Sandals Resort in Grenada is the perfect Honeymoon destination
And just like that…our 14 day adventurous honeymoon has come to an end. But, I’d love to travel back in time through those 14 days and recap the amazing times we experienced through Grenada and Barbados.
A small island unheard of by most, nestled in the eastern Caribbean, is full of history, nature, romance, adventure…a little, or perhaps, a lot, for everyone’s taste. We decided on Grenada because of those exact reasons! Something more intimate. After eight nights on the island, we still were not ready to say goodbye to the charm of Grenada.
Let’s just say 7am coffee tastes much better when this is the view from your suite’s balcony!
Sandals Grenada
After working closely with Shoreline Destinations on selecting the perfect resort based on our must-haves, we decided on Sandals Grenada, located in St. George’s, less than five minutes from the airport. Upon arrival at the airport, immigration and customs is a breeze. We did not have to provide proof of vaccination or negative COVID tests. Please note - our travel was at the end of June 2022 and requirements may be different during your travel time. Directly outside of the airport is the Sandals desk where we checked in for the shuttle, had our bags tagged, and made ourselves comfortable in the Sandals free shuttle. We did attempt to grab a cab to take us instead, however, due to the short distance, the taxis encouraged us to take the shuttle.
Upon arrival at the resort less than five minutes after leaving the airport, we were greeted with a cold towel at the resort’s front door, and immediately introduced to our butler team. From there, we did not have to worry about our luggage or waiting in a long check-in line. Our butler, Christopher, ushered us to the Butler lounge where we checked in and were given welcome drinks. Since our room was not yet ready, Christopher gave us a short tour of the property and walked us to lunch at Neptunes by the beach. Once our room was ready, approximately one hour later, Christopher came to Neptunes to walk us to our suite. Our luggage was already in the room, along with a bottle of champagne and a welcome snack from the Chef. We were issued a butler phone in order to communicate with our butler during their working hours, which I believe are 6am-10pm daily. The butler phone is a cell phone meant to be taken with you everywhere so you and your butler can remain in touch for food/drinks or anything else that’s needed throughout the day.
Since this was our honeymoon, we went all-in and selected one of the highest category rooms - Sky Pool King Butler Suite (Room 3402). Nestled in the Italian Village, the room overlooked the back of the resort, facing the beach. The room had a separate wet bar, dining room, and living room. Double doors led us to the bedroom, and bathroom. Added privacy! On the balcony was the sky pool, soaking tub, and sitting area, all which could be accessed through the bedroom or the living room.
Sandals Grenada offers 10 restaurants:
La Jardinier: Breakfast & Dinner (reservation required), French cuisine. Men must wear closed toe shoes and slacks.
For dinner, try their French onion soup, escargot, coquilles, and bouillabaisse
Neptunes: Lunch & Dinner, no reservations required, casual dining, faces the beach
For lunch, try their island jerk chicken and mahi mahi
Kimonos: Dinner only, reservations required, casual dining, hibachi
Soy: Dinner only, no reservations required, casual dining, Sushi. Wait times can be long depending on the time.
Spices: Breakfast buffet (although the Sandals app doesn’t show breakfast), lunch, and dinner, casual dining, Caribbean cuisine, daily lunch special which is not on the menu
For lunch, try their red snapper pasta and lamb curry
For dinner, try their chicken roti, mutton curry, fish soup, jerk chicken rolls, and pork chops
Cucina Romana: Breakfast & Dinner (reservation required), casual dining, Italian cuisine, near the South Seas pool
For dinner, try their lamb leg, red snapper, oxtail gnocchi, shrimp scampi, minestrone soup, and caprese
Butch’s Chophouse: Dinner (reservations required), casual dining, steakhouse, near the South Seas pool
Must try their oyster Rockefeller, crab cakes, fish and wagyu
Dino’s: lunch, walk-up to order pizza, near the South Seas pool. They often have Jamaican beef/chicken patties and popcorn in the food warmer!
Cafe de Paris: open all day! Crepes, pastries, coffee. Perfect for that late night sweet tooth or that double espresso before the nightly entertainment
Tipsy Turtle: dinner and late night (open till 2am!!), traditional bar/pub, limited seating, casual, no reservations required. It felt more like a campus/dive bar.
