and bathrooms easily accessible; there were tons of activities and entertainment around the pool; kids club was helpful to add more activities to the day; the food options for all of us (including vegetarians) was excellent; evening entertainment was great especially on Bob Marley night and Steel Band night - wow! Guest service [... read more]s was very helpful and housekeeping was great. Everything was restocked in our fridge each day including water, pop and beer. Criticisms: All of the restaurants and theatre were kept way too cold that you needed a sweater; a la cart availability was very minimal; there was outdoor entertainment at the main building that went till 11 PM each night which was extremely loud and made it difficult for the kids to go to sleep as the noise and music echoed all over the resort; if you get a room on the main floor it is very busy and loud at all hours. Criticisms: All the restaurants are

Frustrated experience

We three families total 6 people recently visited above resort had very frustrated experience never recommend anyone.The expectation we had when left Toronto for that resort was very high as previously we visited the same resort in punta Cana but it was wastage of our money as well as vacation some managerial staff was cooperative but they had no power to make decision

Disappointing experience at Grand Bahia Principe Jamaica

Since we are now back from our trip to Jamaica (that we booked with Trip Central), we would like provide our feedback and express our disappointing experience with Grand Bahia Principe, Jamaica. We booked three rooms from February 2nd to February 9th, 2024 for ourselves and our two friends i.e. three couples - six people in total. 1) On Feb 1 evening, a day before our departure on Feb 2, 2024, we found out (something that we wish that Trip Central had advised us earlier) from one of our  [... read more]friends about the Bahia app which once downloaded, can be used for express check in to avoid line ups at the hotel lobby on arrival as well as booking dinner reservations for restaurants at the hotel in addition to other features. After struggling with the app for a considerable amount of time, we finally were able to check-in by uploading our pics and entering the requested info in Bahia app. Unfortunately we could not do anything else with the app as our booking number (provided by you) was not working. The following day while at the airport, Steve Langstaff, our contact at Trip Central also confirmed via email that he too could not get the app to work. Thus, as mentioned above, all we could do in advance was at least check in and we hoped that this would enable us to facilitate a quick and timely check-in. 2) After reaching at the hotel lobby, we did not see any separate designated line for guests who have already checked in, therefore we ended up waiting for about 45 minutes when we finally got attended to and got our room keys. This was a very frustrating experience as there was no order at the check in area and many guests just proceeded to go ahead of other guests to check in. 3) Unlike the others, our room was extremely cold. We attempted to change temperature settings, however not knowing how, we gave up. We did use the blanket in the room as we were exhausted from our flight from Canada. Next morning we asked the staff who do housekeeping and they assisted but I guess they too didn’t know. We then requested additional blankets. Finally frustrated, we requested front desk to send someone on the Sunday of our trip (as nothing was changing the temperature). We spoke with someone named George who advised to go and wait in our room and he would send someone to check the settings. We waited for over 1 to 1 and 1/2 hours and no one showed up. We proceeded to call three times during our wait asking was anyone coming. We were told repeatedly someone would come. Finally we gave up and came back down to the lobby and spoke to guest services who said she would send someone but while looking in system said nothing had been entered on their system indicating an issue. Again we waited and while waiting noticed a person walking in the hallway. We asked if he was there to check temperature setting - he said he was maintenance but wasn’t there for our room - but he finally assisted in explaining how to operate the temperature controls. The fact that no one was able to assist and or explain was beyond frustrating. 4) On Saturday, we had booked an all day excursion trip to Negril via Coming2 tours ( booth in the hotel lobby area) and also had a restaurant booking at restaurant - The Knife at 9pm. Unfortunately due to stormy/rainy weather, we did not make it back to the hotel until 9:15pm. We went to guest services upon our arrival back to the hotel and asked if she could check from the restaurant if we could still go for dinner. She ( Taneesha) said she would check and let us know via telephone in our room. We waited in our room changing our attire for dinner. Unfortunately no phone call came from guest services. We called a few times however no one was answering the phone. So then I decided (wife was still getting ready) to go back to guest services and see if any advices from the restaurant. When I got there and spoke with the same person (who was busy laughing on the phone) she said who are you and I asked why haven’t you called our room to advise. She said yes, we could go to the restaurant- the Knife - as per her checking. We went to restaurant and as four of us are vegetarian, we requested the various vegetarian options and were told they had none of those available as it was late. We were very disappointed as if they were not able to accommodate the guests and provide the options noted on the menu then we should have been advised accordingly to go to the buffet restaurant instead. 5) While chatting with another guest at the hotel, we realized that we should try to talk the front desk as she had done - specifically Michael Darby. We then did proceed to talk to Michael and he said he would talk to his Manager (I think Mr. Naroo was his name ) who would then call us to discuss our concerns further. We never did hear from the Manager. However, we did speak to Michael again and he then said to also talk to the Guest services person (Damian Redway) who we then explained the whole process of our above mentioned frustrations again. We also explained to Damian, that we are repeat guests at the Baha’i (we have booked the Esmeralda at Punta Cana & the Bahia in Mexico) and felt very frustrated at the whole process and had felt (unlike the great comments from travelers of having a great holiday in Jamaica) very disappointed overall. We also explained we had come to celebrate our anniversary and birthday of spouse of our friend and there was no recognition of any of these events or that we were repeat guests. Damian Redway confirmed that Trip Central/you did provide notes on our reservation of being repeat guests and intent to celebrate our anniversary and birthday, however these notes were ignored by the hotel entirely at check in. Damian asked if we had been provided any recognition (banner, champagne). We said no! He did ask if we wanted now and we felt that as it was now Wednesday it was pointless as we were leaving on Friday. 6) We also had requested rooms near each other and unfortunately that too did not happen! Our friends couple were given room # 23311 while we were given # 23323 and other couple friend room # 23325. First couple had issues with the safe ( not functional) and shower so then upon advising the front desk were finally moved to a corner room 23327. It was closer however not similar to ours which frustrated them even more. We also want to comment on the food which we found very mediocre at best and the vegetarian options minimal. It would be helpful if a vegetarian section of soups and other items were to be provided. We feel that our overall experience has left us definitely disappointed with Jamaica and especially with the Bahia Principe, which we do not feel we would go to again.

