Sandals Royal Caribbean--an all-inclusive honeymoon heaven
Written: Oct 16 '06
|
Product Rating:
|
|
|
Pros: all-inclusive, relaxed atmosphere, clean & comfortable rooms, great activities
Cons: small, annoying surfboard vendors, misleading about offshore "island"
The Bottom Line: If you're looking for a reasonably priced all-inclusive resort for a honeymoon or anniversary trip, Sandals Royal Caribbean more than resembles the commercials!
|
|
|
| mjtriplett's Full Review: Sandals Royal Caribbean Resort & Offshore Island/J... |
My husband and I honeymooned at Sandals Royal Caribbean a little over 2 years ago, but since I hadn’t yet discovered Epinions, this review is just a little delayed. What prompted me to write about Sandals now, after so much time has passed? First of all, even with all the other exciting things that have happened in our lives since our stay at Sandals (new home, new jobs, back to school, new baby!)—we still reminisce about our honeymoon at least once a month, and that’s got to say something about how much we enjoyed it! Second, I had recommended a stay there to a friend in late May of this year, and upon returning, she promptly called me to express her gratitude. Just last week (we’ve been very busy) I was finally able to see her trip scrapbook, and it brought back such longing to visit again that I am hoping to write this review, send the link to my husband, and be surprised with an anniversary trip next year. nudge, nudge… So, please bear with me: this might be long, but it is a full resort, and there are many things you should know if you are considering a trip to Sandals Royal Caribbean.
The Sandals RC lowdown
I know you’ve probably seen those Sandals commercials. They show expansive white sand beaches with couples holding hands and walking along the shore. Pools with crystal clear water and perfectly lined lounge chairs. And so on… In case you haven’t seen them or you didn’t pay attention, Sandals is a chain of all-inclusive couples' resorts. Sandals RC is a part of that chain, and is one of 7 Jamaican resorts, located in Montego Bay, Jamaica. Sandals RC is not a big resort; it only has 187 guest rooms and you can get a detailed tour of the entire resort (including the off-shore island) in about a half hour. But it’s stacked with amenities, as you’ll read further on down.
Getting’ to Sandals RC
Well, I’m a sucker. I got all dreamy-eyed watching those cheesy Sandals commercials, called up a travel agent, and booked a room at Sandals RC without ever really considering other destinations. We booked a “Honeymoon Luxury Beachfront Concierge Room” (heretofore known as “our room”) and were able to get a rate of approximately $3900, which included 6 nights in the room (Sunday through Friday) and round-trip airfare (US and Jamaican Airlines).
Sandals also offers potential guests the ability to view rates and specials and to book a vacation on-line at www.sandals.com. I won’t go into average rates here, because there are so many variables to consider: time of year, days of the week, number of nights, room type, etc. But, judging from our experience, great rates for an all-inclusive vacation are definitely available at Sandals RC.
We had a nice flight to Sandals RC and no chance to become confused upon arriving at the airport in Montego Bay, because we found the Sandals transportation team as soon as we walked into the terminal. The helpful Sandals crew loaded ours about 12 other couples’ luggage into the mini-bus almost immediately. It took us less than 15 minutes to arrive at the gate to Sandals RC, and that was after a brief stop to drop some folks off at the Sandals Montego Bay Resort. The entrance to Sandals RC is spectacular. Lush vegetation abounds the long dirt road up to the Great House, and a marble fountain sits out front. The Great House (i.e. main building) is a charming British Colonial with huge columns and a vast array of royal looking couches and giant tiered chandeliers just inside the doors.
Upon arrival, we were greeted with a glass of champagne and a nice cool cloth to wipe the sweat off of our brows. It was rather hot—about 85 to 90 the entire time we were there (remember, people, I’m from Minnesota and I like it cold)—so we were happy to see alcohol and cold cloths. Our bags were loaded up onto carts by friendly looking bellhops, and we were shuffled into the “orientation” room with 6 other couples. We spent about a half hour in the room, where we received helpful information on the resort’s layout, restaurants, schedules, staff, and activities. We then were taken on a short, informal tour that ended at our room, which was on the 2nd floor of the Kensington Building on the furthest east corner of the resort.
