We went as a group of 7 with 3 children.
Travelled the week of January 30th - February 6th.
Arrival: We were transported from the airport to the resort in a timely fashion. Once we arrived we were greeted with drinks and a cold towel to cool off with. The time it took to get checked in was quick and the front desk staff was very welcoming, first impression was great!

Rooms: We had two rooms for the 7 of us, 124 and 123. Our room (124) had a king size bed, and a single bed. Ground floor looking out to the ocean, literally steps!!! You have to pay for that EXTRA anywhere else we have stayed!
The closet was small for three people but we made due. There was enough hangers for our cloths. It would benefit to bring an adapter as there was a mixture of plugs but we only found 1 for our plugs and luckily based on the reviews I brought an adaptor as well and it was just enough for the three of us to charge our phones. The beds were not very comfortable! But again it was what we expected for a 3 star resort. The rooms were clean, yes could use updating but again it was what we expected based on the reviews and a 3 star resort.
The maids did a good job in keeping the rooms clean! They kept leaving the tips we left them, now reading the reviews I know why! (Wish I would have known this) everything was stocked properly minus one night we needed to call and ask for toilet paper.

Food: considering we traveled with 3 “tweens” this was difficult!
The times were on “Tobago” time so we had to make sure to make it to everything because if we missed breakfast, there wouldn’t be food till about 12:30pm
Breakfast Buffet: we enjoyed it! There was an egg station that you could get whatever type of egg you wanted, bacon, pancakes or French toast (basically alternated daily), cheese, tomatoes, sliced lunch meet, toast, fruit(usually pineapple and watermelon) sometimes we would get papaya and once we seen bananas. I was kinda disappointed in the lack of fruit based on the location we were at. And more.
Lunch Buffet: opened late almost daily, about 30 minutes late. Not much selection our kids didn’t really like it so we only came here once or twice the rest was at the beach bar grill.
beach grill: very busy!! Most people came here for lunch. The kids loved the burgers, grilled sandwiches, fries and potato wedges. My favourite was the shrimp wrap! It was delicious! Yes we paid extra for this but it was worth it!
Only complaint is that they need more staffing where! The waitress Sheryl is amazing! She took complaints like a champ! The time was a bit long for a simple burger and fries, sometimes we waited 1-2 hours which with kids wanting to go swimming or play was a bit annoying. The open time was supposed to be at 11 am most times it didn’t open till 12 or later so they are very laid back as to the open times in everything! We decided to skip breakfast one morning and the grill didn’t open till 12:00 plus waiting for food it wasn’t until 1pm that we actually ate! So we never again missed breakfast.
Dinner: buffet was small but perfect for the size of the resort , but always had a meat, starch, salad, veggie, soup and FRESH FISH! It was hit or miss depending what you liked but I never left hungry as there was always something that we enjoyed. I wish they had more “simple” foods for the kids as the food and a lot of different spices the kids didn’t like.

Pool/beach: we swam in the beach. Sometimes a bit rough but warm! If your not a good swimmer probably not best to go but I didn’t find it difficult to manage and the kids had fun with the waves. The pool was always kept clean, while it was clearly dated. It was deep enough for the kids to enjoy and us not worry about a “deep end” the best part is the swim up pool bar where we could enjoy our “adult time” and still be close to the kids.
We wish there was more for the kids to do during the day, like games or Zumba by the pool like we have had in past family friendly resorts, there was a lack of activities.
The beach chairs and pool chairs need fixing as many were broken they could also use more.

Entertainment: there was very little. Not much. The resort seemed to cater to an older crowd so seemed most were in their rooms by 9pm there was not much to do at night. We usually went back and played cards at our room. Bar closed at 11pm.

All in all I think for the price we payed we got what we expected. There could be more entertainment and activities daily especially for kids! Organization is needed for this place to succeed and boost their star rating! The place has great potential as it’s is right on the beach with beautiful view from every room! But we learned that Sunwing has bough it and plans on demolishing it to build a 5 star so I would say go now and visit the beautiful island of Tobago for an affordable price before this happens. Would I go back? To Tobago absolutely! To starfish? I would as on the plane ride home from the other reviews people were complaining of their 4 and 5 star resorts we didn’t make out so bad with our 3 star.
Shout out to bartender Raul and his amazing skills! :)
The rooster keep some up but after the 3rd night I was used to it.

