This property offers spacious accommodations for travelers seeking a quiet refuge away from the crowds. This resort has won plenty of accolades, but they were more for the resort's low-key nature rather than for a full menu of offerings, standards of amenities, or quality of service.
The quaint, triple-tier, red-roofed, columned buildings in contemporary, quasi-Gone-With-the-Wind-style are directly behind the beach and front an inviting free-form swimming pool and its lounge chairs with sweat-inducing plastic covers. A whirlpool and poolside bar nearby provide families with plenty of space to splash about (to the detriment of peace-seeking couples).
The hotel's elegant restaurant, Simba, serves casual breakfasts and lunches plus white-tablecloth dinners; as its name suggests, it exudes a safari feel. Cuisine is Asian and French with a Caribbean flair overseen by Dominican-born chef Rolin Almonte, and locals visit often to enjoy their special discounted prices.
A rather paltry "full American" breakfast is complimentary, and room service is available. Snorkeling equipment and other watersports such as Hobie cats, kayaks and windsurfers are included in the tariff. The concierge can make sightseeing arrangements or reserve golf tee times.
Accommodations are in elegantly appointed suites with plush bedding, 
custom-made maple and tropical rattan furniture including gracious four-poster beds (including kings in two-bedroom suites) draped with mosquito nets plus fully equipped gourmet kitchens boasting stainless steal appliances and cookware.
Standard features are air-conditioning, ceiling fans, cable TVs, CD/DVD players, iPod speakers, Internet access, safes, and washers and dryers. Amenities run to plush robes, hair dryers, magnifying mirrors and deluxe Bulgari toiletries. The plastic showers, though, are well below the grade of competing hotels. Plenty of potted plants enhance the tropical touch.
The property appeals mostly to families and couples looking 
for a no-nonsense environment, especially Europeans who appreciate its calm atmosphere.
This hotel has no general manager and is run by a series of "department managers." The place is kept clean by hardworking maids, but the lack of a general manager makes itself felt in an overall sense of consistently lackluster service.
The slew of new resorts opening like the Seven Stars have taken the wind from this resort's sails, but the resort remains (barely) a worthy competitor to other newcomers such as The Tuscany.