Honeymoon ideas? Anyone ever tried Sandals? Which is the best Sandals?

[Mouse House Mama]

well I guess I am in the minority here but we HATED our Sandals honeymoon in St Lucia. This was 12 years ago.

We are not the type who wants to join activities and make "friends", we were looking for somewhere we could just be alone, just the two of us.

Our first night we were so dog dead tired that alls we wanted was to get something to eat and chill in our room. Well no room service! We had to walk all the way to the restaurant and when we asked if we could take it back to the room they looked at us like we were aliens and then had to scramlbe for styrofoam containers. They must of asked us a million times if we wanted to sit down and eat and we kept saying no.

I dont know I thought the point of a honeymoon was to spend some time in your room

Congrats on your engagement!

We had food problems too! We slept through dinner one night because we were in the sun all day and had a late lunch. All we could get was some nachos and maybe a burger if we were lucky. We had to go searching for that too. We were not happy about that especially since we had paid a fortune for the trip. The food was lacking.


ETA- When we first got to our room there were boogers all over the bathroom wall. That's right- BOOGERS!!!!

 

[Mkrop]

I couldn't agree more. While staying at Couples Negril (very secluded. NOT crowded at all) we were next to RIU Negril and Grand Lido. SPRING BREAK CENTRAL.

We love Couples Ocho Rios because it is set in a private cove (which means, absolutely no beach walkers walking by from other resorts) and it is never crowded.

I have heard things about Sandals (like they try to force you to play games and it's super crowded) but I have honestly never stayed there.

This is how we felt. We are not inot games and such and this is why we idd not like Sandals.

 

[ImagineerM]

What about a Disneymoon?

We're taking a 3 night Disney Cruise then spending a week at WDW!

 

[suzannen]

Jumby Bay in Antigua? [http://www.jumbybayresort.com/]

 

[Wishing on a star]

Two places I have dreamed of going...

One is here.... That incredibly white sand and blue water of Grace Bay, Providenciales, Turks and Caicos.. http://www.pointgrace.com/

And, this new Secrets resort is to be located on one of the nices beaches on Playa...
http://www.secretsresorts.com/maroma/index.html

 

[IHeartTink04]

Thanks to all of the Congrats and recommendations!

I am still trying to find something! I am still not sure about Sandals...I have heard a lot of bad reviews...Someone convince me! What are you all talking about when you say that they make you play games and stuff? They also seem like they may be in very tourist-like areas where we would run into a lot of Spring Break like atmosphere, is this true?

I really like the idea of Sandals Whitehouse but then I hear from all of my family members that Jamacia is too dangerous.. but I belive that we will be fine.


I really want an all inclusive, you guys have shown me some great ones that aren't Sandals or Couples... does anyone have any ideas?

Thanks for all the help... please keep it up! It very appreciated!

 

[Mkrop]

Thanks to all of the Congrats and recommendations!

I am still trying to find something! I am still not sure about Sandals...I have heard a lot of bad reviews...Someone convince me! What are you all talking about when you say that they make you play games and stuff? They also seem like they may be in very tourist-like areas where we would run into a lot of Spring Break like atmosphere, is this true?

I really like the idea of Sandals Whitehouse but then I hear from all of my family members that Jamacia is too dangerous.. but I belive that we will be fine.


I really want an all inclusive, you guys have shown me some great ones that aren't Sandals or Couples... does anyone have any ideas?

Thanks for all the help... please keep it up! It very appreciated!

If you go anywhere crowded(which was hard not to do) they have coordinators that try to pull you up from your seats and join a conga line or a limbo contest or some other hokey game, and after doing all the wedding planning and craziness, we wanted somewhere we could go and chill. We finally found some secluded spots. My friend and her husband LOVE that kind of stuff so they had a blast, they made all kinds of friends, wound up being MOH and best man to some couple they had just met etc. I should have guessed this wasnt our type of place when they gushed about all this, I just didnt think it would be ALL the time.

Oh and did I mentioned how I got felt up by the Lucian lady giving me my massage, and when I told her to stop massaging my chest she called me an uptight American

 

[wdwmom2]

We stayed at Sandals Negril way back in 1999 for our honeymoon. The property was very nice, food delicious (hey, I didn't have to cook!), rooms clean. I was never made or even asked to play games. Hedonism resort was close by and one time some people from there marched over onto our beach and mooned everyone! Guess they were bored They didn't have much garb on to begin with !!!! Really not a big deal.

