Mango Bay

We stayed at Mango Bay after a weeks’cruise hoping to chill. The weather didn’t help as it rained on a few days. On arrival we had quite a formal greeting ....filling in forms and handing over 67 u.s.dollars room tax. Our room wasn’t ready so we were taken for lunch . Finally went to our room about 4 p.m. A large room.good walk in shower.but up 35 stairs .A standard room without lift facilities...overlooking pool .Fine. Two pool towels are brought round each evening by a bevy of ladies .We were told there would be a turn down service ,and mozzie plug tablets put in machine and of course the obligatory chock.We found all this rather bizarre as the ladies came at a different time each night ,usually when one of us was in the shower or getting changed for dinner. They knocked on the door and just stood there after handing over towels ....waiting for a tip we think. Why there can’t be a towel hut in the grounds where we can return and change towels I don’t know.This system is a complete waste of staff time. Meals are quite satisfactory ...good choice.Buffets on occasion which were also good. You have to book a time for lunch and evening meal and we found that if you didn’t book early you sometimes had to take pot luck Service....some of the waitresses were downright rude on occasion and definitely had attitude. Some were charming and enjoyed a laugh. We asked to keep our room on the last day as we were not leaving until p.m.We were told there was not a room available...then found our friends had kept theirs. I asked a second time and the lady on reception very grudgingly gave us a room ...again was quite rude as was the manager when we returned the key ...didn’t even say thank you. The sun beds are good and there is an area of grass if you do not like sand. Entertainment was good each eveningy Read less

The Resort is beautifully situated with an outstanding view of the ocean and a pristine beach. Our room was comfortable with a good size balcony and unobstructed sea view. All the staff were personable and very professional. The grounds were immaculate with attractive flora. The meals were of good quality but our stay (2 nights) was not long enough to really review the available menu choices. Our 40th wedding anniversary which was in December was recognized as a surprise to us with a nice card and a bottle of Champagne in our room. Read less

We have travelled extensively throughout the Caribbean over the last 20 years and this was our first time at Mango Bay. While some aspects were fine others left much to be desired. Facilities Although not a large resort (76 rooms and approximately 150 guests) the restaurant and bar facilities are hopelessly inadequate for the number of guests. Lunch and dinner were each split into five sittings which had to be booked at breakfast and our preferred times were not always available. The reason is that there is room on the restaurant terrace for only 30 or so guests although there was some overflow into the drab interior dining area. The bar area is also small and at times in the evening was often taken over by one or two large groups. We never managed to have a pre-dinner drink during our stay as at least one large group had already commandeered most of the chairs early on and invariably had dinner at the last sitting. At times even after our dinner we simply couldn’t get into the bar and had to sit by the beach until seats became available. Food The breakfast buffet was good and Jethro did a sterling job with eggs and omelettes. Lunch and dinner were very much hit and miss. Sometimes it was very good and other times poor. They couldn’t even get a simple item like boiled rice consistently right. Sometimes it was fine and other times it was simply a dollop of wet sludge. The ‘catch of the day’ was nothing of the sort. The first night it was tuna and the last night swordfish. In between, every lunch and dinner, it was marlin which suggests that it wasn’t freshly caught at all but that they had a chunk of marlin in the freezer and cut pieces off it for days on end. No sign of grouper, snapper, mahi mahi, wahoo, etc. which have been on the menu at other Caribbean resorts we’ve stayed at. Dishes described as spicy or hot were completely bland. The barbecue night was a particular disappointment. All that was on offer were ribs, chicken drumsticks and small pieces of fish (yep, you guessed it, marlin). No sign of the steaks, chops, prawns, etc. we’ve had at every other Caribbean barbecue. Interestingly, returning guests told us that the quality of the food had declined even from 12 months previously. Beverages The choice of drinks was very limited. Unbelievably for the Caribbean there was only one type of dark rum available. On our second night my wife asked for an amaretto and was told that it was out of stock but that it would be available the following day. Unsurprisingly it wasn’t available during our entire stay. When I asked on our first evening what wines they had the reply was simply “Red, white or rose” which was of course not what I meant. Staff The restaurant staff were generally communicative and efficient but a few were disinterested and inefficient, mixing up drinks orders and taking a long time to serve food. 20 minutes for an ice cream must be some sort of record. The bar staff were generally very good. The housekeeping staff were excellent, invariably being efficient, pleasant and polite. The front desk staff were polite but they managed to lose our departure pick up details left in good time by the tour rep who had to leave another set the day before we travelled back. Health & Safety The first thing guests have to do on arrival is sign a health and safety waiver absolving the resort from any liability from injuries sustained there irrespective of the cause. This was a first for us. The biggest breach of H&S occurred one afternoon when a female guest who was completely drunk wanted to go on a jet ski. Unbelievably the water sports guy saw no problem in kitting her out with a life jacket ready to take a ride. It was only when her friend raced down the beach and dragged her away that a potentially catastrophic situation was avoided. Sun Beds At check in all guests are given a notice requesting them not to reserve sun beds, especially on the beach and by the pool at the same time. Any sun beds left unoccupied for more than 30 minutes (an hour over lunchtime) would have the towels and other belongings removed and stored at reception. Fair enough. However, from our room we heard and saw guests reserving sun beds before 6 am and not once were the towels and belongings on any sun beds left unoccupied for many hours removed as stated. One large group routinely reserved sun beds both on the beach and by the pool, moving between the two, and nothing was done about it. The first two mornings we went to the beach after breakfast and ended up having to settle for the last two sun beds by the pool which were in permanent shade. We didn’t go to a 4 star Caribbean resort to have to get up at the crack of dawn to bag sun beds, a practice more associated with low end establishments in places like Benidorm and Tenerife. After that, however, we had no choice but to get to the beach by 7 am to make sure we got two sun beds for the day. The first time we got the last two sun beds on a row of 12 and, apart from breakfast and lunch, occupied them all day. The other 10 sun beds remained unoccupied until the selfish guests returned in the late afternoon having been out all day. The sun bed situation is totally unacceptable especially as it's contrary to the resort’s policy. The resort staff turned a blind eye to it and the stated remedial action was never taken. While not a total disaster our stay at Mango Bay was by some distance the most disappointing holiday we have ever had in the Caribbean. We will not be returning and would not recommend the resort to anyone else. Read less

This was our first time staying at Mango Bay ,having been to Barbados many times . whilst it was in the heart of Holetown where it can get busy ,once inside the facilities we found everything to be better than we expected it to be. the location,Food ,Service and overall atmosphere was great! we will recommend this hotel to anyone . Up Grade your room to Beach or Pool side is a good idea. Read less

We are currently here at Mango Bay and on our last day. We upgraded the room prior to coming as I didn’t want any noise to spoil our stay. The room a decent size although it is a little dated but quiet. Food has been great with nice menus for lunch and evening dinner it’s nice to sit together and eat unrushed or doing the relay with your partner which you often have to do a larger buffet establishments. The breakfast has a really good spread also. The main thing we check on before booking is how easy is it to get a sun bed with parasol near the pool. The good news is we have had no issues finding one during our stay. Even at 10am there are beds available. Not a great deal around the hotel, Hole town is small but others have done shopping here. Location is great right on the beach. All the staff are really friendly and the guests while we were here have been a great mix. Overall a really nice hotel suitable for couples who enjoy a low key relaxing hotel. Read less