Royalton St Lucia

I just arrived from my birthday trip at Royalton and my family and I had a great experience. I was skeptical due to some of the reviews but glad I ignored the negative comments. We had the free transfer from Nexus and while the booking process took a few calls and emails (directly with nexus) the service in person was top notch. My daughter was light headed due upon arrival to the airport and the nexus attendant was so empathetic and kind to us. She had the driver wait while my daughter saw the airport nurse and didn’t rush us at all until it was safe for us to leave. Our booking included a shared transfer and we got lucky to have a private van with AC and the most welcoming driver with cold drinks and extremely pleasant. Everyone in these reviews talks about needing nausea medication due to how long it takes to get to the resort. The drive from the resort to airport was about 1 hour and 40 mins with no traffic. When driving to the resort it took over 2 hours but it really didn’t bother us because we knew it wasn’t going to be around the corner. Luckily my family and I don’t get car sick so unless that’s something you have an issue with than the drive is really not that bad. It takes an hour to get to the capital Castries and from there could be another 24-35 mins with no traffic. Upon arrival to the resort there was no welcome drink but I’m sure we would have gotten one of the attendant was there. I’ve been to dozens of resorts where I’ve gotten one and others where I didn’t. Not that serious or something to complain about in my book, the drinks were actually right on the concierge desk if we were that thirsty we could just grab it ourselves. Check in the day we arrived was a breeze and there was a $60 charge total for all four of us that has to be paid upon arrival. When we arrived in our room I noticed we were upgraded to a swim out which was such a nice birthday surprise! It really set the tone for the trip. We ate at Calypso, Grazie and Hunter. All were good, you have to make reservations through the app so I recommend doing that as soon as you arrive. We didn’t have reservations for hunter and the host was kind enough to let us have an outdoor table when we told her it was my birthday on our last night. I really appreciated it, they even sang happy birthday another positive was not having to wake up at crack of dawn to reserve a beach chair or Bali bed. The beach was my favorite part and so relaxing. Yes they have vendors like any other carribean island but I saw the same two guy daily but once you tell them you’re not interested they’ll leave you alone. I only saw one waiter at the beach but it’s not a huge beach, it was perfect in my opinion. I did have to get up to get my drinks but they have several bars and one right on the corner of the beach. We loved the rum punch! I didn’t feel like our drinks were watered down like most resorts. One of the only things I would recommend they work on is having more consistent housekeeping a little earlier in the day. I actually never want my room cleaned at resorts but since I was traveling with an 18 month old we had diapers and trash we needed to get rid of and some days the housekeeper would come by a little late around 2-4pm which fell during nap time but it wasn’t something I’d go and complain about as she was super pleasant and gave us bags and came by more than once. Lastly, people need to stop saying the staff are rude. I found most to be reserved but extremely polite and respectful. Some were more outgoing than others but that doesn’t necessarily mean a person is rude. I didn’t encounter one rude person and will absolutely visit Saint Lucia again. This resort is perfect for families and my 17 year old and 18 month old had a blast despite the kids pool area being closed. Read less

Just got back from 2 weeks at the royalton and had a good time The transfer and airport was ridiculous , it took 2 hrs to get out of the airport and 3.5 hrs on the bus as the traffic in Castries is always mayhem, we landed at 2 and checked in at 745 As far as all inclusive resorts go it was better than some we’ve stayed at but not as good as beaches, good middle ground. The food was a good variety and above average quality, the app was easy to use and book restaurants, rooms were in good condition as was the resort, sun beds were comfortable and never reserved, drinks were very tasty , I don’t recommend the hideaway, a waste of money in my opinion, this was said by many I spoke to also The pool was quite dirty and needs cleaning more than once a week many kids got ear infections from the water . Ignore the weather forecast for this island, it rains for 2 min once a day and is sunny the rest of the time !! The white party in town is a red flag, the only people wearing white are the fresh meat , so you stand out !! We were offered drugs the whole time and pestered, that said we felt safe Things that made sense - no towel cards - fully stocked coffee shop - premium drinks - 24hr room service - room keys on bracelet - room electric works 24hr without a card Things that didn’t - stupidly loud music and wanna be dj’s by the pool - £200 visitors tax - no bottle water by pool - the blatant drug use around the pool , the smell made us feel sick on many occasions we loved our stay and once past the transfer it’s bliss We wouldn’t return as have done all there is to see her but easily the most frustrating and beautiful island we’ve ever been to Read less

