This is NOT a 5 star hotel by America standards. In my mind, 5 starts is the Four Seasons, whereas this was equivalent to a Hilton. So, overall it was fine, just not the luxurious resort we were expecting. When you drive up to the resort, do not expect lush gardens and grounds, it looks like a lot with a bunch of buildings on it..it isn't even clear which is the main registration building ( a sign would be helpful).

When we arrived (after a 4 hour flight and 2 hour drive) we confirmed with the front desk that we had an ocean view room, and he said yes! When we got to our room, we had a parking lot view room...So, we asked to switch to an ocean view room. This was clearly not something they are used to. Instead of being accommodating and helpful, they were mean and accusatory. We had to put them on the phone with our travel agent in the US for them to believe we had requested an ocean view months before. Finally, after about an hour, they reluctantly showed us 2 room options. One was a partial ocean view, and one was a suite on the first floor, facing the pool. We chose the suite, which ended up being lovely, but that was the last thing we wanted to deal with when we first arrived. Another weird situation was that they offered us our welcome cocktail and said we couldn't have it later on that evening after settling, that we had to have it right then and there. After telling that was ridiculous, they agreed, and we had it before dinner later on.

The rooms were clean and the housekeepers were timely. They even left a nice treat by the bedside each night, which was nice. However, the hallways were not impressive, there were lights out, stained carpets etc.

The Bar Purpur was fine and the restaurant SENSES was delicious, but overpriced for what it is. We had breakfast and lunch at the poolside restaurants each day. The staff was not very friendly and barely spoke English which made ordering very difficult. Not to mention, it takes about 20 minutes to get a latte, so you are done eating by the time it arrives.

The pool was very relaxing, and we had a nice time laying out there each day. I was surprised there was not someone there to set up the chairs for you. I am not used to having to arrange my own towels at a 5 star resort, so that was odd. Additionally, again, it took about 20-30 minutes to get a drink if you ordered from your lounge chair.

DO NOT EXPECT BEACH ACCESS. When we made our reservation we were told that the hotel had a private beach for guests, which we were really excited about. When we asked where the access was they told us it was not open because its a dangerous path, so guests can not go to the private beach. No why advertise a private beach?

The Spa was okay. The massages were above average, but the amenities were less than ideal. In a 5 star resort, there should be a nice spa/sauna area as well as a nice relaxation area for before and after the massages, which there wasn't here. The spa pool is also not the best, since it does not have a nice view of the ocean, does not have chair-side service, and most importantly does not have a hot tub..unless you count the non-permanent one they could have bought at Costco. There wasn't a hot tub anywhere on the hotel grounds.

The gym was tiny, compared to the size of the recreational building. It had fake mirrors that were just reflections and could make you motion sick just looking at them. The gym is also open at odd hours, because they do not have the staff to keep it open all day. But, the hours are very inconvenient, since you basically have to go after breakfast or during dinner. The gym is just not impressive in any way.

I will sum up by talking about the concierge again...
Not only was our experience with them awful at check-in, but it continued to be awful. Their restaurant recommendations were sub-par (maybe there just aren't better restaurants in Lagos?), and when asked about hikes, they pulled out a tour book and read directly from the pages. I could have done that.

All in all, I would not recommend this resort to someone looking for true luxury. Well, actually, I wouldn't recommend Lagos in general to someone looking for a luxurious beach trip.

Stayed in 1 bed apartments for 11 days. The finishes in the apartments are excellent and staff on the whole are extremely friendly and helpful. We did have an issue with the air conditioning unit when we arrived and I had to call 4 times to get this sorted. This resulted in very little sleep for the first 2 nights due to the heat in the apartment. Eventually they got the air conditioning working however it was set at the lowest temperature and in theory should have resulted in a freezing apartment however it only brought the temperature down to a reasonable level. I asked for it to be checked again as it was not properly working and there was no follow up. For a 5 star resort I would have at least expected someone to follow up and find out if we were satisfied and I would have told them no. I gave up and decided to live with it although this did result in more sleepless nights. Towards the end of the holiday the system would shut down in the middle of the night and I would have to get up reset it. Glad to be home and now getting a decent sleep.

The internet is not the best and again think we had a faulty wireless router in the apartment. I believe the internet is a little patchy in the whole development so don't expect too much.

The development has the making of a cracking resort but I think due to the financial crisis some of the facilities have not materialised. With only 2 restaurants on site, options for eating were fairly limited. Ate at Moods a few times and food was excellent. There are quite a few empty buildings and opening up another few restaurants and shops within the complex would be a welcome addition.

Gym facilities are excellent and this is an ideal resort for keep fit fanatics.

Golf facilities are limited just now but talk of some fancy equipment arriving in August that will help improve your golf swing.

Spa is in nice surroundings. Had a massage and would not rush back.

Would recommend a car although you could probably get by with taxis to and from Lagos if you planning on eating out in the Town. Nearest supermarket is probably a 15 mins walk.

On reflection I would return to Cascade as on the whole it was an excellent resort. Think we were just unlucky with apartment.