The Sands at Grace Bay

I had high hopes after reading all the wonderful reviews of this property but we were disappointed in the accommodations. What is advertised online is not what is provided. The property grounds are beautiful and well maintained. I wish I could say the same for the actual rooms themselves. We booked a one bedroom for our family of four. Upon entering the furniture looks new and updated. I walk into the bedroom and we noticed there was a full size bed, not a queen or king that was in the description of the room online. ( pics for reference as the bed does not fit the frame. It looks as though there was a queen at one point). Zero side tables. The tv was placed on a side table in the corner of the room. The pull out sofa was larger than the bedrooms bed. It was uncomfortable sleeping arrangements for sure. We had constant overflowing of our toilet that we had to wait a very long time to have cleaned up and fixed. ( waiting on it to be fixed currently as we are at the resort now). So, the bathroom with 2 adults and two kids out of commission for over an hour multiple times was/is very inconvenient. No sense of urgency. Thankfully my husband scooped water from the toilet multiple times so it wouldn’t spread further into the unit. The staff is not friendly and you feel like your an inconvenience to them. Servers at the pool are non existent. I love the island itself and we had a wonderful time but I can not recommend this hotel. It’s a 3 star at best. We are well traveled and stay at 4 and 5 star resorts and this one is by far the worst.

We've traveled a lot to tropical places and this rates last in way of staff and friendliness. It felt like a bother to them that we were there to the point it got comical. The lobby smelled like sewage too. The rooms are nice enough but the hotel itself is dated. That would have been ok had it not been the way we were treated by majority of staff at front desk, gift shop and especially in Hemmingway's. No one came around pool or beach to serve drinks and you had to walk into the restaurant to order and hope they'd bring it to you at some point. Most locals too, extremely rude or put out. They are all on island time for sure. The water is beautiful but the humidity in Turks is worse than here in Texas. Overall, would not return and will just go to Mexico where the locals are lovely.

We stayed 6 nights in April. Booked a 2 bedroom 2 bath room because that was what was available & even though we were just a couple it was great space! Nice to have the extra bath + additional bed in case someone was snoring or wanted a nap. ||The room was like a condo with full kitchen, living room, & dining table but there is also Hemingway’s restaurant on site. We ended up eating there almost every breakfast & lunch and consistently very good with lovely staff. You can walk to town for other restaurants plus don’t miss the Thursday night fish fry for local fun!! Also walking distance.||There are no elevators & 3 floors so if you want the best view like we did, you have some stairs. It was fine for us for the privacy & beautiful view. Otherwise request a 1st or 2nd floor room. There were a few more kids than we preferred, they could easily designate an adult pool as there are 3 pools & that’s why I gave 4 stars.

The first time we visited TCI was 2013, and we were not sure where to stay, so we checked out hotels online. When we saw The Sands, we were sure this is what we were looking for. The Sands is centrally-located on Grace Bay Road in Providenciales within easy walking distance of everything you need. Tons of restaurants of every price range, bars, coffee shops and souvenir stores are within a mile of the hotel. There is a supermarket, Graceway Gourmet, approximately 3/4 miles away; we walk there at least every other morning.||As for The Sands itself, it is moderately-priced compared to other options in the area. It has its own access to Grace Bay Beach (consistently ranked as one of the top beaches in the world), and the beach staff is incredibly friendly and helpful in setting up chairs and umbrellas or assisting with the various water toys (Hobie Cats, paddleboards, kayaks)....be sure to tip...they really earn it! The grounds are well-kept with a series of connected swimming pools and palm trees adding to your stay. Each room is a privately-owned condo with full amenities. We usually get a one bedroom suite which includes a full kitchen, dining area, breakfast bar, living area, washer/dryer and a screened-in deck, which is a great place to have breakfast.||Hemingway's Restaurant is on-site and is basically right on the beach. They offer breakfast, lunch and dinner; the food is good and we can't wait to see the staff, who greet as like family every year. This December will be our tenth time in TCI, and every stay has been at The Sands...wouldn't want to stay anywhere else.

