Jamaica Me Want to Go Back

[Grumpy's Wife]

The resort looks really pretty.

 

[jenseib]

Joining in here. What a great trip report so far!

Thanks for joining in.

How amazing to fly over castaway cay, we have been there 3 times, love that island. Yes it looks so big, even from the air.

It was so neat to see. I have been there 5 times...with number 6 on it's way! wooohooo!

Your sunset pictures from the plane were fantastic, may I ask what camera you used ? (Im in the market fur a new one)

I used several different on this trip. I would have to go dig up my files...but I used for the sunrise in the plane I think it was mainly my iphone...for sunset at the resort I think I mainly used my Olympus Tough. Those are waterproof and a nice little point and shoot. They have several models and are updating them several times a year. Mine is a few years old now. I also had my Canon 50D with me.

Those rooms right by the pool look great.

They are cool and being the lazy swimmer I am...they would be perfect for me.

And I'm going to be honest, but I just don't get the outdoor tub. Maybe I'm just not their target market? Honestly, I don't want one myself, nor do I want my neighbors to have one!

I totally agree....and yes..I think even more so about the neighbors!!!!!!

The resort looks really pretty.

It really is a nice resort. I was very happy there.

 

[jenseib]

Somewhere along the line we met back up with Margaret and Lenora took us to see her room.


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I liked my shower better, but her room was still really nice.


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And then we went on to see Margaret’s room. Along the way…more pictures.


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We saw them setting up for an event.


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At first we thought it might be for us, but then it started looking more like some sort of a wedding party.


Margaret’s room was similar to Lenora’s but she had a balcony and a view.


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I believe her room was club level as well.


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Looking to the left on the balcony.


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And looking to the right….wow!


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I believe this was her room number.


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We wandered some more, taking more pictures as well.


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Back to those walk out swim rooms.


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This was the edge of the property.


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We went over by the spa again. They offered to give us a tour, but we declined as we figured we would get one with our tour the next day. The spa is one of the few things not included in your Sandals vacation. Those services are extra.


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And a peek in the gym.


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And some more of the resort.


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We headed to the lobby then as Ellen and Marianne had arrived and we said our hellos. Lenora was finally able to meet Ellen in person and the 2 of us met Marianne then. She was super nice and fit right in with us. Ellen and Marianne went off to their rooms and get settled in before doing anything else.

 

[jenseib]

We then decided it was time to swim. It was hot out and the water was calling us. This was one of the best choices we made this trip. We all got changed and headed out to the water.


We found a stretch of beach and waded in to some wonderful water….not too hot, but not in the least bit cold. It was so refreshing. As we got in 3 other gals said hi… I bet you are here for the training since you are a group of girls! LOL. Yeah that tends to be noticeable in a couples resort.


We all introduced ourselves and that is when we met Shauna, Brittany and Crystal. Shauna and Brittany work together and they had just met Crystal that day. They were all so nice and so much fun and we spent a lot of time with them, especially in the evenings.


We just all chatted away and splashed around a bit. We saw a stingray off a ways.


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We spotted a starfish under water.


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What a beautiful day and start to this trip.


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This guy in the small boat….pretty sure he was a weed man. We could smell it every so often. We assumed people who wanted it had to go out to him to get it. Not our cup of tea…but to each his own.


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As much fun as we were having, none of us want to leave, but we knew we had an opening event this evening and needed to meet up with everyone eventually. So we all got out and dried off and went to take showers and get cleaned up.


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I think we were to meet in the lobby and then directed where to go…which was the spot we had seen them setting up earlier. It was all glowy and they had men and women dressed as angels. It was kind of neat.


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It really made it hard to get pictures though.


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Ellen and the angel.


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They had appetizers and we tried a few things.


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The Business Develop Managers and hosts talked to us a bit and got things going and let us know how our week was going to be.


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It was a nice event…except it was on grass…which made it hard to walk for some people in heels…..and it was buggy! We were getting bit! And it was HOT! Extremely humid and hot and we were drenched in sweat! We decided to walk out and get away from the bugs and try to cool off….and were stopped and said we had to wait for dinner. OH….we thought we could just meet up there, but then we found out our table would have a host and he would take us over at the designated time. UGH. OK…. They did have some bug spray and sprayed us down. I had packed some as well, so I knew to spray up each night.


