Couples Tower Isle

First time at the resort and we loved our stay! The food was better than most other all- inclusive resorts. Snorkeling, kayaking, paddle boarding all included. Had some fun sand volleyball games as well. So many cute little spots to tuck away and relax. 2 pools, hot tub, parrots and cute cats roaming around. Several good restaurants and bars, great entertainment at the piano bar and night club that was fun even on the nights there aren’t many people. The resort itself is a little older but very clean and charming. I loved the ambiance. Everyone was very nice and helpful- would for sure go back!

Would rate as "superb" if this was an option. We are a more mature couple and don't expect everything to be flawless but were unable to find any faults here. Firstly, evening meals were served at what I would describe as "chef quality" standard. The buffet style breakfast was endless re choices and again, of excellent quality. Staff and service were beyond brilliant. For making our 2 week stay idyllic, particular appreciation / recognition in making a difference goes to Oneill (restaurant), Jada & Cyril (entertainment) and the SCUBA & boat boys (Zeus, Anjou, Paul & Mikey). This hotel destination attracts gentle folk from multiple geographic locations - not for brash, loud, all you can consume type people who want to party late into the night. Celebrating my O/H's 60th Birthday on this holiday and there were some really nice & unexpected touches by the hotel as part of this special day which really made things utterly memorable. Only thing that I would want to see changed is the rather strange mix of table and self service on one of the evening meal restaurants. The absolute worst part is having to leave after a fortnight of being spoiled rotten and treated like royalty - Thank you Couples Tower Isle. I know that people always say that they'll return but you gave us such a wonderful and memorable time we have strong determination for next year and are already looking forward to being back with you.

I will start this review by stating that we loved this place and the people who work there, was it perfect? no but it is wonderful? YES!. If you are the type of person that goes looking for faults, you'll find a million here, but do they impact your holiday...nope. If you want ultra modern and perfect, save yourself a trip as this place isn't for you, but if you want authentic Jamaican people being warm with a traditional style hotel then you'll be happy here. PROS The Views - are simply breathtaking, looking out over to the island on a sunny day is an experience, i've seen some beautiful places in my time but this is stunning. The Bed - OMG this was huge and so comfortable, very high up so might cause issues for shorter people or those with mobility issues but simply glorious and i had the best sleep. The Grounds - whilst this place is not huge, the grounds are beautifully maintained and so lush and green, there are cats everywhere which i loved and there are some caged parrots and parakeets that love to talk to guests. The People - What can i say, we met some truly incredible people at this resort, 95% of the staff here are super friendly, with a small proportion not being so good, but i want to name Jada, Cyril, Ron and Shaqui from the entertainments team and Santana at the bar, Dwayne, Roger and Colin from watersports. The Coffee Bar - I loved this place, it was always cold when you walked in so nice when coming in from the hot sun and always greeted with a smiley face, but the best thing is the cake! Every day they had a different cake here and i have to say the lemon cake was out of this world. The Beach - Was small but always had enough beds and always kept well and the sea is crystal clear and beautiful. Watersports - The team were great, once they were a little difficult when my partner wanted to water ski but otherwise they were incredible, kind and knowledgeable, and the fact that watersports are all included was amazing. Trips - We went to Dunns River and the Catamaran and were blown away, the Catamaran was not a booze cruise, yes you could drink but the trip was chilled and we loved it, we were concerned when people called it the party boat but it thankfully wasn't, and Dunns River is a must do, it was so much fun and incredible, it's a shame that they've now removed this from the inclusive trips but i'm so glad we got to do it. The Pools - Are great, Small one on the island, the party pool and the main pool (there is a Buddha pool and jacuzzi at the spa but we didn't use these), now i think the main pool should be the party pool, they tend to put up volley ball nets even though no one is playing which is silly, they should have some music going at this pool as it's surrounded by restaurants and activity whereas the party pool is closer to the rooms and therefore would be better suited as a quiet pool. They are always cleaned in the morning, the floating shaped beds were comfy but the static ones at the head of the pool we not so nice, and there are always sun loungers available and the mats on the beds double as pool/sea floats which was nice. They have Jacuzzi's too and we liked these especially on the the one day it got a little chilly, they aren't anything special but they work and were a nice touch. The Lobby - Was simply stunning, you walk in the lobby and are met with the glorious sea and island and on a sunny day that view is priceless. The Gift Shop - Was as expected really, had mostly what you needed and they are always on the expensive side so i wasn't surprised by this. HIT AND MISS The Food - Whilst there was always a lovely selection of food and you never went hungry, we had a couple of gripes, mainly the food on the whole was warm and never hot unless you ordered freshly cooked pasta, also the beans and potatoes at breakfast always contained a lot of onions and peppers etc, it would have been nice to have a plainer option for those of us that can't handle those foods in the morning, i constantly found myself having to pic bits out of the food. Bayside Restaurant - Whilst our first experience at Bayside was wonderful, the 2nd was not so good, my partner had the Hot and Sour Soup and it really upset his stomach and he is very much used to eating hot food, for me the food was cooked to perfection but way too spicy, but as i announced many times I'm a pansy with spice. Patio Restaurant - Whilst the variety was always good, we preferred when it was simply buffet style here, at lunch it was semi a la carte, ie you select staters/soups but the pasta and entrees were ordered and served to you and as previously mentioned most of the food tended to be warm rather than hot. A lot of choice for desserts and sweet pastries which went down well with us. Beach Grill - During the day the Grilled Cheese Sandwiches were the best! but they were not so good at night, again my partner had jerk chicken here and whilst it was tasty, it was warm not hot. The Piano Bar - Always nice to walk in and this place was cold, you were always served pretty quick and in the most part the sing alongs were fun but mostly geared towards Americans so us brits didn't know a fair few of the songs and also the Karaoke system was difficult to set up and always took longer than it should with things not always working which got a little frustrating, also when martinis and melody's was moved in here due to the rain, the food selection was in poor light and nothing was labeled so you had no idea what you were eating. The Rooms - Were spacious and comfortable, the sinks are terrible, completely useless squares that spit water at you and have no plug, the showers are lackluster and in dire need of updating as they tend to flood the bathroom, but housekeeping was great, they clean and turn down in 2 visits per day although turn down was usually a little early for us as we were generally half naked getting ready to head down for dinner so this could be a little later and guests could be consulted especially when capacity is low. Communication - Could definitely be improved, from understanding what was happening with fire alarms going off in the middle of the night to more information around evening entertainment, it often stated it was "showtime" but you had no idea what that was. The Veggie Bar - Food here was ok, only had it once but service wasn't great. CONS The Entertainment - Now i want to be clear, the entertainment team did a super job, however the programme was not what we would have hoped for, it would have been nice to have dance lessons by the pool every day, we experienced 2 classes and they lasted 10 mins which disappointed us, also we would have liked some more up tempo classes in the studio, they only provided yoga during our stay which my partner enjoyed (the first week but not the second week due to the instructor) but we are both active people that like to move, The evening shows were mostly good and Silver Birds Steel Band were exceptional and when the entertainment team joined in and danced this was fabulous The Lounge - OMG this for me was the worst element of the hotel and needs a complete revamp, firstly the floor is not suitable for dancing, my partner and i are dancers and we struggled in both regular shoes and dance shoes, the DJ was god awful, the first night we ended up walking out as all he was playing was very slow reggae which did nothing to get the party going and it felt like a child was playing with his new toy, constantly pressing the sound effect buttons and i mean CONSTANTLY which was annoying. I will however state that when we went back a second time and no one was there and the DJ wasn't even playing, he saw us, begged us to come in and let us take control of the place for an hour which was good but this really needs to be looked at. Eight Rivers - Now this part makes me sad as i was really looking forward to getting dressed up for dinner but the service here was awful and the food was simply mediocre, this has the potential to be great but it needs some work. Verandah - This was the worst restaurant, we went here twice and both times it was terrible, the food was again mediocre and warm but the service was shocking, the second visit we stood there was over 5 minutes with no one even acknowledging us and then the man who came over to us acted like he was doing us a favour, it was a very bad start to a poor evenings dining. I can't mention anything about the Spa as we didn't use it because the prices were very high. THE CROWNING GLORY - THE ISLAND - We loved the island, lets be clear between 9-5 the island is naturist and wonderful, everyone who frequents the island is so laid back and accepting, the staff on the island are lovely and always helpful and the entertainments team also come over to the island at least once a day to provide a little fun which i loved as they didn't forget about us on the island. The views are incredible from the island and travelling by boat every day is fantastic, i went up the tower on the last day and loved the views up there. I would 110% return to this hotel and much of this has to do with the wonderful staff, they are a credit to Couples.

