Having stayed at Blue Waters Inn 5 years ago I was very excited about returning and sharing my fabulous experience with my partner. Unfortunately this never materialized as the experience was disappointing.
Upon arrival the receptionist greeted us very coldly. This was a trend that was adopted by all the staff at blue waters with the exception of the gentlemen that raked leaves on the beach every morning. The food at the restaurant was sub par at best. The room was clean but very basic - the drawback was that there isn't a complete wall between the bathroom and the room so there is little privacy to be had.

Also, we were surprised to find out that the hotel is located on a public beach which is accessible by any and everyone. We learned this the hard way as we were enjoying a quiet read on the beach when two bus loads of young rowdy children with a few accompanying adults of the same nature pulled up to the hotel beach. On my way to the bar I was even sexually harassed by one of the adults that accompanied these children. I reported it to the front desk where little notice was taken.

One positive was the dive shop on site. Although the diving in general is far from the best in the world, the reef is in good shape and the shop is close to the best dive sites on the island. One thing to keep in mind is that the boat comes back to the dock after every dive which gives you greater flexibility on which dives you choose. The second dive of the day is normally the more difficult so you might want to sleep in and dive in the afternoon as I did.

I suspect that Blue Waters Inn is still operational today simply because its location is pretty good. It is located on a small bay that is calm and quite beautiful (although there are many such bays in Tobago). Apart from location this hotel has very little going for it. Poor customer service, tasteless food and very basic rooms. My recommendation is to take a day trip out to Speyside rather than stay at Blue Waters. If you decide to stay at Blue Waters Inn don't expect much and you're better off eating at Speyside Inn (opposite the entrance to Blue Waters) as the food there was less expensive and very tasty.

Four of us spent last week at Blue Waters and were very happy with our choice. The location is fabulous with great diving and snorkelling (especially if you take the snorkelling trip to Little Tobago). We found lots of birdlife to see and had a really good tour with a local guide - Newton George.
It's best to work at enjoying yourself - we tried the restaurants in Speyside and Bird Watchers is best. Also recommend the (fairly tough) walk to the top of Flagstaff Hill.
Some reviewers didn't like the hotel restaurant - well it's not brilliant but the whole place doesn't have a great reputaion for cuisine. And some have found the staff unhelpful - our experience was that you got the best results by smiling first!
Overall we enjoyed the northern, more relote end of the island and were very pleased with the hotel choice as Blue Waters location is significantly better than the other Speyside options.

We spent our family holiday this year at Blue Waters Inn. What a wonderful location to get away from it all!
The hotel is exactly what it is advertised to be, a remote, truly Caribbean outpost, located right on the beach.
The rooms are just a few feet away from the high water mark. They are simple but clean. The bathrooms need some attention, but the staff told us that the rooms will be renovated soon. I hope that they will keep their easy to use feel. The staff was very attentive, this especially to our three year old son, who had a ball playing all day on the beach. The bar and restaurant, just like the rest of the hotel are right on the beach, and we will not forget sitting at the Shipwreck Bar at Cocktail Hour, sipping on our excellent Pina Colladas and Mojitos, while listening either to the waves breaking on the beach a few yards away, or listeneing to the steel band orchestra on Friday night. It would be nice to have another night of entertainment at the hotel. We were told that this does happen, but only occasionally.
The quality of the food and the service was very good, considering the far away location of the hotel. The restaurant setting is charming (like an old pirate's tavern) and the variety of the menu is o.k.
A few days without radio, TV, newspapers and computers, and you actually feel like you are shipwrecked on the beach of the hotel. This can certainly be nerve wrecking for the " I must stay in connection with the rest of the world" person, for us it was a breath of fresh air and total relaxation.
The hotel has a dive shop on the premises, but we did not dive this year, but will definitely take lessons there when we come back in 2009. The snorkeling was fantastic and the hotel offers free kayaks for adventuring out to sea. We did not know, but there are a lot of birdwatchers staying at the hotel from all over the world. The area is apparently well known for its tropical birds.
If you can stand the remote location, this is truly a paradise for recharging your batteries to face the daily drab world again!

The standard room that we reserved was basic (no TV, radio, alarm, phone, blow dryer, etc.), but it was clean and the view was amazing. Since we didn't spend much time in the room, we were extremely pleased with the location. Our front door faced the water and each room had a patio with chairs where you could relax and take in the scenery. We had a first floor room, which made it extremely easy to just open our door and walk out to the beach. (I believe the hotel also has upgraded rooms, but I'm not sure what the amenities are for those.)

The hotel has beach chairs and towels that you can use, as well as kayaks, all free of charge. There is a restaurant on-site (not great, but not awful either, so it's edible and convenient if you don't have your heart set on a gourmet meal). There is also a bar on-site--made a great Pina Colada. There is a library room that has books that you can borrow in various languages, as well as a TV and a computer with internet access (for a fee.) There is also a ping-pong table, tennis court, and board games that you can borrow from the front office.

A dive shop is also located on the property, which can arrange dive trips. My husband went out and said he saw more on that one dive than all of his others combined. (Perhaps a slight exaggeration, but nonetheless he was extremely pleased with the experience--saw a school of 10 tarpons, eels and a host of fish.) There are also a couple different companies on-site that arrange snorkeling trips and excursions to Little Tobago for bird-watching. For those who tend to get sea sick, be aware that the seas in this area can get a little rough, so rocking on these boats can occur.

The hotel is pretty secluded and it will be a 15-20 minute walk into the small town, if you decide to make that journey. The hotel is also a little over an hour away from the airport along a curvy, scenic road. When I booked our room about three weeks before coming the hotel said they would have a taxi driver waiting for us at the airport. Unfortunately, that never happened--so you may want to confirm with the hotel if they mention this to you as well. Nonetheless it was easy to get a taxi at the airport and go. The price is preset at $45 (US dollars) each way.

All-in-all, if you are okay with a basic, no-frills room, this is a great place. It is in a remote area so it will be peaceful without anyone trying to harass you for souvenirs, etc. If you're looking for a city with a night life scene you may want to look elsewhere. The hotel does have a Steelpan Band play every Friday night from 8pm to 10pm, which was nice.