Crystal Cove by Elegant Hotels

Barbados, Caribbean

Virgin rating

Cave Bar
Swim-Up Cave Bar
Vista Coffee & Wine Bar
Vista Bar
Sunset deck
A video preview image
Cave Bar
Swim-Up Cave Bar
Vista Coffee & Wine Bar
Vista Bar
Sunset deck

The hotel

Crystal Cove is an all-inclusive hotel located right on the beachfront on the platinum west coast of Barbados. This beautiful resort features lush gardens and three impressive freshwater swimming pools, complete with a spectacular waterfall and swim-up cave bar. Flowers cascade over walls and balconies, and everything leads down to a glorious beach with a generous array of water sports, including water-skiing, sailing and more, all complimentary of course! There is a fabulous kids’ club to keep the little ones out of your hair, allowing you to relax and enjoy the full range of facilities and entertainment (of which there are plenty!).

Amenities

  • Kayaking
  • Sailing
  • Snorkelling
  • Tennis
  • Water Skiing
  • Windsurfing
  • Babysitting service
  • Kids Club
  • Families
  • Honeymoon
  • Wedding
  • Bar

Where is it

In St James, on a delightful west coast beach. 15-minutes to Bridgetown. Transfer time from airport: 30 minutes.

Hotel information

88 rooms on 2 floors in various buildings with no lifts. All with a balcony or terrace, air-conditioning, satellite TV, mini fridge, complimentary WiFi access, safe, bathrobe, slippers, and hairdryer. 

Pool/Garden View Rooms with 1 king-size bed or twin beds, sleep maximum 2 adults and 1 infant (up to age 2 years).

Please note: the majority of the Pool Garden View Rooms have a garden view and the pool views are limited. All rooms are non-smoking.

All Inclusive of: all meals including afternoon tea and all-day dining. Local and premium-brand drinks and house wine (fine wine and Champagne at extra charge). All activities and entertainment unless otherwise stated. Water taxi to select west coast sister properties. Dine Around programme with other select Elegant Hotels properties (drink and meal supplements may apply).

Oceanview Rooms - with beautiful sea views and 1 king-size bed or twin beds, sleeping maximum 2 adults.

Junior Suite Pool/Garden View - with a separate sitting area and sofa bed, lovely views of the pool or garden, and 1 king-size bed, sleeping maximum 3 people.

Junior Suite Oceanview - as Junior Suite Pool/Garden View but with beautiful sea views, sleeping maximum 3 people.

1-Bedroom Suite Pool/Garden View - bedroom with separate living room or loft suite with upstairs bedroom overlooking living room, living room includes sofa bed and second full bathroom, 1 king-size bed, sleeping maximum 4 adults or 2 adults, 2 children and 1 infant (up to 2 years of age).

1-Bedroom Suite Oceanview - bedroom with separate living room or loft suite with upstairs bedroom overlooking living room, living room includes sofa bed and second full bathroom. 1 king-size bed, sleeping maximum 4 adults or 2 adults, 2 children and 1 infant (up to 2 years of age).

Reflections (all day dining with buffet breakfast and a la carte dinner, as well as international buffet evening on Wednesdays). Drifters Restaurant and Bar (beachfront Caribbean restaurant, serving casual buffet lunch, afternoon tea, and a la carte dinner, as well as beach BBQ on Saturdays). Cave Bar (swim-up pool bar). Vista Coffee & Wine Bar (serving drinks and light bites). The Beach Bar. Taste of Elegance Dine Around Programme offers exchange dining with select sister hotels' restaurants* (meal and drinks supplements may apply).

Regular evening entertainment and weekly manager's cocktail party. Events hosted at Vista Coffee & Wine bar to include wine pairings and tapas nights.

3-tiered freshwater swimming pool. Spa services available*. Fitness centre. Wellness classes including yoga, pilates, and water aerobics. 2 floodlit tennis courts. Complimentary motorised and non-motorised water sports including snorkelling, stand up paddle boarding, banana boats, tubing, sailing, kayaking, and water-skiing. Beach Olympics. Freddie's Island & Adventure tour*. Preferred tee times at Apes Hill Golf Club*. Complimentary Flying Fish Kids' Club for ages 3-12 years with latest game consoles, pool table, electric race track and more. Swimming with the turtles snorkel tour*. Mixology demos.