We did end up kind of waiting outside of the event though so we could cool off. We then were led to dinner with our host…a young guy, whose name I do not remember and they had a table waiting for us. We ended up eating with a group of people every night (minus the host). And though it was nice, there were nights I wished we could have chosen the time we wanted to eat and with who. That being said, everyone was nice.

Brittany had signed up for the French restaurant tonight as well, so she sat by me.


I believe I had an amaretto sour…which typically is one of my favorite drinks, but Sandals cannot make them right. I am not sure what they use, but I tried them several times hoping I got a bad one and they were all strange tasting.

I also got the French onion soup.


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I got some sort of Lobster dish for my main course.


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And for dessert I couldn’t decide, so I got 2 things.


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Once dinner was over we all separated and decided to meet up a little later to listen to music or something.

 

[rndmr2]

Glad tosee this report, looks like a nice trip so far. The resort is beautiful, that water is amazing, both the pool and at the beach. I have never been to any of the all inclusive type resorts like Sandals but my DH's aunt and Uncle have and they really enjoy it. We do talk about trying it someday so maybe this TR will help us.

 

[oceanmarina]

Great update, the ocean looks so beautiful there.

To have a pool right outside your verandah looks amazing!

I have never been to Sandals but have been to Beaches Turks & Caicos a few times, it reminds me of Beaches.

Sandals is adults only, correct?

 

[jenseib]

Glad to see this report, looks like a nice trip so far. The resort is beautiful, that water is amazing, both the pool and at the beach. I have never been to any of the all inclusive type resorts like Sandals but my DH's aunt and Uncle have and they really enjoy it. We do talk about trying it someday so maybe this TR will help us.

It really is a beautiful place. The beach is just amazing too so just put some pretty buildings up and give me food...and I am good to go! hahahaha.
I have only been to Moon Palace in Cancun for an all inclusive before this one and that was many years ago. I do like all inclusive resorts though.

Great update, the ocean looks so beautiful there.

To have a pool right outside your verandah looks amazing!

I have never been to Sandals but have been to Beaches Turks & Caicos a few times, it reminds me of Beaches.

Sandals is adults only, correct?

They are owned by the same company..Sandals is adults only and Beaches if for families. I have Turks and Caicos on my bucket list. My cousin was going to go next Jan, but then got a good deal on a DCL cruise so now she says she'll probably go in the fall of 2018.

 

[jenseib]

I headed back to my room to facetime Claire.


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The wifi in my room was really weak and I had a hard time getting it through, but if I stepped out by the pool it worked pretty good.


After I talked to Claire, I headed down to find the rest.


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Not much was going on that we were interested in so Ellen, Marianne and I headed to have a seat at a bar. Lenora had gone to bed. (She usually went to bed early each night, but then she would message us…so she must have stayed up late in her room. LOL).


We got to talking to this bartender there and he was so nice and fun. Ellen then told us she forgot her toothbrush. We were all laughing so hard about it and making jokes. She had tried to get one at the gift shop, but it was closed then. She planned to get one in the morning but was worried it wouldn’t open in time. I told her I could give her some toothpaste so at least she could do a finger scrub on the teeth.


We ordered some drinks and I got half mango half strawberry daiquiri. YUMMY!


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You can see glitter on Ellen’s shoulder from leaning against the angels… we all had a little bit on us. LOL.


After a while the bartender said he would be back but not to leave. When he came back he had made arrangements for someone to get Ellen a toothbrush and toothpaste! Talk about service! She was so thankful.


A few pictures from my chair.


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We decided we wanted some snacks so we ordered a few things.


Very tasty!!!


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After a while we were getting tired. We knew we had a long day tomorrow and we all had long travel days….which for me, meant I really hadn’t slept in 2 days for the most part…..and headed back to our rooms.


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And we saw crabs walking around. It was so weird. I had never seen this kind before in real life….and they walk sideways.


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Someone wrote Love in the sand.


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When I got back to my room, this was on my bed. It had events and things going on at the resort.


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And no clue why…but took this picture in the bathroom. LOL.


