Sonora Resort

The location and wildlife experience is hard to beat. We had great guides and saw amazing wildlife and for that reason I would very much recommend it as an experience. They have very good boats, helicopters etc available and that is great. However, some things are less of a 5* experience. First and foremost the food. Breakfast choice is disappointing and not consistent. Dinner feels like the chef is trying too hard instead of just focusing on executing good dishes with the amazing ingredients they have out there. It’s not a total disaster but not what you expect when you hear the brand Relais & Chateaux. Service staff (talking restaurant and housekeeping) could be improved. Waiters are very friendly but they seem to lack training / direction. Some are better than others but overall pretty inexperienced and possibly understaffed. A good manager could overhaul this quite quickly for the better and make a big difference on that front. Housekeeping could be improved as well (non-obvious areas like under the bed were not properly cleaned for a while is my guess). Overall the property is a bit aged - the beds are not that new, the whole style is a bit outdated. It’s been maintained OK but an overhaul could make this property amazing. Finally the staff at front desk could also improve when it comes to booking experiences, offering choices, contacting ahead of stay to book in and also responding (I tried to contact more than once and never heard back).

The location and views could not be beat! It was amazing with orcas, sea lions and eagles keeping us company in the mornings. The guides, especially Dorian and Robin, were outstanding. Favorite servers, Chelsea and Daniel, were friendly and extremely attentive. The food was okay - but after 3 days I noticed that they repeated the specials. Having said that if you wanted and off menu item like grilled chicken that would accommodate. The Dungeness crab cracked was a $125 up charge was caught and cooked that day. You will catch fish and you will learn a great deal about this magical area. Now for the areas of improvement. The rooms need a bit of love, pillows were not comfortable and the towels were scratchy. Sheets were institutional feeling. We were in the Bute Suite and could hear guests(?) above us moving furniture around for about an hour. When I spoke to the .guest relations people I was told that there was no room above my room - I beg to differ and that there was nothing they could do - not a very Relais and Chateaux response. No medical personnel available - tried to reach a doctor as I left my prescriptions on the plane - and was led to my own devices. The best they could do was give me the name of a pharmacy - 2 hours by river taxi. I asked the Guest Relations people and they informed me that for medical emergencies the helicopter is summoned. Otherwise, they could not help. This is a remote location, plan accordingly. And the GM, who greeted us, was let go a couple of days later. We were sitting at a table outside while he was in conversation with another person out in the deck with his boxes packed up.

So many things are right with Sonora. I usually make 5 star reviews, but I need to talk about this place. The views, the wildlife, spa and some of the guides are wonderful. The manager greets you when you arrive and then you never see him again. That sets the tone. No one seems to really care what is going on. It seems to run by 20 year olds and they just want to finish the season and move on. This place lacks direction. There are some exceptions with the staff; Robin the guide, Jesse the bartender, and another cheerful lady who was always nice. The food was as my husband put it “like being on a cruise ship.” Not in a good way. This could be better with some involvement of some management and better food choices. A general manager presence and involvement with a better food program with even a “chef experience” could really elevate this place. I wanted it to be 5*, but it’s 3.5.

What was super unfortunate was that the service wasn’t even close to the property and facilities. The staff was totally untrained with the acception of a couple that were the shining starts of the group. The food was the largest letdown of all. Everything overcooked and tasteless. I would overlook and not have an issue with the untrained staff because they were all very nice, if the food wasn’t so bad. They as well ran out of over a dozen things in our four day stay. This all comes down to bad management and that’s such a huge shame. The ownership I have to tip my hat to because the facility was an 11 out of 10 and the investment of the equipment and the attention to detail of the Maintanance crews was second to none. I found myself not wanting to order anything the kitchen delivered. I would love to bring clients up because it’s a once in a lifetime experience but we would have to bring our own Chef to not sour the experience and I would not want to invest the high cost without just even decent food. Please let me know ow if this is fixed and I will bring you a lot of visitors.

beautiful location; attentive staff; Rooms have great view - more rustic than luxurious;Food is good but an eclectic menu- Eco tour is a must and the gazebo at the end of a walkway is worth the small hike - overall 4 stars- was very! surprised at fuel surcharge on checkout for copter, boats etc- not disclosed until checking out!