Turtle Beach by Elegant Hotels

Turtle Beach is a oceanfront resort in Christchurch district of Barbados. My family of 2 adults and 4 young children stayed for about a week in two connecting suites with ocean views on the fourth story. Looking back on our stay, I would give Turtle Beach a mixed review. I would say that, if you go there with the correct expectations and depending on what your priorities are, it can be a pleasant stay. Personally, our family enjoyed our stay overall but would probably try to find a different resort if we were to ever return to Barbados. Overall impression: the hotel itself is of British colonial architecture, and is kept decently clean at all times. Basic facilities function, but many things are either not available or out of order (see below for details). The rooms are clean, well air conditioned, and at least our rooms had a spectacular view of the beach and ocean. Public areas tend to be open air and not air conditioned, so it can be quite hot and humid at times especially when dining (all dining options are open air only). The white sand beach is only a short walk away (literally steps away from the hotel itself), and is lovely although do note that because of the resort's location on the south/east side of the island, there is quite a lot of seaweed flotsam all over the beach, piling up in huge rows of mounds, and also quite a bit of loose seaweed in the water (the seaweed presumably washes up to shore from the Sargasso sea - Barbados is technically in the Atlantic, rather than Caribbean, ocean). Rooms: our connecting suits were suitably spacious, with a table, sofa couch, an bed, along with a balcony facing the beach. The view of the ocean was probably the highlight of our stay at the resort. In the daytime, the sparkling cerulean blue of the Atlantic pairs with a gentle breeze, while at night you can listen to the sounds of the waves and the nonstop singing of the endemic Barbados Whistle Frogs - this initially kept us up all night but we got used to it by day 3 or 4 and it just blended into the background noise. Be careful of condensation from the A/C unit - the floor was wet from condensation and my wife slipped and hit her chin on the tile floor on the first day just as we arrived in our room after check in, leaving her with a nasty cut on her chin. The management apologized for the incident but offered no other compensation. In any case, on future nights we found that we could avoid this issue by either closing the balcony doors or by adjusting the temperature of the room a bit higher if the doors are open. Facilities: there are few facilities. There are two spacious pools which are both clean and well maintained, and the guest ratio is such that you would not be overly crowded at any time (at least during our visit season). There are also tennis courts, a well-stocked gift shop, and a kid's club. The kid's club is free but they only operate for limited hours and you are required to take your kids out during lunch and dinner times (also, you are required to remain on-property if your kids are checked in to the club). My kids generally enjoyed the activities at the kid's club, most of which were free with the exception of the t-shirt decorating class. The jacuzzi was out of order the entire duration of our stay, and there seems to be no indication that there were any plans to fix it. As mentioned, we stayed on the fourth floor of the resort, and one thing I wish I had known earlier was that the elevator was also out of commission throughout our stay (they were actively repairing it during our week stay, but the repairs were not completed by the time we checked out). This was very inconvenient as we had to make multiple trips up and down 3 flights of stairs each day and I had just recovered from a massive leg infection that caused my much difficulty with walking and especially climbing of stairs. Had I known that the elevators would be out of commission the entire trip, I would have tried to find an alternative that did not involve so much climbing. Other nitpicky things show that the resort could use some TLC/fixing, for example, in the main lobby, which like other common areas in the resort are open-air, only one of the ceiling fans out of maybe five or so was working. Considering the heat and mosquitoes on property, it would have been really nice if they could get all the fans working. Beach: the beach itself is generally clean except for the afore-mentioned huge mounds of seaweed that you had to climb over to reach the ocean, and the sand is the white sand and the water is the warm waters you would expect from the West Indies. In other words, it is one of the highlights of our trip. Unlike in other Caribbean islands, there were no merchants/panhandlers on the beaches trying to sell you items, and also we did not find a single piece of trash anywhere. The sand itself is soft but if you go into the water, there is some