Bougainvillea Beach Resort Reviews

From the very first moment that we arrived at the Bougainvillea Beach Resort, we knew that we had made the right choice. The hotel is extremely smart and very well maintained with an upmarket feel about it. The attractive open plan lobby looks down over a pool and beach and after 15 hours of travelling we couldnÂ’t wait to dump our cases and get in to the beautiful warm turquoise ocean.

Our room was absolutely delightful. Large, clean, attractively furnished, with and big balcony looking out over one of the pools and the beach . It had every convenience you could ever want in a hotel room; Satellite TV, air conditioning, radio, safe, hairdryer and a well equipped kitchen with large fridge/freezer, microwave, toaster, kettle, hotplate and more.

The hotel has two beautiful restaurants, which are both on the beach, with lovely views. One has a small cocktail bar area. The other hotel bar is in the centre of the main swimming pool, which you can walk in to or swim up to.

The beach is superb, one of the best on the island. It is spotlessly clean, South facing so you get some small waves with crystal clear water. The hotel supplies just about anything you could ever need on a beach free of charge. Sun-loungers, towels, sun-shades, even body boards and snorkel gear. The only thing that we had to pay for during our stay was the jet ski, which was a very reasonable £25 per 30 minute session.

Food and drink in the hotel is reasonably inexpensive; A Banks local beer about £1.50 per bottle, rum punch about £1.50, a bottle of wine £10 - £12, full English breakfast £6, dinner main courses about £12. There’s a great little van that pulls up outside the hotel every day at 12.30 p.m. selling local inexpensive Bajan specialities for lunch. There is also a little local shop that sells beer, rum, bread and groceries 200 yards away.

There is some entertainment in the hotel, but it's quite low key. A cocktail party, a beachside barbeque with a steel band and a Bajan buffet with limbo dancers and music. There are four small local bars and restaurants within 10 minutes walking distance of the hotel but not much else. We actually liked the seclusion it gave the whole area a very safe feeling. If you want more lively entertainment, The island’s main resort, St Lawrence Gap is ten minutes away by taxi which costs about £3.50 or it’s easy to hop on one of the frequent busses which costs about 40p each way. About a mile to the East of the hotel is the famous Oistins fish market and fish fry which is must do on Friday nights when all of the locals turn out.

We had a terrific time and it is one of the few places that we want to return to and soon. The staff at the Bougainvillea deserve a special mention, particularly Kim and Rod, they are truly fantastic and helped make our holiday really special. In fact the Barbadian people in general are wonderful and extremely friendly.

A few observations; The Bouganvillea is best suited to couples. If you are young, single and looking for a lively club scene this is probably not the hotel for you. In fact Barbados probably isnÂ’t the Island for you. My only criticism of the hotel, is that it could really do with an indoor bar for the evenings, especially when it rains.

Other reports I.ve seen said that there was building work next to the hotel. I can categorically confirm that it is completed and does not effect the hotel at all. Someone was also very critical of XL Airways. Yes the seats are small and uncomfortable but apart from that, the service was good. Both flights took off bang on time and we were well fed and watered, although you do have to pay for alcoholic drinks. Frankly for £275 return to Barbados inc. taxes it was great value.

My wife and I stayed at the Bougainvillea for 13 nights in November, 2006.

We always book direct with our holiday hotels, and we chose the Bougainvillea from a shortlist compiled from reviews of the hotels that fitted our price range. As at the end of our holiday we were leaving on an evening flight, a very important requirement was a guaranteed late checkout from our room (not the use of an amenity room, etc). Of the hotels we contacted, only the South Gap Ocean offered us our requested late checkout at no charge; the Southern Palms refused any kind of guaranteed late checkout and we therefore lost interest and they lost business. But booking with the Bougainvillea was not without its problems either. After three attempts at using the 'Contact Us' facility on their website, receiving no response on each occasion, I finally made contact direct with a member of their management team. Then came the question of a late checkout, an extended exchange of emails, and the issue was eventually resolved to our satisfaction. We have been on holiday in a number of hotels worldwide, and have never had a problem with early or late checkouts, so this problem in Barbados was a surprise to us. We are prepared to pay, but we want early/late checkout from our room guaranteed, not just a vague promise of a different or amenity room 'subject to availability'.