This was our second visit to this hotel (we previously stayed in Oct 2023) and we felt that the hotel had gone downhill since our previous visit. Arrival When we arrived, there was no welcome drink, or cooling towel after the long journey from the airport, and we were not acknowledged as returning guests. We had requested 2 x double beds when we booked, and again a couple of weeks prior to arrival but we did not receive this room type as a "big group" had taken all the rooms. I asked to speak to a manager and was told one was on their way, and then a few minutes later was told they were busy with another guest and would call me "later" to try and sort out an alternative room - we never received that call, and didnt get to change room. Room We had to find the room ourselves, along with our cases in the pitch black, as there was no one available to take us. We had 1 x king bed and one pull out sofa bed. Both of these needed replacing, especially the king bed. The air con barely worked, which we reported but nothing was ever done. Both sinks were blocked and took forever to drain, which nothing was done about. The standard of cleaning was OK, but not very thorough. We noticed the same hairs (not ours!!) on the floor for a lot of the stay. Food Breakfast was an absolute lottery as to whether you got a table that was adequately set or not. We would constantly be shown past fully set tables and be sat at a table that had no glasses, cups, cutlery etc etc. It also took ages to get hot drinks. One member of staff was very rude to us one day when we asked for some cups! The breakfast experience just got very boring & frustrating as each day went on The quality of food was good in the buffet and we tried the Italian & Calypso Restaurants. The Italian was very slow, but the Calypso was great service and lovely food. We couldnt get the app to work, despite asking reception to help. We finally got the Concierge to fix it, and it turned out someone else's name had been put on our room. Reception would have been able to see this, but didnt want to help us. The lunch time food truck was also great, with nice food and quick service. Bars - all bartenders were very friendly and quick service. For our first few days, we would get drinks brought to us at the pool, but that service seemed to stop a after a couple of days. Pool - the main pool was nice, but full of sand, we only saw it being cleaned once in our 11 night stay. Also, for half of our stay, the gents toilets by the main pool were closed for maintenance and there were hardly any other toilets around. There was dinner by the beach one night for all guests, but as there was no gents toilets available we skipped it, due to hygiene concerns. Quite often the other toilets would be blocked, or very dirty. On several days, there were guests who had booked cabanas and had music at very loud volume, with lots of swearing and racist language in the music, and the staff didnt do anything about this. On another occasion, there was some sort of karaoke at the Hideaway, and a guest was swearing profusely into the microphone and this could be heard all round the main pool. The Vibe team member just seemed to be encouraging her to carry on. Watersports The watersports team are the best thing about the hotel. They were always very friendly and helpful when we wanted to borrow kayaks & snorkel sets. Departure We wanted a late check out as we weren't getting picked up until 5pm. We checked the night before and were told this would be fine as our room was not booked for the next day and to come back at 9am to confirm. We went back at 9am to confirm to be told we couldnt have the room as it had been allocated to someone else. "Neil" the front desk supervisor was very rude and unhelpful about this and didnt do anything to find a solution for us. In the end we had to contact Guest Services who arranged a courtesy room for half an hour so we could shower etc. As were were leaving, we saw two tables set up ready for some group/birthday bookings to check in. We felt this was very unfair to all of the other guests were were made to stand in long lines to check in. We were told that one night, a member of staff on reception closed her check in line and went home when there were people still in the queue. These people were just told to join the back of the other queue! We also saw lots of people complaining to the TUI rep one night at check in. Final thoughts The hotel grounds are lovely and well maintained, and the beach & ocean are stunning. Most of the service staff were friendly and helpful, but reception staff were not helpful. We had a terrible first impression after a long flight & transfer, and after having spent a lot of money and returning to this property, nothing was done to change our room and fix the issues in the room that we were allocated. Our departing impression was poor as well, with the late check out experience and seeing other guests getting VIP check in and treatment. Overall, we felt this hotel gave preferential treatment to the larger bookings - birthdays groups etc. Read less

So came to this location end of October 2024 early November. We booked this location for a wedding/ my anniversary My travel agent booked me and my spouse a king ocean view. When we arrived the room was a double bed and had a very odd smell. We also experienced a huge water bug that decided to join us. We had the best butlers tho. Nelson and Nakita they were awesome. Nelson promised that he would have us out of that room by morning. We were able to get out of that room the next day into a much better location, it was almost as if Nelson could fill our vibe. The room service for us was on point everyday to clean and stock our room. What I didn’t like was most of the staff seemed so unhappy. I don’t know if it is due to how they are treated at work but it shows in their work ethics. The breakfast buffet the employees were very dry not welcoming, just to ask a question you got attitude. It was very hard to deal with. The ride to the resort from the hotel is about 1 hour and 30 mins or more away so keep that in mind. My best experience was my two butlers. Oh and don’t forget if you are not apart of the hideaway you can not and I repeat can not go over to their pool. We got kicked out it was just horrible. For me to have “ diamond club as an adult I should be able to go wherever. This location is not cheap. When you are on vacation you want to feel like you are “ free”. We were very respectful. The bartenders at the hideaway seemed upset that we were there because I guess it was extra work for them so they had other staff come and tell us to leave. We left peacefully. But we had a huge party 50 and none of us will unfortunately be back. I’m not sure if there are not enough staff but you would go to the sports bar and wait almost and hour for food and the waitress would place it down with such attitude. The room service is nuts. We ordered at 11pm received a call to confirm. They said 45 mins. We received another call about 45 minutes later saying it was on the way. We ended up falling asleep and at 3 or 4 am we received a knock on the door!!!!! Who’s eating this food at that time? Management needs to change the way they conduct business or I just don’t see this resort being a place to visit. I wish I could have given a better review, but unfortunately I was unable to. Read less