Jamaica - Thinking Outside The Resort

As promised, let me share with you my thought on a few activities you can do while vacationing in the beautiful island that is Jamaica.

I have to admit, I was planning on staying on the resort the whole time we were there. Why? Well I thought since Jamaica is the capital of the crime world that it would be unsafe, period... and it's funny because I don't come from the safest country either if you read Canadian Border Services advisory (Belarus, my country of birth, not Canada). Let me just say - I WAS WRONG!

Now, I'm not saying you should just wonder out of the resort and walk about town, no. But since there's not much to buy (other than some rum if you're thinking of bring it back) I suggest spending the money you bring on some wonderful excursions. According to some reviews I've read, there are a few private/independent companies that offer great tours; but since we didn't take much time to research that we just booked our outside trips with what they had available at our resort (which was just fine).

Here are the tours that people from our group went on (in different combinations): Dunns River Falls (apparently, a must!), Dolphin's Cove, ATV off-road adventure (the boys love this activity), Zip-lining, Bob Marley Mausoleum, Montego Bay Shopping. I don't know if I'm forgetting anything...

Personally, I only ventured out twice: the Montego Bay Shopping & Sightseeing and the Bob Marley Mausoleum.

THE MOBAY SHOPPING & SIGHTSEEING

I think this "tour" was something like US$60, but honestly, there wasn't much sightseeing... Basically, the driver talked a little bit about the things we were passing while driving (like, "oh look, there are banana trees on your right"). So if you choose to take part in this tour, think of it as a group cab ride to the market with the bus driver coming to get you should the locals try to devour you!

TIP #6: don't recommend this trip if you're not into haggling at all.

Anyway, the shopping itseld was alright - you'll likely make 2 stops - one at the store with "good deals" where you'll REALLY have to haggle your way, and the second stop at something that looks like a crafts market.

Stop 1 - before buying anything, take a walk around your resort's gift shop and take note of what you'd like to buy and how much it costs there. You should use that as a benchmark. For example, I bought a shot glass for US$5, which I haggle for - original price was US$10; only later I saw the same shot glass at our gift shop for US$4! The "good deals" store will either have items with prices that are just ridiculous or no prices at all. You'll have to haggle your way down. I was able to get the shop owner from US$196 to US$130 (I bought shot glasses, magnets, postcards, t-shits and a baseball hat).

Stop 2 - the crafts market... This basically looks like a mini village of attached little huts that pretty much have the same things inside each one and a hut owner that begs you to come in and look (because they don't charge for looking!). Unless you are willing to buy something (and there are a few nice things in there, such as jewelry made of natural materials), DO NOT ENTER the hut! :)

TIP #7: Bring lots of small bills (1s and 5s) because you will not get change! What they will try to do is to get you to buy something from their friend's hut.

I gotta say, I'm alright with this sort of thing; from time to time we haggle in our markets in Belarus, but some people that were on the bus with us couldn't handle this and didn't like the experience that much. To each their own, I guess.

Here are some of the photos from that trip outside of the resort:

Now, I know it's hard to see it here, but this is their local REHAB...
also known as the liquer shop and pool hall!

At the crafts market

Some local entertainment spots on Gloucester Avenue

Gloucester Avenue

See that Margaritaville on the corner? There is a free shuttle that will take you there (I think you need a reservation though)

What you'd see standing next to Margaritaville... ahhhhhh...

right across from the crafts market this beautiful tree grows...

Coming up next, I will tell you all about our visit to the Bob Marley Mausoleum!

Jamaica - Beautiful Flowers

Although things like food were subpar at our resort, there were a few things that were wonderful on our trip. Below I would love to share all of the beautiful flowers we were surrounded by:

~ wondrous variety of Hibiscus flowers:

Hibiscus flowers

Hibiscus flowers

~ bushes upon bushes of Alpinia purpurata (often known as Red Ginger or Ginger Lily, though these species were pink)

Pink Ginger Lily (Alpinia purpurata)

~ large bushes of beautiful clusters of Lantana (these are from the Verbena family of flowers)

Lantana flowers

~ all along the paths we walked by lovely bright colours of the Bougainvillea, including pink, magenta, purple, red, and white (apparently, these come in orange and yellow too!)

Bougainvillea bushes

~ Jamaican Wild Orchid

~ flower from the Allamanda variety

~ red layered Hibiscus

~ one of the many varieties of Begonia (this one I found at the Bob Marley Mausoleum!)

~ finally, captivating Ixora flowers

~ the flowers below are also beautiful, and I have found similar flower images online, but I just couldn't figure out their names... are you able to help?
(some images are "fuzzy" because of a nice Jamaican breeze!)

Jamaica - Our Resort

As I mentioned in my previous post (our flight), we arrived to Montego Bay direct from Ottawa - from about -5C to about +27C! That's right, the weather was AWESOME! The customs & luggage pick-up were quick, and shortly after arriving at around 1 pm, we were on our way. The Sangster International Airport's hustle & bustle reminded me of home :) So did the bus that was taking us to our resort, only 5-10 minutes away.