The Bougainvillea is in our opinion a good standard four star, with beautifully landscaped gardens and spacious areas. Because it includes the older Sand Acres hotel, it is effectively two hotels in one, with two of everything - pools, beaches, bars and restaurants. We never found it a problem to find either a quiet or noisy spot that suited us during the day. The resort is only 10 minutes by taxi from the airport, but bear in mind the downside of this - there is noise from aircraft approaching the airport, although this is not intrusive enough to spoil a holiday. On the subject of noise - there is still some coming from the building site next door on that side of the resort, particularly when they are using the heavy equipment, although it looks like the work will be finished in the near future. Check with the resort if in doubt about whether the noise will affect your holiday - they seem to be very flexible about the allocation of rooms.

We were given a suite in one of the older blocks - ground floor, as per our request. While it is difficult to disguise the age of the buildings in this part of the resort, it is commendable the way they have been refurbished. Our room was more of a one-bedroom apartment than a suite, and was tastefully and smartly decorated. The bedroom had a king bed, ceiling fan, air conditioning and spacious storage. The living room had a sofa bed, and more than enough seating area (not that you tend to spend much time sitting inside). The kitchenette was exceptionally well equipped, with a fridge/freezer bigger than the one we have at home, full oven, microwave, kettle, coffee maker, toaster, and even a sharp knife! The bathroom (shower, no bath) was the room that most showed the building's age, but everything worked so the occasional bit of discoloured grouting didn't spoil the whole effect. What was appreciated were the little touches, like the plug-in mosquito repellent in the bedroom, the hairdryer, tissues and toiletries in the bathroom, and the washing up liquid and dishcloths in the kitchen. There were about 20 TV channels - mostly American, with the token BBC World thrown in, but it would have been nice to have had some local radio channels for atmosphere. Outside was a double-sized balcony, with two dining chairs and table, two easy chairs and coffee table, and two sunbeds - luxury! We had two minor problems with the room early in our stay - the TV remote and the toaster were both faulty - and both were dealt with very quickly. Guests are requested to smoke on the verandah rather than inside, which meant there was no danger of evil-smelling bedclothes.

The two restaurants in the resort provide an acceptable standard of food, although not outstanding. Breakfast is available at the Lanterns by the Sea until 11am, and the options range from the Continental, at about £7, to the full buffet, at £10, the latter of which gives you an unlimited choice of fruit juices (real juices), tea/coffee, pastries, pancakes, full English, and fresh fruit - worth the money if you are hungry. We had dinner twice in the Lanterns - the BBQ and the Caribbean buffet - and both were fine. Our dinner in the Water's Edge restaurant - rather more expensive - was OK, and was good more for the atmosphere of beachside dining than the food.

The beaches and pool areas are ideal for a relaxing holiday. We mainly used the older pool on the Sand Acres side because it was quieter than the free-form pool, but we could not get umbrellas for the pool from the watersports hut as they only provided them for the beaches. A lot of the area around the older poolside loses the shade in the afternoon, and it would be good to make umbrellas available by the sunbeds.

The beaches are very pleasant, with ample umbrellas, sunbeds and towels available at no extra charge. One of the outstanding features of the Bougainvillea is the availability of sunbeds. At no time did we have a problem getting sunbeds at any time, nor was there any evidence of selfish reserving of them. Perhaps the answer is that if hotels make more than enough sunbeds available, people do not find it necessary to reserve them. The sea is a little rough, and you need a certain amount of confidence to venture out, but there were plenty of people swimming throughout our holiday. We didn't try any of the water sports or trips, but there were certainly plenty available. There are a number of beach vendors, but, as other reviewers have reported, a polite 'no thanks' will send them away. Don't assume, as I did, that the guy who asks you whether you 'want to see action man' is trying to sell you a toy soldier!

Children are well catered for at the Bougainvillea, although for obvious reasons we can't comment in detail. There is a very well-equipped games room for older children and a fitness room which I promised myself to take advantage of and, of course, finished the holiday without trying. Other - outdoor - facilities included a giant chess board and a shuffleboard, which was a very pleasant way of passing half an hour. There is a small library, where you can borrow/exchange paperbacks.

