The Sands Barbados

This is my honest review of The Sands. The Sands is very clean, and the grounds and gardens are well looked after. Our room was a large duplex apartment, with large kitchenette, lounge and balcony. Upstairs large bedroom, small bathroom and a locked door which we presumed was another bedroom. As we are both 79 years of age, we felt that it would have been useful to have a handrail up the stairs, and more than two drawers in which to put a fortnights clothes. The pool area had a number of sunbeds, which were all taken by 6,45am. with no one on them, contrary to hotel rules, but no one bothered to endorse them. The beach is basically non existent, due to erosion by the sea. When the tide had turned, a row of sun beds were put on the sand. It was observed that a group of 9 reserved sunbeds by the pool, and also grabbed 9 on the sand, and kept both sets. On holiday, good food is a must. Here the choices are very limited, very repetitive and poor. Often being dry, overcooked chicken and nameless fish. Out of three choices for dessert, 2 are for cake. One main meal was chicken fajitas, which consisted of a pile of mashed potato with chicken pieces on top. We visited The Noir restaurant. Certainly an improvement, but could have been a lot better. We have visited quite a few hotels in the Caribbean, and this was the worst for food. The drinks were typical all inclusive, some good and some not. Depended who made them. All the staff we came incontact with were friendly and efficient, except one, the receptionist, when we checked out was very rude We will not be returning.. Read less

Do not be fooled by The Sands outdated social media pictures. We just returned from The Sands this past Sunday after a large family vacation with 12 people, including four children ages 5–15. Unfortunately, from the moment we arrived, the experience did not meet our expectations. We raised our concerns with management two days into our stay, and while they listened, improvements were not implemented consistently throughout the remainder of our trip. Arrival & Service We were “welcomed” on our first day by a rude and abrupt staff member whose first words were: “We have no water due to a water main break, it is out of our control, and we have no beach. It's out of our control” This was followed by an inefficient check-in process, during which some members of our group were unable to complete the provided QR code check-in. Unfortunately, the poor service continued throughout the stay. Many staff members seemed annoyed when we ordered drinks, asked questions, or requested anything during meals. Eye-rolling and dismissive attitudes were common. One staff flat out told us that she did not want to be there for her shift. We did tip throughout our stay, at each meal, at the bar, beach, and housekeeping. Rooms Our room was upgraded to a penthouse suite, which was spacious, clean, and had a beautiful view. However, other members of our group were placed in incorrect room types—for example, duplex units instead of the one-bedroom accommodations they had booked. This was especially problematic for the grandparents in our group, who found the stairs difficult to manage. After some back-and-forth with the front desk, they were eventually moved. Dining & Bar The bar experience was inconsistent. Drinks were made differently each time, the liquor quality was poor, and beverages were served in unusually tiny cups. More concerning was the hygiene: staff frequently appeared to rinse used cups quickly in a sink and dry them with the same rag before reusing them. This was unacceptable. The buffet, particularly breakfast, lacked variety. The same limited options were repeated in slight variations each day. The egg station was extremely inefficient—similar to a small camping stove setup—where only one order was prepared at a time, resulting in long wait times every morning. Staff at the station were also unfriendly and slow. Lunch alternated between buffet and à la carte service. Buffet lunches had limited options and food often ran out before being replenished. À la carte lunches and dinners were painfully slow, often lasting hours. Service was both slow and unfriendly. There were no children’s menu options available at the à la carte restaurants, making dining with kids unnecessarily difficult. We regularly had to ask for menu modifications so the younger children had something appropriate to eat. Staff told us the grill was always an option for children, but many grill items were unavailable or poorly prepared. One day, pizzas ordered from the grill were made with ketchup instead of pizza sauce. There was also a time where we were told nothing from the grill menu was available and we needed to go out across the street and get little Caesar's pizza for the children. The service was so slow that the little Caesar's arrived and was finished before any of the adult meals had come out to the table. Dinner had the same issues as lunch: limited buffet variety, repeated menu items, and food/desserts running out quickly. If you did not get dessert at the beginning of your meal, chances were high the pastries would be gone by the end. Additionally, because of the open-air waterfront restaurant, birds were a major issue. On three separate occasions, someone in our group was pooped on by birds, and multiple times birds swooped down and stole food directly from our plates while we were eating. It felt unsanitary and unpleasant. Simple deterrents—such as removing overhead string lights where birds perch—could help mitigate this issue. Overall, I would not recommend this resort for families with young children, as they do not appear to cater well to them. Beach The beach was the biggest disappointment of the trip. It looked nothing like the photos currently posted on The Sands’ social media pages. Due to the high tide, there was often little to no usable beach space in the mornings, and beach chairs could not be set up until later in the day. This created a rush around staff setting up chairs, and securing a spot often required tipping heavily. The beach is also extremely rocky, water shoes are a must. Pool The pool was dirty and poorly maintained. During our entire stay, we never once saw it being cleaned. Debris such as straw wrappers, dirt, and garbage regularly accumulated in the water and along the edges of the pool with no visible effort from staff to remove it. It was unhygienic and unacceptable. Entertainment This was lacking in the evening. It was typically some variation or a live singer or a dj covering top 40 music. These sets were short and often either near done by the time we finished our lengthy dinner or there were no seats left on the patio area. Final Thoughts This resort requires significant improvement across the board, beginning with hospitality training for staff. A smile and basic courtesy go a long way, and those were largely absent throughout our stay. Overall, we left extremely disappointed and would not return or recommend The Sands. All of us in the group have travelled to numerous Caribbean destinations and this stay fell short across the board compared to all of our previous experiences. Read less

