OT - Jamaica, Aruba, or St John?

[LaurenThePartier]

I''''m in the middle of planning a vacation for the end of May/beginning of June (our 3 year anniversary), and was looking for some help from any of the ladies that may have been to these islands.

We''''re considering the Wyndham at Rose Hall in Montego Bay, Jamaica, the Wyndham in Aruba, and also the Wyndham Sugar Bay in USVI St John - I think that''''s where Nicrez was proposed to. Weston has been to Jamaica before, but wouldn''''t mind going back, but would prefer to go somewhere else if we do end up there (he stayed at the Grand Lido Braco).

If any of you have any suggestions for all-inclusive resorts in the Carribbean, I''''d love your input. Thanks!

 

[ammayernyc]

Go Aruba!

I love Aruba. It''s fantastic. I haven''t stayed at Rose Hall in Jamaica, but I stayed at the Ritz which is next door. The problem is that it''s really not that safe to leave the resort after dark. I personally know someone who got the sh*t kicked out of him on time that he was there.

Aruba is the best. It has golf (which is important for my man), fantastic and clean ocean, cool town and amazing restaurant. They are not expensive at all, so if you go there, I would suggest you not be on a meal plan. I could give you all sorts of suggestions.

I''m going to the Bahamas in two weeks so I can let you know how that is when I get back!

 

[skimmy]

ST. JOHN!!!!

trunk bay is breathtaking...

 

[orbaya]

I''ve never been to Jamaica but from the people that I know who have gone said it was nice but not a safe place to really leave your resort. I personally wouldn''t like that and won''t go there.

I''ve never been to Aruba either, but from those that have been said nothing but great things about it. It is definitely the top of my caribbean list.

I have been to St. John and while it is beautiful, it didn''t seem like there was too much going on. I only spent a day there so there may be more. We took a short boat ride to St. John from St. Thomas...I''d go back there. So if you go to St. John, you''ll be able to experience two islands!

Let us know what you choose!

 

[Kaleigh]

We went a long time ago to the Wyndam Rose hall resort in Jamaica, and it was awfull. I know they have done lots of work to it since, but the food was lousy. We went for christmas my brother had just past away and we didn''t want to be home.

 

[AChiOAlumna]

LOVE LOVE LOVE JAMAICA!!

We''ve been 4 times together and I''ve been once more than that (pre-DH)...LOVE IT!!! The water, the people, the weather, the greenery, the food, the drinks! Should I go on??

We never been to the other 2 choices, but we''ve been considering Aruba for a future trip....

 

[LaurenThePartier]

I keep hearing all of these rumblings about Aruba . . . and I think Nicrez and her man went to the Wyndham Sugar Bay on St Thomas. The pictures were awesome, and I''m leaning heavily toward that resort. Weston is just wanting to go somewhere new.

We could always try the Riviera Maya as well - or just go back to Cabo or Cozumel. *sigh*

I''m thinking of just booking a week in Paris/Nice and going to visit my family instead.

 

[AChiOAlumna]

Date: 4/28/2005 2:37:45 PM
Author: LaurenThePartier

We could always try the Riviera Maya as well - or just go back to Cabo or Cozumel. *sigh*

We went to Riviera Maya one summer...I was much more impressed with the Caribbean in Jamaica than RM. The food wasn''t as good and the drinks were terribly watered-down...the weather and the water were the same, but it didn''t have the lushness of Jamaica...

JMHO

 

[Ann]

Been to Rose Hall - horrible, IMO. And I agree, none in my group of friends felt safe. Even at night there was a guard on the beach. When we arrived at the airport, we tipped a luggage attendant $10.00 for 2 pieces of our luggage. He looked at the bill we gave him and said "is that all, mon" !!!! We were approached so many times to buy stuff from so many kninds of vendors. I know others may have had a different expeirence, but we would never go back.

St. John - very quiet, not much going on, but beautiful.

Aruba - never been there, but heard it was windy and desolate.

I''ve been to St. Thomas. Very busy, but lots to do. We rented a home on Tortola once and it was stunning. But food was expensive. Rented on Grand Cayman, North side, very quiet, long drive to town. On a cruise, we visited, Barbados, St. Kitts, Nevis, St. Martin, Puerto Rico.

But I return to Maui and Kauai every 2 years.

 

[sjz]

I can''t offer any help with the other two choices, but Montego Bay in Jamaica is awesome! Beautiful beaches, great weather, decent shopping, fabulous food. I had a blast when we went. I would love to go back, but now that we have kids we always end up somewhere with an amusement park

.

