JMC

...was that it was with JMC - I'd never travelled with them before and I had heard so many bad things. Well, I discussed it with Mum and she reckoned at that price we should go for it - we did. Prior to booking I used the hotel search facility from Lunn Poly's website (lunnpoly.co.uk I think) to check out the hotel and it looked quite nice. As go-now does not have on line booking as yet, I had to ring up on the Monday morning, was I too late? Not at ...
...the Island, the resort and JMC in general. He also helped us check in when we reached our hotel as it was fairly late and our hotel Reps were off duty for the evening.

Our hotel was the Delfin Verde Marina, which is a JMC exclusive hotel. Our room was very clean, well equipped and very comfortable. We had a nice large bathroom with Bath, Shower, Basin, Toilet and Bidet - and lots of towels. There was a large balcony with clothes drying ... more

I realise that I am in the minority here on Ciao but I actually had an excellent holiday with JMC! I thought I’d share my experience with you in order to even up the score a little....

It all started one Saturday in May. My Mum asked if I fancied going away for a week (well, I'll have to think about that Mum.... NOT!), only snag was that it would have to be the following week. Better get busy on the net I thought. So after trawling through a lot of rubbish sites she found on teletext I came across go-now.com. I won't go into detail as this isn't an opinion on go-now but basically I found a holiday leaving on the Tuesday, to Alcudia, Majorca on All Inclusive, seven days for £169, yes £169! My only reservation was that it was with JMC - I'd never travelled with them before and I had heard so many bad things. Well, I discussed it with Mum and she reckoned at that price we should go for it - we did. Prior to booking I used the hotel search facility from Lunn Poly's website (lunnpoly.co.uk I think) to check out the hotel and it looked quite nice. As go-now does not have on line booking as yet, I had to ring up on the Monday morning, was I too late? Not at all. Booking was quick and easy and the only extra cost on top of the £169 was travel insurance, which is to be expected. This was not forced upon us by go-now; in fact I asked them first! Anyway, enough of go-now.

The very next day we were at the airport, it was a local departure too, very convenient. I should mention that there was one slight drawback with the booking, probably due to it being so last minute - we did not return to the same airport, but another local one. I must point out that this was not a mistake on JMC's part - we were informed before the booking process began and accepted it. Anyway, back to the airport. I was slightly apprehensive that we would not be on the list having booked only the day before but no such difficulties. We picked up our tickets at the desk and checked in with no problems at all, JMC's airport staff were very helpful and friendly. There was no delay at all and in no time we were settling into our seats on the plane. I was worried that we would not be able to sit together having booked so late but again, no problems - we even got a window seat! The cabin crew were again, very helpful and friendly. The plane was just as good as other tour operator planes (such as Britannia), if not a bit cleaner. The food was satisfactory - you can never say it is excellent! You did have to pay for your drinks from the bar trolley but this was a cheap holiday flight, not BA, and the prices were OK - £2.00 for a small bottle of wine, cheaper than some of the bars I go in! The flight went very smoothly and before we knew it we were at Palma airport.

We were met by a bunch of friendly and approachable Reps. Luckily everyone on our coach was fairly quick through baggage so we were soon on our way to resort. During the journey, the Rep travelling with us (we didn't get that with Thomson) gave us loads of info about the Island, the resort and JMC in general. He also helped us check in when we reached our hotel as it was fairly late and our hotel Reps were off duty for the evening.

Our hotel was the Delfin Verde Marina, which is a JMC exclusive hotel. Our room was very clean, well equipped and very comfortable. We had a nice large bathroom with Bath, Shower, Basin, Toilet and Bidet - and lots of towels. There was a large balcony with clothes drying facilities and a table and chairs. We did not overlook the pool but I didn't really expect to with such a late booking. It was much quieter too! In the room was all the info we needed on how the hotel operated - mealtimes, entertainment etc.

