Jamaica

[LusbyMom]

Since Hubby vetoed the cruise we have been looking elsewhere. Last night he saw a commercial for Sandals so now we are thinking of going to Jamaica.
I read through some of the older threads. Anyone else have any new opinions?

What's the best time of year to go? How is the weather there when it's winter and cold here?

 

[angelbaby]

Went there when we went on our cruise. We will NOT go back. It is a very poor country. They make a living on tourism. The people haggle you to death to buy things and they want a tip for every little thing they do for you. We were taken to a shopping center where we could buy souveniers and were gated and locked in. We were told to stay in the shopping area and go nowhere else. Of course we peeked out onto the street, what do you think we saw?... Men standing there with guns manning the streets. Very scary stuff. I did not like the area although it was a very pretty place. On our way to the falls we literally saw children standing in their yards in their underwear. I didnt like it. Our next trip will be the bahamas or mexico, hopefully it will be a better experience.

 

[LusbyMom]

Went there when we went on our cruise. We will NOT go back. It is a very poor country. They make a living on tourism. The people haggle you to death to buy things and they want a tip for every little thing they do for you. We were taken to a shopping center where we could buy souveniers and were gated and locked in. We were told to stay in the shopping area and go nowhere else. Of course we peeked out onto the street, what do you think we saw?... Men standing there with guns manning the streets. Very scary stuff. I did not like the area although it was a very pretty place. On our way to the falls we literally saw children standing in their yards in their underwear. I didnt like it. Our next trip will be the bahamas or mexico, hopefully it will be a better experience.

You can expect about the same in the Bahamas. They do haggle you to buy stuff and little kids all dirty asking for money and trying to sell you things. I think that is to be expected at most of the places like that.

We are looking to stay at an all inclusive resort and probably never leave the resort

 

[Mojo]

Since Hubby vetoed the cruise we have been looking elsewhere. Last night he saw a commercial for Sandals so now we are thinking of going to Jamaica.
I read through some of the older threads. Anyone else have any new opinions?

What's the best time of year to go? How is the weather there when it's winter and cold here?

Go to Hedonism

 

[camily]

I loved Jamaica! While there we asked what the best time of year to come is and we were told March/April is great. November starts the rainy season. We stayed at Riu Tropical Bay. Loved it.

 

[camily]

You can expect about the same in the Bahamas. They do haggle you to buy stuff and little kids all dirty asking for money and trying to sell you things. I think that is to be expected at most of the places like that.

We are looking to stay at an all inclusive resort and probably never leave the resort

We left one day to do some shopping but other than that we stayed at the resort. The people were so nice!

 

[thurley42]

My wife and I are Sandals Members and recently returned from our 3rd trip in the last year and a half. We love it because once you get on the resort, you don't need to leave for any reason. They have a large and lengthy list of activities and events to participate in. Two features, that in my opinion, make it much better than cruises are A. All inclusive means just that...leave your wallet in the safe. B. No kids, which if you are in search of peace and quiet, this is critical.

You can take tours, experience different cultures etc. To the person ragging on the Jamaican people, shame on you. It is a third world country "Newsflash" where the average person makes under 10 US Dollars a month. The main source of income is tourism, ie, you buying there things. You get the same anywhere you go in a touristy enviornment outside of the US.

Anyway, Dunns River Falls, Ocho Rios are both very fun, gorgeous resorts that have a lot to do around the area. We just returned from Whitehouse which was more excluded and quiet. Loved every minute. We are going to Negril in April, they have swim up rooms, can't wait.

I would highly recommend it! Let me know if you have any questions.

 

[thurley42]

Went there when we went on our cruise. We will NOT go back. It is a very poor country. They make a living on tourism. The people haggle you to death to buy things and they want a tip for every little thing they do for you. We were taken to a shopping center where we could buy souveniers and were gated and locked in. We were told to stay in the shopping area and go nowhere else. Of course we peeked out onto the street, what do you think we saw?... Men standing there with guns manning the streets. Very scary stuff. I did not like the area although it was a very pretty place. On our way to the falls we literally saw children standing in their yards in their underwear. I didnt like it. Our next trip will be the bahamas or mexico, hopefully it will be a better experience.

are you serious? You need to come out into the real world a little more....the Bahamas and Mexico are the exact same way....Mexico being a LOT worse.

This is reality, how the rest of the world lives outside of the US and most of Europe.

 

[Mojo]

Our next trip will be the bahamas or mexico, hopefully it will be a better experience.

I hope you like chiclets

 

[camily]

My wife and I are Sandals Members and recently returned from our 3rd trip in the last year and a half. We love it because once you get on the resort, you don't need to leave for any reason. They have a large and lengthy list of activities and events to participate in. Two features, that in my opinion, make it much better than cruises are A. All inclusive means just that...leave your wallet in the safe. B. No kids, which if you are in search of peace and quiet, this is critical.

You can take tours, experience different cultures etc. To the person ragging on the Jamaican people, shame on you. It is a third world country "Newsflash" where the average person makes under 10 US Dollars a month. The main source of income is tourism, ie, you buying there things. You get the same anywhere you go in a touristy enviornment outside of the US.

Anyway, Dunns River Falls, Ocho Rios are both very fun, gorgeous resorts that have a lot to do around the area. We just returned from Whitehouse which was more excluded and quiet. Loved every minute. We are going to Negril in April, they have swim up rooms, can't wait.

