Baoase Luxury Resort

This private, secluded resort had everything to offer for a couple looking for luxury, amazing food, beautiful private beach, friendly hospitality, peace and quiet. Words can’t really describe the experience we had during our stay. It would be hard to find a place that would exceed this resort.

My husband and I visited Baoase for our honeymoon and it was beyond anything we could have imagined. Everything had a personal touch. The staff were incredibly kind and the food was amazing. I'm not sure if we'll ever find another resort that could compare to the level of service that Baoase provides! It's truly a hidden gem.

Ask yourself, do you feel lucky? This was one of the most confusing and disappointing trips we’ve taken in the Caribbean. The resort looked beautiful online and most reviews seemed to be positive. As we frequently rely on TripAdvisor reviews, we were hoping we could take a few of the more negative reviews with a grain of salt. We were wrong. We felt forgotten as guests from the start. We were excited to spend time here to celebrate both our anniversary and a birthday. While I could see how folks would enjoy spending time here given the perfect set of circumstances, ours was anything but. Generally I’m willing to overlook a number of issues before being frustrated with an experience, but the issues never stopped. At a high-level, if you are saving to go on a luxury beach vacation, this place is not worth the gamble or the extremely high cost you pay. The good: Epic rooms (particularly recommend the Beachfront Pool Suite), really neat lagoon design, great food The bad: drastically inconsistent service, strange staff encounters, forgotten requests, bad value, and underplayed construction noise. The construction could have been overlooked but the other hotel issues made it nearly unbearable at times. There is also a football stadium nearby so expect to hear whistles and pumping music late into the night on weekends (wasn’t a big deal for us, but could be if you are noise sensitive) Before going on it is important to note the important and awesome staff who made our stay bearable: Ilsa at the spa is a master of her craft, if there was one discrete positive experience from we will remember it was her incredible skills at the spa Awesome beach service from Teresa, Rowan, Bjorn exemplified luxury service on the beach Sully - was very kind, responsive and just generally on top of it Midas - a manager who gets it, who saved more than one evening for us, and is overall an awesome human Pascal - a recent staff add but was hyper aware and responsive to any and everyone’s needs Our issues began when we were booking the resort. The booking process requires you to call the hotel to put down a deposit instead of through the website. No problem, I called the next day and provided a card, only to receive an email the following day that they had not received payment and needed me to call them back. Confusing. Then, they ignored the email they sent, and emailed again asking for additional booking information; clearly there was a disconnect here. We booked the “Total Romance” package, excited for the ease of transport to and from the airport. Hotel staff provided no instructions on how this transport would be provided, so like other luxury hotels we assumed someone would meet us at the airport. Instead, nobody was at the airport and with no instructions on how to get to the resort, we had to ask a random individual supporting another resort if they knew where to wait for the Baoase taxi, which led to them volunteering to call the resort staff. We had tried to call but the main hotel line apparently shuts down to external calls after 4pm, which is totally unacceptable given that the hotel provided no other means of contact on arrival. It then wasn't clear if the driver was affiliated with the hotel or if we were paying for a separate taxi service. It was stressful but we rolled with it, only to find out later that other guests who paid for this same package were swiftly escorted through customs and escorted via luxury transport to the resort. Why were we forgotten? Upon arrival we were asked to stand on the street while we waited for management to form a strange greeting line, which took 5-10 minutes. It was clear our arrival was a surprise and we weren't allowed to enter until the staff were ready. The rooms: None of the room controls were entirely evident and nobody explained how to operate the AC or fans, or lights. The locks were not evident and housekeeping inconsistently locked different doors making it difficult to navigate. With respect to cleanliness though, the housekeeping did an excellent job keeping things very clean and restocking towels. Turn down included a nice treat and quotes (even if a few were repeated multiple times). As part of the total romance package, fruit was promised each day. My wife very much looked forward to this. It was forgotten on our third day and taken away before we could enjoy it on our first. The Android tablet is a huge issue, it can start playing music that won't stop (even if you power it off). It is also incredibly slow and the tablet loves to wake to turn on in the middle of the night and wake you up. Other guests experienced this as well and had long term issues. They also had an unusual room refrigerator refresh policy; you must ask to have it restocked. That wouldn’t have been a huge issue but again the inconsistency made it one. They were responsive to our requests but the first two days nobody approached us but strangely on the 3rd day we were hunted down on the beach to sign a receipt. There was a cockroach in our bathtub one night, but that didn’t phase the husband. The wife is thankfully just learning about this now. There was some forgotten snorkeling gear from the previous tenants right outside our beach entrance, which nobody caught. It wasn’t an issue, just an observation. The service: Our first night we had an item or two from someone else’s table, but because we checked we were able to get it resolved, no big deal. After our first breakfast we were awkwardly chased down to inquire if we would be back for lunch, of which at the time we were unsure of. It was strange being yelled at and chased down publicly. This continued almost every morning with the exception of the two times our servers actually asked as we were seated. It seems a bit strange to ask this of every guest every morning when the resort places so much weight on the itinerary planning and vehemently stated reservations were unnecessary because they automatically planned for on-site guests to have a place to dine. Breakfast wasn’t the only time we were awkwardly pursued by servers. After one dinner, we waited for 45 minutes for a server to close out. We finally decided to leave, since they knew our room number as they asked upon our arrival at dinner, and figured that this resort, like any