At a glance:

Previously the Leela Goa, Marriott took over the property and rebranded the hotel as the St. Regis Goa around October 2022. The resort has 206 rooms (including 46 suites) set on a 49 acre stretch of land with lagoons and on a long stretch of underdeveloped beach in southern Goa.

What is actually is: An older resort on a nice secluded beach in Goa for families and couples that falls short of what you expect from a St. Regis branded hotel (it would be a very nice Sheraton, if that’s what you were expecting).

What it is not: A resort that exemplifies the St. Regis brand for service and luxury.

Time of year: Fall

Room Type: Lagoon Grand Deluxe

Scores:

Hotel Design: 90 – The resort design is very peaceful with nice lagoons, expansive landscaping, and access to a nice stretch of beach.

Location: 87 – Located on Mobor Beach, the hotel offers seclusion and peace. Mobor Beach is nice and swimmable at times (there we moon jellyfish while we were there). There aren’t many things nearby if you do not have your own transportation, but you can walk to Fisherman Wharf for food, drinks, and live music. The resort is about a 1 hour drive from Goa Dabolim International Airport and Panjim.

Sleep: 79 – The bed was and linens were comfortable but we expected them to be plusher. The air conditioning unit was loud and did not cool the room below 71F/21C. Construction work to renovate other nearby rooms also started very early.

Service: 70 – Compared to other places we stayed on this trip, the service was a little lackluster and less polished. At checkout, we spoke to a manager who admitted they had some progress to make about the service, the resort, and that other guests commented on the cold food at the breakfast buffet. One of two pools was also closed and this was not listed anywhere in the material provided to guests or on the website.

Room Design: 72 – Our renovated Lagoon Grand Deluxe room had a nice layout but despite the renovation, it still felt old and musty in some areas. The decor felt somewhat bland and generic, think a Westin in Hawaii, not a St. Regis in Goa. Privacy was decent, with space between rooms and how they were set. None of the rooms have any ocean views even if it is a resort on the beach.

Room Amenities: 71 – Our room had a king bed, balcony, small seating area, a mini fridge, a bathroom with a shower and bathtub. We were on the ground floor with a lagoon view. Bath was old and uninviting, no bath salts provided.

Hotel Amenities: 75 – What you would expect from a luxury resort and not what you would expect at the same time. There were ample loungers and seats at the beach, a gym, a spa, two pools (the adults only pool was quite shallow and was more of a kids pool) a few restaurants and bars, and resort activities (some complimentary and some for a fee). Free bikes were a nice touch and we enjoyed those. Poor execution of the feni tasting activity and the activity schedule was inaccurate. It was not enjoyable to use either pool because of the broken/missing pool tiles and the water temperature was too hot for the climate (think hot bathwater). The breakfast buffet spread was impressive but most of the food was cold and the setup lended itself to chaos and collisions. The main restaurant only allows for indoor dining at dinner, which is disappointing (we asked to order some appetizers to enjoy in the open air lobby bar area and this request was declined even if the lobby bar food came from the same kitchen). The daily champagne sabering was chaotic and seemed to lack organization even if it is something they do daily (it was not worth the spectacle to get a tiny pour of bubbly).

Vibe: 80 – Standard for a luxury resort: families and couples on vacation. Very low-key place that is trying to be upscale but somewhat struggling in the process.

Cleanliness/Maintenance: 67 – While this resort has undergone a renovation and it is still ongoing, cleanliness and maintenance is average at best. The main pool has numerous tiles missing in it, our balcony screen door was broken and had holes in it, our room still had some damage, and the exterior of the rooms needs to be repainted.

Value / Extras & Perks: 70 – Our Marriott SNA was not accepted for a pool villa and we were upgraded to a suite that had not been renovated yet and was run-down and dirty. Thankfully, they were able to move us to a Lagoon Grand Deluxe room, but they did not call us when the room was ready as promised since it was after check-in time. Room rate included breakfast and they provided us with a complimentary bottle of wine.

OVERALL: 76.1

Would we stay again? No.