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The most important thing to consider when planning your trip to St Lucia is where you plan to stay. We actually stayed at two different resorts on our trip to St Lucia and these were on opposite ends of the island. The first place we stayed was the very romantic Sandals Grande St Lucian so I wanted to write up a reivew of this resort. To see how the Sandals contrasts with a much smaller option check out this post on where to stay in St Lucia.

Need help planning your trip? Check out this post on the Ultimate St Lucia Travel Itinerary.

Who should stay at Sandals

The Sandals Grande St Lucian is all-inclusive resort and caters heavily to couples and those on their honeymoon. They do cute couple-y things like give you one room key to share, have many of the tables set up for side-by-side dining, etc.

I travel with girlfriends frequently and this is not really a place I would want to stay with a group of friends. However, for a honeymoon, anniversary, or a just-because trip with your significant other – this is THE spot. During non-COVID times, it would be a great place to meet other couples as well.

There are many photographers circulating around at the Sandals and they will take your picture while you are doing activities but also we had a photoshoot with one of the photographers on the property. The above photo is from that photoshoot. These are for sale afterwards in pacakges and it was about $200 for 20 photos. If you plan to do something like this, make sure you and your partner pack outfits that do not clash.

Restaurants at the Sandals Grande St Lucian

There are many restaurants so you will surely find something that you like to eat. A few of the restaurants require reservations so this should be the first thing you do when you arrive – make restaurant reservations. Even though we only stayed 3 nights, they were able to accomodate us at our restaurant choices.

The two places we were excited to try were the Italian restaurant and the steakhouse. Both of these were amazing and had incredibly delicious food. However the steakhouse was on the pier. Had we known – we would have booked it for sunset. Instead it was dark during our dinner. This was not a problem, but just something for you to note when you make your dinner reservations.

Amenities at the Sandals Grande St Lucian

You also don’t have to leave the resort if you don’t want to as there is plenty to do on the property. There are shows most evenings and plenty of on-site activities. Aquatic activities offered on-site included sailng, stand up paddle boarding, water skiing, diving, and more. If you do plan to leave the resort and are looking for excursions, a few are very close to the resort including horseback riding on the beach with Sandy Hoofs and Pigeon Island National Park. Check out this post for a complete list of things to do in St Lucia.

For the rooms, even the basic rooms (which is what we opted for) are quite nice. However, there are over-the-water bungalow options available as well. There was a gym and spa on the property but we did not visit either so I cannot comment on these.

Downsides of the Sandals Grande St Lucian

A few downsides of the property include that it is far (~1.5 hours drive) from the UVF airport which is where you will fly into. If you have the available funds, consider the helicopter transfer. I wish we would have done this.

Very slow wifi is free. However, for streaming, video calls or doing much more than browsing Facebook, it is an $80/week charge.

Additionally, St Lucia is famous for its pitons (the distinctive mountain peaks in St Lucia). This hotel is far from those and the only way you would see them is to go on an excursion.

The last downside which could also be a positive depending on your preferences, is that the Sandals feels a lot like the United States. You get very minimal cultural immersion.

Sandals St Lucia Final Thoughts

With the amazing amenities and the downsides mentioned, we knew what to expect going to the Sandals Grande St Lucian. We both felt like we got the experience we were hoping for. We were happy that we got to spend 3 nights at the Sandals Grande St Lucian and absolutely would stay there again. If you are curious about where else we stayed while in St Lucia, check out this post here.

Have you visited St Lucia? Where did you stay? Let us know in the comments!

You May Also Enjoy These Posts:

• Fun things to do in St Lucia
• Horseback riding in St Lucia
• Where to stay in St Lucia
• The Ultimate St Lucia Travel Itinerary

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