French Leave Resort, Autograph Collection

“Amazing Views, Super Chill Vibes”

TLDR: My husband and I went for our 10 year wedding anniversary, sans kiddos, on points, to the French Leave resort for 5 nights in May. We are lifetime Platinum elite Bonvoy status and have been to a couple amazing Marriott’s along the globe, this is one of the most unique places I’ve ever been. T… more

TLDR: My husband and I went for our 10 year wedding anniversary, sans kiddos, on points, to the French Leave resort for 5 nights in May. We are lifetime Platinum elite Bonvoy status and have been to a couple amazing Marriott’s along the globe, this is one of the most unique places I’ve ever been. The views are spectacular, the location is nicely central in the island of Eleuthera giving you easy access to Governors Harbor and great restaurants. The incredible beach is effectively private, just remote and not as easy as a quick walk from your room. The villas are private and spacious. Bring bug spray. Room: We were disappointed upon arriving that we weren’t upgraded, considering the place was half empty, but the basic level partial ocean view does still do the trick! We tried to use suite night vouchers but they are not allowed to be used at this hotel. The villas each have a spacious bathroom (no soaking tub, in any level of room), a small living area, and a generous lanai (with built in ceiling fans!) with a table and a lounging area. Everything was tastefully updated, just some normal wear and tear but everything was well maintained. My only beef with the room was that the bathroom ceilings were painted (an albeit culturally appropriate) coral, which made my pale skin look as if I went way harder in the sun than I actually did. Free waters are replenished every day in the room, and an ice maker does work in the freezer. Food: The 1648 restaurant onsite was convenient, yet pricy. The platinum Bonvoy breakfast voucher is nothing special. It’s toast/fruit/cereal or $12 towards an à la carte entree, but the continental did the trick for us. If you absolutely need a hot breakfast, you’ll be shelling out a pretty penny. Also, every restaurant in the island, including this one, does not offer free water. We did one dinner at 1648, and the pizza was very good! That said, go out in Governors Harbor and the other surrounding towns and enjoy some of the local delicacies. Buccaneers Club, Bacchus Fine Foods, Tippys, and Boganvilla were our favorites. We also hit up Jimmys in town and got ourselves bottles of wine and Bahamian rum, plus mixers, so we could have poolside libations without it being $20 a glass. I don’t think you can have glass by the pool, so we brought stainless steel cups. Beach/Pool: The French Leave beach is ridiculously amazing. It just takes going on a sketchy road to get there. I recommend a crossover at the smallest for a rental car so you may traverse the jungle to the remote paradise without breaking anything. We snorkeled a couple times, didn’t see much too crazy, but the pink sand beach was perfection. There did seem to be an option to be shuttled to the beach by staffers, but the rental car is still nice to have for exploration. The pool is small but so nice to relax by. The resort is so small we never ever had to worry about “reserving” a seat at the pool, we never saw more than 3 other guests at a time. Staff: Everyone at French Leave was kind and helpful! Any little tweaks or requests we had were handled promptly and professionally. Extra shout outs to Shaquille and LT. Shaquille came to fix a small air conditioning issue (there are 2 in the room and they are quiet) and he offered to take us to the beach the first day to show us how to get there, and then came and got us too! He was so kind and gave excellent recommendations of where to look around the island. LT was great to chat with by the pool. Bugs: My legs by the end of the trip looked like a chicken pox victim. Bring bug spray from home for the evening time. If you’re from a particular heritage that mosquitoes adore, maybe also bring a Claritin or two to help with the itching. Flies are a big issue on Eleuthera in general. Don’t let it deter you, every restaurant will offer candles that legitimately do help. But it does suck for your legs. They don’t show up until you have food in front of you, so don’t worry about your beach time or pool time.

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