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We didn’t know it at the time, but tomorrow is the Emancipation day for Jamaica and they were all excited and ready to have a good time. We found the employees to have a fun attitude and I am not sure if they are always that friendly or if it had to do with the festivities of the day.


I lay down and it didn’t take long for me to be out for the night. I will admit, I expected the bed to be more comfortable than it was, but I was so tired it didn’t bother me too much.

 

[jenseib]

I am heading to 6th grade camp tomorrow with Claire (My first time at 6th grade camp too. LOL)...so I will not be updating all week. Have a fabulous week everyone!

 

[mom2rtk]

I am heading to 6th grade camp tomorrow with Claire (My first time at 6th grade camp too. LOL)...so I will not be updating all week. Have a fabulous week everyone!

And I hope you have a fabulous week as well!

 

[mom2rtk]

Those walk out swim rooms really are fabulous!

Cool stingray sighting.

The angels were..... interesting.

Dinner looks great. Although the heat and bugs probably would have made me cranky.

 

[jenseib]

And I hope you have a fabulous week as well!

It was a really long week! Long days and I walked 8-10 miles a day following the kids in their classes, etc. The rooms were better than a lot at the camp but of course still not great...but I survived and the kids had a blast and learned so much. We really have a good bunch of kids.

Those walk out swim rooms really are fabulous!

They are so neat. Paige loved the one she had I Jan in the Bahamas.

Cool stingray sighting.

I thought so too!

The angels were..... interesting.

I felt like I was at a Victoria's Secret show. hahahaha.

Dinner looks great. Although the heat and bugs probably would have made me cranky.

Yes, the heat was not pleasant at all. I could handle it somewhat if I had to but the bugs made it really bad.

 

[jenseib]

Aug. 1, 2016


Today really was the first “work” day. Even though we had events last night, they were all more just welcoming us and though mandatory, not hard work.


I was up early to get my day started. We needed to have breakfast before we met in the lobby. I got dressed and showered….the heat was really bad and you could really shower about every hour if allowed…. And I headed outside to get wifi and I believe I contacted my husband via facebook.


I took this picture of the trash can/ ashtray with a nice flower placed on it for the day.


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I met Lenora at the buffet area and we filled our plates.


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After we ate, we wandered outside a bit. We saw this bird.


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Lenora asked me to take a picture of her….and to be sure I got the bird in the background. I totally laughed!!! We had this beautiful ocean behind her, yet she wanted a picture with the bird. I joked about this the rest of the trip.


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We then met in the lobby and found Ellen and Marianne. We were told to divide ourselves into groups…(I really liked that we could choose who we wanted to be in a group with as many other training events assign you to a group and you are not always in with your friends or co-workers). Each group then set off in different directions. We were going to be touring Sandals Negril this morning…the resort we were staying at….which included different room categories and other areas of the property.


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I’ll be honest and tell you right now I am not going to post what category or type of room each is as I would have to pull out all my notes and it would be tedious.


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Going into room 1, which was one of the most expensive and nicest on property.


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It had its own little pool.


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Rooms are refurbished quite a bit at Sandals and they are constantly updating areas and furnishings. I found that even some of the nicest rooms had what I would consider some dated styles, but then other rooms were super modern. It’s hard to keep up when styles change so often, but Sandals tries to redo them as often as possible.


We stopped to talk about some of the water activities included with your stay and also about the Padi Scuba certification that you can pay for.


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Someone was learning right then too.


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On to more rooms.


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[dizneeat]

Great updates Jen! I am finally all caught up. Hopefully I will be able to stay on course for the rest of your TR.

 

[jenseib]

Great updates Jen! I am finally all caught up. Hopefully I will be able to stay on course for the rest of your TR.

I totally understand. I seem to have not much time lately either.

 

[jenseib]

The thing about doing these room tours is that you really have a hard time getting pictures without other people in them, so I no longer even really try. Also they really rush you through each room as you have a schedule to keep to.


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These soup bowl tubs are very popular right now at Sandals.


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I liked the style of this room better, but I believe it was actually a step down in category and price.


We moved on. Jermaine, the business development manager (BDM) who was in our group kept tell us to pick it up and go faster so we could stay on schedule. At one point he said for us to “make ourselves smaller” so we could all fit in a room together….Oh Jermaine…not the right thing to say to a bunch of ladies. Hahahaha.


