IBEROSTAR Grand Hotel Rose Hall

I stayed at Iberostar Joia Rose Hall Suites from April 26–29 and booked an ocean view suite with butler service. Starting with the positives — the property itself is beautiful. Everything is well-maintained, clean, and always smelling fresh. My room was very nice, and overall the environment is relaxing and visually appealing. There is also entertainment for everyone. If you’re looking for a more vibrant, high-energy atmosphere, Iberostar Waves Rose Hall Beach is the better option, while JOIA Rose Hall by Iberostar is more suited for a calm, laid-back experience. My morning butler, Omar, was excellent — very responsive and helpful whenever needed. However, there were several disappointing aspects of my stay. I repeatedly had to request basic room cleaning, which should not happen at this level of hotel, especially when paying for a suite with butler service. Another issue was the room service experience. On one occasion, I ordered dessert and it was delivered wrapped in a paper towel, which was very unprofessional and not what you expect from a resort of this standard. More concerning was the way I felt treated as a Jamaican guest. I genuinely felt I was treated differently based on my skin colour. At one point, I was even told I was being ignored because staff were prioritizing guests they believed would tip. That experience, along with other similar situations, left a very negative impression. On a positive note, the front desk staff were outstanding. Sonika deserves a 10/10 — professional, pleasant, and extremely helpful. Travis and Keneisha were also exceptional — a big “WOW” to them for their service. The food was okay for the most part — nothing particularly memorable, but acceptable. I would also advise future guests to be cautious about the “resort credits” offered. The structure to using your credit is (25% off for every $100 spent) for me, it's very confusing and doesn’t provide real value (It's a scam!!). Additionally, the spa experience was disappointing — the service and attitude did not meet expectations. Overall, while the property itself is great and some staff truly stand out, the inconsistent service and treatment I experienced take away from what could have been an excellent stay.

Everything about the resort was top notch, including the food, people, accommodations, swimmer, pool, and the cleanliness of the grounds.Alaine our Butler was very knowledgeable and kind. He helped us truly enjoy our experience. The only negative, which is really not the resort’s fault are all of the drug dealers and peddlers on the beach that keep whistling trying to get your attention to sell you drugs and souvenirs. We went there to relax, not be harassed constantly on the beach by them, staring at us, trying to get our attention all of the time to buy what they’re selling. It is not the resort’s fault as I inquired, and they cannot stop them from walking on the beach, trying to sell their marijuana and other drugs. We would definitely go back to the same resort again if they stopped all the drug peddling on the beach

My husband and I recently stayed here for his 50th birthday. The resort itself is beautiful, and the rooms were really nice. We did upgrade our room to an ocean view with a butler (highly recommended!!). The food with the exception of the Hibachi grill, the grill on the beach, and the fruit (lol) were pretty basic. Nothing extraordinary. We ate at the buffet every morning for breakfast. Service at the buffet is top notch. They do have a wide variety of foods, pastries, fruits, Jamaican foods as well as waffles and omelets made to order. The food was good, just not great. They also have a smoothie bar and a mimosa/Bloody Mary bar. We ate dinner at the Italian restaurant on the first night. One thing to note about all of the restaurants is that lobster is only served when in season (it was not when we were there). The food at the Italian restaurant was decent. Not super flavorful, but not bad. We also ate at the surf and turf restaurant. We were not impressed. My shrimp was way over cooked. Jim's steak was ok. Again, service was amazing. One place we did enjoy eating at was the grill on the beach. Burgers, jerk chicken and beef patties were delicious!!! The buffet in the pool area was ok. We ate there on our first day for lunch. They did have a good variety, but the food was what is expected at pretty much any buffet as far as taste goes. Additionally, because the buffet is outside, the food that was meant to be cold, was definitely not cold. I did not eat any of the seafood that was out there due to there not being ice or any other way to keep it cold. Service as a whole was amazing. Our butler, Rohan was amazing. All of the butlers were. Rohan was our main butler. They handled everything for us. Our mini bar was always stocked with our preferences. Water bottles were always filled, and our room was always clean. From the moment we checked in, we were treated like family from all staff members. Definitely somewhere we would return to. The biggest downfall is they set you up with a "time share" briefing. They are not a timeshare exactly. They call it a membership. You spend about 2 hours with a rep and they tell you how amazing the company is and all the money they can save you if you get the membership. I looked up the membership while we were sitting there and the reviews were terrible. The memberships range from $30K to like $250k!!!!! And not worth it at all. They also struggled with taking no for an answer. But other than that, we had a great time and will do it again!!

