Grafton Beach Resort, Tobago

...hope I can show why Grafton Beach Resort suited my needs and why it might or might not suit yours!


Arrival

Transfer time from Tobago's airport to the Grafton Beach Resort is 15 minutes, the average journey really across the island as Tobago does not have many road routes. I travelled with Virgin Holidays and was the only person in my bus being dropped at the Grafton Beach Resort. Travelling alone I can admit ...
...The Bar

Grafton Beach Resort has three bars. The main hotel bar which is situated just as you enter the hotel and overlooks the pool area. There was also a swim up pool bar and not to mention the beach bar. Being all inclusive all drinks soft and alcoholic including cocktails were of no extra charge. All liquor was local but of a very high standard.


Food

Holiday food can often be a worry and always ... more

I live for my holidays. As soon as I step off that return flight I'm busy thinking of where to book next. How I ended up visiting Tobago is a long story but lets just say I did my homework, knew what I liked and disliked about the other Caribbean islands I had visited and someone suggested Tobago and boy am I glad they did!

Once my mind was set on Tobago I started shopping around, I didn't want to break the bank but I wanted an idyllic getaway, somewhere I could relax and enjoy the surroundings that the island had to offer. As Tobago is such a small island and not yet completely spoilt by tourism there isn't exactly a huge choice of hotels. I saw myself faced with five or six options all of which seemed to cater for different holiday requirements. Within this review I hope I can show why Grafton Beach Resort suited my needs and why it might or might not suit yours!

Arrival

Transfer time from Tobago's airport to the Grafton Beach Resort is 15 minutes, the average journey really across the island as Tobago does not have many road routes. I travelled with Virgin Holidays and was the only person in my bus being dropped at the Grafton Beach Resort. Travelling alone I can admit I was nervous but there was absolutely no need! As we drew up at the reception area I was greeted with a rum cocktail, my bags taken and I was shown to a lounge area whilst staff checked me in to my room.

The Rooms

When booking I was offered either a Standard Garden View Room or for an additional £50 I could have a Standard Ocean View Room. The hotel is not exactly large with only 106 rooms, I decided not to upgrade and kept my fingers crossed!

My room was fabulous comprising two double beds, a large balcony with furniture, a bathroom with bath, WC and overhead shower, satellite TV and that al important fridge. The balcony overlooked a fabulous garden area but the ocean too was in sight and close enough for the waves to be heard. I'd died and gone to heaven.

Having only 106 rooms navigating the hotel was easy. There were around six blocks all facing the ocean, each block was two storey and the rooms best described as terraced. The beach was never more than a minutes walk from any of the rooms.

Every room was fully air conditioned although some offered more modern air conditioning than others. I was one of the lucky ones and my air conditioning can be described, for an island such as Tobago, as being state of the art and my room was nicely cooled at all times and the unit itself didn't leak or make a noise. Speaking with other guests some of the units were yet to be replaced and often dripped in to the baths or hummed constantly.

My room was cleaned daily and towels replaced daily.

The Bar

Grafton Beach Resort has three bars. The main hotel bar which is situated just as you enter the hotel and overlooks the pool area. There was also a swim up pool bar and not to mention the beach bar. Being all inclusive all drinks soft and alcoholic including cocktails were of no extra charge. All liquor was local but of a very high standard.

Food

Holiday food can often be a worry and always causes me concern. A food was all inclusive I did worry I would not find enough to eat or be able to eat whenever I felt like it but I was wrong. The eating arrangements at Grafton beach were as follows:

Breakfast: Served in the main restaurant. Buffet style. Full English, American, Continental as well as a full range of fresh fruits and specialist Caribbean dishes were available in plentiful supply from 7am until 10am each morning. You could eat as much and as often as you like within this time frame.

Lunch: A buffet style lunch was served in the main restaurant. There was always plenty of choice and options would include pizza, pasta and burgers as well as more traditional Caribbean fare. Salads were varied and inviting and I would be surprised if you couldn't find anything that took your fancy - the restaurant appeared to cater for the fussy "I only eat British" to the more adventurous tourist.

Option two for lunch was the beach fronting bar "Buccaneer's Beach Bar and Grill" which offered burger and chips in various guises.

Lunch was available between 12 noon and 2pm.

