Galley Bay Resort and Spa - All Inclusive

Customer Ratings & Reviews

TripAdvisor Traveler Rating

4633 reviews

• 

  Wonderful relaxing holiday

  We had the most wonderful relaxing holiday at Galley Bay and would thoroughly recommend it. It was our first time to the Caribbean and we could not have chosen better. We arrived in the early evening and were welcomed with a drink. It didn't take long to check in and be shown to our room. The room was great, right on the beach with an amazing view of the sea. You could hear the waves crashing from the room. It was a large room with great facilities including a walk in wardrobe and large bathroom. All the hotel staff were so friendly - the reception team, guest services, all restaurants and bars, the garden and room teams. Everyone greeted us with a friendly smile. The food was great. Breakfast cooked as you wanted and then lunch either at a restaurant or the Barefoot Grill. We enjoyed dinner at all three restaurants and can recommend them all. I celebrated my birthday and we had a meal at Ismays - we were not disappointed. The team there even greeted me with a birthday song to make it a memorable evening. In my room on that day I was left champagne and a platter of fruit - a really lovely gesture. We spent most of our time at resort. The only disappointment was the sea was a little rough on several occasions which was a shame as when it was calmer it was incredible with many fish to see as you snorkelled. We did manage a trip out on the kayaks which we enjoyed. We also took part in the garden tour and went to see the hydroponics - you can see why the salads are so fresh as they grow them on site. We booked an island tour through the hotel and had a lovely time seeing the sites. There is entertainment every night - different bands - if you want a lively night life scene then this isn't the place for you. We liked to have a drink at the bar. One of the nice things is the coffee shop. We visited there throughout the day to pick up a cappuccino. The cakes looked delicious and there was ice cream too if you wanted. It would be good if the hotel had diet lemonade as well as the diet coke on offer as this would have opened up a greater selection of drinks for those that cannot have sugary drinks and don't like coke. The drink selection is one of the best that we have seen and the rum shake had many rums for you to try. The pool, gardens and beach were kept spotless. On rough days it could be hard to find a sun bed near the pool. The hotel should perhaps consider having a policy of not allowing beds to be reserved if the people are not there as I am sure there would have been enough during the day. You have guaranteed sunbeds on the beach so we used to sit there and then walk to the pool for a swim. The gardens were immaculate and the team do a great job keeping them tidy. The animals were great. The humming birds, lizards and frogs. Thank you Galley Bay team for such a great stay. An amazing holiday and lots of lovely memories.

  Dec 21, 2024
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  Another Wonderful Romantic Getaway

  My husband and I just returned from a wonderful week long stay at Galley Bay Resort, needless to say we cannot wait to return. When we first visited this gem in 2015, we declared that Galley Bay was and will be our special place where we go to escape life’s hassles and celebrate our relationship, just us. This remained the case when we visited in 2019 and we are pleased to reaffirm this declaration in 2024! Our stay was amazing! Of course the beach and the grounds and the rooms are top notch, but in my opinion what sets Galley Bay apart is their wonderful staff. The staff is a true team and family and as a guest you are welcomed into this family, whether it is your first stay or like us you’re a returning guest. The staff is warm, friendly, caters to your every need and gives you the space and privacy to enjoy each other’s company. I will take the time to acknowledge several members of the team who made our return stay so memorable. We were greeted warmly by Bri at check in who made sure to acknowledge our special milestone and checked in on us during our stay. Phonocio transported us to our room, highlighting points of interest along the way. When we arrived at our room (the one we requested by the way) we were greeted with a lovely welcome note and champagne. A special shout out to Bettina (our Elite Island booking agent who noted and communicated our special requests to the property). It was wonderful to see general manager Antoine and resident manager Cedric again. They remembered us and welcomed us “home” and would greet us and chat with us whenever we ran into them around the resort. It was a pleasure to meet and get to know manager Nadia in guest services this time around. Speaking of guest services, I also want to acknowledge Joan who helped with dinner reservations and any questions we had. Our room was attended daily by Dacia from housekeeping who also left us beautiful towel art and the always inspirational Galley Bay bed notes, which I like to collect to remember our trip. The food, the restaurants, and bar services at Galley Bay are in my opinion spectacular. It is true authentic Caribbean inspired food, well seasoned, and exceptionally tasty. (Definitely, pack the flowy dresses ladies, you’ll need the extra space.) Chef Nathaniel and his culinary staff are creative and talented. Their food and menus are well conceived and very delicious. Chef is also very present and we often saw and chatted with him in the restaurants as well as with other guests. The service in all the restaurants is wonderful. The seaviews and intimate setting of Gauguin Restaurant where each party gets their own gazebo is so special. The Seagrape Restaurant also has a beautiful beachfront setting. I want to acknowledge some of the staff, Samantha, Vaughn, and Sadi, but please note that the whole team is wonderful. At the Teepee bar, special shout outs to Aaliyah and Liyah who made the best GBCs with rum, our go to drink on this trip. The resort feels intimate and private, the beach is beautiful, and the pool is cool and refreshing. The resort allows you to be as active and relaxed as you wish, this trip we did both. We rode bikes, played tennis, we even found time for the Spa, and my husband fished. I want to share that this third trip was the charm for my husband, he caught an elusive tarpon in the lagoon as well as a snook. Thank you again Galley Bay family, we can’t wait to see you again.

