We went to St Lucia purely for the scuba diving. Having never been there before, we used Tripadvisor to choose a hotel. The package which included 4 days of diving for 2 people, breakfast, and transfers was very competitively priced compared to the larger, better-known resorts. We were a bit dubious about it being reachable only by ferry, which is a bit inconvenient, but is more than compensated by the hotel's splendid location at the mouth of Marigot Bay.
We were met on arrival, hot and tired, by David and free rum punch, which was very welcome indeed.
The hotel suffered bad hurricane damage along the waterfront, but repairs are underway. Doolittle's restaurant was intact, which is where we ate most of our meals. The food is fresh and generally ok, especially the burgers and fish dishes. The daily specials are usually the best choice. The service was ok, but not especially fast (the wait for breakfast was around half an hour some days), and sometimes we were the only diners. This is just one aspect which I would not like to experience during busier times.

There are other restaurants on the bay: The Rainforest (not cheap, but excellent and upmarket), JJ's (we only had lunch there, and it was terrible), Discover (didn't try, likely to be v. expensive) and Chateau Mygo (international food, we heard was good). It was pure laziness which kept us at Dootlittle's, plus the food was generally good. After diving and a couple of the powerful happy hour cocktails, it was just too easy to stay put.

The deluxe villa was wonderful - comfortable, just the right size for 2 people. It was clean and in good condition, with a large shower. The air conditioning was the best part, as the heat and humidity were awful in early September - the downside of the off season. Plus, we were eaten alive by the mosquitoes.

The public areas are open to the elements, which is no doubt fine in cooler months, but the bar in particular was unpleasantly hot, even with ceiling fans. The dining tables get more of the breeze, but even so we were in a hurry to have our drinks, eat dinner, and get back to the cool, insect-free room.

A true test of a hotel's quality is how they handle problems, and there were a few on our first night. Bernie sorted these out speedily the next morning, offered to move us to another room just because our TV didn't work, but we were happy to stay. He and David and the crew work hard to keep people happy. At first, the wait staff didn't seem that friendly, but that changed after a few days.

But although there were few guests, one day they ran out of eggs at breakfast, and another they ran out of clean beach towels. Other things which might be worse in busy times. And the pool is tiny, which was ok because we mostly had it to ourselves, but would feel crowded with more than a few people in it.

There are a few things which could be done to increase the comfort and convenience of the hotel:
- a freshwater shower by the pool
- cushions for the pool chairs
- a shop selling cold drinks, ice cream, sun screen, bug spray. The hotel 'boutiques' just sell tacky souvenirs, nothing useful, and the nearest supermarket is a boat ride away.
- a folder in the room with local information, e.g. sample menus from other restaurants, nearest bank, nearest pharmacy, excursions. There is only excursion information in the office, which we didn't notice until our last day.
- cool water misters in the bar
- out of hours assistance/maintenance

Our only regret was that we did not see more of the island - partly through laziness, partly because there were 2 days of our 7 when everything was closed, and partly because we were not aware of what was available. Bernie did book us on a saling trip on the Sunday, then had to say that the trip did not run on that day. So that was that.

We would go back again, although not when it was so hot. The place was comfortable, good value, and generally well-run - just a few simple things which could be done to improve it.

Back in late January while working in cold and snowy Michigan, USA, I began searching the Internet for a beach resort getaway for Dianne, my wife, and I to celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary on May 1st. I zeroed in on St Lucia largely due to the sheer beauty of the photos and descriptions I found about it. Then one day I googled on romantic St Lucian hotels and eventually came upon the Marigot Beach Club Hotel and Dive Resort (MBC). What a find, exactly what I was looking for – a romantic, relaxing hotel in a beautiful setting plus the people treated us wonderfully. Thank you to David (owner), Ms. Linda, Angus, and Bernie for making us feel welcome and offering us helpful info. It appears Marigot Bay is growing but I hope you can keep MBC as a small, romantic getaway place.

MBC is a small hotel, more European in feel than American, and I would guess more of the guests were from Europe during our stay than the USA.

Late April/early May is a great time to visit, it is uncrowded and the weather was excellent.

Also, when we arrived there was maintenance underway in the area of our reserved room so David, the owner, upgraded us to a larger villa at no extra cost - very nice!

We stayed at the Marigot Bay Beach Resort (not Oasis) and were shocked at the price of the taxis. It appears that there is the local price and the Tourist Price. We ended up walking for 10 minutes to catch the local buses which ended up costing us £4 rather than £60 to see the Sulphur Springs at Soufriere. Also there appears to be a tourist and a local menu at the restaurant called the Shack in Marigot Bay.

The hotel itself has very bad reception hours and they failed to tell us information such as breakfast was being served early on the day of the Cricket match so we ended up missing out on breakfast which we'd paid for. Also Bernie at the hotel who seemed pleasant told us that no public buses would be running on the day of the cricket so we'd have to pay $50 for the hotel shuttle. Of course we didn't take his advice and used public transport without much of a problem.

Hotel and Doolittles Restaurant is a little dated and could do with some much needed modernisation. It is known as an 'Eco' resort I think this stands for Economical rather than Ecological.

I've read the reviews on Discovery Bay which were all very good but I've spoken to some of the locals who have worked there who said that the wages were very bad. Also the hotel doesn't appear to allow it's staff to eat at the hotel which I think is quite appaulling.

I found many people to be quite rude throughout the island. Unlike the other Carribean island where the locals often greet you, people here would just stare. .I didn't like St Lucia because of these points. Barbados and Grenada are much better holiday destinations. Grenada in particular is lovely and not marketed enough over here.

We just returned from Marigot Beach Club and have nothing but praise for the staff and David, the owner. The entire staff, from Barbara the housekeeper to Bernie and Linda at the Office desk, the wait staff - everyone - was pleasant, very friendly, and always helpful. We choose MBC because we had heard positive things about it. It is quiet and offers as much privacy as you chose to have. Transportation is easily accessible to other parts of the island if you chose to do so. Casual dining is available on the premises, however, there are a number of other restaurants in the area if you want a change of venue. The resort is convenient to the airport - a 15 minute ride into Castries.
The rooms offer spectacular views of Marigot Bay. Very romantic place. Would not hesitate to recommend MBC to anyone. Thank you David.