Our room
Initially, we were a little disappointed at the size of our room. It’s a Honeymoon Luxury room, after all, so I expected it to be quite a bit larger than the standard suite at your local Holiday Inn. I think Sandals RC maybe had an inch or two on that room. But, we got used to it, and the rest of the room’s features were terrific. In the center was a huge 4-post king-sized bed with an extremely comfortable mattress and soft, clean bedding. The marble floor sparkled. A small table and chairs sat in a little breakfast nook looking out over the pool patio behind shuttered windows. There was a sliding glass door to our balcony, which had comfortable patio furniture and also overlooked the east pool area and the rest of the L-shaped Kensington building.
The room decor was consistent with a tropical resort. There were many shades of green, yellow and magenta, which reminded me of the assortment of colorful fish we saw while snorkeling. The walls were yellow and paintings depicting beach scenes decorated almost every space. The room was air-conditioned, but we also had the advantage of a ceiling fan to help our overworked air conditioner with circulation.
Our bathroom was the standard white tile with a ¾ vanity and one sink, but it had a spa tub (not a whirlpool). The showerhead was a little bit low. I am petite, and it worked fine for me, but my husband had to duck down to wash his hair. We had no problems with water temperature or pressure during our stay.
Our room was complete with ironing supplies, a combination safe, standard closet room, a TV in a large armoire, a small vanity and desk with chair, a wall liquor dispenser (mostly Jamaican Rum – YUM), and a fully stocked mini-bar. This is one of the best things about an all-inclusive. You can take that $5.00 Hershey bar and $10.00 beer out of the fridge, and you really don’t have to pay for it when you check out! Each day our fridge was re-stocked with whatever we had taken out and anything that we requested, and each night we received turn-down service.
Although the maids we encountered at Sandals RC did a great job cleaning our room, it was somewhat annoying that they came at completely different hours of the day each day. You would think that with most couples visiting for extended periods of time, the cleaning schedules could remain consistent for at least a week at a time. It’s hard to determine when to stay out of your room in order to avoid being skipped for cleaning that day. Although we couldn’t complain too much, because the few times we were inconvenienced, we just treated ourselves to some more time of lounging by the pool.
Each morning, we had breakfast delivered to our room. This consisted of a huge tray with croissants, cereal, and FRESH fruit to die for, delivered at the time of our choosing. We would make our selections anytime prior to 1:00am, leave the slip on our door, and receive service within our chosen ½ hour time frame the next morning. This is something we definitely missed the first day back at home!
Out and about at Sandals RC
Staying true to their grand entrance theme, Sandals RC really outdoes itself in the manicuring of its grounds. Pathways are abundant from building to building, and each is adourned with lush plants or beautiful flower beds. There is plenty of shade in the way of tropical trees overhead. Random activities are scattered throughout the grounds: there were shuffleboards under a veranda not far from our room and a life-sized chess board in the middle of one lawn.
The beaches at Sandals RC are small, and some might be disappointed by that. We visited Sandals at Montego Bay one day, and our beaches were about 1/3 of their size. But RC also caters to a smaller guest population, and we never had a problem with overcrowding. Even in peak tanning time, we managed to find open loungers and available umbrella huts. Sandals RC has plenty of opportunity to cool off, because there are 3 regular (hotel-sized) pools and 2 swim-up bars in the main resort. We stayed primarily in the east pool area, right outside of our room, because it was quiet, accessible, and had both a pool and a whirlpool. The main pool was a louder atmosphere, with regular games of volleyball, lots of blasting reggae music, opportunities for water aerobics, and even shows put on by the staff.
Sandals RC has its own offshore island, which is accessible by dragon boat. The island, called Sandals Cay, is host to its own “private” beach area, a pool with a swim-up bar, and the Royal Thai Restaurant. Unfortunately, this offshore “resort within a resort” isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. We visited and stayed a few hours, but you can walk the entire circular island in less than 5 minutes, the beach area is really mostly about 3 feet of shoreline, the vegetation has kind of overgrown the grounds, and it’s just not all that exotic. I can’t say enough for the Royal Thai Restaurant, however, where we had a reservation and enjoyed a delightfully exotic 5 course Thai meal spiced to perfection.
Sandals RC also has 3 other restaurants, all in the main resort area and none of which require a reservation: there’s the Pavilion, which has great Jamaican meals (mostly jerk options); the Courtyard with its breakfast or dinner buffets; and the Regency, which boasts several appetizing seafood platters. Outside of the main pool area, there is the beach grill, which offers a fast-food type selection of burgers, hot dogs, and ice cream that I don’t recommend. But you can get drinks there (or at any pool bar), which is convenient. Although we didn’t find anything particularly bad about any of these resetaurants, they weren’t anything more special than you’d find at another resort. The food was good, we always left full, and service was great, but on our honeymoon, we loved the intimacy of our in-room breakfasts in bed and the private candlelit dinner we had set up by the staff on a gazebo overlooking the ocean more than anything else (highly recommended!).