Went to the Joia for our anniversary. Had an amazing trip! Looking forward to going back after the remodel. Just a shout out to few of the standout employees.. Brianna and Brittany in the prestige lounge are always there to help you and do such a great job. Two of our favorite bartenders were Dontele and Roshane, also in the prestige lounge. The Host Joselito who was at the breakfast buffet and the Jamaican restaurant for the lunch buffet, always had a smile on his face and was glad to greet you! To be honest, almost every employee is what makes this place so amazing. The food is amazing, with the Italian restaurant probably being our favorite, and the drinks were just as good everywhere. Bartending staff at the pool bar was always a lot of fun. The shows for entertainment were also very good, With that said my only complaint if you will, was the service at the members only area on the beach. All but probably one or two drinks we had to get up and get ourselves as no one ever came around to see if we needed anything, and that was with tipping. Overall would highly recommend this resort!!! Can't wait to go back!

My visit to Iberostar Joya at Montego Bay, Jamaica was the worst possible experience. They label this resort as 5 stars, but I would give it 2 stars at best. Everything was substandard, from service to food choices to room design. Employees were poorly trained, impolite, or clearly showed that they won’t do anything for you unless being tipped. In one of the restaurants, the waitress greeted us with the statement that she will provide an excellent service. She forgot to mention that this would only be possible if we kept quiet. As soon as we asked for small things, like saltshaker, the excellent service was over. The food was substandard even for their lowest level, called waves. The main buffet looked very sad, being open only for breakfast. The woman at the pancake station was rude, so we quickly learned not to approach her. The main food was cheese, cooked sausage, and pizza. None of the fancy sandwiches, nothing to brag about. One day I waited 10 minutes for olive oil. Not any specific oil, there was none. Every day there was an absence of glasses at the juice station, so people would have to take coffee mugs and so on. The average time to get coffee was more than 5 minutes. Lunch buffet was a little better, but still substandard for the Joya level. Seafood was consistently very spicy, almost impossible to eat. The same food selection daily, nothing special. The fruit choices were extremely poor. No tropical fruit, just green watermelon, hard melon, or some grapes. Sometimes kiwis and mangoes. But they were gone so fast that you had to be there at the right time. Otherwise, you are out of luck and there was no replenishment for a long while. Out of 5 restaurants, Jamaican and Asian were just no go. Service and food were both terrible. The food in the other 3 restaurants depended on the day of the week. If you are out of luck with the chef on duty, steak would not be chewable and even salmon would be ruined. In one of the restaurants, we dared to ask about the crab legs from the menu. We were told that they ran out of crab legs just yesterday. I had a big doubt on that. The beach grill was a bad copy of KFC, with poorly made chicken, pork, fries, and some veggies. Star cafe was ok as well as most of the bars. But again, the employes were working for tips. Evening shows were nonexistent, with the one-evening exception, the aqua ballet. Pools were ok. Daily entertainment was poorly conducted with some activities mainly from 12:30 to 1:30 pm. The funniest thing was the bathroom design in a room. The toilet was separated from the rest of the bathroom by a clear glass door; the same thing was the shower. The main door to the bathroom was impossible to close due to the faulty design. Shower lacks removable shower head. All the walls in the room and hallways were painted in dark, repelling colors. Most of the buildings still showed signs of damage from last year's hurricane. Roofs are covered with plastic due to extensive damage. We were told that the insurance finally provided money for repairs and the Joya will be closed for 6 months. But, regardless of what will be done, we won’t be back. For this price, I will be able to find a much better place for my vacation.