Anybody who has been lucky enough to go to Jamaica will be familiar with this saying, it seems to be the Jamaicans national catch phrase, and you know what? It’s usually true, nothing was too much trouble for the majority of Jamaicans we met when we stayed at the Sunset Beach Resort in Montego Bay. I say the majority because there was one or two incidents that went against this which I will tell you about later on in the review.
But anyway, lets take a step back, my girlfriend and I had just had a lucky break money wise and were looking to treat ourselves to somewhere exotic and it came down to a toss up between Jamaica and The Dominican. Now I am naturally tight and despite for once not having to worry too much about the cost I was still looking for a bargain, the holiday in Jamaica was a couple of hundred pound cheaper so it won the day.
So the weeks flew by with me driving everyone nuts at work humming Montego Bay, after what seemed an age we were on the plane and a 10 hour flight followed, as we started to approach the airport we could actually see our hotel out on a point and it looked absolutely breathtaking.
Getting off the plane was an experience in itself as well as we were suddenly confronted by the friendliest set of people I have yet to meet, a dozen women in traditional outfits lined the corridors and the passport area singing reggae songs … amazing !
Checkout was very quick and then we ran into the next Jamaican “custom”, drugs, we got accosted twice before we had even boarded the transfer bus, once by the guy who carried our cases and the second by a guy hanging around the bus area. After the pleasantness of the arrival area this came as a bit of a nasty turnaround and I began to have my doubts about our choice of destination, I can usually handle your usual type of touts in resorts but when its drugs I start to get a bit nervous.
We then drove through areas of the worst squalor I have ever seen (and I’ve been in the slum areas of Hong Kong !) and I admit to having serious reservations about the holiday, we then came to the Sunset Beach hotel and these doubts were accentuated when we were greeted by a large fence and security guards. Just inside these gates there were dozens of armed police wandering around and I was all for turning back.
Once inside the hotel though these doubts instantly disappeared as it became obvious that the reason for this security was not only the luxury within the complex but also the fact that the President of Jamaica was visiting for the day hence the heightened security. We did actually see him in the foyer as we were going in but to be perfectly honest I would not have known him from Adam anyway, in fact I still couldn’t even tell you his name.
So feeling a bit more comfortable with the goings on I went to check in, despite the fact that there was about 60 odd people doing the same thing the service was very very quick and efficient, in fact as I mentioned earlier nothing was too much trouble.
An example of this was the fact that when I asked the girl if it was possible for a sea view she changed my already allocated room for another one with the view I wanted, this wasn’t even done grudgingly, she was practically apologetic for not having put me in one without me asking.
When we got to our room we could not have been happier, it was everything the brochure had said it would be. Better was to follow as we opened the doors onto the balcony, we were on the 6th floor and we had the most amazing view out over the Caribbean.
Things got even better after that as we walked around the complex, I’ll go into a bit more detail later in the review about the various parts of it but from a general point of view you could not have wished for anything better. The sea was literally about 10 yards from the hotel and the beach was a real golden yellow colour, just as it looks in the brochures.
An interesting point about the beach was the fact that although it went all around the complex (about 500 – 600 yards) it wasn’t actually very wide, at most I would say it was 10 – 15 feet. This meant that there wasn’t many sun beds to be had which I thought might have been a problem, as it happens
it wasn’t and this was down to the fact that most people seemed to prefer being around the pools for some reason.
I don’t want to generalise about why the above might have been the case but it did appear that the majority of people around the pools were Americans (and there were loads of them) but the people on the beach were mostly British, why this was I haven’t a clue. Suffice to say we always got the sun beds we wanted so I don’t care what the reason was !!
I should probably mention here that the complex is secured at all of its perimeters by high fences, although this level of security could be explained by the fact that the resort is fully inclusive I did have the feeling that the main reason was a little more sinister.
I few people asked this question at the welcome meeting and my suspicions were confirmed, the rep told us that there was a very high level of crime in the area and “rich” tourists were obviously targets. I suppose most resorts (foreign and British) have this sort of problem, however, in Jamaica it did appear to be slightly worse. This was brought home to us even more as the rep went on to give us very strict instructions about what we should/shouldn’t do if we decided to leave the complex.
