Couples Sans Souci

Still no response to many, many emails regarding the sickness outbreak on the resort for the whole of our stay. The hotel and the Jamaican health department don’t give a toss or respond! It’s been 4 months. Chased and chased them but hotel management don’t care.

Our 10th visit in 7 years. We love it-however-the on the lawn entertainment is painful to listen to-and no reggae, and it's Jamaica. The food is good to fair. Cassanova is good but the menu hardly changes from week to week or year to year. The food service is awful, especially at Palazino for dinner and b'fast-15 minutes to get coffee. We have waited 45 minutes at dinner for pizza or a bowl of soup. Had to get the hostess many times to ask for water or bread. We go because of the au natural beach-Sunset Beach, and it's the friendliest place we've been. The lunch food at Sunset Beach is the best food in the resort. The staff is friendly and several of them remember us every year.

As a normal holiday, this is a lovely resort. However, we booked it for our honeymoon based on all the reviews and it didn't feel like a honeymoon resort and we were not made to feel like we were welcomed as newlyweds. The reception desk were particularly disinterested throughout our stay. On arrival, my husband was told to wait for the bags outside while I was given both of our glasses of fizz to hold, with no welcome or congratulations, and I would've obviously wanted to experience this with my husband not standing on my own. I was then told to listen in to the 'welcome speech' another couple was having next to me (my husband still not with me at this point). When we spent £10k on our honeymoon here, you'd like to think they would wait for him to join me and introduce the hotel to us personally, not sitting in on another guests intro. Then we were taken to the wrong room with names on the TV screen which weren't ours. Trudged back to reception with no apology and taken to our room which had no honeymoon welcome in it, not even a card. (Btw, you have to pay $100 for petals on the bed, again, you'd think that would be an easy and cheap thing for a hotel of this standard to include for a once in a lifetime occasion). Later on in the week my husband lost his phone and it showed the location as reception on the find my phone app. So we asked if they had a phone handed in and the immediate answer was 'no' with absolute disinterest. (as was the case when I lost my sunglasses) We had to go and get the laptop to show him that it was there and then he very begrudgingly went to check in the back office and came back with the phone. Seriously poor customer service from a 5* hotel... The hotel app showed the 2 dinner a la carte restaurants as booked for 5+ days, but they don't tell you these are bookable at guest relations. Again, pretty poor amount of info given when you've paid for all-inclusive you don't expect to only be able to eat at one restaurant all week. Other than that, we had a lovely time relaxing in the grounds which are beautifully designed with so much greenery everywhere. The beach is super clean and well maintained. The 2 a la carte restaurants served stunning evening meals. The evening entertainment was top notch and the gala nights had a lot of effort put into them. The main staff around the hotel were mostly really friendly, it's only the reception team that let the side down. As a holiday, pretty great all round and would recommend, as a honeymoon, quite disappointing and wouldn't recommend this to be made to feel special.

Smoking policy in Jamaica Indoor places: Enclosed public spaces, workplaces, and government-owned buildings Outdoor places: Beaches, outdoor markets, parks, and outdoor dining areas Public transportation: Public conveyances, bus stops, and transportation waiting areas Other places: Health facilities, educational institutions, and areas for children The hotel and the staff cannot be faulted, but it is guests who exhibit selfish attitudes which contravene rules and affect the pleasure of the majority. "The law was implemented in 2013 to protect non-smokers, children, and workers. It aligns with international obligations under the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC)" But some care little for rules and regulations..... First offence carries a penalty of $10000 - I hope those pictured were suitably fined....

Quite a long transfer from the airport but it was worth it! Lovely hotel with lots to do. Quite a hilly complex but we embraced this as exercise :-) Lovely beach area with plenty of water activities. Food was good. Quite a few little areas to have sundowners. A really enjoyable holiday.