Holiday Inn Sunspree Resort, Montego Bay

...We were staying at the Holiday Inn Sunspree resort in Montego Bay.


~~~ Arrival ~~~

Upon arriving to Montego Bay, the hotel has a little booth within the Airport which welcomes you and arranges for transport.

The lady behind the counter was very helpful and spent the necessary amount of time explaining the different vouchers we had been given – basically to and from the airport. The airport pick-up ...
...to be Sheraton, Marriott or Holiday Inn, the designer is the same guy methinks !


~~~ Eating and drinking ~~~

Well, first up is Brekkie, the main and most important part of the day.

Breakfast was served until 10.30 then followed until 11.30 by Continental Breakfast – normal one minus everything hot.

Breakfast consisted in a large buffet offering pancakes, French toast, scrambled eggs, ... more

As some of you know, I was one lucky devil this January, having had a welcome 10 days break in Jamaica.

We were staying at the Holiday Inn Sunspree resort in Montego Bay.

~~~ Arrival ~~~

Upon arriving to Montego Bay, the hotel has a little booth within the Airport which welcomes you and arranges for transport.

The lady behind the counter was very helpful and spent the necessary amount of time explaining the different vouchers we had been given – basically to and from the airport. The airport pick-up was complimentary which is always nice when you just arrive in a foreign country.

We did wait a fair bit in the bus, but hey, we were on vacation and Littl’Un did not really mind that much, having been fed some time earlier.
The bus was air-conditionned which was needed.

The entrance of the hotel had a couple of guards. With all the stories we had heard about Jamaica – which I discarded as rubbish – it made one person feeling a bit more at ease.

Once there, we made our way to the checking desk and 10 mins later, we were wrist-banded and booked into room 7321. We were given the choice between 2 double or 1 King and were given a few vouchers – 2 free meals for 2, 2 free cocktails – and since I was member of their loyalty scheme, we were given free breakfast for the duration of the stay and free glass-bottom boat rides and snorkling trips – more about this later.. in the entertainment section.

~~~ The hotel ~~~

The hotel was rather spartiate, a bit ‘Communist block’ in fact. It was made of 5 identical 4 stories high buildings, all their side to facing the sea.

All rooms I could see had a balcony and a fair majority had sea-view.

Every building was separated from the next one by a 20 odd meters garden – no I did not measure it – which was impeccable with grass, banana, coconut trees and local plants.
The beach or beaches, since the hotel spanned about 500 meters along the sea front, looked man-made for a fair number of them. All white sand with complimentary lounge chairs, There were a few huge parasols but the shade was mainly provided by coconut trees. Which is paramount when you have a Littl’Un.

There were 4 restaurants on the complex – more about that in the eating section.

The hotels boasted a lagoon shaped swimming pool, lighted tennis courts – 4 – a game room, gym, pedalos, kayaks, parasail, a glass bottom boat and a PADI trained divers.

~~~ Our Room ~~~

Before getting there, we walked with a bell boy carrying our luggage we were on the far side of the hotel but did not mind the little walk there. We arrived early evening and were treated to a full concerto of tree Frogs – I hear some of you sniggering in the back, Frog Concerto for froggy !! – which sounds like a rusty wheel but a rather nice rusty wheel.

Room 7321 was located in Building 7 – hence the 7 as the first digit of the room’s number – on the 3rd floor – hence the 3 as the second digit of the room’s number. The room opened with one of those card-key thingie. The room was quite spacious, with a King size bed, as requested, a settie, table and chairs, smallish bathroom, cable telly and a balcony with a couple of garden chair. We had sea view, though just on the right, left was a lovely view of the entrance gate and petrol station.

It was also air-conditionned and we were able to temper with the settings.

The room itself was very clean and though the bathroom could have done with a bit of touch-up, it was what I expected. Just about the same than any other rooms from these chains of hotels were they to be Sheraton, Marriott or Holiday Inn, the designer is the same guy methinks !

~~~ Eating and drinking ~~~

Well, first up is Brekkie, the main and most important part of the day.

Breakfast was served until 10.30 then followed until 11.30 by Continental Breakfast – normal one minus everything hot.

Breakfast consisted in a large buffet offering pancakes, French toast, scrambled eggs, 2 local hot dish – different every day – sausages, bacon, fresh fruits, toast and bagel, cakes and pastries, cereal, yoghurt.
You could also have a fresh omelette or eggs ‘anyway you may wish’ made up for you while you wait.

You obviously had the usual suspects in terms of drinks, coffee, tea and a fair choice of fruit juices.

No complaints in this department. The service was always impeccable, the food fresh and tasty.

Since brekkie took place between 10ish and 11ish, you can see that Lunch was just about a botched affair.
We were not in the All-Inclusive club so did not waste any food and did not snack at all time of the day. So I would not be able to comment on the food at lunch. However, the same restaurant which was opened for brekkie, was serving lunch from 12 until 2pm on a buffet basis. There were also a couple of huts by the beach offering Jerk products and more basic snacks – burgers, pizza….etc.

As for dinner, choice of 4 restaurant.
- Buffet service with fairly basic and unrefined food. Did not try so won’t comment.

- Sea food restaurant, by the beach. Menu boasted 2 seafood dishes – snapper and seafood kebab – and a few other main courses and desserts which did not mark me by their originality or typicality. For USD 20/person we had a starter – salad buffet – a main course and a dessert. On the night we went there, service was poor. Table wine was adequate.

- Jamaican restaurant, first floor of the main building. Menu was adequate, a few Jamaican dishes there – obvious you might say, and not that many I will respond. For USD 20/person you were treated to a starter 3 out of 6 typical Jamaican food, soup, choice of 2 one being the soup of the day. Main course, 4 out of 7 typical Jamaican food, Sadly, in 10 days there, we never saw Jerk Chicken on the menu, will have to wait for the next Notting Hill Carnival then, though plenty of Curried Goat and Jerk Pork. Finally a dessert buffet with a choice of 3 cakes. Table wine was adequate. Service impeccable and very friendly.