other hotel we’ve been to, would be able to just add it to the bill. Given the guidance on tipping combined with the abysmal overall service, we assumed they would auto-grat a percentage or not charge any. So, you can imagine our surprise when 30 minutes after our departure from the restaurant, after we had the ‘Do Not Disturb’ sign on and were trying to salvage the evening by enjoying the view of the lagoon from our room, we heard whispering by our patio door. Both of us, privately dressed in our robes thinking we would be undisturbed, were interrupted by two staff who stealthily entered unannounced through the staff only entrance near the back of the room’s private patio. It was incredibly awkward and truly bizarre that they would sneak into what felt like a private part of our room, given that you can see the bed from the patio. Upon investigation, our dinner servers had finally appeared asking us to sign the check. Frankly, we felt like our privacy was violated. Our beach cabana (that comes with the Beachfront pool suite) did not have a wood cube with a menu QR code, so we had to wait for the server to make several trips with menus. When reaching out to the WhatsApp group, instead of responding with the applicable menu link (which is just on the website and could easily be communicated that way) they nebulously said they could assist but didn't say how or when. Our order button for the rooms private cabana did not work and after nearly an hour we gave up and went to the restaurant. Later our beach server validated it was indeed broken. I don’t fault the beach servers with this, but the hotel should check or be aware. The beach/lagoon: At first glance, the lagoon is beautiful. Stunning views and serene. Assuming there’s not construction nearby or loud patrons/children. Because of how the lagoon is situated, any and all noise echoes so no matter where you are by the lagoon, you will hear if someone or something is being loud. The construction we read about in previous reviews was far worse than we expected. Even with noise cancelling headphones, you could hear the construction. We attempted to escape to the other beach, but you could still hear the construction on the first day, and on the second day additional construction started directly by the other beach (big heavy movers), leaving us no escape. We did attempt to escape the noise by doing some snorkeling. We’ve never seen so many fish so close to resort access before. You could see schools of interesting fish in both the lagoon and the other beach. The snorkeling was truly phenomenal. The beach stairs to get into the ocean on the ‘guest’ beach are dangerous and unmaintained. It would be very easy for someone to slip and hit their head on a rock, so you just have to be careful. The husband appreciates the choose your own adventure vibe - the wife, and her imagination of patrons who may have been on the less agile side- did not, particularly when spending this much on a vacation. On the only somewhat quiet beach day with more minimal construction (Sunday), we were ejected from the beach because the hotel was shooting a promotional video and did not desire to have guests in the background. This proved a challenging contrast for folks like us who travel solely to enjoy the beach. Monday, much of the day was cement or rock cutting that was extremely loud and unpleasant making it impossible to relax. It was so loud, the husband begged for the sound of an angle grinder or buzz saw by the end since - surely those would have been quieter. We ran into several cases when the guest services desk was not staffed. We also attempted to make several bookings with the front desk and they said they would confirm on WhatsApp. They never did and it took direct prompting to ensure our requests were fulfilled or get answers to our questions. The Total Romance dinner was a complete waste of money in our opinion. The staff set the dinners up in the most rearward cabanas, obstructing the lovely view of the lagoon. The normal dinner seats on the beach are far superior. In addition they are located next to some loud ventilation fans which destroy the romantic element. (A huge thank you to Midas who was able to relocate us, making the dinner significantly better). The menu provided is also just the multi-course prefix menu, nothing special. While we did appreciate the staff’s effort for the decoration, the experience truly seemed cookie-cuter. We have done over a half dozen luxury beach dinners and this was the least intimate, least thoughtful configuration, and most expensive. This isn’t a service issue, this is something management has dropped the ball on. Our hotel room keys were deactivated prior to our departure, leaving us stranded outside the room (a little bit stressful). After getting them reactivated, we looked at the scheduled departure timeline where someone was supposed to meet us at our room (they did not). After several minutes, we made our way to the front desk and closed out. Lawrence saved our exit when the hotel’s booked taxi never arrived and our departure was taking too long. He swept into action and ensured we got to our plane on time, while most of the other staff at checkout seemed apathetic. Unfortunately, we don’t recommend the hotel. For several thousand a night there are much better options in the Caribbean.

Not much to say other than you MUST come here!!! Everything from the accommodations, food & service were top notch! Can’t wait to visit again

From the moment we made the reservation, the process was effortless, and the seamless airport pickup set the tone for our stay. From the moment we arrived the staff went above and beyond with their warm hospitality and incredible attention to detail. Every interaction felt personalized, especially with Pablo and Pascal, two of the most amazing staff members that made our stay truly unforgettable. Shantely and Andreen we exceptional and Justin at the bar was the top notch. The room was exquisite, beautifully designed with direct access to a private beach area. Waking up to the incredible views each morning was breathtaking. Service throughout our stay was flawless, attentive yet discreet. Only once during our stay the water bottles and fridge sodas weren't refilled, but it was quickly corrected and did not take away from the overall experience. The ambiance in the room with an iPod and curated playlist, created a sexy and relaxing atmosphere that made our stay even more special. The food was delicious, and the chef's daily creations and treats were truly out of this world, both taste and presentation. Dining here felt like a culinary journey of its own. Boase is the definition of luxury, relaxation, and world-class service. An unforgettable experience from beginning to end. Every detail, from dining to daily comforts, was perfectly curated to make us feel special. We will definitely be returning to this unforgettable resort.