My spouse and I stayed at Sandals Grande for 3 nights in
early March 2006.
We took the helicopter from Hewanorra Airport to Vigie Airport. (We
booked through SunLink Reps, which contracted with St. Lucia Helicopters, and
paid $120 per person. The price did not include the taxi ride to Sandals
Grande; however, which was another $20.) We highly recommend the
helicopter--the scenery is beautiful! On our return to fly back to the US, we
took the ground transportation (approximately 90-minute transfer time).
In March of 2006, we stayed at Grande for 3 nights before
moving (planned ahead of time) to Regency for 4 nights. The Grande is a
relatively compact property, and I didn't feel one guest room area was superior
to another. On the contrary, I wasn't at all impressed by the location of the
concierge rooms at Grande--they seemed to be at the edge of the property,
farther away from everything. The landscaping surrounding those rooms, however,
was prettier and more lush than other places. We were returning guests, so I
think that we were slightly upgraded to a room on the top floor (I think it was
4 stories high) facing the lagoon pool, which we really appreciated (it may
have been building 3, but I would have to check my records). We expected to
face the parking lots, since we booked the lowest category of room. The rooms
near the lagoon pool are also near the tiny Lover's Pool, which we really
liked. We tried to avoid the main pool with all the hoopla, but of course, then
you give up the swim-up pool bar, too. Our room was tiled, but the room
directly across the hall from ours (which faced the ocean) was a 2-room suite
with vaulted ceilings, and it was carpeted. Had I not seen the door open when
the maid was cleaning and gone in to investigate, I never would have believed
that the room just opposite ours could look so different. So I think what you
said is true: with the view comes the carpeting. I did like the 2-room set-up,
though, as well as the high ceilings (which you won't get on every floor), so
it's a tradeoff having to deal with the carpet. Restaurants include the Old
English Pub, Barefoot by the Sea, Josephine’s, Toscaninis, and The Bayside. We
also ate at Halcyon one night at The Pier. One day we hiked to Pigeon Island to
see Fort Rodney and Signal Point.
I saw two gazebos while we were there. One was larger,
somewhat between Armando's Restaurant and the beach, and the other was smaller
and located near the activity pool and Barefoot by the Sea Restaurant. I would
definitely choose the larger gazebo. It was even set for a small wedding dinner
one evening, so it was sizably different, and the location was preferable
(except on ?Mondays? when they have the beach barbeque). But I truly would
choose the beach over the gazebos. The gazebos weren't any more private than
the beach, and while the beaches are public, I really didn't see much foot
traffic from anyone other than hotel guests. And the couples that I saw getting
married seemed to enjoy basking in the attention that they got from the
spectators. There's no such thing as too much admiration when you are the
beautiful bride. Enjoy St. Lucia!
Although I haven't been to Hawaii, I feel certain that I can
tell you that the volcanos don't compare. The one in St. Lucia is really just a
bubbling pit of sulfur gasses. You can "drive in" very close to it,
as it claims to be the world's only drive-in volcano. Don't get me wrong, I
loved St. Lucia for the mountainous greenery, but the volcano/sulphur springs
were very disappointing. We booked a private driver for a tour of the island,
which was well worth it, but the volcano visit was NOT the highlight of the
trip. We lunched at Ladera, so we were able to get a glimpse of Jalousie below
near the beach.