As we had only booked the holiday a fortnight before, we did not have a long time to get excited about our holiday at The Sands, Barbados. I could see mixed reviews, but I am always happy to do my own assessment. The hotel has a small feel about it. There are only 88 suites of a variety of sizes. We came off our cruise ship and twenty minutes later we were at the hotel on Worthing beach. The room was not ready, but we were free to use the facilities straightaway. The dining area is under canvas. Thankfully this was fine for us with the weather we had during our week’s stay. The food served is good quality and is sometimes a buffet and sometimes à la carte. There doesn't seem to be any way of knowing which it is going to be from one day to the next. Breakfast is always a buffet. In addition there were several barbecues held. We also did mixology and enjoyed the Manager's Cocktail Party. The macaroni cheese dish served the day we left was easily the best I have ever had. Typically Bajan dishes were regularly on offer and we enjoyed them. The omelettes were delicious. At breakfast and lunch birds are attracted by the food and the staff have a job trying to shoo them away. I believe this is a Caribbean issue. We took a tour the day before departure and didn't think we would be back in time for lunch. It was great that we were assured that there would be food for us no matter what time we returned. There is a choice of two red and two white wines and one rosé. No sparking wine is included in the AI. All were very good and the cocktails were just great. This was my big birthday trip. I really appreciated the bottle of bubbly and the floral towel art left in the room for me. Unfortunately the accompanying card put me at a decade older! We had a good chuckle. The hotel also has a rooftop restaurant, Noir, which provides a fine dining experience. Do not miss this, as it is excellent. I do not want to mention any staff names for fear of forgetting anyone, but we found everyone at the hotel to be pleasant and helpful.  Our first floor room, 33, was fabulous with a large living area and a very generous bedroom and a nice shower. We were extremely comfortable. You can hook up your Amazon fire stick to the television in the lounge. The large balcony has a chaise longue to sit on. As the hotel is All Inclusive, I am not quite sure why there is a kitchenette in the suite.  The hotel has a small supermarket next to it and you can walk to St Lawrence Gap in a quarter of an hour. You could also access Bridgetown on foot in just over an hour, with Carlisle Beach being closer.  Throughout our week we were happy to get up early to get a lounger under the palm trees on the small beach. It is a truly stunning setting. During the morning the tide rose high and most loungers had to be moved off the sand. By the end of the week little beach remained. However, the night before we left there was heavy rain and the following morning revealed much more sand and calmer weather than we had seen in our week.   A large proportion of guests were either Canadian or British.  We thoroughly enjoyed our stay at The Sands and wish to thank everyone at the hotel for such a lovely week. Read less

This could easily be a 5 star review if there would be more activities throughout the day and cater to all ages. A bit more dancing or fitness related stuff would be great. Wished the food would have been actually all inclusive. Most times we had an ala card meal for which the portions where so little and you weren't allowed to have two plates off the menu. Food was hit or miss. Buffet very small and repetitive. Kemar, Michael and Nikolai made the stay much better. Thanks gentleman! Read less

Our first time on the island for our annual girls’ trip 2026. We stayed in a spacious three-bedroom, two-bathroom suite, which was perfect for the three of us—comfortable, convenient, and ideal for sharing. Michael from guest services was exceptional. He went above and beyond to make sure we had the best experience, helping us plan and book all of our excursions seamlessly. We were also so impressed by the rest of the team—Kenmar, Nicoli, David (who made incredible cosmos!), Antonio, who always kept the energy up, and all the wonderful ladies in the dining hall especially Anna Lisa who always had a smile on her face. We left a little piece of ourselves there definitely a trip to remember. 🇧🇧 Read less