The one thing that we felt let the Bougainvillea down is the poor entertainment. During our first week, the Caribbean show was enjoyable, but was let down by the DJ that followed playing loud music that had nothing to do with the Caribbean. The 'steel band' that was advertised several times turned out to be one man with a drum and a synthesiser. All the entertainment finished at ten o'clock, and on one evening we had just settled down at a table in the pool bar to enjoy the last of the one-man steel band/singer when he started packing away at 9.30! This drove us to look for something suitable that did not finish at children's bedtime, and on several evenings we walked to the nearby Sea Breeze hotel, where there always seemed to be some low-key live entertainment in the outside (but covered) decked area of the bar. They also had Banks Beer on draught at half the price of the bottled stuff in the Bougainvillea. On both Sunday lunchtimes we spurned the one-man steel band at the Bougainvillea and walked to the Southern Palms in the Gap, where they had a full seven-piece band that was very good. However, I understand that the Bougainvillea will be improving their entertainment program in the near future, so I would not be put off the resort by my comments on this subject.

To get into the Gap, it's a 10 minute walk along the beach and through a small alley - okay during the day, but a bit intimidating after dark. Alternatively, walking along the road would take at least 20 minutes, but both these routes are unsuitable for people with buggies or disabilities, and both brought you into the quiet part of town, with the livelier part a further 10 minutes' walk. So it's quite a trek, but taxis are always available outside the hotel and charge BD$15 (£4) each way.

At the far end of town, around a small sandy bay with superb views, were three restaurants with seating looking out over the bay. Our favourite was Pisces, but there was also David's Place, where good the food and service were slightly let down by the presentation, and Bellini's which was the smallest and required a reservation for a good table. At the quieter end of town was Luigi's, run by a real Italian couple, which served superb food, although larger appetites might find the portions a little small - but at least this was walkable from the hotel. A two-course meal with a couple of drinks for two people would cost about £60-80 at these restaurants. A little less expensive is the Harlequin, with good food and service. The Captain's Carvery at the Ship Inn was the best value, at about £30 for two; worst value was McBride's, where we were unimpressed by both the food and the service. We did not try the Restaurant at Southsea, where they have quite a strict dress code, or Josef's, where the menu did not appeal to us. The crowds and noise at the busy end of the Gap step up a notch after 10 o'clock when the clubs get going, so the older generation tend to be leaving the Gap around this time, while the younger generation are pouring in.

We went to the Roots 'n' Rhythms show at the Plantation, which takes place twice a week on Wednesdays and Fridays. For about £43 per person, you get a lift from and back to your hotel, a professional Bajan dance and music show, an average buffet, and free drinks until the show ends at 10.15. Worth it for the experience, but you probably wouldn't want to go twice.

One evening we followed the experience of another couple and ordered a large pizza from Paradise Pizza - phone number at Reception. They delivered bang on time and with a smile, for a cost of £14 including delivery charge and tip, and the pizza was so large we had to finish it for lunch the following day (thank goodness for the microwave). On Friday evenings, like everybody else, we went to Oistins Fish Fry (the hotel runs a shuttle bus, but doesn't advertise it). We bought our food at the Fish Net stall - for BD$20 (about £5.50) you get two pieces of fish, potatoes and salad, and beer is only BD$3 (less than a pound) a bottle. There's a good atmosphere, and look out for the US all-night style dance room, where the locals are dressed up for a good night's dancing!

For lunch there is an eat-in or takeaway service at the Lanterns (about £5-8), or rolls and sandwiches available at the bigger supermarkets and service stations (£1.50-£2). Or there's Leroy's van at the front of the hotel which serves Bajan style fish, chicken or lamb, rice or mashed potatoes, and salad or coleslaw for BD$14 (£4) for a large portion.

With the kitchen facilities in the rooms, it is easy to prepare home meals, but shopping is the issue. The nearby convenience store is adequate for bread, drinks and other basics, but watch the prices as they can be up to 50% higher than the main supermarkets, and for that you still don't get a smile from the staff. There is a small supermarket in the quiet part of the Gap, but the main one is in the Southern Plaza in Oistins - at least a 20 minute walk, or a £4 taxi ride each way. You have to calculate whether you are going to save the taxi fare by going to the main supermarket, or you can take advantage of the supermarket's shuttle bus for the return journey. Alternatively, take advantage of the 'Commissary Service' from this supermarket - order at Reception and they deliver to your room - but we didn't try this.