Room service* (meal times only). Complimentary WiFi available in the rooms and throughout the resort. Laundry service*. Complimentary daytime water taxi (subject to availability and weather conditions) to select West Coast Elegant Hotels. Gift shop*. Babysitting available*. Green Globe certified. Beach Ambassador service. Concierge services to assist with island excursions.

A Tourism Fee will be charged per bedroom, per night and will be collected at check out. The rate is subject to change by the Government, and varies by hotel room. Fees currently range from 8.75 Barbadian dollar (approximately £3.90) to 35 Barbadian dollar (approximately £16.00) per bedroom, per night.  

1 night between 5 Jan—31 Jan, and 1 Mar—21 Dec.

5 nights between 1 Feb—28 Feb.

7 nights between 22 Dec—2 Jan.

* Denotes local charge.

Please note: child ages are up to and including 16 years.

Please note: Drifters restaurant and bar is open subject to occupancy numbers.

Dress code: dining is elegantly casual after 6:00pm.

Please note: the Dine Around programme is only available at select properties and may be subject to an additional cost dependant on the board basis booked. A complimentary water taxi to select west coast Elegant properties is available during daytime only and subject to availability and weather conditions.

Rating summary

  • Location Image of the Tripadvisor rating
  • Sleep Quality Image of the Tripadvisor rating
  • Rooms Image of the Tripadvisor rating
  • Service Image of the Tripadvisor rating
  • Value Image of the Tripadvisor rating
  • Cleanliness Image of the Tripadvisor rating

Traveller rating

  • Excellent (1541)
  • Very good (635)
  • Average (204)
  • Poor (94)
  • Terrible (79)
Image of the Tripadvisor rating Lovely location & very relaxing.

Dec 4, 2023 MARK R Lewes, United Kingdom

It's a little tired now,particularly the rooms, but this can be forgiven as the location & food makes up for it.Most of the staff are lovely,a few were indifferent.All in all we preferred it to The Colony Club as it was more relaxed & offered more.Once the refurbishment is completed the year after next is should be amazing.The General Manager -… Read more
It's a little tired now,particularly the rooms, but this can be forgiven as the location & food makes up for it.Most of the staff are lovely,a few were indifferent.All in all we preferred it to The Colony Club as it was more relaxed & offered more.Once the refurbishment is completed the year after next is should be amazing.The General Manager - Raj - was an absolute delight & made you feel very welcome. Read less
Image of the Tripadvisor rating Not as bad as some reviewers make out but room for improvement

Dec 4, 2023 N1100QLdavidb

Before arriving, I couldn’t understand why there were some very good reviews and some terrible reviews of this hotel. Now I think I know why. First let me reassure you that the hotel is fine – clean rooms, good choice of food and very friendly and helpful staff. Yes things look a little tired but a lot of hotels do after being shut for months due… Read more
Before arriving, I couldn’t understand why there were some very good reviews and some terrible reviews of this hotel. Now I think I know why. First let me reassure you that the hotel is fine – clean rooms, good choice of food and very friendly and helpful staff. Yes things look a little tired but a lot of hotels do after being shut for months due to Covid. However, if you want to find fault you can do so and I think many are simply down to a lack of attention to detail. Little things that with a bit more care wouldn’t be an issue. For example, making sure the terraces are clean – we spotted a lump of gum that wasn’t cleaned up for several days, having an adequate supply of ice. The hotel seem keen to receive comments and act on them when they do. So if you’ve got a complaint let them know. People do ‘bag’ the sunbeds around the pools so if you want to be by the pool (as opposed to on the beach where there are plenty of sunbeds) you’ll have to get up early. To be fair most people took to the sunbeds shortly after breakfast but some where left for several hours (I spotted one that was left for over 5 hours). This is a tricky one for the hotel to deal with and short of having a ‘sunbed monitor’ I’m not sure there is much they can do – there are signs up but these are generally ignored. Staff can sometimes be slow when serving you but that’s the Caribbean way so chill out and just accept it. All in all we enjoyed our time at Crystal Cove. Yes things can be improved but it is nowhere near as bad as some reviewers make out. Overall rating 3-stars Read less
Image of the Tripadvisor rating Our happy place