As we arrived just in time for dinner we thought we would check out the dining room. Although it was coming to the end of dinner there was still the full choice of dishes available. All meals were buffet style as is usual for this type of holiday. The choice was excellent - much better than I have previously experienced. For breakfast there was the usual hot and cold options, lots of fruit, cold meats and cheeses and plenty of drinks options. Lunch and dinner were very similar, having soups, salads, hot dishes, fruits and deserts on offer. There was always something for everyone with at least one choice from red meat, poultry, vegetarian, pasta, healthy choice etc. We even had a Carvery one evening with roast lamb, beef and pork. The times were very good too. From breakfast time ‘til 9.30pm you could eat in the restaurant. Breakfast was 8.00am - 10.00am, Lunch 12 - 3.00pm, Dinner 6.30pm - 9.30pm with snacks available all day from 10.30am to 6.30pm. The bar was open from 10am to midnight every day and ice cream/lollies were available for children throughout bar opening. The drinks were all locally produced and unbranded but to be honest you couldn't tell the difference.

I know this is backtracking a bit but the morning after our arrival we had our welcome meeting. This was very informative and we were all given a guidebook to the island. The meeting was fun and friendly with lots of opportunity to get involved if you wished. Four people even walked out with a bottle of bubbly just for sitting in the right seat! As usual we were told about all the trips and the reps came round to talk to us individually afterwards. There was no hard sell and you didn't feel obliged to go on them. We decided to go on a trip to the Inca Market and Palma (more about that later) and decided to think about another.

The entertainment program was excellent. There were lots of games and activities throughout the day such as tennis, water polo, line dancing etc. Every evening there was a show of some sort - from outside entertainers and the hotel entertainment staff equally. All were of a very good standard. We were treated to Kenyan acrobats, Saturday Night Fever and a Broadway Medley to name a few. This always followed the usual bingo and prize games. The hotel had a large pool with a separate area for small children. There were plenty of sun loungers around the pool and not once did we have difficulty finding a free one - at any time of the day.

I can't really comment thoroughly on the children's clubs as we didn't take a child but from the outside it seemed excellent. There was three clubs for different age groups and each child was given a goody bag on the first morning containing T-shirts, hats, playthings etc. There was a children’s disco every evening and games throughout the day. Each day the winners of the day’s activities were presented with medals and certificates (this happened wit the adults too).

The trip we went on was excellent. As I said earlier we chose to visit Inca Market and Palma. We had the services of a very friendly English speaking guide who gave as much info as we could ever need. There was plenty of time to have a good look at the bargains on offer at Inca before we continued to Palma. Once there we had a lot of free time for shopping and lunch. We also were given a very informative walking tour of the city of Palma.

Unfortunately after a few days I became ill - a stomach flu, nothing to do with the Hotel, JMC or the food - just unfortunate. This is where I cannot praise the Reps enough. They arranged for the doctor to visit. When she arrived, a JMC medical rep accompanied her. We were given a prescription and immediately given the necessary forms to reclaim expenses on our return to the UK. We were also given help obtaining the prescription. We had in the meantime booked another excursion - a cruise, which we were unable to take. The rep immediately offered a refund as were unable to take it and we received our refund very promptly.

When the time came for our departure we were not kept waiting - our coach arrived when it was scheduled to arrive. We had a good journey back to the airport - again accompanied by a Rep, who kept us all entertained to say the least. Once at the airport, again no problems with check in and luckily no delays. Our flight again went smoothly and we received the same excellent service as on our outbound flight. Soon, sadly we were landing and our great holiday was over.....

Although it didn't apply to us I think I should add that JMC seemed to cater well for disabled holiday makers. Wheelchair usere and the elderly were given priority for boarding and seating and lots of help was available from friendly staff. Complimentary wheelchairs were also on offer. The hotel had ample facilities also with a ramp entrance and lifts to all floors. In the bar area and the restaurant there was plenty of space between seating to allow passage for wheelchairs.

In summary, we were lucky enough to find such a bargain for an All Inclusive holiday. Asking around we found that it was an excellent bargain - a family of four had paid over £2000! We had an excellent experience with JMC. It may seem that a lot of my opinion relates to the hotel but as I said earlier, it is used exclusively by JMC and a lot of holiday complaints do relate to accommodation.

I hope I haven't bored you all to death with this (very) long account and for those of you still reading I hope this has been of some help. I found holidaying with JMC to be a friendly and all round enjoyable experience, especially good for family travel. I realise that we were probably very lucky to experience no problems at all and that not everyone will find such a good deal, but bear this in mind - Don't dismiss JMC out of hand next time as I nearly did - you may regret it!

 

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