We didn't travel around the island too much, as our holiday was for RandR more than activity, but we took advantage of the hotel shuttle bus to go to Bridgetown twice. There are numerous jewellery shops in Broad Street if you're into Columbian diamonds (but do you really know what you're buying?). The Pelican Craft Centre is worth browsing round if you can manage the walk from the town centre in the hot sun, but the Jewish synagogue was closed when we were there. A light lunch at the Waterfront Café is worthwhile, but leave plenty of time as the service can be slow. We also hired a taxi for a guided tour round the island - the standard charge seems to be BD$60 (£16) per hour plus tip - and 2 or 3 hours would be sufficient unless you want to make lengthy stops in several places. This can at least give you an idea of where to return to if you subsequently decide to hire a car. There are many other excursions you can go on - a jeep safari, submarine ride, catamaran, but these were too energetic for us.

As is our normal practice, we went to several nearby hotels - mostly the others on our shortlist - to compare them with the one we chose. The Barbados Beach Club, next door, has rather scruffy-looking outdoor areas, and is an all-inclusive, so does not welcome outside guests. A few minutes further on, the Sea Breeze looks quite nice, but the pool, beach and gardens are smaller than the Bougainvillea, and not as attractive. This would be a good choice for their all-inclusive option (we spoke to several guests there and all were positive), or as a cheaper alternative to the Bougainvillea. In the Gap, we looked in on the South Ocean Gap, where there is limited space around the pool, which on this particular evening was occupied by a large crowd of beer swillers with bottles all around the pool area. This was the 'cheap and cheerful' option on our shortlist, but as it is in the noisiest part of the town, we are glad we didn't choose it. We quite liked the Southern Palms, with its spacious bar, nice (but smallish) pool and beachside location, but we did not look at any of the rooms. The Southern Palms definitely had the best location, in a quiet but convenient part of the Gap. Overall, none of the other hotels matched the Bougainvillea for space and well-designed grounds, although the Southern Palms had the best location and both the Southern Palms and the Sea Breeze had better entertainment.

The acid test of any holiday is how sad you are at leaving when it's time to go home, and I could certainly have done another week at the Bougainvillea. If we return to Barbados, it will definitely be on our shortlist, and I understand that they will have improved the entertainment by then!

We loved Barbados.Every one at the Sand Acres was very friendly.It has joined up with the Bouganvilla to make one large hotel.The only down side is that it is a long way out for an easy stroll to St Laurence Gap,especially at night.The road to the hotel is very dark, you have to get a taxi out to eat if you want something other than using their own lanterns restaurant,this was nice but limited menu at night.The beach was great as was the pool on the sand acres side and ofton we were the only people there.

We would visit again but go more into town.

This was our first holiday since the birth of our (now) four-year-old twins, so we were anxious to go back to an island we had visited before. While making our choice we miscalculated our location as the hotel was the Oistins side of St Lawrence Gap as opposed to the Bridgetown side, something we didn't appreciate until we arrived. This meant we were a little more remote than we thought, but taxis and buses are plentiful, cheap and safe and that wasn't a problem.

The hotel itself was just as pictured on its web site and the staff were welcoming. The front desk and the activities staff were very helpful, however we had to round up other parents with children to arrange a 'kids club' day, as it wasn't promoted very well and wasn't run unless there were more than three children (something not made clear on the brochure). There was a lot of work going on at the hotel both construction and painting although it was never a problem and was for me a sign of how much effort was going in to looking after the hotel. There is a ban on 'booking' sunbeds with towels, although in the second week some (I'm sad to say) Brits ignored it. It was actually a waste of time as, despite the fact the hotel was at 95% occupancy when we were there, there were always enough sunbeds, both at the pool and the beach.