 

[zoobiedo]

Okay - I''ve been to the Caribbean many, many times. Jamaica is nice but it is unsafe to go out at night if you are not familiar and the Wyndham is awful as others have said. If you go there, pick a different resort.

Aruba is desert so arid but the beaches are beautiful, there is a lot to do at night as they have casinos and the main town is quaint with decent shopping. It is a little windy (windsurfing/kiteboarding there is TOPS -- calmer in the morning for beginners and windier in the afternoon for experts).

St. John is gorgeous but very quiet. Based on your screen name, it might be a little too quiet for you.

Check out www.caribbean-on-line.com for more info on those areas. Good luck.

 

[onedrop]

RE: Jamaica. You may want to try Negril instead of Montego Bay. There are several nice resorts there. Don''t know about Aruba. St. John is absolutely beautiful with the National Park there. You can always go over to St. Thomas for the action.

 

[bar01]

How about a Cruise?

 

[canuk-gal]

HI:

Loved Aruba!!! Jamaica so so for me, although my husband went to an all inclusive in Negril before we were married and enjoyed it. And my neighbours are Jamacian by birth, and when they go home to visit family in Kingston, they always take off to Negril for a week or two at an all inclusive.

cheers--Sharon

 

[windy1365]

We were considering all of these places for our honeymoon... which is in two days. We actually ended up with St. Thomas and will visit St. John. We chose it b/c it supposedly has great hiking and scuba diving. There were no mountains in Aruba, so that''s why we didn''t chose there. We didn''t chose Jamaica b/c we kept getting mixed reviews from people... some people hated it, while some people loved it.

 

[deny]

Eight years ago, me and a girlfriend treated ourselves to a trip to Jamaica after graduating from nursing school. We went to a four star hotel not a five star, which I think was our first mistake. Although we were at a four star not a five star, the price was certainly not cheap!

The beaches were not safe after dark or actually during the day either. So many locals bothered us constantly for money or tried to sell us other things... Use your imaginations. We could not relax while on the beach because of this, so we ended up staying inside the hotel compound where locals could not enter.

The beaches were beautiful, but I thought the land was awful. Dirty and not nice at all. I am a military wife and have traveled over 15 countries in the last eighteen years. Put it this way, Jamaica is not on my list of areas to return to...ever.

 

[LaurenThePartier]

Date: 4/28/2005 5:42

9 PM
Author: zoobiedo

Based on your screen name, it might be a little too quiet for you.

Hehe. Thanks for the input re: my name . . . however, it''s actually a bit of a joke as that''s my maiden last name.

Thank you all for your help. I''d heard a lot of bad things about the Wyndham Rose Hall, and just wanted to check with "real people" who had actually been there. We don''t like cruises - something about being trapped on a ship. I''ve been all over Europe/The Meditteranean, but unfortunately, we just don''t have time to do Europe right this year. So, we''re trying to figure out which islands sound good, and so far St John, St Thomas and Nevis are sounding good.

Anyone ever been to Turks and Caicos?

 

[Kaleigh]

If you want to PM me, we have a lovely spot in Antigua. It is a very small resort and have been going there for the past six years.

 

[AChiOAlumna]

Date: 4/28/2005 6:20:39 PM
Author: canuk-gal
HI:



Loved Aruba!!! Jamaica so so for me, although my husband went to an all inclusive in Negril before we were married and enjoyed it. And my neighbours are Jamacian by birth, and when they go home to visit family in Kingston, they always take off to Negril for a week or two at an all inclusive.



cheers--Sharon

This is where we stay in Jamaica...NEGRIL!! There is a gorgeous resort there called Couples Negril...it''s an all-inclusive and just heaven!! The beaches are pure white sand and the views are beautiful...I wouldn''t stay in Kingston nor Montego Bay (I''ve stayed at Mo Bay before I got married. It was okay, but not Negril!)...too touristy...

 

[IrishEyes]

Ugh, all these bad things about Jamaica - I never knew!! My DH was just asked to stand up in a wedding in Jamaica next year (around New Year''s, 2006). They are flying us out there and we''ll be staying December 26- January 1 or 2. But now I''m kinda scared

Do the locals really bother people that much? Is it safe for women? My husband is a pretty big guy, I guess I''ll just stay by his side! Hmmm...... Oh well, it''s a free trip!