- Italian Restaurant : Obviously the ‘Captain’s Table’ always fully booked, must wear trousers – or pants as I was told **snigger, snigger, snigger ** - and food is a bit more refined. Menu was again adequate, nothing to write to Ciao about. But for USD 22/person, you had a starter, salad, soup, main course and dessert. Littl’Un had a bad night the day we got there, so you will excuse me if the evening is not very memorable for me. Table wine was adequate. Service was great until we left a tip to the waiter who obviously thought it was not enough. However seeing that it was fully booked EVERY NITE it must be quite good.

On the whole, the food was passable, good but nothing exceptional. This was a bit of a disappointment for us who are always looking to taste the local cuisine. The drink list was fairly small, a couple of beers, usual suspects in terms of alcohol and a very small list of wine from USD 22 to USD 45.

We only consummed cocktails and wine at table, so here my comments..
The cocktail standard seemed to vary depending who was making them. I cannot blame then too much as avid cocktail maker myself, respect to see them making them on demand without looking at a book, however it remained that they never tasted the same.. or great sometime.

~~~ Entertainment ~~~

Well, you had a wide range of watersport available to you, at a different price obviously. Kayaks and pedalo were USD 10 for ½ hour and parasailing was USD 45. I did not see any prices for sailing and we did not try it, so I have to assume it was free. There were 2 glass-bottom boat and snorkling trips a day which were USD 10 or 12 each, depending at the time you took them.

Fishing trips were available daily at USD 40/person, though keen, both time and price did discouraged us. You could also go on a deep fishing trip for… USD 350 per boat which could housed 7 people.

To conclude the watersports, 5 stars PADI divers were onsite running diving courses, however, again, we did not try it, so I would not know how much it was. Though their PADI registration and the number of people who went would make me think that the courses were quite good.

Tennis was free as long as you did not attend the clinic or wanted to play with one of the coach after 5pm. Other Half, being keen tennis player, we did attempt to play, though Littl’Un had other plans. Balls were provided which was a bonus, and though you had to pick and choose good ones, there was a vast choice so I can’t imagine this being a problem. The courts and nets were in good condition.

We started with the glass-bottom boat, 1 hour trip just off the reef with a very competent guide. The scenery was beautiful, corals and multicoloured fish available for all to see. It would have been better for me if Littl’Un had been quiet along with a very annoying American teenager who thought it was in order to scream at the sight of every fish. Though with hindsight, Littl’Un occupying daddy’s arms might have saved me a long prison sentence for ‘Feeding fish with annoying human’.

Then on, it was snorkling every day. Same glass-bottom boat would take us just off the reef and leave you be for 45 mins. The boat pilot was always on hand to help out or answer any questions we might have. He also gave some good advice to beginners.

The hotel had very good evening entertainment. I will not try to list them all but in short, the entertainment was of 2 kind.
‘Come on stage and make a fool of yourself’ and ‘Real acts’. So during our stay we were treated to a spin off the TV game ‘Mr & Mrs’, karaoke, Mr Holiday Inn for the Make a Fool of Yourself kind. And Cabaret Night and a singer for the Real Acts kind.
Finally, every Tuesdays and Fridays, they organise a Jamaican night where they have local crafts on sale, a crab race with commentator – simply hilarious - , a band and, of course, Jamaican meal.

They also had entertainment by the pool of some sort during the day, however the Castagnas preferred a beach next to their room, so no comment on this.

There also was a club onsite which we did not go to. However during one of my many 'baby soothing walks around the building' I had a quick peek inside. It was rather small but then again I wondered how many people attended a day.

~~~ What else ~~~

The hotel had a series of small shops on site.
- Small newsagent with a small choice of toiletries, snacks & drinks.
- Clothes and craft shops with inflated prices.
- Liquor and luxury items shop. Did not visit.
- Hair and beauty parlour offering massage by the beach USD 1/minute.

There was also a nurse which we visited on Day 1 the Littl’Un having an infected eye.

A nursery was available for children from 6 month along with babysitting ‘for a nominal fee’ the hotel information stated.

There was a fairly heavy security guard presence onsite at all time, again, I felt it was a bit of a gimmick from the hotel since working with Jamaican I am told that crime isn’t as rife as we are told, but Other Half was glad of it.

At one of the far end beach were located a few huts displaying crafts for sale. Some of the women there were also offering hair breading, though we did not take on the offer so I have no idea how much it was.

~~~ Conclusion ~~~

Well, the place was as expected. Some part could have done with a fresh coat of pain, or a little bit of TLC, but in the whole, just like every Holiday Inn around I think.

Being a family resort, it was Children City and Heaven for kids. There were tons of entertainment made for them and I personally felt that the team could not do enough to keep these hordes of kids happy. The pool was also designed with a view to kids with a couple of ‘arms’ quite shallow whilst the main part was under 6ft deep.

The service could not be faulted and everybody was always taking the time to speak to you, especially if you have a baby with you.
Smiles and small welcoming/greetings words were always on the agenda.

All the beaches had a reef about 30 yards from the shore so that the swimming was quite limited. Especially since there was a lot of sea weed around and the underfoot was rather marshy. At low tide, you could pack your swimming thong, take your book and read, at high tide, the deeper you could go was mid-chest deep.

Would I go back there, well maybe, just maybe because I felt they were as unhelpful as possible when it came to us getting out of the hotel. It is easy to understand why given the number of tour desks around but made my life quite hard.

Finally, the cheaper room you get is around USD 140/room which is in my book a bit pricy for what you get.
 

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