I stayed at the GPBR for two weeks in June. I booked after reading the reviews on Tripadvisor and would say I was well-prepared for the limitations of the hotel.

Yes, the decor is tired and the rooms are basic. Yes, the floors above are wooden and inconsiderate people can be noisy. Yes the food is fine but not exceptional. If you think you are going to get a 5 star hotel at these prices you are kidding yourself.

So why did I have such a wonderful time ? Why would I recommend this to others ? The hotel is small and friendly and that, combined with its all-inclusive approach, helps people to chat and get to know each other. I met more genuinely friendly guests on this holiday than on any other I have been on (and I've been on my fair share).

The staff, contrary to opinions voiced recently, I found to be lovely. Okay I bothered to get to know them by name, chatted to them about anything and everything and generally relaxed into the Caribbean attitude. I never ONCE ordered a second drink at dinner because each time I finished my first they replaced it. I never had to walk more than twenty paces from my room to find a free sunbed, kept free by the discreet security that watched for non-residents trying to use hotel facilities. I used the adequate watersports facilities and played every activity going - at least four different things every day.

There are birds at breakfast - if you want an air-conditioned glass bubble then stay in Toronto. Open-air dining has its perils. It is just a fact of life. The staff cleared tables quickly so as to discourage the wildlife so I have no complaint.

The hotel is not perfect so if you have an exacting nature, require 5 star facilities, want motorised watersports or an Eastenders-themed bar then this is not the place for you. If you want a little bit of California then this is not for you. If however you want a low-key, pleasant resort with a cracking beach and a happy attitude to life then I would recommend the GPBR.

We have just got back from our second visit to GPB, this time for our daughters and now son-in-law’s wedding.
The wedding itself was magical and well organised by Novella the wedding coordinator, the cake and all the flowers were lovely .
The food this time was even better than our last visit and then it was really good .
The rooms as others have said are a little dated but always clean, but we were told by a member of management that the refurbishment will start in October now that Sandals have taken over officially
And as far as he knows Mary’s outhouse is going to stay.
All the staff were very friendly and helpful as always
Our party consisted of 14 people family and friends, a special thanks to Mick and Gerry who we met the first time we went to GPB last year and come back just for the wedding
We love this place so much that we have booked to go back this October with our daughter and son-in-law

Save your money or go somewhere - ANYWHERE - else. Staff wasnt exactly hostile but they definatly seemed as if they were forced to be somewhat cordial to guests. Food was awful. Ordered steak, more than 50% of steak was chunks of fat. Ran out of appetizers and deserts for dinner. Ran out of cheese by the grill. Food was less than poor. The first night there you are FORCED to eat where they tell you to eat. Also the milk was sour by the coffee station.
Pool needed some hefty remodeling - had green mold under bridges and by water line. But of course who needs the pool when you have a spetacular beach - beautiful it was - I wont deny that. However who would want to lounge by the beach when the sewer broke and beach breeze brought the scent of feces? Boggles my mind on how people did not care about the smell and just went about their daily routine - sitting on their patios, lounging by the beach, playing volleyball etc...
Walls and ceilings are paper thin. Expect to hear ur upstairs neighbor walk their restless nights back and forth, while your next door neighbor expects to hear "god bless you " when they sneeze. (and yes you also smelled the fececs from the broken sewer in the room) No clocks anywhere in room. Old tube tv with a remote control that has 5 buttons: Power, Volume (up/down) and Channel (up/down) So if your on channel 5 and want to go to channel 85, work out ur finger muscles pressing that up button 80 times.

We were told it was $2.00 min (US) to call the states. We called our travel agent and got a $300.00 bill. We stayed on a total of 45 min. It was $90.00 plus CONNECTING FEES which reception so thoughtfully forgot to tell us. We left after 2 days. Food was awful, accommodations were less than what we expected after reading the reviews here. This resort is in a prime location of Antigua, but needs extensive work.

We stayed at the GPBR from 13 June to 20 June.
Lets get the negative out of the way - the accomodation is as it is, tired and needing updated, however as reviews have said before it is clean and once you get there you will realise how little time you spend in it! We booked a beach front room which was fab as it was a few steps onto the beach however the rooms above have wooden floors so if you have people above who are out late and come back and stomp about etc it can get noisy. Take some earplugs (worked for me) or ask to be moved to one of the rooms above on check in - it will only take you a minute or so more to get down to the beach! If the accomodation was updated it would be a definate 5/5 resort. By the way the aircon was great and the ceiling fan was quiet. TV stations were good - but who on earth is going to Antigua to watch TV!! The hair dryer is powerful and they provide shampoo and shower gel in despensers but take conditioner.