  Dec 21, 2024
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  Not For Solos

  I returned from Galley Bay a few days ago and I’ve got nothing but praise for the resort and the staff. All the staff looked after me so well especially Joan and the other Guest Service managers who were there to answer my constant queries and always with a smile. How patient they were! My deluxe upper floor room was all I needed and huge for a solo traveller. I couldn’t fault housekeeping and my mini fridge was stocked with everything I requested. I saw the “beach cleaners” out at first light and I had no problem with the state of the beach or the loungers. The food was excellent and I was looked after promptly at every meal. BUT, and for me a big but, the resort is so beautiful that I desperately wanted to share it with someone special. I wouldn’t recommend it as a resort for “solos”. The sea was mostly yellow flagged and I didn’t want to make the dash through huge waves to calmer waters on my own and with no-one looking out for me. So if you are super self confident and don’t mind eating on your own that’s fine. But I would say that it’s definitely not a resort for solos.

  Dec 20, 2024
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  Good but could have some improvements

  Just back from 7 night BA holiday and overall loved the resort for all the reasons given by others and had a great break. The grounds, the staff , the wine and cocktails and the evening bands and of course the setting make this a great resort However a few things can be improved. Arriving in the early evening in the dark is a bumpy ride through terrible congestion to find Reception unoccupied and eventually served by a sleepy person with no welcome. We we were sent off to our room with no welcome drink and little explanation of everything. We were given room 50, great location but desperately needs work. The plastic wood floor is breaking up and the bathroom was quite dangerous in bare feet. A little decoration would be good as plain white walls everywhere are boring at night. Restaurants are good but the breakfast buffet can definitely be improved. A better offer of coffee would be easy to provide as not everyone wants to queue at the little cafe to get a European coffee and could easily be helped by some high quality self service machines serving European coffees.

  Dec 19, 2024
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  Beautiful resort! Great stay

  Let me start off by saying I travel to the Caribbean twice a year for a week to 10 days and try different resorts and different islands. I have high standards and I am picky. I don’t mind pay premium price for Premium value. This resort is up there with one of my favorites. The property is lush with Caribbean landscape and palm trees. Everywhere looks clean and tidy and new. We stayed in the premium oceanfront Suite No. 27 and might be one of the nicest rooms we stayed in. The walkout room is the way to go so convenient. I love that your chairs and Palapala are assigned to you. Three restaurants on site one of them $50 charge per person extra but well worth it. You definitely see the higher quality in ismays. Not crazy about the breakfast. Love that there is a coffee shop to get cookies and pastries and drinks whenever you want during the day and night. there’s a nice little grill. You can order stuff from if you don’t want to sit at the restaurant.gaugins restaurant is a unique setting where there are only 13 tables which are all spaced out and private under your own hut. Right at water. Reservations are a must. You are seated in the order in which you check in at night the earlier you are the better seats you get. I have to point out three staff members that really really stood out and represents what every resort would want their employees to be. They are as follows. Alfred first met at check-in brought me to the room very informative all through the week knew your name and asked you if you needed anything and if you did, it was taken care of right away. Awesome guy .second person Afhique this gentleman worked the beach, getting us drinks and food, remembered our name right away, which was very surprising and pleasant always had a smile on his face always made sure you were taken care of and we always saw him walking back-and-forth and lastly, our housekeeper Veronica such a pleasant woman, always smiling always enjoy chatting with her every day. I made sure I tipped these three people well as they really made my stay enjoyable if somebody does that for your stay, take care of them. It goes a long way. I love that they give you aluminum bottles to keep your drinks cold in all day. They really work. great little perk. The water is very rough right at the beach line where the waves crash if you can time it and get past that 20 feet out your in smooth water, apparently it is rough at this time of the year. Beach is a bit uneven. Another good thing they have here is bikes to use. We’re further down the property so it really came in handy to get to the middle where everything is. The only couple hiccups some days beach towels were not available in the morning, but there were plenty in the dirty bin from the night before which I don’t understand why they’re not cleaned every night and readily available in in the morning when we need them. And the only other negative for me is we were there seven days and only saw guys fixing the chairs and raking the beach one day and that was after I had said something I feel like the beach should be tidied up at the end of the night, so it looks nice in the morning. Plenty of days towels are just left on chairs cups and plates left at the tables. I would rate this resort a 9.5 out of 10 it’s not cheap but you get what you pay for. if you want quiet and relaxation you come to the right place if you want entertainment after dinner they have that as well every night.

  Dec 19, 2024