The BodyHoliday

This was our first visit to Bodyholiday and we loved it...... We didn't leave the complex apart from the walk to Pigeon Island of a Sunday morning before breakfast. We didn't do any outside trips as that would have taken us away from the complex, and that is what we've paid for. We were only there for 7 days after all. Everything was lovely, the beach, the sports, the spa, the food etc. We didn't go to Windows Restaurant as my husband doesn't eat meat or fish and they didn't seem to have anything else on offer! Tao was nice, went there once, but glad we didn't order drinks after reading a previous review! We don't drink much anyway. Cariblue was wonderful and definitely my favourite restaurant. Loved the sports and you are certainly not under pressure to do any. I took far too many clothes....all you need here are your sports clothes/swimsuits etc for sunbathing and clothes for dressing up in the evening. Long trousers for men, although some did wear shorts.... It is requested that long trousers are worn to dinner. The spa was lovely, but as previously said you didn't always feel the love, certainly not with the all inclusive treatments anyway. Didn't like the visit where you get shown around the complex, then left at the 'beauty parlour' for a skin review thingy.....I don't want to be sold lots of beauty products thank you. Everyone has their own! Love the Tai Chi, and Edwin who taught it...lovely man! Loved the gym, Pilates, my husband done spin classes. Loads more to do. Will be prepared with more gym gear and decent trainers next time....and less 'sightseeing' clothes..you don't need them! The room was beautiful, as was the shower (we had room 205). Huge bed! There is a kettle and tea/coffee etc there. Also an iron and ironing board. Plenty of towels too....you do not need to pack towels! The beach and everywhere was lovely and clean. All the staff - cleaners, waiters, on the beach, bar....everyone were very attentive and helpful. There were plenty of sunbeds everywhere, round the pools (there are 3 pools), and on the beach. Towels are provided. The pools and beach were always empty....where was everyone???? Drinks are to die for. We had mostly fruit cocktails (even at dinner) as we don't drink much...but there was everything! Lots of people were in bed early as they were up early for the 7 o'clock classes. We stayed up to watch the local bands play each night from 9.30-11pm in the main bar, then went to the piano bar at 11 to listen to the pianist and have a cocktail. All in all..a brilliant holiday....a week was long enough for us. Yes we would go again.

The place is great. My girlfriend and I are both active, although she also enjoys relaxing on a beach while I struggle to be still for more than 5mins...The BodyHoliday was perfect fit. There is an absolutely packed schedule of activities everyday with VERY little that requires any extra booking or payment, e.g. even things like wakeboarding, beginners scuba diving and personal training sessions are included. You can do circuits, spinning, yoga pilates, meditation, use the gym freely etc. etc. but you can also do absolutely nothing if you want - it's not a place where you're forced to follow any sort of pre-set schedule, or eat only super healthy food; you can opt in or out of anything you fancy at any time, and can eat a perfect diet or have pizza for lunch everyday - whatever you like. We had a Grand Luxury Ocean Front room - it was very nice, very close to the water, nicely air conditioned etc., cleaned everyday (obviously) and also visited two more times for turn-down etc. (although all totally non-intrusive). The only issue I would say was that the toilet is very exposed - it links with the shower so you can see directly between the two, and only has a partially opaque door. Staff were very friendly, and also genuine - nothing felt 'forced'. Trainers taking classes were actually really good quality (better than I expected). Service all around was fantastic. Food was very good too - loads of choice both with multiple restaurants for all meals, and lots of choice within each one. And no restrictions on portions etc. Everything was just super easy here - it's all inclusive obviously, but they really don't give any day-to-day restrictions or controls on anything which makes it really relaxing. You can get as many servings as you want at meals, you could have mains in one restaurant and desert in another, there are no annoying things like towel cards, just take what you want from massive piles of them everywhere, no signing in-and-out of borrowed things like snorkels etc. - just super easy and relaxed. Great place.

