Sand Castles Resort Hotel

, Ocho Rios, Jamaica
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Sand Castles Resort Hotel

, Ocho Rios
Main St - Ocho Rios - Jamaica Hotel Website | 876-974-5626
214 Traveller

Reviews - Sand Castles Resort Hotel

2/10
Great location shame about the airport
Submitted by: Mike in 07/01/07
  • Age Group: 51 - 60
  • From: United Kingdom
  • Traveller type: Sun Seeker
Sandcastles was a true 3+ but decor and rooms now very sad so 2+ at best location next to beach superb and staff try very hard long 150 min transfer took 2 hours to enter the country and three to leave in addition all in queues too much after 10 hr flight. Local food cheap if you walk 500 yards to the Jamaican end away from the cruise ships, Jamaicans very friendly but sadly most want money. Worth a visit once!
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Historical Traveller Reviews of Sand Castles Resort Hotel

Consider renting a privately owned apartment...

from A TripAdvisor Member
I have stayed at Sand Castles at least twice a year since 2001. I plan to return this June/July. I have also stayed at the Rennaisance Jamaica Grande, Chrissann Villa, and Club Jamaica (now closed). Because I love Jamaica, I have been fine at all of these places. My experiences at Sand Castles have been good ones. However, I have always stayed in the same privately owned apartment. It is impeccably clean and very well maintained. There was a new refrigerator, new drapes and reupholstered furniture on my last visit. The staff works hard to see that my needs are met. Any requests are honored promptly. Occupants of the private apartments have the same privileges as others in the hotel with regards to entertainment, etc. You will want to be at poolside on the nights that Smiley comes from behind the bar and sings! The apartment faces the beach and it is within walking distance of the grocery stores, crafts markets, and shops. Reasonable and safe transportation to key spots on the island is easily arranged. If you want to lie by the pool and be pampered to a fault, then this is not the place for you. If you are an independent traveler who wants a nice place to crash after a day of sightseeing...or if you are happy doing things for yourself, then this is for you. Consider renting a privately owned apartment if you want a truly pleasant stay at this resort!

We loved Sandcastles

from A TripAdvisor Member
I don't know what all you guys are talking about! We had a great time at Sandcastles - sure, the rooms aren't 5 * standard, but they're clean and fresh towells are provided every day. We didn't spend much time in our room anyway - we went to Jamaica to enjoy the amazing surroundings of jungle, clear blue sea and white sands. You people who complain about the rooms should get out more. If your'e just gonna stay in your room all the time, then you may as well be at home! Anyone planning to stay at Sandcastles, don't be disheartened, we had a great time. But, if you are planning on doing several trips throught the hotel when your'e there, go onto the beach instead and look for one of the guys who works for the Jamaican Tourists board, co it's cheaper and lots more fun to go with them. Look out for Bobby Brown inparticular - he took us wherever we wanted to go, for a reasonable price, and we had great fun! If you want to try real local cuisine, look out for Erol (man with the stick) who is also usually on or near the beach - he is amazing at cooking lobster!! Want your hair braided? Then ask for Carmen from the Fisherman's Point hotel - she'd excellent. So anyway, we had a blat, despite reading other crappy reviews on this website.
Happy holidays! Feel free to contact us if you have any queries

What a Joke!

from Nikkj89
What can I say about the sandcastle resort, first of all who classifies these places as resorts, it was old and mildew smelling, staff was not pleasant at all, got an attitude if you asked for anything. Do not go buy the internet picture bacause it is not what you will get when you finish traveling the 2 hrs from the airport to get there. locals on the street intimidate you, I felt like I was going to be robbed at any second. Jamaica did not give me a warm fuzzy at all. Totally disapointed. 2 stars is what the internet said after visiting I will rate it one star. reminded me of a project developement.

wonderfull resort

from A TripAdvisor Member
I went to Jamaica 2/7-2/15/2004 and stayed at the sand castle resort. I thought it was a very nice place to stay. It was neat and clean the service was EXCELLENT and I couldn't ask for a nicer place to lay my head at nights.

What a nightmare

from JazziMarks
Got back November 11th 2003. Well no disrespect to my sister who had visited the hotel previously and had a beautiful room, she convinced us to stay there instead of our usual place, Sky Castle resort just up the road, nice place! Well she said the rooms were much nicer @ Sandcastles, what a joke! Its a dump and yes the people are very rude.
Miss Tutu was the nicest person to us, she was one of the entertainments team there! Ochi is terrible for being harrassed but i have friends that live close by so i stay there as a matter of convenience. Next time its the Grande or Wydam Rose Hall in Mo'Bay, looks really nice!!

