this was my 17th trip to Bermuda since 1977, i have stayed at the Elbow Beach, the Sonesta Beach,Grotto Bay, Brightside Apartments. This is by far my favorite, great views and the staff are top notch.

We stayed at the Newstead for 12 nights, and had chosen it because its fully equipped kitchens / suites seemed ideal for travelling with our 8 week old baby.

The views of Hamilton Harbour and the Great Sound from the property are wonderful, and it is well designed to set them off, with a central staircase which twists down to the water and a great infinity pool. Our one-bedroom suite felt hugely spacious, even once it had absorbed us and our mountain of baby gear, and the rooms were fitted out with high quality appliances and finish (even if not everything seemed to quite match). Room service from the Beau Rivage kitchen was very tasty, and the one dinner we had was outstanding. The resort is perfectly situated for accessing public ferry and bus services and Hamilton shops, and the smart hotel boat, the Carolyn, whisks you across the harbour in under five minutes. It’s also a great place for people watching – on Fridays, the hip young financiers of Hamilton come and party in the pool bar, and official functions with government dignitaries also take place on the main terrace.

We had stayed in a high-end Bermuda hotel once before, and found that things there didn’t come together as well as they should in resorts at this end of the market, and although Newstead was a much better experience, we were still left with certain doubts. The quality of service was quite erratic and there were lots of niggly little problems – the dishwasher in our room was broken and no-one seemed in any rush to fix it, there was some confusion as to what times the water shuttle ran leading to much standing around on the dock, and a more basic lack of information about available services. We only found out by accident, for example, that they operate a free shuttle to Bermuda’s main beaches, with complimentary towels, water and umbrellas thrown in. (Conversely, if you want to eat in the resort’s 2nd restaurant on the Belmont Hills site, Blu, there is no shuttle and you have to organise the 10 minute cab ride yourself).

The main issue for us, however, was a more subtle one. Newstead was built mainly as a ‘fractional ownership’ (you’re not meant to say ‘time share’) complex and it helps if you don’t think of it as a hotel, but more as a set of luxury apartments. The management don’t really seem that interested in the hotel guests – because there is so much effort put into keeping the fractional owners happy, you do feel a bit like a second class citizen. Lots of exclusive events for owners, e.g. receptions, took place under our balcony, and they all seemed to know each other and the Newstead staff, so as hotel guests we felt a bit frozen out. With a clique of owners, lots of business functions on the site and not that many holiday makers in evidence, it certainly didn’t have the atmosphere of a holiday resort.

Beautiful hotel in a great location. You're within a 15 minute walk of the beach or can spend time by the great pool overlooking the harbour. If you want to go into town, then the hotel has a little ferry which will take you across in 2 minutes. Rooms are spacious, beautifully furnished and have everything you might need. Plenty of space for clothes (2 wardrobes), seating and an extremely comfortable bed. Beware the bed, though. The wooden base is much bigger than the mattress and we both came back with bruises and bumps on our legs!
The staff are extremely helpful and friendly without being overbearing. I did witness one poor example of service in the restaurant one morning where I heard a guest request a bagel instead of toast. This was declined as apparently a bagel is "more expensive than toast". Given the price people are paying to stay in this hotel, I thought this was petty and short sighted. Otherwise a great place to stay.

When we travel, we like things to feel personable, comfortable and local. We may be tourists, be we don't want to feel like tourists, or be surrounded by crowds of them.

That's why the Newstead was an absolute delight. Every staff member we met was excellent, professional and friendly. Our one-bedroom suite was very well appointed, and the water views across the harbor, especially at sunset, were breathtaking.

We were very happy about the complimentary water shuttle that took us back and forth from the hotel to Hamilton. It was a nice convenience.

The property has two restaurants--one on site and one at the golf course. Both had great views of the sun setting over the harbor. The food was excellent, but if we had to recommend one, I think we preferred our experience at Blu, at the golf course.

The pool and the garden-like setting around the Newstead are really great. We loved sitting on the balcony in the evening, looking at the lights of Hamilton, and listening to the tree frogs. Hard to come home after that.

My wife spent more time at the Spa than I did, although we both had excellent massages. She also had some kind of skin treatment that involved white chocolate, coffee grounds and who knows what else? She raved about it and I certainly couldn't argue with how she smelled. I also played 18 holes at the golf course. It's a very enjoyable course, with a great layout and views.

One other thing; we so appreciated having a full kitchen in our room. It's so nice to be able to put a few things in the fridge and not have to make an effort for every meal, especially breakfast. There's a grocery store nearby where we found everything we like, including our favorite cereals and even our brand of soy milk. Little things like that count a lot for us.

All in all, we had a wonderful experience at the Newstead, and would not hesitate to recommend it, even to the pickiest traveler. We'll be back for sure.