Sheraton Sanya Resort

I loved the comfort of the room and the tastiness of the breakfast buffet. The staff was very responsive and helpful when I had questions, even if it meant they had to call someone else. The pools are amazing, and the spa experience was like nothing I've ever had.

I was surprised at how hard it was to navigate the resort. I'm living in Haikou and trying to adjust to life in China and thought coming to the Sheraton would be a nice respite from all the communication difficulties, but it wasn't. I speak English and Russian fluently, and have a little Chinese, as well as Pleco and Google Translate and excellent cartooning and miming skills. But the resort did not feel very accessible. The tv remote had ONLY Chinese characters, so I messed up the tv in 30 seconds and had a lengthy ordeal with staff putting it right. Most of the staff did not speak English well enough to help me--ordering a la carte at breakfast was so difficult (doubled orders! misunderstandings!) that I just gave up and got the buffet. Most questions required that someone else be summoned and a committee convened. It was exhausting. There was no map of the resort in English. There was a WeChat map, but only in Chinese. I was so surprised! It takes me approximately 10 years to read a sentence in Chinese. An English or even a Russian map would have been great. (It would also be nice to have a small map of the surrounding area...not the entire coast, but just that little walkable tourist area to the east.) It would have been nice to get a welcoming email before I came about, say, what train station I should use (I took the train to Sanya instead of Yalong Bay). The other shocker was the flag system at the beach. I am American and accustomed to beaches in California and the east coast. The lifeguards would not permit us to swim in conditions that to us look perfectly normal (1-2 foot waves?) It was very frustrating.

Traveled with 1 year old daughter, we had a blast. Excellent breakfast, lot´s of choices both local and western on a very nice setup with views to the sea. Great facilities, although visit occurred during CNY, we never had a problem getting chairs both in the beach or at the pools. Staff, everywhere great people to deal with. Big kid pool and outdoor and indoor playground. Many places to walk around (garden, poolside, beach) and have pictures taken or let daughter walk freely without much worries. Looking forward for another visit.