Very nice resort

Very nice resort , some buildings more dated than others . Grounds immaculately groomed . Staffs very friendly and helpful. They must have had some upgraded training .food was excellent, lots of choices and variety for everyone. I have stayed on both side , luxury and family side. I traveled alone and much preferred the family side . It's closer to the nicest Beach.

Fantastic Resort!!

This resort was absolutely beautiful!! Very very clean, rooms spotless, staff were very accommodating and friendly and food was fabulous!! Honestly I have no complaints whatsoever and plan to return.

Beatiful Resort

No complaints about the food. There appeared to be something to please everyone. Plus, the specialty restaurants provided even more variety. The grounds were daily cleared of fallen plant material. Not quite as much attention was paid to human garbage that occasionally littered the gardens and waterfront. I enjoy snorkelling and I had read a very good review of the possibilities. However, we had a big wind and rain storm while I was there which made the ocean very rough. I was unable to  [... read more]kayak and some snorkelling areas were too silty and/or had too strong a current. These big storms seem to be more common. Therefore, snorkelling and kayaking are not reliable activities. Because the resort area is so large, walking from one end to another is a good distance. There are multiple beaches also, if one tires of an area. The swimming areas of mostly very shallow. They have the longest pool that I have seen at a resort.

Nice resort

great place. good food. good people. nice pool. beach was ok...I will return. the jerk chicken at the beach is the best. entertainment in the evening always had talented artists. .rooms are comfortable'. no complaints.

Great vacation

This was our 2 time here and as usual it was a great vacation. Food was absolutely delicious especially at the Don Pablo and The Knife’s. The buffet had great food the 3 night we went many choices to choose from for everyone. We were lucky and got one of the newly renovated room. Only downside was our room was in building 18 which was directly across from the Wedding Reception Hall area and we had to listed to the music every night until 10:00 pm which was ok with us but not so much if you h [... read more]ave kids with you and wanted quietness. The beaches were nice the one by the kids pool was the best the other ones were ok. Lots of music at the pool which was great entertainment , the entertainment staff did a great job with the entertainment. The Jerk restaurant at the pool was amazing with great food. You definitely will need bug spray we got gotten several times thank goodness I had lotion with me for the bites after reading reviews. We did have a foul smell in our room which was the water it was bad at times but manageable. Overall we had a great time Don’t pay attention to the winers they are always trying to find anything to complain about, go there and enjoy

Bahia Principe Grand Jamaica

The resort was a fantastic location. Clean facilities, the grounds were impeccable. The staff were extremely friendly and helpful. The only fault I had was the beach immediately in front of the resort. While very clean and amazing views, the sand was quit rocky and difficult to walk on. Other then that, I would return in a second to this place and recommend it to anyone.

Had an enjoyable time!

Had an enjoyable vacation at Bahia Principe Grand Jamaica. The rooms were clean and our requests for additional items was met. There was a variety of foods at the buffet and the a la cartes were great too. Had no difficulty booking a la carte meals. The grounds were really nice and well maintained. Nothing negative to mention about this resort

Would go to this resort again!!!!