Stay away!! Please!!

from mickynmarkiny
This was our second time back to Jamaica in 6 months. The first time was in Negril (FANTASTIC!!), this time was at the Sandcastle Resort and this time it was terrible!! The people were extremely rude to us.. There were only 2 cool people in the whole resort and that was Smiley (one of the bartenders) and Marshall (one of the waiters). Other than those two, everyone else SUCKED!! There are only 4 to 5 choices during the 3 meals and they are almost the same everyday. The bar is next to the lobby, where u can get a fantastic view of the street. LOL.. WHAT A JOKE!! Ocho Rios is just a terrible place to visit in general!! Every 2 seconds we were constantly harassed by locals when we left the resort. If u do visit Ocho Rios, make sure you make up T-shirt that say -...!!If u do want to try your luck in Ocho Rios, spend the extra cash and go to Renaissance Jamaica Grande Resort AND STAY THERE!! DON'T LEAVE THE RESORT, TRUST ME!! Or better yet, go to Negril and stay at Negril Gardens Resort.. I cannot Praise this place enough!! Everyone made us feel right at home and catered to our every need. Plus, they had a HUGE selection of food. Plus, their bar is right on the beach!! We know next time around.. Hopefully, u will not make the same mistake like we did.

Not even close to a three star!!!

from A TripAdvisor Member
Pretty much a dump. We just got back Jan 26, 2004. To start we were guarenteed an oceanfront room- yeah, if you lean all the way over the balcony and around some trees you get a glimpse of water. Second day the toilet had major problems and when they finally came to fix it we were told they would have the part the next day. If they got the part to fix it they must have lost it because three days later it still wasn't fixed. The "kitchen" they advertise, a toaster that if you use it sets off the fire alarm, a stove I wasn't brave enough to test and a bunch of ants to go along with it. We bought canned food and on the 5th day finally got a can opener. The good points of this place is that all the housekeeping were great!!!Very nice to you. They might not supply you with anything but they will clean very well. Like other people I read the bad reviews and ignored them and it was the biggest mistake I could have made. Next time I will do ALOT of research before I stay somewhere.

Stay Away!

from A TripAdvisor Member
We planned to stay at the Sand Castle Resort with our four-year old despite the mediocre reviews, figuring that at the price we could manage it. We were totally shocked by the poor quality of the room. It was a real "dump," and we are usually not very difficult to please. Our room was dingy and depressing - like something from another era. It was so small that the door to the bedroom would only open a few inches. Our only advice is STAY AWAY! Fortunately, Jamaica Vacations moved us at no cost to the Chain Bridge, which was a delight. Although we had to take a shuttle to the beach, it made our trip a success.

staying at the grand down the road was a better deal

from lorrett
Stayed at this hotel? 2002. Very disappointed at service. Fridge did not work and after 24 hours (when staff finally responded) was given another old fridge as replacement. Staff made you feel as if you were complaining if you asked for something. Given 2 twin beds, although room pre-booked. Stayed at Fishermans Point 5 months before which was excellent. Decide to spend the extra cash 4 months later at the Grande down the road, no complaints. Will spend that extra again when next in that area. Suncastle get your act together, or just change the miserable staff.

The rooms vary.

from A TripAdvisor Member
I stayed here 4 years ago and had an absolutely beautiful room.
Something the reviewers should be aware of is that alot of the rooms are privately owned by individuals. Some people keep them for themselves, and others rent them out or have the resort take care of renting them out. So the decoration and upkeep can very alot depending on how much the owner cares about his unit. Some owners have their own maids and some use the hotels.

Top Local Tips for Ocho Rios

locals..... fair play to the hustlers trying to surf some dollars......outside the hotel....but when they can blag onto the resort so easily...be very aware....oh...and do not eat anything.....its terrible

Tips For Getting around and staying in Ochi Cabs are readily available out on the main drag. We paid to have someone drive us to Kingston to the Bob Marley Museum and other points of interest. I would recommend this as a day trip if you can afford to go however, the cabbies to drive a bit on the fast side. Also, there are some nice nightclubs in Ocho Rios (Margaritaville, Amnesia) and relatively easy to get to. Dunn's River Falls is only a $20 cab drive away and is worth it for a day trip too. I wouldn't suggest going to the Italian Restaurant - Evita's- as we found it to be a little overpriced and the food claims to be American but don't believe it! If going out at night, make sure you're not alone as the people in Jamaica are friendly but do have a way of trying to sell things to you and ask you to buy things regularly. There are several banks near by that will let you withdraw American funds which was also pretty nice. Have fun in Jamaica!

Tips For Getting around and staying in Ochi Cabs are readily available out on the main drag. We paid to have someone drive us to Kingston to the Bob Marley Museum and other points of interest. I would recommend this as a day trip if you can afford to go however, the cabbies to drive a bit on the fast side. Also, there are some nice nightclubs in Ocho Rios (Margaritaville, Amnesia) and relatively easy to get to. Dunn's River Falls is only a $20 cab drive away and is worth it for a day trip too. I wouldn't suggest going to the Italian Restaurant - Evita's- as we found it to be a little overpriced and the food claims to be American but don't believe it! If going out at night, make sure you're not alone as the people in Jamaica are friendly but do have a way of trying to sell things to you and ask you to buy things regularly. There are several banks near by that will let you withdraw American funds which was also pretty nice. Have fun in Jamaica!

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Other names for Sand Castles Resort Hotel

  • sandcastles resort
  • sandcastles ocho rios
  • sandcastles beach
  • sand castles ocho rios
  • sand castles hotel
  • Address: Main St - Ocho Rios - Jamaica
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