Just finished a 2 week stay at The Body Holiday. The hotel and the experience of staying there is unlike any all inclusive resort we have ever been to. And you have to go to truly experience it. When we go anywhere we always ask ourselves if we would go back - with a finite budget and number of days off work, and with the world being a big place, any hotel would need to be spectacular for us to forgo a trip to somewhere new. The Body Holiday is very good, but some way off spectacular, especially given the cost. There is plenty in other reviews so hopefully these good/bad observations are helpful. Good: The number of inclusive activities - water sports, beach fitness classes, tons of other classes and sessions. There is no way you could be bored here. I struggle to do 2 weeks in the same place but not here (leaving aside food). Great value Inclusive treatments - up to one hour per day, great value and a good range of treatments. Massages, facials, hydro therapy - this would all cost you hundreds elsewhere Setting - beautiful secluded bay, very private, idyllic surroundings, really nice little beach and pleasant sea Staff - mostly amazing, especially club house and the beach, where they are so attentive and helpful. Can't speak highly enough of them Bad: Spa - treatments are a great all inclusive perk, however it can be a bit unwelcoming. Can't quite put my finger on it but I often felt there was a lack of warmth up there. Not a big deal, just an observation Room - we had a Grand Luxury Ocean Front and it was disappointing. The design flaw in the shower (a big gap in the screen) means the toilet section floods when you have a shower. Our room was damp and smelt as a result. Our clothes etc always felt damp. Several other people have written the same. Also, the decking leading out towards the sea was unusable because of the flies and mosquitoes. Great view, but useless to us really. We reckoned we spent about £1500 more on top of what we could have got a 'normal' room for and we didn't feel we got any value for it at all. Tired - the resort is a little tired in places and definitely lacks in terms of 5 star feel. Food - the buffet elements are good and I've no complaints about breakfast and lunch but evenings were really under par. Cariblue was really hit and miss - some courses were tiny, some barely warm, some both. We had a really good meal there on the first night but it was so hit and miss on all other nights Tao was just average really. Ate in there twice and it was nothing special at all, with quite small portions. We were offered rum, which my wife accepted. Then, in front of other guests, we were collared by a waiter to sign a check for $25 at Club House. There was no mention of it being chargeable and it was the same rum that was available 'free' at the bar. Windows is the buffet room of Cariblue with a few tables and chairs set up. Really odd setting that feels like what it is - the owners using otherwise dead space and trying to pass it off as a restaurant. It just doesn't work and the food was woeful. We ate there twice - Asian and Caribean - and it was terrible both times. We left before dessert courses on both nights. The second time it took us 90 mins to get 3 small plates of food, with long waits between wine (see below). You also ended up stuffed into a space between two sets of automatic doors, waiting to be seated. It was so awkward and a really bad start to an evening, which got worse when they started bringing us food. Windows annoyed me a bit because I just felt robbed, like they are trying to claim the hotel has more genuine 5 star options for evening meals than it actually has. Wine - this was a constant annoyance for us. We always waited ages for wine to be topped up and if you ordered something other than wine it took forever to arrive. When you were served it was a small amount and you knew it had to last. Don't get me wrong, I didn't want to get smashed on bottles and bottles of wine but I'm paying premium prices so I'd like someone to bring me a bottle, especially if we are there for 3 courses and drinking the same wine, which we both were. Again I felt short changed here. Excursions - I felt that these were expensive. We did the waterfall abseil for $150 each and were told by a few people that they'd done the abseil and zip lines as part of the same $150 trip, although we only did the abseil. The guides were brilliant but it was an hour each way in a cramped land rover and, despite the experience, it didn't blow me away or feel like good value at all. We played golf but the course near the hotel is in poor condition and isn't somewhere I'd play again. Sorry, I know this sounds more bad than good - I was on my honeymoon and had no issue spending money (this was an expensive holiday) but actual value was lacking in a few areas. All of that being said, I still think The Body Holiday is very good and it is a brilliant experience. You only need to look at the number of activities to see how busy and varied it is there, although there is zero pressure on you to join in anything. I really liked that. We relaxed, we were looked after by some brilliant staff and I would encourage people to go, despite its flaws. However, the food side of things and some other niggles stops it from being somewhere I absolutely have to go back to. Happy to answer any specific questions.

This is my 4th visit to The Body Holiday. It's quite a long way to go to from New Zealand but definitely worth it. This time I met another fellow Kiwi which is unusual but it was great chatting and sharing some meals with her. I take the helicopter both ways as I do suffer from car sickness ,so even though it was my 8th time coming back, I still got a thrill out of it. Also the helicopter staff remembered me. My room was upgraded and was just below the Penthouse suite. The views from there were amazing especially when you first arrive and are so tired from the flights. My room was so peaceful and beautiful and really looked after by the girl who cleaned it every day. The staff do look after their repeat clients. I did notice a few changes from when I was there last- nearly 4 years ago. The Deli is now open earlier and later which is wonderful. Previously you had to wait till 11.00. There were some new items on the juice and smoothie menus, keeping up with the latest turmeric themes. Also some lovely beetroot juices and other new additional items to try. I loved having the tablet in the room to see what was going on and you could even read the British news papers if you wished! You can select your choice of pillow before you arrive,which was great. I noticed the afternoon tea service was different. I preferred the other way where it was all set out and you could select what you wanted. Now they bring you some items. I didn't like that as much but just my preference. Maybe it was because of the birds, don't know. The other change which didn't particularly sit comfortably with me was the up selling in the Spa. This was the first time I'd experienced this. I'm sure Americans wouldn't mind but it didn't feel right with me, maybe because I'm from New Zealand ,not sure. Now to mention some staff I felt worthy of mentioning....Edwin,who took the Tai Chi was such a beautiful person. I think we were all just a little bit in love with him! Magdeline(or maybe Madeleine? Not sure) gave the best foot massage. The beach/pool guys/girls, they worked so hard, bringing us carrot sticks and dip,melon,iceblocks and loads more little treats. Azumi, gave me the best massage and I even requested her again for a Hot Stone Massage. She was amazing. Martin who took Pilates, I learned such a lot of good information from him. I was lucky enough to go to Tao several times, it was amazing as always, perfect service ,visually delightful and wonderful food,especially the deserts!! I wish I could stay there for a month! I would definitely recommend,after all, I've been there 4 times. Most people you meet are repeat clients. Can't wait till I can save up enough to go again.

It's almost impossible to fault this holiday, from landing, helicopter transfer and arrival, through the entire experience, to departure, my wife and I were well looked after by attentive and friendly staff. Keep fit bods are well catered for with well appointed facilities, treatments and classes. At first, I felt a little under pressure to attend, but after a couple of days realised that I wasn't obliged to do anything I didn't want to. It was my holiday. We did find that there are people that return year after year and know each other quite well, but we got to know a few that made us feel quite welcome - especially over a few brandy sours whilst enjoying a bit of a singalong in the piano bar. Food, great... Particularly Tao, the onsite Thai restaurant, though this had to be booked in advance. We managed twice in 12 days. Gents... make sure you take long trousers for dinner in the evening. The lower room we were first showed in to felt a little damp, so we asked to move. No problem at all. It was much better, but next time, I think we will look at something a little larger. It was adults only during our time there in 'Jive June', and we both said it felt more relaxed without kids running around. Would I recommend it? Definitely. Would I go again? Absolutely!