Dinner: Dinner required a booking and was available at two restaurants, the main Ocean View Restaurant where breakfast and lunch was served or Neptune's Restaurant, serving fresh seafood. Dinner was served between 7pm and 10pm although the staff did like you to book as early as possible which did cause a few guests to grumble.

Neptune's Seafood Restaurant was set on stilts above the pool bar. It catered for around 15 people and offered candlelit dinners. The food was varied but there was nothing but local caught seafood on the menu each evening.

The Ocean View Restaurant would alternate between a buffet style dinner one evening and a la carte the next. There was always option to have a four course meal each evening and again all tastes appeared to be catered for.

Extras: Cakes, pastries and scones together with tea and coffee were served both mid morning and again in the afternoon.

From my experience the food was always of a high quality. Being a non meat eater with an intolerance of dairy and wheat I managed no problem and ate plenty. I ate in all three restaurants without complaint however by the end of the week I was slightly bored at the variety of salad and rice dishes however please bear in mind I didn't eat the meat and I avoided the wheat based products… Anyone normal would not have been bored.

Other Areas

The pool was centrally located with the main bar and Neptune's Restaurant overlooking. Not to Olympic standard the pool was great for a cool down and splash around. It was cleaned daily.

The resort also boasts indoor squash courts which were popular and of a high standard.

The Beach

The resort is set on Black Rock Beach at Stonehaven Bay. The beach never got crowded, was spotlessly well kept. The area is renowned for its scuba diving and part of the all inclusive deal included a half day session although more sessions could be booked from the scuba diving centre which was situated next to the beach bar.

Every morning before 7am the local fishermen would pull in their nets and I would often watch, fascinated.

I've seen nicer beaches. The sun loungers were rather old however, the hotel supplied comfortable covers for them. That aside I must add that rather than having to worry that the local beach traders would annoy me I never once felt hassled and instead felt welcome. When I first walked on the beach a local man came over and said 'welcome to paradise'. He could not have put it any better. By the end of my holiday I knew everyone by their first name and they me.

At certain times of the year the beach has areas which cannot be used due to turtles laying their eggs. We did see some turtle tracks but as it was out of season there was not a lot of activity.

My Holiday in General

I've been on many a holiday but Tobago has to be my favourite. I hardly left the resort which is very out of character for me as I like to explore but the Grafton Beach Resort was so peaceful and offered everything I required I had no need. There was traditional local entertainment every evening which varied in standard but really did have you feel like you were in the Caribbean.

Staff were always friendly, chatty and helpful and all seemed highly educated. Even the beach sellers were charming and never hassling.

The main town of Scarborough was a twenty minute drive which costs the equivalent of £3 by taxi. We ventured to Scarborough when we had a tropical rain shower and sat in some local rum bars as well as having a nosy at Dwight Yorke Stadium! The locals in the town were charming and again didn't hassle for money, they were just happy to chat and discuss their island. I also went to the only nightclubbing area on the island where traditional music played, rum was of the plenty and the locals and tourists danced the night away. It was a real eye opener.

There are plenty of excursions that the resort will happily book for you. I visited a rain forest and bird sanctuary but the list is endless.

My Recommendation

I travelled alone. I was nervous but the Grafton Beach Resort was perfect. It would be the ideal choice for couples and those with young families although children could get bored if just staying within the resort. Not once did I feel scared for my safety and I could easily walk around the nearby residential area with locals often popping out of their homes for a chat.

The hotel facilities were rather dated but everything was clean, well kept and maintenance men would attend any problems straight away. The locals explained that with Tobago being such a small island everything was imported hence they looked after what they had as things could not always be replaced easily.

I enjoyed the food but if I'd stayed for longer than a week would have ventured out of the resort for variety but my understanding was that restaurants could be expensive.

I have never experienced such friendliness as to that I experienced in Tobago. Anything that the Grafton Beach Resort lacked in facilities it made up for in character and warmth.

I spent very little money and bought home some souvenirs which were all reasonably priced. My week, on my own, all inclusive from Gatwick cost me £850, for the holiday I experienced I class this as a bargain as I really did find paradise.

If I return to Tobago I would stay here again without a doubt, I think I have found an authentic Tobagan resort not yet spoilt and that offers a high quality service.
 

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