Royalton Saint Lucia

Leonard Preston

As a frequent traveler and Google Local Guide, I was excited to spend a full week at the Royalton Resort in St. Lucia. The island itself? Breathtaking. The hospitality experience? Unfortunately, a mix of highs and disappointing lows. 🛬 Arrival & Transportation Getting from the airport to the resort took nearly two hours. While the ride wasn’t the most comfortable, our driver was pleasant and knowledgeable—sharing local insights and fun facts about the island along the way. Tip: Friday nights seem to be the best time to connect with locals and get a feel for authentic island culture. 🏨 Check-In Experience This was where the disappointment began. The staff member at check-in was not warm or welcoming and didn’t clearly explain what was included in my stay. There were no bellhops available to assist with luggage (due to being short-staffed), and no one gave a tour or overview of the property. Luckily, the resort itself is walkable and beautifully laid out, so I was able to find my way around eventually. 🛏️ Room Conditions Air conditioning didn’t work Fan made loud, concerning noises (like it was falling off) Lights flickered No washcloths upon arrival and I had to ask multiple times over four hours Housekeeping ignored my Do Not Disturb sign and entered the room anyway Other guests also shared complaints while waiting for their rooms—indicating that this wasn’t just a one-off issue. 🍽️ Dining & Food If food is a priority for your vacation, prepare to be underwhelmed: Portions at restaurants were shockingly small Buffet was consistently cold and poorly maintained Food was bland across most restaurants Wait times were excessive—over an hour for overcooked steak Bars were reusing dirty glasses, or running out altogether The one bright spot? The food truck near the beach had the best (and hottest) food on the property. Also disappointing: $8 for a pack of gum at the store and overpriced jewelry vendors on-site. 💆‍♀️ Spa & Amenities The spa is visually stunning—but the hydrotherapy area was closed, and I was misled about what services were included. At the hibachi and sushi bar, I was told I could have sushi made to order, but that didn’t happen, and there was confusion around sake pricing. 🎉 Entertainment & Atmosphere Only real activity during my stay was karaoke The popular foam party was canceled due to weddings Beach lounge chairs were well-placed and relaxing The cabana pool jacuzzi didn’t get hot, and the server rarely came by to check on guests 💬 Final Thoughts The property itself is beautiful, and the weather was perfect. But the experience was overshadowed by inconsistent service, outdated equipment, poor food quality, and a lack of real hospitality. With a few repairs and a serious service revamp, this resort could be a standout. Until then, manage your expectations if you book here.

Ruaridh Williams

We stayed here for a week as part of a TUI package holiday. The resort is about a two-hour transfer from the International airport on some 'interesting' roads. Staff are all incredibly friendly. The resort is lovely, with multiple pools and plenty of space to sunbathe. Always free beds going no matter what time of the day. Cocktails are included - can certainly tell there's no Weight & Measures Act here but at least they weren't being tight with their alcohol. Plenty of bars and never a long wait for a drink, except maybe in the coffee shop. Food at buffet was good, although maybe slightly repetitive. Food in the restaurants was very good. Entertainment on the night can be questionable but it's all part of it.

Lin S

The resort itself is lovely, but cleanliness was definitely lacking. I found hair in the shower, and the soaking tub was clearly not cleaned properly. The bedsheets had brown stains—possibly makeup—and didn’t smell fresh. The food overall was just okay. The only standout was Donero (not sure if that’s the correct spelling) at the Hideaway—breakfast, lunch, and dinner there were all great. The sports bar, on the other hand, felt more like a late-night drunk food spot with nothing memorable. While some of the staff were friendly and welcoming, a few were noticeably rude, which affected the experience. All in all, I wouldn’t return to the Royalton. It was fine for a one-time visit, but not somewhere I’d choose again.

Robyn

It has the wow factor on check in but unfortunately it lacked a lot of substance. It was disappointing to say the least. I would definitely not rate it 5*. We came from spending 10nights in coconut bay which was incredible to a very disappointing 11nights at the royalton. We got married at coconut bay and the royalton was our honeymoon- we had no congratulations despite it being on the booking notes, nothing in our room to congratulate us and no champagne in the room. (We received champagne in the room 3 times at coconut bay with some beautiful towel art!) definitely didn’t have the same level of personal touches at the royalton. The room looked beautiful. But we got there an hour after check in time and still had to wait an hour to get to our room as it wasn’t ready and we had to bring our own luggage up too. Also no welcome drink. The room on and off did have a sewage smell which again we mentioned to reception but nothing was done about it. Also a coffee maker in your room that you can’t use without BUYING a plug adapter from the hotel shop. The staff overall seemed less than impressed to be there. No one wanted to help you, we asked several days in a row for more hangers and kept getting told they would be sent up only to receive them 5 days later. There would consistently be a long wait at any bar, normally 3-5 staff members behind the bar but only 1 reluctant server. They continuously ran out of ingredients. The one exception to this was the absolutely lovely and wonderful life guard zanley! My daughter made friends with her and she was so lovely, kind and gave my daughter some incredible holiday/birthday memories. Zanley also found our son’s hat, had handed it to the towel hut and told us the next day that she had found it and handed it in. However when I went to collect it had mysteriously disappeared…which was disappointing despite going to the towel hut and asking at reception about lost and found the hat had disappeared. (Pretty sure the staff must just throw it away!) The pools are beautiful, the beach lovely, the gym was good, the view of the sunset incredible and the food was pretty tasty in the restaurants and the buffet. So not all bad. It was our daughter’s 5th birthday while we were there and we paid for a cake to be delivered to the restaurant which was great, they sang happy birthday to her which she loved. We had a great holiday because of what we made it, we used the facilities which were great, pools were a massive hit with us and the kids, but unfortunately the overall staff ( minus the lovely Zanley) let the resort down. Overall wouldn’t recommend and definitely not worth the amount of money it costs.

Tabitha Dumas

The rooms needs to be renovated but the cleanliness was on scale 4 out of 5. The service was subpar the employees didn’t wear gloves, there were birds flying in the restaurant, the cooks was using their cellphone while cooking. The staff were not friendly nor attentive. Unfortunately we do not plan to return to this resort. We have been to several islands and have never experienced anything like this.