Tamarind by Elegant Hotels - All-Inclusive

The staff are obviously fed up. Majority are not happy to serve and it feels like they do not want to be at the hotel. I’m glad I didn’t stay for our whole time in Barbados and stayed somewhere else as well. Very disappointing.

The location is brilliant. The west coast has golden beaches and calm seas. The hotel had a really good ‘family’ feel about it. The watersports stood out . Free hobbiecats, paddle board, waterski/wakeboarding. Another bonus, is the free water taxi that takes you to the other three hotels in the group: colony, waves, crystal. And everybody was super friendly. A wonderful break.

A charming hotel and although it is a little tired I wouldn’t let that put you off. We had such a lovely time and were very looked after by all the friendly staff. The inclusive water sports were a real bonus for us as the sea is perfect. We also loved being able to visit the 3 other hotels by the free water taxi. We will definitely be back especially as it’s closing soon for a refurb. Just hope they keep up the charm of this place.

We arrived to find that the requested rooms were not available so we had to wait and transfer to the correct ones the next day - upper level front ocean view - these were just right and what we expected. The hotel which has a great location on the beach has seen better days and is in need of a refurb throughout. Choice of restaurants is very limited and apart from the pool bar only the main one is in use at present. Food is ok but not the selection we normally get in the Caribbean and they often ran out of things especially at breakfast. Very little entertainment but heads up to them for an excellent Kids Club. We understand that Marriot have taken over the complex and plan to close it down for the much needed update works but until then it barely makes the 4* grade.

A fantastic 10 day holiday at the All Inclusive Tamarind Hotel in Barbados. From the bedroom to house keeping service, reception, restaurants, variety and high quality food, bar service, pools, beach and all the water sports including motorised did not disappoint. The care and attention to detail in looking after you from all the staff made this a fantastic holiday.

My partner has already provided a review of the Tamarind, but I also want to confirm that our stay was wonderful. The resort is big enough to allow for guest to spread out and choose to use either of the three pools or be on the beach. We booked an Ocean Front view room and it was so good to wake up looking over the Caribbean Sea each morning! As has already been mentioned in many reviews, the staff at the Tamarind are amazing, as they are so friendly and helpful. I would love to name them all, but the ones I would most like to thank are Alicia, Troy (at the Rilaks bar) and Ether for her breakfast Omelettes. Also a special thanks to all the reception staff who were so nice and helpful and very professional. During our stay we used the hotel water taxi to visit other Elegant resorts which we would highly recommend. Even if it’s just to go and have lunch it’s well worth it to see what the other hotels are like. All are very different in style, but they also have great staff on hand. Overall the food was great and especially the dinners, which were very well presented and very good quality. The buffet breakfasts and lunch were very nice, with plenty of choice. We loved our stay at the resort and we have promised to return as soon as we can.

We had a wonderful week at the Tamarind. All the staff were beyond nice and accommodating. The resort could definitely use some updating, but nothing major that impacted our stay. The kindness of the staff more than made up for anything we noticed. The beach took a beating from the tropical storm that came thru and was rather narrow to start with, but the chairs were comfy and surf was nice for swimming. There was decent reef to snorkle from the beach if the storm hadn't stirred everything up. Water shoes would have been smart, but we found sandy spots to get in and enjoy the sea. The pool areas were also lovely. There was only one restaurant open, plus the food served at the main pool bar, but we ate for 8 days with no complaints. Lunch buffet was uninspired some days, but the choices at the bar were good if you didn't like the buffet. Taxi from the airport was easy and cost $62 USD. We did not prebook. We also got a taxi to St. Nicolas Abby for rum and train riding (it was $45USD). Lovely excursion to the other side of the island. We can't wait to come back and explore more of the island.

We reserved a room at The Tamarind, a Marriott property in Barbados, for a 5-night stay. The hotel did not appear like the photographs and was quite outdated when we arrived. The tiles were damaged, the air conditioning was leaking, the restaurants were closed, and the food selection was limited. The shower floor was damaged, and mold was present on the doors (and closet doors), the bedding was stained, and so on. When we expressed our concerns to the hotel's management in order to get a refund and relocate, they told us that we couldn't get one unless we spent at least three nights. Why would we want to stay anywhere in such a state? They offered to shift us to one of their sister hotels because staying in their property for 3 nights was unacceptable. We wasted a whole day exploring their sister hotels in order to identify where we could relocate. We eventually decided to shift to Turtle Beach (far nicer- but still old) and spoke with the personnel there about transferring the same night because we didn't want to waste another day trying to get our living arrangements in order, and they assured us we could. We returned to The Tamarind to pack, only to be given the runaround and create even more frustration. Their water taxi was not operational, therefore we spent over $100 traveling when their taxi could have and should have been a means of transportation since it was included in our stay. No refunds were given, Marriott International was unhelpful, and our 6-day vacation did not begin until the third day. The staff were nice, they were the best part of our stay.

The reception, bar, dining and beach staff were all naturally friendly and full of Caribbean joy. Special mention must be made of Mikaela and Astrid in reception Well Done !!! The 3 bar girls by the pool for the delicious drinks and tons of laughter. Thanks Ether for the fantastic breakfasts and your bright morning smiles. Our room was heavenly comfortable and clean, food for good...Iralian dinner in Positano's was outstanding. 5 out of 5 rating for our vacation Thanks Tamarind !!