Although she didn’t go as far as saying don’t go out by yourself she did stress that it was recommended to take an official taxi who would take us where ever we wanted to go and more importantly, would wait for us as well. I thought this was perhaps a way of pushing the hotels preferred taxi firms but it turned out they were cheaper (and safer) than getting a one outside the complex.
She then went on to tell us about the organised trips available (don’t they all) and we decided to book some, we plumped for a raft trip down a river, a visit to a “fluorescent” lake and a snorkelling cruise. I could probably spend another 3 or 4 hours writing about these trips themselves but as this review is already turning into a bit of a marathon I’ll resist the temptation and just give you a taster.
I would definitely recommend each and every one we went on, the raft trip is a slow meandering trip down a river with your own 2 seater raft and personal rafter, this was topped off at the end by a demonstration on rum making along with numerous free samples ….. lovely !!!.
The fluorescent lake is a night time trip over a lake inhabited by a fluorescent organism that when disturbed by movement glows brightly, if you swim through it as a few of did you come out of the water glowing yourself, truly amazing.
Finally the snorkel trip was on a boat crewed by the most energetic Jamaicans I met, they danced from the first minute through to the very end, and they made sure you did too by plying you with rum !! The snorkelling wasn’t bad either.
I’ll just quickly talk about the town itself (Montego Bay) and then go on to the complex which is I suppose what the review is about, however, I think it is important that people have an idea of what is in the vicinity as not everybody wants to stop in one place for the whole holiday.
As it turned out we only went into the town on the one day and I was not impressed, the taxi driver took us to the “busy” bit where all the tourists go (we were advised not to go elsewhere) and I have never ever been pestered so much. You could not walk 10 foot without someone asking you for money, trying to sell you drugs, trying to sell you fruit, sweets, vegetables, sunglasses etc, trying to drag you into their shop and basically hassling you all the time.
I was “lucky” in as much that a local shop keeper offered to walk me round the various shops, I say lucky because although I realised he would expect me to go into his shop afterwards at least we had a bit of protection from some pretty dubious characters.
This did prove very useful as a couple of times we were approached by quite nasty looking beggars who turned nasty when we didn’t give them anything, they were speaking Jamaican but it was obvious they were threatening us, luckily our “guide” warned them off and they left. Talking to him afterwards he told us that a lot of the beggars were high on drugs and could easily turn violent. I do seriously think we would have been in a bit of trouble if we had been by ourselves.
Anyway, sure enough he did guide us into a shop at the end of our walk but it turned out it wasn’t his after all, he just worked as an unofficial tout for the shop. As I didn’t want anything in there anyway I just slipped him a couple of notes and left and we hurried back to our taxi.
The above was the only real disappointment of the holiday as I usually enjoy getting out and about in whatever resort I’m in and getting a taste of the local way of life, however, having had a small taste of this way of life I had no intention of going back for more !!
So the complex itself, if I tell you this was the first time I have ever thought a brochure undersold a resort you might get an idea of how good it is. Everything the brochure said it was it was – AND MORE.
As I said earlier I could write for hours about practically every aspect of this holiday so I’m going to have to make a big effort to only touch on each area and hope you get the picture, if I do seem to gloss over anything please say so in the comments section and I promise I’ll update it accordingly.
So here we go;
Swimming pools.
There are 3 pools on the complex, 2 are joined together by a “swim-up” bar, we did try this a couple of times and it was good fun being able to sit in the pool drinking at the bar, however, while we were there a party of rather large and VERY loud American women seemed to think that the seats at this bar were there’s for the duration so opportunities to use it were limited. They would sit at this bar from about 10 in the morning till 6 – 7 o’clock at night, only leaving it for dinner !!
As I said earlier though the beach was more than adequate for me so I didn’t really care, I did though think it was a bit inconsiderate of them to hog these seats from the other people around the pool but there you go.
The pools themselves were very clean (a guy was out every morning cleaning it) and quite well sized, they were definitely big enough for anybody who likes a good swim or for just generally messing around in.
There was a small Jacuzzi next to one of the main pools, these though don’t particularly do anything for me so we didn’t bother trying it, it was a good size though with I would say space for 15 or so people and after all a Jacuzzi is a Jacuzzi no matter what part of the world your in isn’t it?.