During the days at Sandals RC, most everyone is either dressed in swimwear or casual clothing. But, at night, there is an “elegant” dress code and most women wear dresses or skirts and men sport shirt and tie or suit coats. It made us feel a little glamorous to get all dolled up in the evenings to go out to dinner.
You mean you want to leave the room on your honeymoon?
We couldn’t very well go to Sandals RC and completely avoid all the mainstream activities and entertainment they have to offer. You could honestly fill up your entire week just moving from one thing to the next. All of the activities at the resort are free. In the water, you can use their kayaks, sailboats, canoes, or you can sign up to go snorkeling, scuba-diving or windsurfing. If you prefer dry land, sign up for a game of beach volleyball with other guests, or hit the tennis courts, ping-pong tables, or shuffleboards. You could also sign up for spa services (extra cost) or work out in the non-air-conditioned fitness center (just what a Minnesotan wants!) Each day has a schedule of activities, and you can join in or watch any one of them. We didn’t participate in many of the organized events, but did see board game tournaments, pool volleyball tournaments, couples’ gameshow night, and so on. At night, the Sandals RC stage is lit up with Jamaican performers for easy listening or dancing.
The resort will also help you to book excursions off-site, but these are NOT included in the price. Everything mentioned above was included in our booking fee. The excursions that we saw ranged from $30/person all the way up to $240/person! You could do a shopping trip, go horseback riding, river rafting, or ocean fishing. We did do a half-day excursion to Dunn’s River Falls, which I would highly recommend to others staying in Jamaica; for that, we shelled out $68 each.
The last night that we were there, we had a great time at the beachfront all-resort buffet. There was a huge array of food hailing from the resort’s restaurants, and we got to watch many performers, including a very talented fire dancer. It was a fun and memorable way to end our stay at RC.
The best things at Sandals RC
(1) The service: Everywhere we went, we were greeted with a friendly smile and a “hello, how are you?” from a resort employee. They inform you not to tip employees, because tips are included in the cost of your stay, but we found ourselves wanting to do so often, because we so appreciated all the employees there.
(2) The activities: You can’t beat not having to count your pennies at the end of the day and wonder if you’ll have enough left to do everything you want. At Sandals RC we were never bored, unless we wanted to be! We went snorkeling twice, scuba-diving once, ate, played several rounds of shuffleboard and volleyball, swam, ate, watched piano and reggae performers, got a couples’ massage, and then ate again. Did I mention we ate?
(3) The atmosphere: If you like more of a quaint and quiet vacation resort, Sandals RC will deliver. Unlike the more mainstream Sandals Montego Bay, RC is small, laid-back, and definitely not crowded. The rooms are comfortable, and there is plenty of space for all guests to enjoy the beach and the pool areas.
And the worst…
(1) The offshore island disappoints: As stated previously, the offshore island seemed so exciting when we first booked our room. We were disappointed to find it was about the size of our room.
(2) Stray cats and people: Each morning when we would begin our day at the beach, we would have to shoo these sad-looking stray cats off the lounge chairs. I love cats (have 2 of my own), but I didn’t feel particularly safe around these ones. Also, the beach swimming areas are roped off, and beyond those ropes are “international sea waters.” Basically, this means that Jamaican surfboard vendors may float along the roped area and shout to guests in an effort to get them to buy a bracelet…or some drugs. They are hard to get rid of, as well, and the resort staff’s hands are essentially tied.
Final Thoughts
I will definitely be back to Sandals RC at some point (hopefully soon!), and would hope to try other Sandals resorts as well. The experience was so relaxing, and after a stressful planning period leading up to a wedding, it was exactly what we needed. You can’t beat not having to worry about carrying money anywhere while on vacation and still being able to enjoy a variety of activities, drinks, food, and fun!
Special thanks to SurgRN911 for adding this resort to the database for me!
Recommended:
Yes
|
|
|
|
Epinions.com ID:
mjtriplett
|
 - Top 500 |
|
Member: Mel
Location: Minnesota
Reviews written: 291
Trusted by: 94 members
About Me:
On leave...
|
|
|
- Add to My Yahoo!: 
- Add to Google Homepage: 
© 1999-2009 Shopping.com, Inc.