Just returned from Grand Pineapple Beach resort. We were there 3/19/05 to 3/26/05. This was our second time at this resort. We were there in 1999. We had a lovely time and had no problems. We had read the other reviews and were worried about towels and lounges at the beach but we found none of that to be true. The room we had was clean and simple. They could use a few comfortable chairs in the room. Stay in the 700, 800 or 900 sections as they sit very high up and you have a great view.Our room was cleaned every day and new towels were left. The beach is quiet and there is plenty of shade or sun spots no need to race out early and claim a chair or a spot for yourself. The food was okay- nothing special. American type breakfast- omlettes, pancakes, french toast, waffles etc.Lunch was good but nothing fancy. Dinner could be an issue as the food choices were just okay.That would be our biggest disappointment. We ate in the other included restaurants and found the food the same- a little boring and not great. But all the food was edible and fresh. Drinks are great and the people who worked there were the BEST!!!This resort is super quiet with nothing to do but read and relax. We will definitely go back again. We have been to top resorts all over the carribean. All we can say is that you get what you pay for. Pineapple is not expensive. But you definitely get your moneys worth here. You will not be hassled just relaxed. Nothing is fancy here just plain, slow living.

I read many mixed reviews before finally booking Grand Pineapple Beach, Antigua. I was out there 12th Mar - 23rd Mar 2005 and I have NO regrets about my choice of hotel. The hotel has either addressed many of the issues raised in other reviews, or they were unfair.

I stayed in a Beach front room (224) which had beautiful views across the beach and the surrounding bay. The room was nice - not the best I have ever stayed in, but large and clean with a huge private balcony. Clean towels were always left in the room when it was cleaned. I had no problems at all with the room and the air conditioning was very efficient. The bathroom was functional, but could have done with being upgraded.

The beach is lovely and has a light breeze blowing all the time, making it a very pleasant temperature. I spent some time on a beach on the south coast and came back to Grand Pinapple thinking its beach was much nicer and not as overbearingly hot! Yes the beach is not huge, but it is ample for the number of guests at the hotel and is large enough for a pleasant walk. There is some seaweed on one part of the beach, but between 6:30 am and 8:00 am every day, a team of garden contractors rake it up and dispose of it. It is not a problem at all.

There are 2 bars, both just a few feet from the beach - I did not see this as a problem or inconveniet at all. I always chose a lounger at the top part of the beach and from there the main bar, pool & snack bar were just a few feet away. Yes, I did have to put my towels out early to ensure I got my loungers of choice, but I was up anyway as the early morning is a wonderful time to walk on the beach and watch the Herons fishing.

Contrary to other reviews, I found the staff very friendly and happy - OK there was the odd exception, but on the whole, a great bunch - up for a laugh and service ranged from excellent to slow depending on how busy it was. As has been suggested in another review - take a drink into dinner with you so that you are not sitting around waiting. There is a staff shortage at dinner time in the main Topaz restaurant, but nothing too bad.

The food was good, again, I've had better but then I have paid much more for it! The Italian restaurant was really nice - excellent service for both food and drink. It is not open every day, and it is difficult to get booked in. The other restaurant - Pineapple grill was a mexican, and I found it disappointing, but there was nothing wrong with the food, I just preferred the other 2 restaurants. When I first arrived, I tasted the free wine they serve by the glass and hated it, so I bought Pino Grigio for $21 US. However, during my stay, they changed their house white to Chillean Chardonnay, which was great. The Bar manager actually pointed this out to me, and suggested I taste it as he had noticed I was purchasing a bottle of wine each night. Again - fantastic customer service.

The ocean is the Atlantic, but was the same temperature as the Carribean although a little rougher. The free watersports were great and the staff are always happy to take you out for a sailing lesson, something not usually available free of charge. The hotel also laid on a special sightseeing trip at my request in one of their speedboats. I was out for 2 hrs, and was charged $180 US which was great value for money. Not many hotels would be this helpful and accomodating.

I recommend the landrover safari trip as a great way to see some of the island - the guides have great personalities and it is a unique off road fun experience. The bird Island snorkelling trip is well worth doing too. The snorkelling on the reef near the hotel beach is also pretty good and so easy to do.

All in all I had a great time and think the hotel is great value for money. I would go again if there weren't so many other places to see.

Terrible is all I can say,

We have just returned from the Grand Pineapple Beach and have to say it is definately the worst holiday we were ever on.

On Arrival we were put into room 217. DO NOT ACCEPT THIS ROOM ON YOUR ARRIVAL. There was what seemed to be blood on the door of the bathroom, there was holes in the wall, the smell in the room was disgusting. As we arrived late we decided to stay in the room that night and the following morning went to reception and told them there wasn't a hope we would stay in it another night, they "upgraded" us to room 140, which was slightly better but still by no means a 4* or 3* accommodation. There was no other rooms in the hotel available for us so we had to stay in that room. We try every other hotel in the Island to see if we could move out of the Grand Pineapple but every where was booked out. On the Occidential web site they actually have this as a 5* hotel.

I believe if you stay in the beachfront/ocean view rooms that they are somewhat more acceptable and some people might actually class them as good.

The food was OK, the beach OK, overall a very disappointing holiday.

We just got back from our vacation at Pineapple Beach and we had a great time. The weather was perfect - sunny and 85 every day. The manager gave us 2 upgraded waterfront rooms, one with an oversized balcony, on the second floor. We would sit out in the early morning and late afternoon and enjoy the beautiful view over the bay.

The food was generally very good, but we found the service for two dinners in particular (once in Pineapple Grill and once in Topaz) to be excruciatingly slow. We told the restaurant manager about this. It shouldn't take 45 minutes to get appetizers and 2 hours in total to eat. We found the drinks tasty, but watered down. Many resorts do this and it sure keeps the drunks in check. We visited Mary at the Outhouse (a rustic barbecue restaurant) a few times. It is quite a climb to get up there, but it's worth it for the gorgeous view along with the terrific ribs and chicken. Most of the staff was very nice and friendly. One older woman at the snack bar was a bit snippy though.

We enjoyed the snorkelling down at the end of the beach. Lots of different-coloured fish, coral and vegetation to see. Even some of the vendors on the beach were entertaining. One fellow named Nubian was quite the philosopher.

My older son enjoyed the beach vollyball every day at 4:00. They also had a horse shoe pitching contest, a croquet contest, a shuffleboard contest and pool aerobics.

We never left the resort during the week except to explore the Long Bay Hotel at the other end of the beach. They have a really scenic bay on the other side of this hotel. We had been to Antigua previously and really didn't feel the need to explore further.

The worst part about the whole trip was the Antigua airport. It's so small and hot and the function of processing people so slow, it was almost unbearable. Unfortunately it was your first and last impression of Antigua, which was otherwise very enjoyable. All in all it was a great vacation.