Crusoe's Retreat

The gardens are lovely, there’s a pool, and the snorkeling in the lagoon is decent. We found the food good, though the restaurant menu is limited. It’s a simple resort rather than a fancy one, but the location and staff are great. The nurses are comfortable there, and they make a great range of cocktails. There’s also a spa.

The friends we made here are people we’ll remember for the rest of our lives. Crussoes really does feel like paradise, and the staff are absolute angels. Their line, “come as a guest leave as a friend,” couldn’t be more true. If I could, I’d give the hotel seven stars.

The dinner menu changes nightly, and we enjoyed the meals. Daily activities are posted and vary from day to day, and at low tide you can explore some nice tide pools. Bring shoes for the rocks, though, they’re quite sharp. The scenery was beautiful, but the reef had lots of dead coral with only some nice snorkeling pockets. I lowered the service score because reception forgot to process my snorkeling boat booking. I arrived ready to go, but there was no boat.

The place itself is beautiful, but our stay wasn’t the relaxing holiday we’d hoped for. The continental breakfast was dismal, the bed covers smelled of BO, and the shower gave electric shocks. We were repeatedly told we were in the wrong cabin and would have to pack up and move. Locals also used the retreat as a party spot. On our second day, we discovered we’d been charged twice for our week-long stay. After telling reception, we spent the whole week trying to get the second unauthorized charge reversed.