Sauna.
Yeah, there was a sauna. We didn’t use it, we were in the Caribbean, who needs a sauna in the Caribbean!!!
Bars.
There were 5 bars dotted around the complex which were very well stocked with just about any drink you could want, there was also speciality cocktails which the staff took great pride in mixing for you. I must admit on the first couple of days I pigged out on these cocktails because they were beautiful !!
In addition to the above there are numerous soft drinks dispenser machines dotted around the complex which are self-service, these were always full and more importantly … cold !!
The bars themselves were not (with the exception of one) bars as we Brits know them, i.e, inside a pub. They were simply long bars either in a large lounge area or on the beachfront.
The one exception to this was where most of the Brits congregated on the night, this was probably because it was more of a traditional bar with a pool table and TV in it.
The atmosphere though was nothing like what you would expect in a holiday resort though, it was very quiet and relaxed. This was not, I would suggest, a place for a lads only (or lasses) all action boozy holiday.
Food.
There is a marvellous choice of food, the main area was a self service restaurant where you could eat at set times - breakfast, dinner and evening meal. However, there is a beach bar which seemed to be open at all hours. The food here was limited to fried stuff such as chicken, beef-burgers, hot-dogs and the like.
They also have a BIG barbeque on the beach a couple of times a week, these have to be experienced to be believed as hundreds of people turn up for them.
A nice touch about the above is the fact that the owner of the complex wanders around introducing himself to guests. This is not done in any sort of pompous way, he really did enjoy meeting everybody and you would often see him spend 15 – 20 minutes with one couple chatting about just about anything. He spent 10 minutes with us and was more than willing to answer questions about his complex that he must have heard a hundred times before.
Oops, I’ve digressed again, back to the food.
There are 2 other restaurants on the complex, an Italian and a Chinese. Unfortunately though you are only supposed to use these once a week so that every one can have an opportunity. They don’t keep a list of who has or hasn’t used it though so it was possible to con them by saying you hadn’t already been. We actually had to wait ages to get our booking because of the fact that it was so popular and there were so many people in the complex so I only went once because I think its only fair other people get the chance.
As for the standard the Italian food was only average although the service was spot on (as it was in the whole complex) The Chinese food though was excellent and I must admit to being tempted to blag my way in again, my principles stood firm though.
Space.
Space might sound like a strange thing to talk about but I think it’s important when you’re away to feel as if you’ve got your own “space” if you want it. This complex had nearly 1200 people in it while we were there which sounds a lot, however, it actually felt quite empty which is a testament to the size and layout of the place as a whole. We very rarely felt crowded and when we did it was easy enough to wander off to a quieter area if we wanted.
Recreation.
Sitting around on a beach under a blazing Caribbean sun can, believe it or not, get a bit boring after a while so you need something to do. The complex caters for this with a number of sports facilities. There is for the more athletic people a fully fitted gym which I didn’t personally use, I had a good look round it though and it was quite up to date with everything you could need for a serious work out.
There were 2 table tennis tables which we used a lot with 4 full size tenniscourts nearby, these though did appear to be fully booked pretty early in the day and always seemed to be in use.
Along with these there was a basketball court (bear in mind a lot of Americans go here) and a small crazy golf course. This though was nothing special with no real obstacles as such so didn’t really appeal and once you had used it once you wouldn’t want to go round it again.
The equipment for these things was a little bit shoddy which considering the quality of the complex was a bit surprising but then again you aren’t really there for the sport are you, as a distraction it was adequate.
Oh yes, one last thing, there was a couple of volleyball courts set up on parts of the beach, I never saw anyone playing on them but they were there none the less.
Water sports.
No banana boats here I’m afraid, this is probably because everywhere you go there’s coral reefs, it didn’t matter how far out you went (it wasn’t deep) you could guarantee there would be patches just under the surface. I would hate to think I fell off a banana boat or such onto one of these because they are VERY sharp.
The most “exciting” thrill you can get therefore is windsurfers which you are only allowed to use in a cordoned off area of the beach and the canoes, which again although not restricted were very dodgy because you had to be on your guard all the time for the reefs.
