Barcelo Aruba Reviews & Ratings

Just back from another great trip to the best resort on the Island. Located between the Radison and Hyatt Hotel with the best strip of beach on the island. Being that only 1/3 of the resort is Timeshare Ownership, the top three floors, makes for the best guest service and daily maid service in each of the units. Much easier and less expensive to book a timeshare owner unit for a guaranteed room. The all inclusive is like none other. Five restaurants to choose from for dinner in addition to the nightly theme buffett. Even if you want to eat off the resort a night or two, you will see that its a great value for the money with all top shelf liquor at the 5 bars. See you at the resort soon !!! Bon Bini !

We stayed at the Occidental in November 2008. The rooms we had were very spacious and clean but a little dated. The kitchen had the basics (cooktop but not oven). The staff were very pleasant. The on site restaurants were good. ( We especially liked the breakfast buffet.) We also found the beach in front of the Occidental much nicer than up by the Marriott. We would definately stay here again even though the facility itself is a little dated. It seemed quieter, the beach nicer and the staff were very accomodating.

We had a super time at the Occidental Grand Aruba in November 2007. My wife, children (ages 3 and 6) and I enjoyed the resort every minute of our one week stay. The one bedroom deluxe room was impeccable, the food at the buffet and specialty restaurants was yummy, and the service was friendly and prompt.

While the kids played in the sand on the beautiful beach, we relaxed on lounge chairs in the shade under trees . The pool is gorgeous and it was hard to get the kids out. Throughout the day, there were numerous fun activities for all ages at the resort.

It was our second time here and we highly recommend the Occidental Grand Aruba to our friends and family... and those who have gone have been equally happy with the resort.

My daughter and I have stayed at the Occidental (formerly Allegro) for the past 9 years every April. Weather, food, staff, pool, beach......nothing compares. Home away from home!

stayed 1 week, my wife and i loved ittttttttttt. the food, people, calm ocean, view, shows and the service. will go back i miss it.

stayed in the time share. The rooms are incredible, marble baths, large kitchen, all new furniture and carpet. The staff is friendly and the beach is perfect.

The timeshare we stayed in was superb. It was so nice, I could have just sat on the double balcony overlooking the ocean, if my husband hadn't wanted to actually go to the pool or beach. Both pool and beach terrific. Food was terrific too. The only fault I had is we didn't win in the casino.

Very clean and friendly service at the resort and throughout Aruba. Most beautiful beaches I've ever seen. Weather pattern is very predictable and does not vary at all throughout the year. Different shows nightly at the resort. Various restaurants for different types of food at the Allegro. Would DEFINATELY return.

Just returned from the Occidential Grand Aruba. Before I went on my vacation I was a little leary about the place because of all the reviews I read, good and bad. Here is my take on my vacation week.

Food: The all inclusive option for $85.00 is great! You can eat 900 meals a day and drink as many drinks as you want all for $85.00 a day. You do have to make restaurant reservations your first day when you arrive for the week because they are small places with a high demand. The italian restaurant food and service was excellent. Was our favorite place. We did not try the Mexican. The Oriental restaurant-regular style was alright. The food was decent but not the greatest. We would have prefered Hibatchi but it was no available. The Palm Buffet food was decent, not superb, but do-able. We ate most of our meals here, breakfast, lunch and dinner. The only problem we had with the buffet was that on the nights they advertised seafood and prime rib, they were out of it within about an hour. If you advertise that it will be prime rib night from 6-11 pm, than you need to have it ready for people when they arrive at 7pm and not be out of it already. The restaurant near the pool was great for lunch. They basically had the same stuff available daily, but was good. The only thing we didnt like was that the birds sometimes sat on top of the fruit---the restaurant has no windows. We just didnt eat it. No big deal. Overall, give the food a B+.

The Drinks: Not a big drinker, but they had decent drinks. Sometimes the drinks were way too strong, sometimes you didnt think there was alcohol in there. However, with non-premium liquior, I didnt expect much. Overall I give their drinks an A.

The Staff: I can say nothing bad about the staff at Occidential Grand Aruba. They were very accomodating and were a lot of fun to be around. They even went above and beyond their job when people were stuck at the hotel due to the snow storm in the East Coast. Rooms were given to people who were stranded at a VERY VERY low rate. Staff A+

The rooms: the rooms were OK. Nothing great. It was a place to sleep. Besides no ventilation in the bathrooms, some of the hallways would look nicer if they had a fresh coat of paint on them. The A/C was great and the view was spectacular! They stocked the fridge every other day with beverages and the cleaning service was there every day. Overall, B-

The Casino: very smokey! They need ventilation in there for non-smokers. That was the only bad thing about the lobby area... you can smell the smoke from the casino. The slots didnt pay jack, but the table games were OK. They had bingo nightly which was fun. Overall: B

Security: A+ saw a LOT of security officers as late as 1 am on premise making sure other vacationers from other resorts didnt roam on the property.

Shows: The nightly shows were OK. The grease show was not good because the dancers lip sanc to Grease. They have great voices and should of sang. That was the only bad part.

The lounge: The music lounge and music is beautiful and great BUT they have it in a bad spot. I think they would get more people in there if they relocated it near the lobby/casino. Nobody knows about it unless the music is blasting late at night.

Overall, I enjoyed this resort very much and the good outweighed the bad. I would definately recommend it to someone else planning to visit.