Grand Isla Navidad Golf & Spa Resort with Marina

My wife and I stayed at Grand Isla Navidad Resort for 7 nights in February 2025 and couldn't have been happier with the experience. The staff was excellent and the hotel itself is a thing of beauty to behold. We couldn't have asked for a better experience. We arrived by "Taxi Acuatico" (water taxi), a short boat ride (maybe 4 or 5 minutes) across the entrance to the lagoon from Barra de Navidad. It was about 8:30pm and after getting off the boat a staff member told us he'd call a cart to pick us up and take us to the lobby. We opted to walk instead, which was a mistake, because this place is confusing to get around in and you need a day or two to figure it all out. It's built on a hillside, and there are multiple buildings at different levels, connected by hallways. The architecture is stunning, as are the grounds, with lots of greenery, colorful plants and amazing views of the lagoon and marina. We found a guard who directed us to the lobby. This was the quietest hotel room I had ever stayed in - in my entire life. It was amazing. No sounds from other rooms, and the sounds from outside were easily shut out by closing the sliding door to the balcony. We could hear some noise on our first night because there was a rather loud wedding going on outside, a hundred yards away or so. But closing the sliding door blocked out enough of the noise to allow us to sleep without any trouble. The air conditioner was a bit loud, but it wasn't really necessary to use it. Highs were in the low 80s outside and we found that letting the a/c run while we were out during the day and then shutting it off when we came back worked fine. There is an all-inclusive option at this hotel but we just opted for the free breakfast since we wanted to explore some of the local restaurants at Barra and Melaque for lunch and dinner. But the breakfast was excellent. It was Buffet style, and each day they offered scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage, a good selection of fruit slices, pancakes, French toast, Chilaquiles, "stew of the day," beans, platanos, cheese, pastries, a variety of juices, etc. Best of all, the wait staff was excellent. Javier kept my coffee cup full and was a joy to talk with. He spoke English and Spanish, and when speaking Spanish he would speak slowly so we could understand him better. All of them were professional and friendly, which was great. As others have mentioned, there are areas of this hotel that are in need of maintenance, but it did not appear as though they were assigning rooms to people in those areas. We also noticed that there were several areas where the tile roofing was damaged, and in one hallway there was an active leak and a 4x4 holding the ceiling up - but, again, this was not an area where any guests were assigned rooms, and we never would have even seen it had we not gotten lost wandering around this expansive place. This is a large hotel, with many different interconnected buildings. And it is beautiful. A room in the U.S. like the one we had at Grand Isla Navidad would have easily cost at least double what we'd paid. There are many less expensive hotels in Barra and Melaque, and I have stayed in a few of those over the years. But none of them even come close to the grandeur and beauty of Grand Isla Navidad.

Stunning property and grounds but in desperate need of renovation. Also very big and everything is mass-produced. Tried the restaurant, room service and the cafe and can't say i cared for any of them. The hotel must have been super luxurious when it first opened. Rooms are very spacious with beautiful views of the marina. Front desk staff are sweet & accommodating.

Nice in it's day. My understanding is that it is a family owned business, and the originator has passed and left it to the children to operate. It appears they are not putting a lot into it as it requires a good deal of cosmetic upgrades. It's too bad that the residence further past the hotel has been abandoned and not kept up.