Spent last week at the Sands with three girlfriends.|Beautiful beach, sand, water. |We had a corner suite, 2 BR, room 3215--great room/location but could use a few improvements. |The larger bedroom is very spacious, with a king-sized bed, plenty of closet space, drawers. |The second bedroom is far smaller, with only a full-size bed. |There was a roll-away bed that was rock hard, so went unused.|The kitchen was fully equipped. Full sized fridge, stove, dishwasher, bar area. |There is a dining table, ample sized living area, TV's as well as a great wrap around, screened in balcony with furniture, table, loungers. |The oddity was the kitchen faucet-which for some strange reason, is mounted right under the counter overhang, so cannot be fully put in the on position. |Service: We did not interact much with the front desk other than check in and out. |We were offered rum punch at our check in, only to not be given any. We were only one of two parties checking in at the time. We were not given much information regarding the resort, other than the folder with the written information and keys to our room. |I would think for the price of the resort, a breakfast would be included, but it does not. |Food is ungodly expensive both at the resort and surrounding restaurants. |There is a grocery store ($$$) that is about 20 minutes away by foot|Taxi prices are ridiculous, so be prepared. |Cash only. We paid 24 dollars to drive literally 5 minutes. Taxi fares are per person, so keep that in mind. |I managed to find Eugene, who is a local taxi driver and also part of the Junkanoo band at Da Conch Shack. |The pool is lovely and there a lot of little enclaves that you can hang out at all over the resort. Water temperature is perfect. Plenty of towels and floats.|Beach is sugary white sand, calm, blue waters. |Beach staff are good. They will set up umbrellas and chairs for you.|Cordeiro was great|Rose served us cold drinks on the beach--she is lovely. |Resort is quaint, easy to navigate. |If it were not so very expensive, we would return--but the cost of everything really puts a big dent in your wallets. I travel extensively, and this was bar far, the most expensive vacation.

We had the most amazing time celebrating my birthday at The Sands. The staff was friendly and caring, the suite was beautiful with the views of the beautiful ocean, and the food at Hemingways restaurant was delicious. I highly recommend this resort to everyone looking for beautiful and clean place at Grace Bay beach. We will definitely be back soon! Can't wait!!!

I’ve stayed here with my family two times previously, so was looking forward to coming back with my husband and 9 month old. Got a two bedroom condo ocean view. Asked for a crib to be in the room. |We were put in the building closest to the lobby so far walk to the beach for us with the baby which is rough, but more importantly we barely have a glimpse of the ocean. It’s fine but not great. We also weren’t told the cribs they provide don’t fit in the second bedroom, so we either have to give up the primary bedroom for the crib or put it in the living room. Had I known this I would have just brought a travel crib. Definitely defeated the purpose of getting the two bedroom. |Multiple issues with the room, fridge leaking, not enough remotes, dishwasher broken. Again, nothing crazy but all annoying. |The thing that bothered me the most was the fact that the AC in the GYM is broken. Again, I understand this can happen, but no one warned us and they just put two small fans down there. It’s currently 85 degrees in there. So after two days of being pretty miserable down there I asked if I could please use one of the sister property’s gyms or a gym in town that they could get me a pass for? They said they’d ask the manager but no one responded. Again, I know the gym isn’t the whole vacation but it is important to me and I choose my hotels based on availability of a gym so it just happens to be a bigger deal to us. |It’s super hot this time of year and there are minimal fans in the restaurants etc so we haven’t been able to enjoy a meal with the baby without her getting over heated. |I really enjoyed staying here with my family previously, so we’re disappointed. |Hemingways is still great food and beach is still lovely as usual.

I have been staying at the Sands for almost 15 years. The quality has declined a lot yet the price has continued to increase. ||Examples:|- the pools are filthy, murky with lots of algae on the edges. |- booked an ocean front room this time, we overlook the restaurant and the pool. If there is a building in front of you it’s not ocean front…our ocean view room was a lot better. |- sink in master doesn’t drain…let front desk know x 3 no resolution |- outer door broken, attempted to fix for the 3rd time today we shall see how that goes. ||Pros:|- staff on the beach are excellent|- beds are comfortable |- hemingways is lovely |- grace bay is perfect|- the palms is a sister resort and you can walk there…their pools are immaculate