It never felt crowded, no springbreakers. This was late April.

Did several excursions. Dunn's River falls, party boat to Rick's Cafe in Negril where DH jumped off a cliff with all the other crazies , also did a shopping trip into Negil where a Jamaican teenager, not a part of the tour, decided he wanted to walk with us and be our "tourguide". At the end he wanted "compensated". DH did give him $5.

We never felt unsafe, but I would never stray from the touristy areas. I think that would be asking for trouble. The Sandal's properties themselves are very well guarded, you will not be unsafe there.

I do think that Sandal's is expensive, but glad we did it. We had a great time. If I were to do another AI, I would probably do something a little more reasonably priced. I'm sure that there are other great AI's that are not as pricey.

Did you check out www.tripadvisor.com ? Great site with lots of reviews!!!

 

[monorailsilver]

We went to Hawaii for 2 weeks.

I had plans to go for our 5 year anniversary but that was 2 kids later & in 2005. Then we figured for our 10 year anniversary but that is in 2010 so that isn't going to happen since there are now 3 kids.

We loved Hawaii & I am so glad we went.

For us it is easier & cheaper to get to the Carribean so it made sense to go somewhere that we can't easily get to with kids. If I had the extra cash I would of went somewhere in the South Pacific.

My sister went to Fiji & the islands around it (I swear she was talking about the Poly every time she mentioned Moorea, Fiji...). The loved it but they also did a few dives as well as snorkeling.

So I say go some place you want to go & some place you don't expect to get back to easily once you have kids that is if you plan on having kids.

 

[CharityLynn]

We honeymooned in DisneyWorld..its this great place in FLorida..its not just for kids, really...

 

[ckret01]

i have stayed at the Sandals in bahamas and other all inclusive resorts in mexico and punta cana (the dominican republic) and they all have people who try to get games and activities together. If you are laying on the beach they will ask you if you want to play whatever game they are playing...if you say no they leave you alone. We did a few games which was fun but other times I just wanted to lay out on the beach and not be bothered. I think all inclusive places are the way to go and wouldn't go to an island without staying in one. That is my personal preference. I also try to look at the resort layout and pick one that has a nice beach and a nice pool. When I stayed in mexico the pool was very small and many people would crowd around it but when I stayed in the dominican republic their pool was large and didn;t feel overly crowded. I also like the resorts that have a lot of chairs on the beach or those little hut looking things (palapalas I think is how you spell it). They come in very handy if you are on the beach all day and want some shade.

Check out Trip Advisors for recommendations on resorts...you can read other peoples reviews and see their personal photos. I like to do that because soemtimes resort brochures aren't always what they seem when you get there, so when you view other peoples photos you can get a better feel of what the resort is actually like. Good luck!

 

[sunlover13]

We honeymooned at ERC (Excellence Riveria Cancun). It is in Riviera Maya, Mexico. I highly recommend it! We just went around Thankgiving in 2006 for our honeymoon. It is all inclusive and the food was fabulous. You had around 7 or 8 restaurants to choose from for dinner. No restrictions, no reservations required. You can eat whenever, whatever, and however many times you want. It had like 6 pools along with the beach, a swim-up bar, a spa, an in-room jacuzzi, and some have outdoor jacuzzi's. The resort was only 15 minutes from the Cancun airport which was nice. They had many excursions to choose from like visiting the ruins, shopping in Cancun, snorkeling, etc. They had beach volleyball, water volleyball, activities, etc if you wanted to participate in them. We did not and they didn't bug you. They had waitresses around the pools all day who would bring you drinks. They had nightly entertainment and a few bars open late at night. I have nothing but great things to say about this resort. Oh yeah, it is adults only too! Check out their website. It really is just as beautiful as the pictures on the website!

Congrats and good luck with your choice!

 

[LisaZee]

Another vote for Palace Resorts! DH and I stayed at the Aventura Palace in Riviera Maya on our honeymoon in September 2001 -we LOVED it. It was an 18 and over resort, so no kids running around while you're trying to relax. We went through Apple Vacations and they had a representative on site to help book trips. We went to Chichen Itza, Tulum and Xel Ha, and even to Sr. Frog's one night!