The apartment (we were R/O in a deluxe studio) was spacious, with a bedroom, bathroom, kitchen with a cooker, microwave, sink, large fridge/freezer and a safe. The lounge had a TV (with limited interesting channels) and a sofa that transformed into a double bed. The entire apartment was air conditioned, with the addition of ceiling fans if required. A fair size balcony overlooked the pool and was great for early morning breakfasts. The main part of the hotel is laid out in a V shape, with the pools within the V and the sea at the wide end. This meant you were never more than 200 yds from the sea and the noise from the waves (it was a little rough) was great to wake up to. As said, the sea was a little rough, but safe as long as you were careful - it was a little too strong for my kids, but as long as I accompanied them, they (and I) were happy. It was also possible without too much effort to stroll along the beach to St Lawrence Gap - admittedly a bit further if you did it inland.

Barbados was a little expensive to eat out in, even in the non-tourist areas. Normally it was slightly more than we would be used to in Britain, but as it applied to everyone, it didn't seem that tourists were being specifically targeted. Despite the island's reputation for friendliness, I found a lot of the people in the tourist/service/shops to be quite abrupt initially (it was almost like visiting London!) and took a while to relax. That said, ordinary Bajan people were extremely friendly and were always up for a chat. One lady we spoke to on the street, seeing how tired and hot our kids were (after we took them on a misguidedly long walk) had to be stopped from getting out her car, to give us a lift back to our hotel!

The gymnasium in the hotel is excellent, extremely well equipped and air conditioned and usually fairly empty. The kid's pools are cleaned regularly and, with their waterfalls, quite picturesque.
There is also a free shuttle bus to Bridgetown. This isn't widely publicised in the hotel and we found a few people had taken taxis there as they didn't know about it. Also, the local buses and the 'rasta buses' are a very cheap (and safe) way to travel around (despite how some of them look).

On the down side, I found the choice and service at the pool bar in the Bougainvillaea to be pretty poor and the happy hour times were rigidly adhered to (the only times that ever seemed to be). Late in the holiday we found the bar at the sister hotel Sandy Acres, where Rodney the barman would mix some fantastic cocktails (and was far happier doing it). The other down side was Lanterns restaurant. We tried it twice.... The first night we arrived and on Father's day as my kids wanted to make an occasion of it and they had a Father's Day Buffet. On the first night service was slow (we expected that) until some of the family finished their meals - personally, I don't enjoy my meal when people's plates are being cleared up while I'm still eating. However they made up for it on the Father's Day Buffet.... then, no-one cleared our plates for us to try the next course until we move the plates over to a nearby table. The manager seemed quite surprised at our reply when she asked if everything was OK. The food (when it arrives) is very good, but the service was worse than you'd expect in a cafe in Britain!

There was limited entertainment, but that wasn't a problem for us with young kids. If you were looking for more 'life' St Lawrence gap was only a taxi ride away for about £3. The hotel had a relaxed and safe atmosphere (as did the whole island) and I wasn't concerned about safety at any point. They'd tried to think of everything, for example, kids could even borrow a bucket and spade if they wished to!

Virgin Atlantic were great (not that we ever need the rep). They now allow you to check your main luggage in at your hotel on the morning of your departure. This means you only have your hand luggage to worry about and can stroll straight through the queues, into Security and the Departure lounge. Also, Virgin Atlantic have personal TVs in the seat and lots of goodies to keep the kids occupied.
The hotel has an excellent guest suite, with an air conditioned room and two shower rooms so a simple change of clothing is all you need for the flight home.

All in all it was a great place and we intend to come back to Barbados next year. Unless something jumps out as a far better deal we'll probably go back to the Bougainvillaea. We'll definitely travel Virgin Airlines again.

BADs
Lanterns - Try Sandy Acres' ";Water's Edge";, far better standards of service and the food is just as good.
Pool Bar - Again, Sandy Acres' bar with Rodney...... superb!

GOODs
Safe, clean, no 'booking' sunbeds, great apartments, good service (on the two occasions I needed housekeeping they were really quick and efficient). Gymnasium, beach, I could go on.....

TIPS
Paradise Pizza - you can order from your room (the front desk has the number) and they deliver. Large pizzas, reasonably priced!
Leroy's Van - at 12 mid-day, Monday to Friday, Leroy serves good cheap Bajan food out of his van just across the road from the hotel.
Oistins - Friday is the 'Big Night'.... but if you're just going to try the food and walk around, Thursday is just as much fun, but with far less people and far smaller queues.
A taxi to Oistins supermarket is only £6 round trip and the driver will wait if you ask, at no extra cost.