Sandals Grenada offers two pools: quiet pool which is an infinity pool closest to the beach, no swim-up bar. South Seas pool with a swim-up bar, also known as the “party pool”, has foam parties, DJ, and daily entertainment.
Nightly entertainment takes place in the Living Room (located at the center of the resort by the courtyard), starting around 7pm with various acts. From 9pm-10pm is the main show depending on the theme of the day. After 10pm, a DJ plays music with open dance floor, and Karaoke on random days in the Library (located in the Living Room next to the bar). We had the pleasure of attending a silent disco on two different nights, which if you’ve never tried, is extremely fun! Think of it as a battle of the DJs. We were given wireless headphones that had a button to switch between the two DJs. It was fun seeing everyone dancing to different songs. I even removed my headphones a few times to listen to the silence, or groups singing different songs. Absolutely amazing!
Butler Service
After experiencing butler service at Sandals, I don’t think I will want to travel any other way! Our butler team included Christopher, Kieran, Chrystel, split into two or three shifts depending on the day of the week. Want a private dinner for two on your balcony? Let your butler know! Want lunch from somewhere on the resort or at the beach? Let your butler know! Breakfast in room? Spa services booked? Taxi booked to town? Tours scheduled? Yes! Let your butler know. As your personal concierge and wait staff, there is virtually nothing the butler team will not do (within reason, of course). Christopher even brought us rotis from town when I requested them!
Our butler team brought us breakfast to our room every morning, kept the bar stocked, snacks, lunch and drinks at the pool/beach, reserved our requested spots at the pool/beach, evening snack in the room after a relaxing day, walked us to dinner, made dinner reservations before we even arrived at the resort, brought a late night snack to our room. Every morning we had a cooler full of water, juices, and champagne waiting for us at our reserved spot on the beach. Perfect to get the day started until bars opened for cocktails at 10am.
Some snacks were really enjoyed were coconut shrimp (order 24 hours in advance), shrimp cocktail, cheese platter, nachos, chicken wings, hot dogs, pizza, and chicken lollipops.
Butler teams do accept tips. (Tipping servers and bartenders at restaurants is discouraged.) We tipped each of our butlers daily at some point during their shift for the entire day. USD is accepted, no need to exchange currency. We tipped a bit more if they went above and beyond from the previous day. Average tip per butler can range from $20-50 per day. There is no ATM on the resort, so be sure to take plenty of cash and some extra for the “wow” moments when the butler team does something special.
What to pack
Day time is simple - swimsuits and cover-ups. Unless you plan on going into town, which I highly recommend, sundresses and shorts will do.
Ladies:
- Swimsuits for each day
- Cover ups
- Flip flops for the beach/pool
- Feminine products - although the gift shop carries such products, they can be limited or out of stock. The closest pharmacy or store is in town about 10-15 minutes away by taxi
- Casual day wear (think sundresses, shorts, rompers - it’s HUMID!)
- Night time outfits (think maxi dresses, jumpsuits, cocktail dresses)
Men:
- Swimwear for each day
- Shorts or something to wear when you want to run to a restaurant or bar for a quick bite
- Flip flops for beach/pool
- Casual day wear (think shorts, t-shirts, polo)
- Night time outfits (shorts, polos, button downs, at least one pair of slacks and closed toe shoes)
Toiletries: Red Lane products are in each room and replaced daily. But be sure to pack tons of sunscreen and aloe vera! Leave your pool/beach towels at home as the resort offers plenty.
Explore the town
On two of the days, we ventured out into town to explore, and once at night for the nightlife. Our butler arranged a round trip taxi and provided some recommendations on where to dine while in town. It’s completely safe. Even at night time for the island nightlife. Although, Grenada can be a bit quiet at night. So don’t expect crazy street parties! Most vendors and restaurants do take credit cards but it’s best to pay with cash. USD is accepted everywhere so no need to exchange cash.
If you’ve been considering visiting Grenada, I whole heartedly encourage you to go! It’s a beautiful island surrounded by mountains and the ocean. Sandals Grenada is in the perfect location - open ocean, white sand, mountains breaking the rain and shielding from any high winds. Ignore the weather app which will always show rain every single day. Rain in Grenada means quick passing showers which are much needed to give a break from the humidity. Much love, and happy traveling! - Neha
