We stayed at the Discovery Bay over Easter 2008 - booked through Expedia.

Excellent location, right on the beach with fantastic beach views and sunsets !

We chose to stay on an all inclusive basis and had a beach front room, clean and comfortable - housekeeping staff friendly and cheery, unlike some of the other staff.

Waiting staff and some bar staff very surly and serious, I am not sure if they saw this as being professional.

Food tasty and in plenty supply, albeit not a great deal of choice and even though the dining room was fairly quiet the drinks service was slow at times.

Good quality hotel in an excellent location - not far from local shopping centre and 24 hour garage so handy for amenities. Staff could have been better but we didn't go to stay in the hotel complex for our time there.

Great island and loads to do and see as well as time to chill and relax - highly recommended.

Booked the hotel as it was fairly reasonable (all inclusive)and looked OK.
Have stayed at many hotels before in Carribean and Maldives and Mauritius on beach holidays myself and my wife like nice things but are by no means fussy. Hotel looked OK as we pulled up to it. Staff on the reception were quite friendly and we had a welcome drink at reception. Security guard showed us to our room, it was 210 ( a sea view junior suite). Room was a good size with double bed and double patio doors onto the patio which was nearly on the beach. Bathroom was very tired and sink and shower were all old and tatty. Decor in room was ok. Breakfast is nice with choice of cereals / fruit and bacon and sausages and a chef cooking eggs. Dining room is also quite nice as it looks as if it has had new furniture. Lunch is served outside and was either burgers, toasties and hot dogs or salad and either rice or pork chops or stew (pretty similar each day) but OK. This is served outside under a gazebo, near the outside bar and grill. The thing with this hotel is 85% of the staff are nice. The main problem being that the hotel is really tired. The staff keep it really clean and tidy but you get the feeling that they have given up on the place. I was told when I was there by people who have been several times before that it goes down hill a bit each time they go. Dinner was the dissapointment to me. We were all inclusive but ate out about 3 or 4 times. Dinner is served in the dining room and you get red or white wine with your food. This consists of salad or soup for starters (every night) and then vegetables or roasted pumpkins and rice or pots. Then you basically have the choice of the 1 dish that is on. its a cook cutting up either beef, lamb or pork. The food was OK but the choice was very poor and it was a bit dissapointing. Also there was only 1 bar in the hotel and this was at the front of the hotel so you could not sit anywhere and watch the beach or the sea. Again this was tired and the decor was really outdated. Service was good in the bar though and you did not have to wait too long.

Couple of the staff were stroppy but majority were helpful. Beach and gardens are the saving grace as both are very well kept and nice. Beach is really good and hotel is in a great location for shops and a few bars and restaraunts. Overall I would rate the hotel 7/10. I was also told that only 40 people were booked in for Easter. Its a shame for the workers but you just get the feeling that within a couple of years the hotel will be bought and perhaps demolished for a new hotel / resort.

Like I said earlier this is a genuine review. The hotel is OK as long as you do not expect 5 star luxery and fantastic food.

I would rate the food 6/10 what was served was nice but choice was poor.

Staff 8/10 a couple of stroppy's but thats life.

All in all a nice relaxing holiday,

Hotel near holetown and room cleaned every day. Food at hotel was good as chicken, fish and vegs on offer as well as chips burgers and hotdogs. Hotel beside beach and pool area cleaned every day. 2 shopping malls only up the road and sandy lane not far away so spot the celeb while your on hols. The staff at hotel very professional and always wanting you to have a rum punch. Hotel in very good spot as water nice and calm not like the gap where the sea quite rough. Nice time spent at hotel as wanted to relax and big shout out to there local radio stations which are fantastic and offer lots off information about barbados itself. The hotel is being painted but if you live there during hurricane u will understand why they have to do it during the height off the season. This hotel is in a good area and should be kept open for as long as possible. The reps at hotel very helpful and know a lot about barbados. Hotel offers good entertainment throughout week. People seem 2 go back to this hotel each year from the reviews I have seen.

Summary
If you want an excellent value Hotel in one of the very best locations on the West Coast, then Discovery Bay could be for you! Very friendly staff, very clean rooms and comfortable beds - we will go again - even though the Hotel has some shortcomings. If you want better, expect to pay a hell of a lot more!

More detail
We arrived late to find we were booked into a rear-view room despite having booked an oceanfront room. Not a good start - but the following morning after the mix-up was sorted we were moved very efficiently and with a great deal of apologies. Our problem was solved very quickly.

The hotel is very tired, though some refurbishment is taking place. New Air con units, beds, TV's, coffee making facilities in all rooms. Plumbing is pretty bad and all the taps/showers/baths need replacing - but they all work. The pool-facing rooms have lovely balconies/terraces surrounded by flowers - though some have the air con units outside so are noisy. There are two blocks of sea facing rooms (literally yards from the Sea and as close as any to the sea as you will find on the Island) Security guards were always visible so we felt safe being on the ground floor.

Gardens are nice but sparse - and the grounds are home to several mongoose (geese?) Could do with some re-planting.

Nice pool, kept very clean - in fact it seemed every time we passed someone was sweeping leaves from it.

Entertainment is a laugh (because it is so bad!) Take an iPod or visit some of the excellent bars in Holetown just a few minutes walk away. Note - in the two weeks we were there, most visitors appeared to be retired - so do not expect a lively atmosphere.

Food is the biggest let-down. All cooked OK - though much of the buffet food gets cold. It just is boring! Breakfast is the best meal of the day. If you have an hour to kill, try making your own toast. Best for breakfast is the Omelettes - freshly cooked. Lunch was pretty much the same everyday - with a change in meat. Evening meals were let down by the same boring bland vegetables and choice of same 3 desserts every night. On a couple of occasions, we tried the A La Carte menu. Big mistake - Filet Mignon looked an tasted like the previous nights braised steak....dont waste your money.

If you want variety, try the local restaurants in Hole Town for a great choice. And if you want a really special meal, try the Sandpiper Hotel 100 yards away. We had a truly magical meal there one evening - in fact of all the 'great' restaurants I have eaten in over 20 years of business travel, this has to be one of the best meals I have experienced. Make a resevation! (Just for dinner - one night at the Sandpiper cost as much as a week at Discovery Bay and the beach is not as nice!!)

Discovery Bay is a Hotel to find complete rest and relaxation - and at one of the lowest prices on the West Coast. In talking with many other visitors, we discovered we were about the only ones that had not stayed at the Hotel before - we spoke to two couples that had stayed every year for the past 20 years - and having stayed there ourselves, we can understand why. We will return for the location and friendly staff - but we will opt out of the all-inclusive and eat locally.