Theres no such thing as a bad hotel it is all relative to what you pay. Put simply this hotel is grossly overpriced and the company seems to have focused on dollars not customers. A simple example - there are fundamentally 2 types of rooms - the cottages in the grounds and standard hotel rooms. Yet sandals manages to spin these out to something like 10 different price points. We booked a penthouse room and were shown to a 3rd floor room in a 4 storey block. We pointed out that penthouses were on the top floor and were advised that they had "designated" the 3rd floor rooms to be penthouses! To be fair they moved us to the top floor but every room on the top floor of each block is a penthouse which seems to contradict the dictionary definition!
Service was chaotic, the drinks most definitely are watered down, the bathroom was very poor and just for good measure we saw rats near josephines restaurant.
In essence everything struck me as a company that was abusing its brand - you cut your costs, increasing your marketing spend, offer aprently attractive discounts and your profits increase in the short term ......but it catches up with you in the end

We spent our honeymoon at Sandals Grande in St. Lucia Sunday, January 29th through Sunday, February 5th. There was a small inconvenience when we first arrived. There was an issue with the shower in the room we were supposed to stay in, so we had to stay at the La Toc resort for the night. It was a little frustrating, being that's not what we had booked, and since we'd wated for so long to go on this trip. All we wanted to do was unpack and relax for the week. That got put on holf for a day, but we really enjoy the La Toc resort and made the best of it! It's hard to be mad when you're on your honeymoon in paradise! Sandals more than made up for the inconvenience. They got us a private car from the airport and we didn't have to pay for it. We were planning on doing that any ways, because we'd heard how bad the buses were. But, before we could get one, they had my husband and I in a BMW and on our way to La Toc! We highly recommend doing this, if you can. Our driver was so nice. He had a cooler full of beer. He stopped at some look out points. It was a very comfortable ride to the resort! Once we got to the Grande, on Monday, we had to wait a little while before our room was ready, but once we got it, everything was smooth sailing from there! We spoke to a manager about the issue and she was so nice and apologetic. She gave us a spa credit, made reservations for us at Gordons and upgraded our room. Had non of those extras been done, we still would have had the best week ever! But, they made sure to make up for what happened the first night. We are so thankful that they cared so much!
Every employee that we dealt with there was very nice and polite. By the end of the week, most of them knew our names and room number! Even the maids were friendly and polite. They all greeted us whenever we'd pass them in the hallway. Great people all around! The bartenders were awesome! The front desk clerks were so nice and helpful.
We did the couples massage. It was the first massage ever for my husband. He wasn't sure about doing it at first, but after, he was thankful he did! They did an amazing job. After that, any time we'd see one of the massage therapists around the resort, she'd give us a hug and ask how our stay was going. Very nice people!
We ate at all the restaurants except Tosconini's. We never had a bad meal. There was always a large portion. It was always delicious too. I am a very picky eater, so I was concerned about the food, but I never had a meal I didn't love! Gordons was by far the best place we ate. If you can, make reservations there! Breakfast at the Bayside was always wonderful. They had every option you could think of! They also had fresh fruit smoothies every day. Delish! The pizza at Josephines was the best! The nachos and dinners at Barefoot by the Sea were amazing as well! Once again, we never had a bad meal!
As for the drinks, they were all perfect! We'd read reviews on here about them being watered down. I had to ask them to go easy on the alcohol a few times. They are very generous when it comes to mixing drinks! If I wasn't sure what I was in the mood for, the bartender would just mix something up. It was always fun to see what was next! Their Piton beer is great! Definitely try that!
The resort itself was very clean and well kept. I'd read a few reviews on here saying that it was run down. I wasn't sure what to expect when we got there, but I never once saw any crack, chipped paint, or any sign of wear and tear! It was all freshly painted. The furnature in the main lobby area was nice, comfortable, and up to date. The garden area was always beautiful. The pools were always clean. Our room looked brand new! We may have gotten one that had just been remodeled, but the resort was very nice and well kept. No complaints there!
We did the scuba class and then went on 3 different dives. Our dive master was amazing. If you have any interest in scuba diving, definitely try it out! We saw a lot of fish, lobsters, and sea horses. I even got to hold a puffer fish on our 3rd dive! Amazing experience!
Several times, we'd come back to our room and find a surprise from the maid. She'd either leave flower petals on the floor, bed, run a bath and put petals in there, make cute little things out of the towels, leave notes stating that they hope our stay is going well. It was always a fun surprise to see what they did! I thought it was nice that they'd come in again in the evening and turn down our bed for us, and replenish anything that we'd used that day. We always had a fridge full of water, pop, and juice. We never had to ask for any of it.
We went on the Zipline tour and book through Sandals. It was a great trip and well worth the money! The tour guide was so much fun!
We booked another land and sea tour through Exodus, the guys on the beach. That tour was also a lot of fun! It was a lot smaller group. We talked to some other people who did this same tour through Sandals and they said it was fun, but there were a lot more people on it. Either way, if you do that tour, you'll have a wonderful time, but check out Exodus on the beach! You won't be disapointed!
The beach was perfect. They raked it every morning. The water was very calm. The beach at La Toc was a lot smaller and the waves were really big there.
Every night, they had some sort of entertainment. Whether it was a dj, reggae band, or pianist. It was always fun! We did a lot of dancing!
Even after the small mis-hap on our first day, we still rate the Grande a 5! It truly is a magical place! The employees all genuinly care about your well being. They all seem to be grateful that you are there. They all want you to be happy! I don't know how anyone could be disapointed with this resort!

Our true paradise. Beautiful beach, great food, rooms, endless drinks and friendly staff.
If you are going to do a boat tour I would definitely recommend using Benny. Great guy, delivers what they say they will and it doesn't take p your whole day. And when you're on the beach look for our boy Lalo he can make you anything you want to remember your trip.

My comments have nothing to do with the hotel as everything was very good especially the dive team. I just feel after being to many resorts and experiencing the same type of rude people i have to comment. There are some nationalities that seem to think it is there right to cut in front of everyone even when multiple people are waiting, I saw this at the bar, reception, and dive shop. Also being very rude to staff. Please people everyone is there to relax and enjoy their vacation so have a litlle respect, we don't need a vacation ruined because of idiots like you. Also to the couple from Hamilton who missed your plane, that is not Sandals fault,it is yours, you have your itenerary,so place blame where it is deserved.