Nov 29, 2023 Tony B Stevenage, United Kingdom

Another 10 days in paradise :) Our second visit and another fabulous break, wonderful staff, lovely people, great food and great service right next to the Caribbean. The rooms are in need of some tlc, but ask and you shall receive was our experience. (a faulty lock was eased to get us in, Then replaced and properly fixed the next day) There's a… Read more
Another 10 days in paradise :) Our second visit and another fabulous break, wonderful staff, lovely people, great food and great service right next to the Caribbean. The rooms are in need of some tlc, but ask and you shall receive was our experience. (a faulty lock was eased to get us in, Then replaced and properly fixed the next day) There's a major renovation due early 2024 which is the only reason we're hesitating on next year's booking. We will definitely return to 'our happy place' at the earliest opportunity. Read less
Image of the Tripadvisor rating Pros and Cons for a Three-Star Experience

Nov 19, 2023 Natickpal Massachusetts

Crystal Cove recently became a Marriott hotel along with other Elegant Hotels on Barbados. We have some very positive things to say about our stay, but a numerous number of negatives. Overall, these balance out, thus a three-star rating. Positives • Very nice and spacious ocean front suite • Large beach • One area of the beach was very good for… Read more
Crystal Cove recently became a Marriott hotel along with other Elegant Hotels on Barbados. We have some very positive things to say about our stay, but a numerous number of negatives. Overall, these balance out, thus a three-star rating. Positives • Very nice and spacious ocean front suite • Large beach • One area of the beach was very good for wading, soft sand, calm water • Pleasant staff • À la carte dining was very good (but only available a few times a week) • Breakfast buffet • Fantastic scuba diving near the hotel • Beautiful views from our balcony Negatives • Very limited shade available for beach • The larger beach had no shade (why no umbrellas, cabanas, etc. - this is called a resort hotel??) • Many beach chairs were in disrepair • The shade canopy on the beach chairs provided little protection • Beach towels had to be brought from the room, you only get two towels • Very limited hand towels and facecloths provided during the stay • Small pools and pool decks with limited seating and shade • One restaurant (the second restaurant is open sporadically) • Very limited room service menu This was our first stay in Barbados, and we enjoyed our stay, but if and when we return, we would likely try another hotel. Read less
Image of the Tripadvisor rating Time for a Refurbishment.

Nov 18, 2023 Wander00452735000

This was our third visit to Crystal Cove, but our first since the takeover by Marriott Bonvoy. We were really hoping that many of the reviews we had read were perhaps slightly exaggerated, but unfortunately not. I do feel sorry for everyone having paid so much money, and expecting a 4 star experience and only getting a possible 3 star if… Read more
This was our third visit to Crystal Cove, but our first since the takeover by Marriott Bonvoy. We were really hoping that many of the reviews we had read were perhaps slightly exaggerated, but unfortunately not. I do feel sorry for everyone having paid so much money, and expecting a 4 star experience and only getting a possible 3 star if that. Quite a few of the staff have worked at the hotel for a number of years, and have certainly seen the changes. The last General Manager that we knew (Olivia) was wonderful, and made sure that all of her guests were comfortable and happy, every grievance was quickly dealt with. All of her staff followed her example, and they enjoyed their work. Now a lot of the staff seem to be very embarrassed by the decline in the hotel's standards. Most are charming and work very hard, but a few seem to have just given up along with the hotel's appearance. Someone suggested in an earlier review about the restaurants and the quality of the food, that even if the hotel standards had diminished the food quality certainly should not have, but it has fallen dreadfully and sometimes the lunch menu was simply awful. Our room needed to be upgraded and decorated, but our aircon and bathroom was OK so we tolerated it. Someone staying in a ground floor room nearby had moved four times because of all sorts of problems, so we considered ourselves lucky! I could carry on with endless moans and faults but will not, we just want to say that a once stunning hotel in a prime position in Barbados has now lost its attraction, and its appeal that once made it very special place. Read less