Staff were great! Service was fantastic. Resort was extremely clean. Entertainment was excellent! Food and Restaurants were fantastic. We will be returning forsure ! Beautiful pools and beaches were great. ?

I love Jamaica

The grounds were beautiful, the staff amazing, the rooms were ok and the food on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day was excellent. Can't say enough about the staff., they were kind and helpful. Karaoke each night was fun and the overall entertainment staff did an excellent job. Excellent A la carte restaurants. The resort was an hour away from the airport, and the shopping in Ochi was an excellent experience. Try the Starbucks and KFC when you visit. I Would go back in a heartbeat!

Xmas family trip

This is my review of our stay from Dec 16-23 i would 1st say if you can get Club Mobay make sure you do as it save so much time. I then would suggest a private transfer so you are not waiting on the bus for who knows how many people. we used Garreth Brown from get on board tours which was the best, best prices and with the price you get a drink included. When we got to the resort we stayed on the Grand side and check in was quick and smooth, I had 2 rooms and 1 room was ocean view in building 1 [... read more]8 5th floor and the other was building 18 sea view. The rooms in Building 18 are completely renovated and are amazing. The pools- the pools are a little cold when you 1st get in but otherwise are amazing and swim up bar is the best. The staff make sure pool is clean every morning, we would be down by the pool by 830 am and no problem getting a chair to sit on. Beach- the grand side beach is so large and never hard to find a spot to sit, the beach is well taken care of and little to no rocks going into the ocean and the ocean water is very warm as we spent a morning in the ocean well it was raining. they have a beach bar and also the jerk shack that is a must try. entertainment staff- All I can say is they are the nicest and most outgoing people you will meet at the resort restaurants- buffets are well stocked and so many choices to pick from and always easy to find food you want. a la carte Restaurants- the knife-food was very good but the timing of getting food could be better as it took over 1 hour to get are main dishes Dolce vita(italian cuisine) the service was amazing and the food was very good and good size meals Mikado- the service was again amazing and the food was so good and was fun having it cooked in front of you Bars- service at times were slow but they are all so happy to serve drinks and lots of choices. i would say not to pay for the luxury side unless you don't want to be around kids if that is the case then go to adult only resort. For this resort most things are on the Grand side, the resort is big not hard to walk around in a short time. They have the shopping area on property called the village and you can get everything you need from there. We never checked out the disco as we stayed at the karaoke bar which is in the main lobby of the grand side. So for the people that bitch and complain about this resort i am not sure why as we have always stayed at Sandals resorts before this and I would go back to this resort. not all elevators work but not a big deal, so if you are on the fence about this resort becasue of the people that complain about the smallest inconveniences DO NOT LISTEN TO THEM go and have a great time as they must be a little to entitled for this resort then.

Beautiful Resort and Grounds

This resort is large so the pool and beach bars a pre-made slushie style coladas and daiquiri, so don't expect fresh fruit there. The lobby bar has better quality drinks. Buffets were plentiful and satisfactory. Our superior oceanview jr suite room was pretty standard with a beautiful view. The resort (Dec 2023) is in the process of updating their rooms (USB ports, etc) Just over an hour drive from the Montego Bay airport. Different beaches spread out across the the resort. Kids Waterp [... read more]ark, they loved and nice its location on one of the beaches and had a bar for refreshments for young and old. Nothing within walking distance outside of the resort to explore.

Nice resort

Large room with everything you need to have during stay, hair blower, iron & board, safe, refrigerator stocked daily even large umbrella. Hotel staff, maids are very friendly and caring. Large food selection and many places to go for breakfast lunch and dinner,

Amazing Resort

This resort is amazing, people are so friendly and helpful the beach is beautiful, the water is warm and very calm water. The buffet is delicious and very plentiful. I requested a room with an ocean view and they delivered, we were in room 17201 and were pleasantly impressed and the room was newly renovated. This is our 2nd time at this resort, and this time we brought friends with us, and they loved it so much, they also want to come back next year!

Jamming Jamaica!

Bahia in Runaway Bay is quite nice! Very large resort with many different activities in different places all at once. You can fill your day with something different each and every day! Pool activities were a lot of fun and packed with energy! The entertainment staff was the best! Snorkeling was definitely up there as well! Soooo many different places to eat with so much variety! The beaches were raked every night for our visual pleasure! Thank you Melanie for all your behind the scenes extended [... read more] details to make our travels top notch, you’re the Best!!