I would highly recommend it! Let me know if you have any questions.

We went to Negril . Loved it.

 

[Old Timer]

My wife and I are Sandals Members and recently returned from our 3rd trip in the last year and a half. We love it because once you get on the resort, you don't need to leave for any reason. They have a large and lengthy list of activities and events to participate in. Two features, that in my opinion, make it much better than cruises are A. All inclusive means just that...leave your wallet in the safe. B. No kids, which if you are in search of peace and quiet, this is critical.

You can take tours, experience different cultures etc. To the person ragging on the Jamaican people, shame on you. It is a third world country "Newsflash" where the average person makes under 10 US Dollars a month. The main source of income is tourism, ie, you buying there things. You get the same anywhere you go in a touristy enviornment outside of the US.

Anyway, Dunns River Falls, Ocho Rios are both very fun, gorgeous resorts that have a lot to do around the area. We just returned from Whitehouse which was more excluded and quiet. Loved every minute. We are going to Negril in April, they have swim up rooms, can't wait.

I would highly recommend it! Let me know if you have any questions.

I agree with thurley! I've stayed at the Sandals at Dunn's River Falls and it was magnificent. The ride to and from the airport is very long, but if you are fortunate enough to be on one of the smaller shuttles, you can learn a whole lot about a beautiful country (including where some James Bond chase scenes were taped!). The dining is fabulous, especially the Italian restaurant that is very close to the Caribbean Sea.

I won't do another cruise after comparing it with an all-inclusive. The all-inclusive is much more peaceful and gives you a chance to actually see the country you are in. The 8 hours you stay in port for a cruise isn't enough time to discover the country (and you don't see the best of a country in a port).

 

[LusbyMom]

My wife and I are Sandals Members and recently returned from our 3rd trip in the last year and a half. We love it because once you get on the resort, you don't need to leave for any reason. They have a large and lengthy list of activities and events to participate in. Two features, that in my opinion, make it much better than cruises are A. All inclusive means just that...leave your wallet in the safe. B. No kids, which if you are in search of peace and quiet, this is critical.

You can take tours, experience different cultures etc. To the person ragging on the Jamaican people, shame on you. It is a third world country "Newsflash" where the average person makes under 10 US Dollars a month. The main source of income is tourism, ie, you buying there things. You get the same anywhere you go in a touristy enviornment outside of the US.

Anyway, Dunns River Falls, Ocho Rios are both very fun, gorgeous resorts that have a lot to do around the area. We just returned from Whitehouse which was more excluded and quiet. Loved every minute. We are going to Negril in April, they have swim up rooms, can't wait.

I would highly recommend it! Let me know if you have any questions.

I was checking out those swim up rooms! That would be awesome!

Originally we saw the beaches resorts on tv but I moved over to the Sandals ones because we are leaving the kids home and if we have no kids I don't want to have other peoples kids around.

I love the idea of everything being included. How long do you usually stay? What's a good length of time and how is the weather?

 

[morningbell]

Go to Hedonism

dirty dirty





Do they have a nude beach?

 

[thurley42]

I was checking out those swim up rooms! That would be awesome!

Originally we saw the beaches resorts on tv but I moved over to the Sandals ones because we are leaving the kids home and if we have no kids I don't want to have other peoples kids around.

I love the idea of everything being included. How long do you usually stay? What's a good length of time and how is the weather?

We stay for 7 nights...which is never long enough...always goes by so fast!

Weather is always warm....we were lucky a few weeks ago, there was a tropical storm starting as we were literally going wheels up in Montego. The spring is nice as well as the fall....

 

[thurley42]

dirty dirty





Do they have a nude beach?

It's a nudist resort....and you don't want to go there.

i've been tasked to get tshirts there in April

 

[morningbell]

It's a nudist resort....and you don't want to go there.

i've been tasked to get tshirts there in April

I didn't think it was all nude

I didn't see anywhere on the site that it was all nude but I remember seeing something about it being clothing optional.

I was looking at some pics on the site... THEY HAVE POOL POOL!!!

 

[morningbell]

It's a nudist resort....and you don't want to go there.

i've been tasked to get tshirts there in April

Wait, why would you have t-shirts at a nudist resort

 

[LusbyMom]

I didn't think it was all nude

I didn't see anywhere on the site that it was all nude but I remember seeing something about it being clothing optional.

I was looking at some pics on the site... THEY HAVE POOL POOL!!!

Hmmm you can get a naughty night pass and try it out

 

[Old Timer]

I was checking out those swim up rooms! That would be awesome!

Originally we saw the beaches resorts on tv but I moved over to the Sandals ones because we are leaving the kids home and if we have no kids I don't want to have other peoples kids around.

I love the idea of everything being included. How long do you usually stay? What's a good length of time and how is the weather?

We went for 5 nights in early June and the weather was great - we had one rain shower that lasted for less than a half an hour.

I'm hoping to go to Sandals in Antigua next year to try out one of the Round Huts they have!!

 

[BadGirl]

I didn't go to Sandals in Jamaica, but I went to Beaches - Negril and had a miserable time. I'd never go back there again.

The bus drive from Kingston airport to Negril was harrowing and LONG, and once you got to Beaches, the accommodations were below average, and the food sub-par. The only nice thing about the place was the beach.

Hope you have a better time there than I did.