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Next room!


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It was still being cleaned and was basically just like my own room only this one was not accessible and the shower was not as big as mine.


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Moving on.


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We then made a stop….snack time! YES! I LIKE this tour!


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We then came up to a setup of what a beach dinner would be like. This is something extra you can pay for and have a sunset dinner with your own server right on the beach.


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And you could have a wedding in here if you would like.


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[jenseib]

Speaking of weddings….They had a mock wedding/bride and groom set up for us to see.


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These pictures helped sell my oldest daughter Paige on booking her wedding at Sandals. And because I am a Mom….I will take a moment to post some lovely pictures of her.


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She had a very simple wedding on the beach and didn’t pay for upgrades other than a few pictures on a CD (which she has yet to give me to download.).


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It was just the 2 of them. They did not invite anyone as to not put pressure on anyone who couldn’t afford to go.


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This is one of the pictures she bought…but it is a picture off her screen that she sent me.


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She gave me a framed version of that picture for my birthday and when Gracie (their daughter) was over last time she saw it and said “That’s my Mommy and Daddy on vacation at the beach!” She’s just so cute!


And they got this cake (a second cake) delivered to their room later that day.


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They had one of those swim out rooms at Sandals Grand Bahamian and they also had a butler. She wanted the room, but not the butler when she booked it and I told her she could use the butler as much or as little as she wanted. She came home saying she didn’t know how she could ever vacation without one again. Hahahaha..


And back to my touring……


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We then made a stop with a signature drink, which I don’t remember the name of but it was really really good.


I went to take a picture of mine and the bartender told me to be sure to get the beach in the background….good idea!


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And playing with the focus point.


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Sundowner is another restaurant on property. I believe this serves Caribbean food.


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And another snack stop.


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Barefoot by the Sea…I believe serves seafood.


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I love the looks of these rooms.


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[jenseib]

We then headed in to tour one of these rooms.


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I thought this décor was a bit dated but then again it doesn’t take long for things to go out of style.


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But with a view like this…I could get past some of the dated décor.


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Then we moved on to the spa.


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And as I expected, we did get a tour today.


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After our tour of the spa we moved on again….and another snack stop.


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And then we moved on again.


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They had tables out for display in the lobby…I believe this had things about the Jamaican culture and history and was out because it was the Emancipation day.


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And fresh coconuts were being cut to eat or to drink the milk out of. I am not a fan of coconut but did try a slice…and yuck.


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We then all gathered up front and waited for the shuttle buses to come. We were going to tour 2 more places yet today.


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And soon we were off and down the road.


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The next stop was the Grand Pineapple. Now this is Sandals VERY Value brand. In fact, we had been told a year or 2 ago they were closing them all down and I was surprised to see this one on the itinerary. As we pulled up, Jermaine said straight out…now when we go in…don’t judge….we have tried to close this place several times and people have rioted about it. There IS a market for this resort.


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We gathered in the outdoor lobby type area and waited. They told us we could go in the gift shop and shop if we wanted to and got a discount. Ellen found a dress and bought it.


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Now I took a few pictures here, but I am not going to post many at all. I would never recommend anyone to stay here. The rooms were super super super tiny, the place was fairly kept up, but just not nice. It did have one buffet restaurant and I think that’s it. The only thing really going for it was the beach.


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It was at full capacity and we figured that a lot of locals probably got rooms for the holiday.


This resort is also a bit odd as part of it is on the beach side of the road and part is across the busy street but they have crossing guards to take you back and forth.


We went across and into the spa. The best thing about the spa was the A/C….did I mention it was in the high 90’s with 100 % humidity? The spa was a joke. The rooms were so small that they had to take us basically in groups of 2 or 3 to see the rooms.


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A quick shot of some of the buildings.


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And the pool…..which was not really that pretty.


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And had even more of a damper as there was a residence right behind where I was standing to take that picture. This yard had junk all over and some guys working on a car…..with ghetto music BLARRING! We were all laughing about the whole deal. I think the garage or house has some spray painted logo on the side too. Not a great spot for a resort.