Anyway now for the rest.
This resort is on an amazing beach (said to be one of the best on the island) you are on the atlantic side which means you get a wonderful breeze which helps (it was average 31 degrees all week!) People do put towels out early as did we, but this is to ensure you get a bit of shade more than anything else, there are loads of beds and the palm trees help to provide shade too. Please remember to take a high factor suncream - I took factor 45 and 30 (water resistant as I swam a lot) and I came back with a lovely tan but some were using factor 6 oil and fried! It isn't worth it for all the obvious reasons.

I went snorkelling for the first time (good quality equip provided) and if you head to the reef on the right as you look out to sea then you are guaranteed to see some wonderful fish - you may even see a lobster! We never got the energy up to go on the hobie cat (we were on a true chill out week) but plenty did and the watersports staff are very happy to take the first timer out for a quick lesson (only seemed to take 5 minutes or so to learn) and then off you go. Make sure you know the safe limit of the distance of the boat though as on several occasions the rescue boat had to go out to get the budding Captain Jack Sparrows back from heading off into the sunset! It was reassuring that the guys were keeping such a close eye on everyone. Later in afternoon and on Sundays the locals come down to the beach further around from the resort and enjoy the water and often have partys etc it is very entertaining especially if you see the man with the dreadlocks down to the floor! There are little beach huts along the beach that sell t-shirts etc and it is a good idea to visit them before spending your money in the resort shop as you are supporting the locals and it is much cheaper! You do get the odd vendor coming around to braid hair and sell things but they never impose and if you say no thanks they walk on and rarely come back to you again. The other activities are run by Jules who is a larger than life character, there is volleyball every day at 4 on the beach (earlier on Sunday) and that is a great entertainment, there is also beach cricket and football plus lots of other things - if you have the energy!. Up by the bar is the entertainment hut where you also change your towels and all events are listed each day. We only went to the pool once as although it was very nice the heat from the concrete made it feel like you were in a pizza oven! Talking of pizza we weren't very impressed with the quality of food at the snack bar however we only went a couple of times and both times it wasn't good but it seemed to be popular and you can get ice cream, cookies and popcorn there too. There is also a cold drinks machine which you just help yourself to and it has ice and water so if you buy a couple of bottles of water from the shop you can fill them up and take them to the beach. The bar at the beach did not open all week which was a bit of a let down but it was quiet at the resort so that may be the reason.

The bar itself was nice and Kendia who worked most nights was our favourite, she is collecting books so hand them over to her when you finish with them and she will be very pleased. We loved the coconut crush with Myers Rum the best but there are cocktails galore and they do a lot of branded spirits too as well as lager. The entertainment was on every night very good most of the time and there seemed to be a disco on most nights but we didn't go.

Food - I have mentioned the snack bar. Mary's is a must and all previous reviews are spot on;she is a legend. It is a small walk to the outhouse up hill but you get good views and you may see a mongoose like we did. All other meals are in the various restaurants which in effect are all together (you must book your evening meal times at reception and you can only book 2 days in advance). The Pineapple Grill was separate but was not used all week apart from the disco and again I think this is because it was quiet but it wasn't a problem at all. Buffet breakfast is good as is lunch and the evening meals are a la carte and there are a couple of buffets. You can order as much as you like from the menus so don't feel constrained by the fact that it isn't help yourself (the fish was to die for - try the Mahi Mahi).

Now for the birds - other reviewers have found them a problem but we found them very entertaining - they are only around at breakfast and lunch and as long as you don't leave your food and wander off to get something you will be fine (this includes drink too as the little black and yellow ones love orange juice, watch them break into the packets of sugar too it is is funny!) The restaurant is open at the sides and the sea is only a step or two away so enjoy this fact and don't be bothered about the birds. The pelicans are very entertaining to see and watch how sneaky the seagulls are around them when they go fishing!

We did a trip to St John's one morning and got some bargains at the duty free shopping area. We got a couple of watches (Guess and Citizen) and I got loads of Clinique stuff as it is less than half price compared to what you pay here for example I usually pay £23 for the clarifying lotion and I got it for US$17!! The cigarettes are very cheap too. That was the only trip we did but others went on the tours and came back full of praise for them especially the one day trip on the boat to do the snorkelling and beach BBQ etc.

All in all we chose this resort based on the reviews on this site and so our expectations were pitched exactly right therefore we really enjoyed ourselves and met some lovely people both holiday makers and the Antiguans who are very warm and friendly people. We never felt pressurized to tip but we did to those who we felt looked after us and all we took were US$ which was fine. The water is ok to drink too which is a bonus - no tummy problems at all!

We were disturbed to hear the rumour that Sandals are going to bulldoze this resort in Oct/Nov this year to make it a Sandals beach resort but I feel that this may not be exactly true - I think they may just be injecting some much needed cash into the place after all they have had a year of seeing how it runs etc. I hope they don't take out the essence of the resort as that is what makes it successful - set your expectations like we did and please go and enjoy this wonderful place with its wonderful people.