Had a recent stay at the Royalton Grenada and concur with the two-year-old assessment of High Technology.

Arrived around 2ish, room wasn’t ready, but check-in wasn’t until 3 anyway, so we were sent to the buffet for lunch. The room didn’t end up being ready until after 4. Walked around the resort, spacious grounds, pretty, clean, tidy, and well kept. We made it to our booked oceanfront room in building 16, no upgrade, but was in a lovely spot and listening to the waves at night with the slider cracked open was relaxing. A bracelet serves as your room key, quite convenient (note, if you lose it, give it away, etc, you’ll get charged $100+). Also got one of those cheesy wristbands that said elite on it for access to Diamond amenities, which I’m glad I didn’t pay extra for, though maybe there were amenities (we didn’t need a butler) that were available that weren’t communicated to us (and we did ask). Both bracelets must be returned at the end of the stay, they actually staple them to your exit paperwork. The golfcart-esque buggies to drive you around the resort were a thoughtful touch, especially helpful to those who may have mobility issues. Btw, no elevators.

Pool water wasn’t heated and didn’t need to be. There were pool jacuzzi’s, not hot tubs. The jet bubbles didn’t stay on for long, but just press a button to restart. I would have liked to see an adults-only pool, but that was not to be. Plenty of chairs and shade available at the pools and on the beach.

Housekeeping cleaned and made the beds daily. They removed towels and washcloths the first time, but didn’t replace them. Next, they didn’t take the used towels at all. The room was also missing the hair dryer and it took quite a while to receive replacement, despite several calls and a trip to the main lobby to inquire in person. Water pressure was really good.

Friendly staff but agree, inexperienced or insufficient training. I did hear rumblings about the hotel purportedly going to be built up and around (or turned/taken over) so maybe the A team went elsewhere? Many staff members didn’t share or have basic knowledge, such as, they hadn’t tasted the food so they couldn’t/wouldn’t provide input (hotel should have staff menu tastings), they didn’t know how much the five-minute taxi ride to the airport was ($12/ride, not per person), didn’t know much about Platinum status offerings, nor was there any recognition of such, and no mention or receipt of welcome gift amenity.

I think I heard a plane fly over once; considering the close proximity of the airport, the lack of air traffic noise was a bonus. Enjoyed the underwater sculptures snorkeling excursion booked on-site with hotel concierge, paid to tour company, not applied to your room folio. Another day we had a taxi drive us around the island (going rate was USD 30-$35/hr) to a rum tasting, a fort, Annandale waterfall, shopping, whatever we wanted. Perfect, and better him driving than us!

Now then, the food was, well, oof, subpar, and that’s putting it nicely. Oh Lordy, huge miss. Apparently, and sadly, this seems to be a very well-known issue. When staff asked how we enjoyed our meal, we were politely honest, and they acknowledged our commentary wasn’t the first they’ve heard. Validated by locals and patrons alike; the word was out, and had been out, without remedy. To give an example, the prosciutto and melon salad at the French restaurant consisted of a single thin slice of watermelon that could honestly have been a bar drink garnish (no kidding), with a piece of shaved honeydew and cantaloupe and a thick slice of maybe overcooked Canadian ham. The eggs benedict at the upper-level pool area couldn’t even be cut with a knife. The buffet did have a nice bread offering if you like your carbs. There is only one white wine available and we don’t drink chardonnay so no wine for us. Restaurants never mentioned specials for an upcharge, but they did mention all the items they were out of. Marriott missed the mark here big time. Really disappointing.

Wanted to have two friends meet us at the bar for a drink, but they weren’t allowed in. I said I’d purchase their drinks but was told they’d only be allowed in for USD 160pp which, quite frankly, is absurd for a drink or two. I think that was the final nail in the Royalton coffin. Was going to book St. Lucia or Antigua next trip, but if this is commonplace, might be preferable to stay away from the Royalton brand all together. I’m still conflicted.

Would I come back to Grenada? Yes. But unless Marriott can can get their act together, F&B especially, not too keen on returning to the Royalton as I can only imagine there are much better options out there.