When I got home I decide it wasn’t even worth my time to edit the majority of the pictures from there as the place would never be anything I would want to tell anyone about. It was that bad. As we got in the bus, Marianne pulled out her camera and went delete, delete, delete…..no need to keep those pictures. Hahahaha.


And back on the road again.


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Next Stop….Beaches Negril!

 

[jenseib]

When we arrived at Beaches Negril we knew we were welcomed! Music was blarring, people were there to help us out of the shuttle, drinks were waiting…and also a bit of a surprise as well.


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Big Bird!


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And Elmo!!!


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Well they are just too cute! I need a picture!


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Ellen, Big Bird and I!


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They then gathered us all up for a group photo which they said they would send to us and never did. Lenora ended up contacting a few people to finally track one down for us.


Rising Star July 2016-page-001 by Jenseib, on Flickr


And then we broke into groups again and started our tours of the resort.


This is a lobby like area and also an area where people just sit and hang out.


bchs5 by Jenseib, on Flickr


bchs6 by Jenseib, on Flickr


bchs7 by Jenseib, on Flickr


bchs8 by Jenseib, on Flickr


bchs9 by Jenseib, on Flickr


I loved all these pillows.


bchs10 by Jenseib, on Flickr


bchs11 by Jenseib, on Flickr


bchs12 by Jenseib, on Flickr


We stopped in this little shop where they gave out little cups of this coffee type drink. I don’t like coffee so I didn’t have any but everyone raved about it.


beaches30 by Jenseib, on Flickr


bchs13 by Jenseib, on Flickr


beaches31 by Jenseib, on Flickr


This is where they have the Sesame Street show.


bchs14 by Jenseib, on Flickr


Moving on.


bchs15 by Jenseib, on Flickr


beaches2 by Jenseib, on Flickr


bchs18 by Jenseib, on Flickr


bchs19 by Jenseib, on Flickr


bchs20 by Jenseib, on Flickr


bchs21 by Jenseib, on Flickr


bchs22 by Jenseib, on Flickr


Snack time…and I don’t even remember what these are or if I had one.


bchs16 by Jenseib, on Flickr


bchs17 by Jenseib, on Flickr


beaches32 by Jenseib, on Flickr


Weddings can be held here.


bchs23 by Jenseib, on Flickr


bchs24 by Jenseib, on Flickr


bchs25 by Jenseib, on Flickr

 

[jenseib]

We kept moving on and I kept taking pictures.


bchs26 by Jenseib, on Flickr


bchs27 by Jenseib, on Flickr


bchs28 by Jenseib, on Flickr


bchs29 by Jenseib, on Flickr


It was so hot that even the strap on my camera was soaked with sweat. Some people who couldn’t take the heat ended up dropping out of the tour and finding an air conditioned area.


bchs30 by Jenseib, on Flickr


bchs31 by Jenseib, on Flickr


bchs32 by Jenseib, on Flickr


bchs33 by Jenseib, on Flickr


Time for a room tour.


beaches34 by Jenseib, on Flickr


beaches35 by Jenseib, on Flickr


beaches36 by Jenseib, on Flickr


beaches37 by Jenseib, on Flickr


Moving on again….they have plenty of play areas for the kids and family.


bchs34 by Jenseib, on Flickr


bchs35 by Jenseib, on Flickr


beaches38 by Jenseib, on Flickr


beaches39 by Jenseib, on Flickr


beaches43 by Jenseib, on Flickr


The gym really wasn’t that big, but the mirror on the one wall made it look twice as big.


beaches44 by Jenseib, on Flickr


bchs54 by Jenseib, on Flickr


beaches45 by Jenseib, on Flickr


beaches49 by Jenseib, on Flickr


Time for another snack.


beaches50 by Jenseib, on Flickr


bchs57 by Jenseib, on Flickr


bchs58 by Jenseib, on Flickr


bchs59 by Jenseib, on Flickr


beaches51 by Jenseib, on Flickr


We took our time with the snack since it was cool in here. One thing about Jamaican A/C is that it is not like A/C we have at home. They are wall units and they never seem to get as cold as I would like it. It was however better than nothing.


beaches52 by Jenseib, on Flickr


beaches53 by Jenseib, on Flickr