Just returned from Starfish Tobago. Having been to most if not all Rex resorts on other islands in the past, we knew what to expect in terms of accommodations & food. Unfortunately, we felt this Rex resort (now Starfish) wasn’t as good as the others. Here’s a breakdown:

ROOM:
From reading a lot of reviews before going and after returning, it seems clear that some rooms seem to have been somewhat renovated and other not. Ours wasn’t (#208). We didn’t have a walk-in shower (no big deal). The beds were not comfortable at all…..The patio door rattled all night long every time it was windy and it was windy most nights we were there. And the rooster! That darn rooster started crowing as early as 3h00am and wouldn’t stop all night. It kept us awake most nights. The room was clean, decent size (3 beds) the bathroom was very small but OK. We don’t spend much time in the room other than shower & sleep so not a huge deal but the lack of sleep because of the patio door & rooster was very annoying as we were never rested when waking up. There was only one closet for a triple occupancy…so not enough room to unpack everything. The lack of power outlets was annoying, bring a power bar if you have more than one item to use/charge. No need for a power adapter they have dual outlets. Mini fridge was not stocked. There was a hairdryer as well as coffee maker. Safe worked fine and there were a few hangers in the closet. Soap & shampoo replenished every day but I would suggest your bring your own lotion & hair conditioner as there was none. Shampoo was a combo shampoo/conditioner but if you have long hair you could benefit from bringing your own.

FOOD:
Now that’s the biggest issue/drawback we had. The food was nowhere near as good as we thought it would be like. We knew the selection would be limited but in our past trips to other Rex resorts, although the choices were also limited the food was great. Not the case in Tobago sadly. The lack of fresh fruits (same every day: pineapple, papaya & water melon) was a disappointment. Only had bananas 2/3 days out of 7. Same for vegetables at night, almost none. Salad bar was very limited…only lettuce and a few condiments. They served a great spinach dish, as well as eggplant and green beans for breakfast, why not at night? The same fish (not good) every night other than one night they had the fried fish which was the best we had all week. There are fishermen hauling fresh fish on the beach almost every day, can they not get some and grill it? No one starved, no one got sick but it was a let down compared to other Rex resorts. We mostly ate at the B’Day grill every day for lunch. The place was always packed and some people waited for 2 hours to be served on different occasions. Only one chef and they send him on a lunch break when there are plenty of people waiting for their food?? A la carte was advertised but never happened once. We had a reservation and the restaurant never opened. The drinks were OK, the wine was surprisingly decent for an all-inclusive.

RESORT
The resort is dated but not falling apart. The staff are extremely nice and they work hard and long days. Some of the friendliest staff we’ve ever encountered on the islands. They make a difference which helps overlook some issues. The pool was nice. The grounds were very nice, the gardener does a great job with the landscaping. The lobby was spacious and had enough seats to wind down at night, the decor was very dated. The beach was nice although the water very rough. The red flag was up all week but we still swam in the ocean. A lot of people got knocked down by the waves and the undertow & currents were very strong. There were no rocks or seaweed on the beach which was great. The resort caters to an older crowd and lots of repeat clients (mostly Brits). We loved this aspect of the resort as we are not into the partying big crowds. The quaint atmosphere was very nice and people were very friendly. Not many kids (bonus) and small resort.

Overall we had a good time at Starfish despite the bumps. If you are expecting to be pampered and food is important to you, don’t go, you will be disappointed. You get what you pay for. It’s a 3 star resort at a good price. The staff really goes above and beyond: Sheryl (rock star), Damien, Stephenie, Esther, Trevor just to name a few. They work tirelessly all day and always have a smile on. There’s a lack of organization that the resort could easily resolve which would help tremendously. Staffing the bars & restaurants adequately would improve the long waits. Sending staff on their lunch/supper breaks at peak rush hours without replacing them is unacceptable, especially when you have clients who have already ordered food wait for the chef to return in order to get their meal. The maids are not allowed to take the tips you leave them unless you leave them a note saying it’s for them. They should tell clients upon arrival as we couldn’t understand why our maid was leaving the money there until she told us. Never seen this before anywhere else but found it unfair to the maids as people don’t know about this.

Tobago is a beautiful island worth visiting. Would I return to Starfish ? I don’t think so unless they fix some of the issues. In any case, there’s a massive reno on the way which means that the prices will go up once completed. If you are not fussy about any of the issues mentioned, go before it’s too late.