We stayed at Holiday Inn SunSpree All-Inclusive Resort in Montego Bay, Jamaica. It was advertised and sold as a 4-star resort. Well... it was not! More like a 3, maaaaybe a 3.5 stars max.

Here's my break down on things:

The check-in here is at 3 pm though our rooms were ready when we arrived. We were greeting by a rather long line-up to check-in and get room keys, but the punch & rum lifted our spirits :P

(oh and if you don't specify when ordering drinks, you'll be getting rum with a little bit of punch!)

Boy, was it ever strong! :D

Our particular room was alright, the sheets were clean and the flat-screen TV had a decent amount of channels. However, we only had a shower and no tub, so forget about taking a soak (it was one of those low-ledge showers, with just a curtain so you gotta watch now to get all over the floor)! Also, the A/C was super loud - every time it kicked in, it sounded like a plane was taking off!!! Of course, the flip side - at least there was a working A/C :) Also, as I mentioned, OUR room was alright, but another room that people from our group got smelled moldy... :(   I also understood why many people online commented about the bathroom doors - they ARE weird, sort of a take on French-style doors, only old and skinny. Not really a problem, just an observation. Oh, our bathrooms doors could not be locked.

TIP #2: do check out some of the recent reviews on websites like tripadvisor, etc. before you book your vacation!

One other annoying thing was the broken "Down" elevator button. We were on the 2nd floor, but with a stroller, we had to use the elevator. There was only one in our building, so we had to call it "Up" and then abuse the "1" button to go down right away. Most of the time it did, others we had to ride up to 4th then down to 1st... I don't know how the resort cleaning women did it... maybe they had some sort of a trick?! The button finally got fixed on Day 5 of our stay.

Yet another reason why this resort is NOT a 4-star resort...

Now, about the resort itself...

SunSpree is comprised of 7 guest buildings, all 4 storeys high. Depending on the type of experience you're looking for, here's where you want to be:

TIP #3: Building choice

Try to get into buildings #1 and #2 it you are looking for entertainment and proximity to the main building (that's where the bulk of the food is). From these two buildings you will here the main stage and their resident band late into the night. These two buildings are also close to the pool if you prefer to swim in the pool; I just so for the sea! :)

Buildings #3 and #4 are close to the playground and watersports. There is also a nice beach and a towel hut located next to building #4.

Building #5 (this is where all of us stayed) is closest to 2 tiny beaches and the Jerk Hut & Bar.

Buildings #6 and #7 are close to a longer beach, the pier where you can catch the glass bottom boats, and (especially building #7) close to the adult section of the resort. There is a pool + Jacuzzi + bar + beach. I have heard that these 2 building are a little more updated and modernized, though I haven't actually been inside the rooms.

Bars

~ There are 4 places were you can get liquired up at this resort. The main bar is in the lobby and located next to a large sitting area. I made use of both a few times when my babe fell asleep in her stroller. This was actually nice, to sit down on the couch, cold drink in your hand and just relax!

Main bar is open 10am-1am.

Main bar by the lobby (10am-1am)

~ Another place to get booze in the Barefoot Bar. It's next to the main beach and the main pool and Building #2. This one ALWAYS had a line-up for booze!!! But it also serves hot dogs, burgers and fries. The latter 2 were good, the hot dog - not so much (all beef, which I found dry)... This bar is open 11am-6pm (for food) and 10am-1am (for booze only).

The Barefoot Bar (11am-6pm & 10am-1am)

~ Jerk Hut was good! Booze and jerk chicken/pork served with white bread are offered 12pm-6pm. This one was great and located right by our building #5! The only draw-back is that their chicken/pork are SPICY!!! So, not very kid-friendly...

The Jerk Hut (12pm-6pm)

Mmmm.... delicious (and very spicy!) jerk chicken and pork!

Fourth and final place for alcohol drinks is what they call the Bug Smaddy Bar, located in the "adults only" part of the resort. The cool thing about this ones is that you can swim up to it on the poolside. The lame AND more important thing is that it's only open 10am-6pm. This is an adults only area, for crying out loud!!! It's located on the very west side of the resort, but the only places to get booze after 6 pm are in the main area (Barefoot or the main bars).

Big Smaddy Bar (10am-6pm)

This brings us to a VERY IMPORTANT tip, probably for all of the all-inclusive vacation destinations...

TIP #4: BRING YOUR OWN MUG!!! The bigger the better, trust me! Otherwise, you'll be running back and forth to get drinks (this includes non-alcohol ones as well). Of course, you can buy one at the resort gift shop for USD15 or haggle at a local store just outside of the resort (which is what hubby did, got 2 for USD20). But if you don't want to waste your time or money, bring your own. Especially if you're planning on hanging out at the adults only section. Expect line-ups in high season...

Non-alcoholic bevvies & food in general

Food wasn't great... It was.. "meh" at best! The buffet was more like a cafeteria; it didn't have much seafood, not much fruit, the kids section had only 3 options, which usually included fries, noddles, and some other unhealthy option :(... Hours for the buffet were weird: breakfast 7am-11am, lunch 12pm-2:30pm, and then we had to wait till 6pm for supper!!! So other than that, only burgers, hot dogs, nachos, ice cream, fries and jerk hut items were available...