 

[AChiOAlumna]

Date: 4/29/2005 1

9:24 AM
Author: IrishEyes
Ugh, all these bad things about Jamaica - I never knew!! My DH was just asked to stand up in a wedding in Jamaica next year (around New Year''s, 2006). They are flying us out there and we''ll be staying December 26- January 1 or 2. But now I''m kinda scared

Do the locals really bother people that much? Is it safe for women? My husband is a pretty big guy, I guess I''ll just stay by his side! Hmmm...... Oh well, it''s a free trip!

IrishEyes...

Jamaica is a beautiful country. The locals are friendly and do not bother you. I''ve been there 5 times and have never been harassed. If you''ve ever been down to Mexico, then you''ve been approached at some point on the streets. In fact, I''ve been more harassed in Mexico by children who follow me around. In Jamaica, all you have to say is "No thank you" and that''s the end of it...it is also safe for women...it is no more or less dangerous than traveling in any other country. The city which has the most civil unrest is Kingston, but tourists don''t tend to frequent Kingston and on the other side of the island...

Honestly...I''ve been there 5 times in 12 years...I''ve never been bothered...I''ve never felt unsafe...Yes...it''s a third world country, but it is filled with natural treasures that make the island and the people memorable!!

Enjoy yourself...you''ll have a great time!! Erie...

 

[ursulawrite]

I''ve been to the Turks and Caicos twice. Most recently we stayed at the Turks and Caicos Club, which only has twenty rooms or so and is very intimate. I''ve also stayed at Parrot Cay, which is to die for.

As far as other islands in the vicinity, I love St. Barts, Nevis and St. Croix.

 

[Kaleigh]

The Four Seasons in Nevis is really nice.

 

[Blue824]

I''d say Aruba or St. Johns. I''ve only been to St. Johns briefly, Aruba is gorgeous and Jamaica...I did not like it at all. Its fine if you''re at a resort and not planning on leaving your resort. I didn''t feel safe there at all. And every time I"ve stopped there on a cruise they give you big warnings. Most recently we went to St. Thomas, I really enjoyed that. It was beautiful.

 

[NyssaLynne]

Sugggestions for
Jamaica: Couples Ocho Rios (been there twice)
Mexico: El Dorado Seaside Suites (just returned from our 2nd trip there yesterday)

Check out my personal website for reviews of quite a few resorts in several locations: www.mytraveltruths.com

 

[AChiOAlumna]

Date: 5/3/2005 8:13:23 PM
Author: NyssaLynne
Sugggestions for

Jamaica: Couples Ocho Rios (been there twice)

Mexico: El Dorado Seaside Suites (just returned from our 2nd trip there yesterday)

We''ve also been Couples twice, but in Negril!! It''s pure heaven...
We stayed in the Riviera Maya at Aventura Palace, but I wouldn''t recommend it...

 

[LaurenThePartier]

Thank you everyone for your incredible advice and Lynne, your site was a tremendous help! Weston had already been to the GLB at Ochos Rios, so we decided on the Sandals Royal Carribbean in Montego Bay for 4 nights. We leave at the end of May! Woohoo!

http://sandals.com/main/royal/rj-home.cfm

Thanks again, everyone!

 

[AChiOAlumna]

Date: 5/4/2005 4:10:17 PM
Author: LaurenThePartier
Thank you everyone for your incredible advice and Lynne, your site was a tremendous help! Weston had already been to the GLB at Ochos Rios, so we decided on the Sandals Royal Carribbean in Montego Bay for 4 nights. We leave at the end of May! Woohoo!



http://sandals.com/main/royal/rj-home.cfm



Thanks again, everyone!

Lauren...

This is where I stayed before I met my DH!! The great benefit of SRCMB is that you''re literally MINUTES from the airport!! So you''ll get there fast and when you have to leave (on that sad day), you only have to depart minutes before your scheduled check-in....

Have a great time!!

 

[treysar]

I like the idea of St. John - it is quiet and romantic, but you can eaasily take the ferry to St. Thomas for some action if you get bored, or even the BVi''s for a change of pace.

 

[windy1365]

I just got back from St. Thomas and St. John. St. John had the most beautiful beaches ever. We would go hiking and find our own private beach. It was really secluded, too. St. Thomas was just a ferry boat ride away (20 minutes) for $3 a person. It was much more busy there with lots of good restaurants - though you had to look for them.

It took us a couple of days getting used to being around the locals. They drive very fast!! They kind of keep to themselves and don''t try to sell you stuff like in Mexico.

The diving wasn''t as good as Cozumel, though my husband saw a sea turtle and other cool stuff when he was snorkeling.