Side by side Four Seasons Bora Bora vs Four Seasons Resort Nevis

You are paying several thousand dollars a night for Mount Otemanu out your window and a lagoon you can swim, snorkel, and kayak without ever leaving the property, and on that front this place delivers: the overwater bungalows are some of the biggest in Bora Bora, several with glass floors and private plunge pools, and the marine biologist-led lagoon sanctuary gets called the best activity on the island by people who've done every excursion here.

What you're actually rolling the dice on is consistency. The building is showing its age in specific, repeated ways: cracked wood and missing slabs in rooms, spiderwebs that come back daily, grimy bathrooms near the restaurants, and an air-conditioning whine in some bungalows loud enough to hear at night. Service swings just as widely, from a housekeeper who left handwritten thank-you notes and wrapped up phone cords, to a front desk staffer who waved off a soaked, shivering guest to check in someone else. Food is good but thin: two restaurants plus bar snacks, and the app-based request system means you often explain your issue fresh to whoever picks up the message next. None of this is disqualifying, but at this price it should not be happening at all, and a family that had a splinter emergency with zero management follow-up is the sharpest version of that pattern.

Book it for the room and the water, not for a flawless five-star routine: nobody is topping this lagoon on this island, and the beach villas and bungalows are worth the splurge for the view alone. Skip it if you want honeymoon hush, since golf carts, corporate events, and a lively family crowd can crowd out the quiet; St. Regis next door reportedly edges it on food and polish, if that's what you're optimizing for. For the setting and the room itself, book the Otemanu-view bungalow and go in expecting nature to be the star, not the service.

Four Seasons Nevis runs about $700 to $1,000+ a night depending on season, and what you get for it is a genuinely relaxed, low-rise resort spread across casita-style cottages rather than a glass tower. That's the whole pitch: calm over polish. The beach is calm and swimmable, Nevis Peak sits behind the golf course, and families keep coming back because the staff treat kids like guests rather than nuisances. One family got a lost beach bag tracked down and returned within two hours after leaving it in a taxi on a different island. Another had the kids' club team surprise their children with an ice cream cart delivered straight to the villa.

The trade-off is condition, and it's real: this property is overdue for the renovation guests keep hearing about. Multiple recent stays mention mold on shower tiles and pool cushions, exposed nails on the north dock, and rooms that look tired next to sister properties in Anguilla or at Rosewood Little Dix Bay. Getting there is its own tax on the trip, a flight into St Kitts followed by a van and a short boat ride, which turns a long weekend into mostly travel days. Food is good but not cheap: expect $150-200 for lunch and $250-300 for dinner for two adults, and the on-property restaurants get mixed reviews even from people who otherwise loved their stay. Pool and cabana service can lag badly when the resort fills up, with guests reporting hour-long waits for a staff check-in.

Book this one for families who want their kids genuinely cared for on a quiet island, not for anyone chasing a flawless new build. If pristine, freshly renovated rooms matter more to you than a mellow, monkey-dotted golf course and a staff that remembers your toddler's name by day two, Anguilla is the better bet within the brand.