Jus Kiddin (12pm-6pm): Expect a line-up even at a non-alcohol shack...

TIP #5:  Oh and the weirdest part:

...and no room service!

Stay tuned for more on activities on and off the resort. And, of course, more of the beautiful Jamaica!

Jamaica - Our Flight

Where do I begin?...

Okay, our flight to Montego Bay (aka Mobay, as locals and many regulars refer to it).
Although I consider myself a relatively frequent flyer, this was my first time flying with Air Transat. The flight started out quite nicely. Having paid for "Option Plus" (I'm still not quite sure what that means, some sort of a bonus on our economy class tickets), we got upped to 1st class! Though it's not much on the Airbus 310, the extra legroom, slightly better food and wider seats were much appreciated. Especially with a 15-month-old toddler! Our flight was direct from Ottawa to Montego Bay, so it only took about 4.5 hours. But boy, did it feel long!!! I've been on 10-hour flights, but this one just seemed to draaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaag... Maybe it's because we were anxious to get to the beach, or maybe because it took over 45 minutes to de-ice our plane in YOW.

Anyways, we arrived in one piece and so did our luggage, so we were happy to finally get out... to a HOT and STICKY airport... wearing our (relatively) warm clothing.

TIP #1: pack a pair of shorts and flip-flops into your carry-on. (this one a friend shared with me, so we were good to go!) Trust me, even wearing shorts, you'll be sweating buckets in line to get your passport stamped!

Our flight back to Ottawa - to summarize, IT SUCKED and why this is the last time I'm flying with Air Transat! Since we had a baby with us, as per usual airport procedure, people with babies get to board first. Usually an advantage, right?! WRONG! The air conditioner did not work, so it felt like being in the car in the middle of hot & humid summer with your windows rolled up and the A/C broken (apparently, some sort of "connection" didn't work at this airport). We waited like that for 45 minutes!!! I honestly thought that we were going to faint. My poor baby got all red and hot, I don't know how she made it. Of course, I also didn't realize how Air Transat devised this particular route: Ottawa, Canada -> Montego Bay, Jamaica -> Varadero, Cuba -> Ottawa, Canada. So people get off in Montego Bay and those going beck to Ottawa get on.

Meanwhile, people vacationing in Varadero sit on the plane and wait for this switch over to occur. When the plane arrives in Varadero, people get off in Varadero and those going back to Ottawa get on. We were those people waiting for a switch over to occur in Varadero. Only they decided to clean the plane in Varadero (rather than before we got on in Montego Bay), which meant we had to get off AND take all of our carry-on luggage with us. On top of that I had to carry my baby because there was no stroller available (our got sky-checked in Mobay). This procedure took about 30-45 minutes, after which we were let back on the plane, where A/C was not working! Again! I was pissed off at this point, especially since I got some major attitude for one of the flight attendant for standing with my baby closer to the door while people boarded. All I wanted was some air for her! I ended up actually stepping off the plane onto the jet bridge and return after most passengers had boarded.

On we flew, and one person in our group got hit on the head with what looked like a case with those special cassettes that they use for in-flight entertainment. He was sitting just under their overhead compartment and when the attendant opened it to switch a cassette - ironically, to the safety procedures! - that box when straight down!!! So much for them preaching to all of us passengers to open those bins slowly because "the contents could shift during the flight"...

Once we arrived in Ottawa, the airport crew wasn't ready, which added to even more frustration on the part of passengers in general and one in particular - my kid was DONE with this 4.5-turned-6-hour trip! The plane was basically sitting idle, so my hubby stood up with her (the only thing that would keep her quiet) and was told to sit down. So I did the same - and of course, was ask to sit down also.... which I refused to do (ha-ha!) :P Honestly, what was he going to do? Kick me off the plane? PLEASE!!!

Anyways, our bags came out early, but our stroller was nowhere to be found. Finally they brought it out and OUT we went. Our car, which we left at the airport parking lot, would, of course, not start, but after a few boosts we were on out way home... Wow, does it ever feel good to be home after a experience like that!

Year 2012

Wow!... I cannot believe we've entered 2012 already!... It feels like 2011 just flew by me, so many things happened: family visits, baby turning 1, getting back to work, getting my driver's licence, doing a little bit of traveling, etc.

Every year we make resolutions for the new year. Last year I vowed to rid of at least one of my credit cards. Sadly, that did not happen... :( So this year I will try this once again, fingers crossed that I will accomplish it this year. Another things I would like to try is Project 52 - it's sort of like Project 365 (or I guess 366 since this is a leap year), but this is a mini, a photo for each week. The reason I like this idea is because it'll probably require a lot less commitment :) We'll see how it goes, I guess!

Since we just got back from our trip to Jamaica, I'll end this post here, but stay tuned for what I'm hoping will be a great overview of all things Jamaican (including a few tips about the resort we stayed at).