Name: Le Shambala
Address: 28 Boulevard de Grand Case, Grand-Case 97150, Collectivity of Saint Martin, Grand-Case, Grand-Case, Grand-Case, 97150, St. Martin
Rating: 9

Air conditioning

Elevator/lift

Smoking areas

Garden

Terrace

Reception desk

General

Hairdryer

Shower

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Laundry

Dry-cleaning

Luggage storage

Services and amenities

Restaurant

Meals

Free Wi-Fi

Internet

Picnic area

Recreation

Free parking

Parking

Outdoor pool

Pool and beach

Conference Hall

Business

Location

At the hotel

Room amenities

Esperance Airport

Anse Marcel Beach

Princess Juliana International Airport

Clayton J. Lloyd International Airport

St. Barthelemy Airport

J. Yrausquin Airport

Le Shambala

Grand-Case

This is my second attempt at writing a review on this place. We had arrived from a wonderful week on Anguilla, from a great spot. We were treated like royalty there. However, at Le Shambala we were very let down.
We had pre-paid for our stay, in a room with its own private courtyard and plunge pool. Looked pretty good once we got into the room and space. But the pool didn't look cleaned. We contacted management and they said sorry, no pool service or cleaning until at least tomorrow. On second day I grabbed a net and did some clean up myself as the pool needed it badly ... and the pool was finally serviced on the third day.
Note to readers ... the main pool shown in their feature photo, in front of the ocean, is not cleaned at all ... looks like a frog pond once you are there. False advertising in our opinion.
We moved two wicker chairs out onto our patio from inside the room to laze by our own plunge pool. When we returned later that afternoon we had a very unpleasant and rude letter left by management warning us not to move indoor furniture onto our patio ... it was wicker ... we did not see the problem ... but thought the tone of the letter was very bad for a host.
My wife got very ill after eating some undercooked shrimp made at the Le Shambala bar. We told the bar server that we needed a new batch made, but he said that's how the cook makes them. That evening we went through all our toilet paper supplies. The next day, we went searching for anyone to help us retrieve additional toilet paper, but found a couple of notes on gates that no staff would be on hand that whole day ( probably a Sunday ). We found that strange that the place had absolutely nobody there all day and all night... including no cleaners nor security. Weird. We decided on day five of our 8 day stay here to move to another place. We found it unfriendly, terrible service, and rude management. We found a place down near Orient Beach, moved our stuff there, and found it extremely better. 
So I wrote a Trip Advisor negative review on Le Shambala, posted it, and immediately went back to Le Shambala to try to get a refund on our prepaid stay. I was hoping for 3 day refund, but would have lived with one night refund. When I arrived I had security come over to me immediately, and guide me to the bar to meet with the owner / manager. I informed her we were checking out this morning after the poor hospitality, the lack of staff on hand, the lack of even toilet paper, and the bad shrimp served to my wife that made her ill. She told me we owed about $100 on our bar tab, including the meal my wife got sick on, and refused any refund. She also had her security guy go out and chain up my rental car so I could not leave. I was informed it is illegal to abandon a room with no luggage left there ... even though the room was prepaid long before our arrival, and we effectively should still be able to use the room for the next three days. I was threatened by her telling me she would call the police if I did not pay the 100 bar bill tab, as well as immediately remove the Trip Advisor review. I wanted at least two nights room refund at this point ... or I would keep the keys to the room until my official check out date. I went outside to  check if my rental car truly was chained up, and it certainly was ... chained and locked to the building.
Eventually, under threat ...including physical threat by her security dude ...  we came to an understanding that if I erased the trip advisor review, they would refund my credit card for one nights stay and no bar bill tab would be owed. 
With us having our rental car chained up, and the threat of police possibility messing up at least a day of our trip ... I worked on erasing the trip advisor review ( not easy I must say).
I was treated in the most rude manner through this whole affair. When I went outside, I still had to remove the chains off the car myself ( lock was opened by this time ) ... but I noticed the security guy get in his jeep. I then exited Grand Case, and then noticed the security guy and his jeep following me. I had to run evasive tactics for a half hour before I believed we lost him.
This was scary, we were concerned if he did successfully follow us, we would get roughed up at our new location, so we were anxious the rest of our trip.
The owner and manager of this falsely advertised place should not be in the hospitality industry. She is rude, uncaring, and most unfriendly ... and does not know how to operate even a AIRBB. Avoid this place !

Horrible Management - Hospitality non-existent - Avoid this place

My husband and I checked in, and were happy with the suite. We had reserved the Saba Suite, and it is lovely. After a long day of travel, we were happy to snuggle up in the comfy bed. However, just a few short hours later, the mattress was literally leaking water onto the floor. We had no choice but to sit up for the rest of the night, as there are no staff on the premises, and we had no contact information for the owners. In the morning we alerted the staff as to what had occurred, and that we needed assistance immediately. They contacted the owners, who did not arrive on the premises until almost noon. The female owner arrived, and was extremely rude, even to the point of accusing one of us of wetting the bed. It was clear what had occurred- there was something spilled onto the mattress, and someone had washed it off, assuming that the mattress was dry after a period of time. When we laid on the mattress, it acted like a sponge that's dry on the outside, but the liquid wicked up and began to drain. It did not smell of urine, and I shudder to think of what it may have been. It was a miserable night, and we ended up wasting the entire morning waiting on the owners. I demanded that we be compensated the night, but the female owner continued to belittle us, and acted put out by our request. In the end, we were compensated, but it was handled so poorly, and we were so insulted by the way in which we were treated, that I would never recommend this property to anyone. In fact, when I mentioned that I was going to be writing a poor review, the owner began to taunt us as "Americans, always threatening us to write a bad review", and this was said with contempt.

Soggy mattress??

My husband and I stayed at Le Shambala last week and were very impressed with the location, rooms and overall quality of this wonderful boutique resort. We also dined at the restaurant, food was delicious and both thoroughly enjoyed our meals that were of an extremely high standard. In an area were there are a lot of dining options we found Le Shambala to be a stand out.  Great bar to watch the sun go down. highly recommend.

"PERFECT"

We stayed in the Saba garden suite. It is a good size and private. The suite which consisted of a large room with a huge comfy king sized bed, two fitted wardrobes, good sized television, plus table and chairs, was well furnished and clean.The bathroom has two washbasins and was really stylish when it was originally done, but it did feel like it needed a bit of tlc. The shower fitting was damaged/faulty and needed fixing, but there was not anyone around to report it to.
           At breakfast on our first morning the person serving us did not look happy to be working. He did not explain anything about the menu or converse with us in any way.  He looked like a sullen student that had been forced to work for the holidays. Despite this the continental breakfast was fine. There was another employee who I remember from my last visit who was really helpful and on the ball.
     There is a sign advising the restaurant is closed on Mondays. It is actually closed on Sundays, or it was whilst we were there. There were absolutely no staff around  after breakfast on the Sunday we were there. This was the day of the worst storm the island had seen for a while. We did not know if there were other guests in the hotel and there was no information about who to contact in an emergency. I think this information is essential and should always be available to guests. 
          All things considered we did feel a little let down after this stay. It was not as good as our previous stay three years ago, but we would go back because we still think it is one of the best places to stay in Grand Case.

Great location for nightlife and eating out, but service needs improving.

We had a wonderful stay at Le Shambala. The property is beautiful – with a modern chic style. Our room come with a private pool and garden. The breakfast was very good. The location is perfect for walking to all the restaurants and bars of Grand Case. Highly recommend!

Le Shambala

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