I found the pool to be beautiful and the rooms to be gorgeous (jacuzzi suites!), the patio even had a hammock for 2. They have several restaurants there, some American food mostly, others more authentic. And can you say "Happy Hour?" Nice. I never felt pushed to join anything, we mostly vegged out. I know the resort has been redone recently, and is now the Aventura "Spa" Palace, so they may have made some upgrades. I would definitely recommend it!

Oh, and Congrats!

 

[taylorl25]

Personally I think you pay for the name, more than anything else with sandals. Some great all inclusives I'd recommend are

Jalousie in St Lucia. We spent our honeymoon here, absolutely idillic location, with individual villas with private plunge pools. Not adults only but very few children there.

El Dorado Royale Mexico. The casita section is very quiet and private, no entertainment staff there at all.

As someone else mentioned any of the Excellence resorts are fantastic, and they've just opened a new one in cancun.

The Iberostar Grand in Mexico. We're heading there next year, adult only, total luxury and gets rave reviews.

Hope this helps a little.

 

[Wishing on a star]

Thanks to all of the Congrats and recommendations!

I am still trying to find something! I am still not sure about Sandals...I have heard a lot of bad reviews...Someone convince me! What are you all talking about when you say that they make you play games and stuff? They also seem like they may be in very tourist-like areas where we would run into a lot of Spring Break like atmosphere, is this true?

I really like the idea of Sandals Whitehouse but then I hear from all of my family members that Jamacia is too dangerous.. but I belive that we will be fine.


I really want an all inclusive, you guys have shown me some great ones that aren't Sandals or Couples... does anyone have any ideas?

Thanks for all the help... please keep it up! It very appreciated!

Okay, envision this... You want to relax by the pool and order a nice frozen libation to enjoy as you sit in that warm sunshine, relaxing with your new husband.... listening to the wonderful sounds of steel drum music...

It possibly go like this....
After your husband fights thru the three-deep line of people hanging at the bar for your drinks, he returns, and you get settled in...
Your bliss is interupted by the over-eager recreation director, or one of the other rec. employees..
Hey everybody... LIMBO CONTEST!!!!!!! BELLY FLOP CONTEST!!!! MEXICAN HAT DANCE!!!!!

No, of course you don't HAVE to participate. But, is the the atmosphere you want?

For a honeymoon, you may want to be sure you are getting a smaller, adults only, more romantic resort.

 

[alice45]

Thanks for the nice comments. Sandals Resorts are the most romantic places on earth. So whether you're getting married, renewing your vows, or going on your honeymoon, Sandals is the perfect place to do it. The question is which Sandals resort is the best? Montego Bay, Royal, Negril, Ocho Rios, Whitehouse, ect..... We like good tours, big pools, clean rooms, tropical gardens, sleeping late, and beautiful beaches. Good Luck.....

 

[cdepauli]

Honestly, there are all inclusive resorts that are miles better than Sandals resorts. At Sandals, they do not have top shelf liquor, not all rooms get room service, or 24 hour room service, and the food is so so.

Here is a great resource with a listing of all adult only all inclusives in the Caribbean/Mexico area:

http://www.cmtravelonline.com/adult_resort_listings.htm

My recommendation would be to chose WHERE you want to go first (Mexico, Antigua, St. Lucia, etc), then choose a few resorts that interest you, then go to tripadvisor and read the reviews and forums there.

My husband and I stayed at the Iberostar Grand Hotel Paraiso and Secrets Maroma Beach. We really liked both resorts and had a fabulous time. We preferred Iberostar's resort, but Secrets was on a top 10 beach in the world, and it was awesome. Luckily, if you stay at IBG, you can walk to Maroma in about a half hour.

Besides Iberostar and Secrets resorts, Palace, Excellence, and Couples resorts also get great reviews. At this time, Mexico and the Dominican Republic will give you the most bang for your buck. The only bad thing about the Dominican, though, is there is not a lot to do off of your resort property, whereas in Mexico, there are many excursions both historical and active.

The Iberostar Grand in Mexico. We're heading there next year, adult only, total luxury and gets rave reviews.

You will love IBG! If you can, I would definitely recommend an oceanfront room. It is one of the few resorts in the area that has a true ocean front, and it's so convenient to the beach. Enjoy!

 

[natenapril]

Wow this was an old thread bumped up

 

[cdepauli]

Wow, you're right! I didn't even notice the dates when I posted.

 

[IHeartTink04]

That is really weird because it is my thread I started almost two years ago! I was wondering why I was getting updates for it!!

It is almost like someone from Sandals came in and put their little two cents in on it!