What was brilliant was the snorkelling, I have always enjoyed doing this but my girlfriend could never be tempted, however, with the clear blue water and colourful coral I was finally able to coax her into the water and from then on couldn’t get her out.
The quantity and quality of the fish life has to be seen to be believed and we both ended up with seriously suntanned backs because of the amount of time we spent in the water just floating around awestruck.
If you bear in mind we were only in most cases a few yards off the beach you can understand how good the snorkelling trip I mentioned earlier on turned out to be as they took us a long way off shore and we really saw the coral reefs at their best.
Beaches.
I’ve mentioned the beach earlier on but there was one part I didn’t (my girlfriend wouldn’t let me) check out and that was the nudist area, this was at the far end of the complex and appeared to be quite deserted. Anyway, despite countless attempts to get her to go this bit was out of bounds so sorry, I cant tell you much about what was up there so you will just have to use your imagination.
Weddings
First off, we didn’t get married and didn’t even see one but we did visit the area where they took part, this was in a lovely gardened area of the complex right next to the beach where a bandstand type pedestal had been built. It was a very idyllic setting and I can see what the attraction is for this type of ceremony.
Entertainment.
As most of the guests are “stuck” in the complex each night there is always something going on entertainment wise, the main attraction was always on a big stage set up on the beach and reggae bands (naturally enough in Jamaica) were usually the highlight.
There was however one night an Elvis impersonator who went down well with the Americans, I must admit I have seen better though but he was OK none the less.
In addition to the main “attraction” there was a street band in another area of the complex who played requests from the audience, if you fancied something a bit quieter there was in the early part of the evening a piano player in the large lounge area who again would play requests if asked.
There is a disco on the complex which we did not visit, the people we talked to though said we weren’t missing much as it was pretty quiet and not exactly an all action nightclub …. I reiterate my point about lads only/lasses only holiday.
Shops.
For those who do not want to venture out of the complex there are several small shops on the complex selling various bits and pieces that you would usually find in resort shops, swimming gear, sun tan lotion, souvenirs, books etc.
There was also an arrangement with the local traders who set up a craft market twice a week on the complex, this gave people the opportunity to buy a lot of quality home made ornaments and the like.
As part of the arrangement the traders weren’t allowed to harass people as they did in the town but simply had to wait until you asked before they could give you the spiel. This meant you felt really at ease as you browsed rather than on your guard when you were out and about. This liberty though didn’t extend to the prices as you still had to haggle vigorously to get the prices down.
Cleanliness
The general cleanliness of the complex could not be faulted with the rooms being cleaned every day, this wasn’t just the case with the rooms as every area seemed to be mopped or polished on a regular basis. The lifts for example appeared to permanently have cleaning staff in them whenever you went in them.
This even extended to the beach which was cleaned and combed every morning, I am not exaggerating when I say combed, this guy used to spend ages going round picking up bits of drift wood and raking the seaweed into neat piles before carting them off to the waste disposal area. He took great pride in then brushing the sand flat, I actually felt quite guilty walking on it afterwards.
Phhheeeew, I think I’ve finished. I’m sorry this has turned into such a long review but I really could have easily doubled or even trebled this as there is so much to tell you about this excellent resort and its friendly people, suffice to say I would strongly recommend Sunset Beach to anybody who hasn’t been to Jamaica before.
I wouldn’t though recommend this particular resort to anybody looking for an action packed holiday, Ibiza it certainly isn’t !!
If though you are wanting a holiday where you can simply laze about and do stuff at your own pace in idyllic surroundings I would suggest putting Sunset Beach high on your list.
Incidentally, as far as price goes we paid £750 each for a week, this might at first glance seem a lot, however it was fully inclusive and when you consider how much you would spend on food and drink on a normal holiday it puts it into perspective and you realise its not that bad at all.
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Wow! what a great op! I have just come back from honeymoon in Jamaica (Ochos Rios and Negril) and am in the middle of writing about them.... it is a fab place there is no doubt although it seems we fared a little better than you on the hassle front!
Claire
Bastien 16.04.2001 14:14
Very complete op! But I feel a little disappointed about Jamaica now :( All possible facilities cannot compensate the fact you apparently can't mix with the local population.
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Apr 14th, 2001
very helpful by (100%):