rock/coral on the ocean bed, so you do have to be mindful where you step. Also, do note that Turtle Beach resort is a smaller resort so the stretch of beach directly adjacent to the property is quite narrow, which is not a problem per se since the beaches in Barbados are all public, so you are free to wander along the long coastline even if it crosses in front of other resorts/properties. However, do note that adjacent to Turtle Beach is the very large Sandals resort, and while the beach is shared (being public), the beach chairs and umbrellas are for Sandal's guests only. Why does this matter? Because due to the hurricane, much of Turtle Beach's immediate beachfront has been eroded, so in order to get to any appreciable sand, you have to wander over to the beachfront adjacent to Sandals, meaning that if you wanted to leave your possession on Turtle Beach resort's lounge chairs, it would require some walking. Also, as the name of the resort implies, turtles nest in the immediate vicinity of the resort, and at night you can see turtles climbing onshore to lay eggs. Service: service at the resort is very much hit or miss. On some occasions, staff are very polite and friendly, especially the service manager and activities desk, which were very accommodating and courteous. Other times, the staff can be absent or exhibit selective hearing. For example, when dining at the main dining area, you have to check in with your room number (food is generally all-inclusive with some minor exceptions e.g. some wines) and they would then usually ask if you want some tea or coffee (or cold drinks/alcohol). For breakfast, I always request hot tea. About half the time, I get the hot tea I asked for on the first try. One day they did not ask at all, and the other days, I had to ask more than once to get my hot tea. On one particular day, which I did not notice to be especially busy, my hot tea never arrived despite the fact they had asked me twice if I wanted any. This is representative of the service at the resort. Although generally friendly and accommodating, you don't always get what you asked for, and sometimes you have to repeat yourself, and sometimes you simply won't get it anyway. Other times, you will get what you asked for, I guess there is an element of luck. The exception to this I would say is the activities desk, where the staff were extremely helpful and expedient, and front desk/managerial staff, who were also polite and efficient. Food: food was decidedly average at the resort. There are three main dining locations: Chelonia, the buffet area, which serves breakfast and dinner; Sandtrap, another buffet area that serves lunch by the pool, and Asiagos, a reservation dinner-only ala carte menu Italian restaurant. All dining areas are outdoors only, meaning it can be very hot especially on humid nights if you are dressed up. The quality of food at these three restaurants range from mediocre to good. If you are familiar with cruise ship dining, then Chelonia's buffets are somewhat better than you would get from the Lido deck buffet on a typical economy cruise ship (e.g. Carnival, Royal), while Asiagos would be a slight step down from the food at dinner in a cruise ship main dining hall. Almost all food and drinks including alcoholic drinks are complimentary, and this includes the minifridge/bar in your room. They are generous with their drinks and rum punch, which is readily available as long as the bar is open. Be aware that they are strict about the dining hours, so especially on your arrival day, you may want to take note of the hours of operation. Chelonia is open from 7am-930am and from 730pm-930pm, Sandtrap is open from 1230pm-3pm. Asiagos requires a reservation from the activities desk and is open from 7-930pm. There is an ice cream parlour open from 10am-6pm which was the highlight of my kid's stay at the resort, and I thought that the ice cream was of pretty high quality. Next door to the ice-cream parlour is a cake/coffee shop, service several types of coffee/expresso, cakes, pies, and other confections, and also panini sandwiches. This is a good place to go if you get hungry in between meals. Hot tip: if you are going on an excursion and would miss a meal, you can request a pack lunch from the activities office, and you can collect a pack lunch consisting of a sandwhich, drink, fruit, and bag of chips instead of spending money for food during your excursion. Overall: I think that if you are looking for a quiet and relaxing resort that will take care of all your basic needs, has an excellent view of the ocean and easy access to the beach, and are not too fussy about food, won't be upset if service is hit or miss, and are aware that some things are likely to be out or order and may cause some inconvenience, which the resort will not compensate you for, then this can be a decent choice to stay. We did enjoy ourselves, even though my wife got hurt on the first day, we had to climb the stairs to the top floor every day, and the jacuzzi hot tub never worked, and some of the waiters were indifferent to us. Yes that's a list, but the thing about Barbados is that you really can't argue with the beauty of the location, especially if your hotel has direct access to the beach and you get a room with a view. Focusing on the good, we found that it was a good stay overall, but we would be eager to try somewhere else on a future stay, because I believe that it can do better. Read less

We stayed at Turtle Beach for 5 nights as part of our 30th anniversary trip to Barbados. We heard great things about the resort and were very much looking forward to our stay. Unfortunately, all we left was disappointed and unimpressed. The room we stayed in (Ocean View 1 bedroom suite) was beyond dated. Honestly, the entire resort needs updating. Nothing inspiring at all, not even the decorations. There are 3 restaurants (Italian, buffet and "coastal" cuisine) and they were all very average, especially for an all-inclusive. There were two bars, one in the buffet restaurant and a very small one out by the Sand Trap. The liquor, wine and beer selections were very basic - except for Mt. Gay rum which is distilled on the island - a tasting trip to the distillery we very much recommend! The beach is small with very few seating options. Would not return or recommend to anyone. Read less

We had a three night stay at this hotel on the end of our cruise with TUI. My children love the pools and we just spent the whole time in those so it was fine. However, if I’d have booked to stay here only for any amount of time, I would be contacting TUI to be moved. It badly need some maintenance doing everywhere. (See my photos) it looks uncared for and unkempt. The play area was broken/closed. Our room was not ready when it was supposed to be and only 1 bed was made up (we are 2 adults and a 10 and an 8 year old). The advertising also makes out that there is a lot of service, including pool side waiter service. The 3 days we were there someone came around once. There were a few members of staff who were nice, but the majority were completely miserable and rude. The bar was tiny with no semblance of an order and drinks kept running out. As our stay was so short and the kids just wanted the pools it was ok, but if I’d have booked to stay as my main holiday, don’t believe the photos on the website. They must have been from when it was new. Read less

How do I begin? Our recent stay at Turtle Bay Resort was a shockingly poor experience that left us thoroughly disappointed. As Marriott Gold members, we expected a certain level of service and hospitality, but Turtle Bay Resort failed to deliver on every front. We booked directly through the hotel’s website, paying the highest rate for an oceanfront room. Upon check-in, we were assigned room #243 and informed by the hotel manager, Ms. Tanya, that the hotel was fully booked and no higher-floor rooms were available. However, the room had an obstructed ocean view, and when we requested a change, we were grudgingly moved to room #241, which was on a lower level but acceptable. Our frustration grew when a few hours later, our friends checked in and were given rooms on higher floors. This clearly showed that higher-floor rooms were available, yet Ms. Tanya had steadfastly refused our request without valid reason. The situation worsened when one of our friends checked in late at night. They were given room #221 and told it was the best available as all other rooms were occupied. To our horror, the room was infested with flying ants, including a nest in the cupboard. When this was reported to reception, they were immediately moved to a top-floor room. This begs the question: why wasn’t this room provided upon their initial request if it was available? The hotel's dining options added to our disappointment. The resort has two main restaurants: a buffet and an à la carte Italian restaurant. Every time we requested a reservation at the Italian restaurant, we were told by Ms. Tanya that it was fully booked and we should go to the buffet. Yet, on multiple occasions, we saw that the Italian restaurant was more than 70% empty. This blatant mismanagement and dishonesty are baffling and unacceptable. Moreover, the beach in front of the hotel is narrow and very small, a far cry from the idyllic beachfront we were led to expect. While the rooms were clean and functional, and the service in the restaurants was merely acceptable, these minor positives are overshadowed by the numerous inconveniences, the lack of transparency, and the unprofessional behavior exhibited by Ms. Tanya and the front desk staff. Overall, Turtle Bay Resort provided one of the worst hotel experiences we've ever had. As loyal Marriott Gold members, we are deeply disappointed and will reconsider our future stays with Marriott if this level of service continues. Read less