Stunning hotel. Classic older hotel with everything you need. Great staff, choice of food and drink. Idea location. Would visit again and met lots of great people here. Good entertainment and choice of cocktails. Take the free transport to Dunn river falls. Amazing and very close

This is my 15th AI in 6 countries and my 2nd time in Jamaica. We wanted an Adults Only, and Tower Isle was just a little bit more expensive than the average hotel and the included extras and the couples-focused hotel made it seem well worth it. After you clear customs (which is amazingly fast and modern), you leave the customs area and there are a few hotel lounges to your left. At the couples lounge, there’s a set of toilets, a small bar with beer and snacks and some seating. Your luggage is tagged and they tell you the wait is about 15 minutes until the shuttle leaves. We were in a bus with a few couples, ride was friendly and efficient. Check in was great. They gave you a package with information about the hotel and a schedule of events. The reception provides really good service, it’s much less stressful than other resorts. Room We had room 4505, we had paid for a superior oceanview room, but they said we upgraded us to the deluxe oceanview room. As noted in many of the reviews, the rooms are very “tired” however, it is kept exceptionally clean. The room did look recently refreshed (they were repainting and maintaining the week we were there), some of the furniture was in good shape, and only the dresser and drinks cabinet looked old. The bathroom was the same, it looks like they upgraded the sink but I hated the sink, there was no slant, so things would just get stuck on the sink (poor maids). Toilet worked great, except there was a missing cap on the toilet seat. The shower looked a bit old and the water pressure was pretty poor. We bought a Chromecast, it was difficult to plug it in but once it worked it was great. Some shows are not available but it gave us a lot more options when we were in the room winding down. The view was stunning, you overlook the swim up pool, and can see a very nice oceanview with the island off in the distance. The maids during the week did an excellent job of keeping the room clean. They typically cleaned the rooms for us around 9:30am. Turndown service was around 5:30-8:00pmish. Since we were typically in the room at this time, we had the turndown service 3 out of the 7 days. I would give the rooms 3/5 but it was very comfortable. Restaurants Patio Patio is the main restaurant. It serves breakfast, lunch and dinner. All breakfast (except room service) is here. They typically have the same things (sausage, bacon, eggs), with a few changes in some of the options (i.e. fruit, veggies, etc.). They have yogurt, and if you look around the salad corner, they usually have things like seeds and nuts to enhance yogurts or salads. The buffet is much smaller than other large resorts, but the quality is good and you have to be creative. The plain croissant was actually very good, it was buttery and flakey. I cut it in half and made breakfast sandwiches with the ingredients around the buffet. We had several lunches here. Lunch has a small buffet to make your own appetizer and salad, your entrée is ordered off the menu. We found that after you get seated, they will fill your water and once you come back from getting your app or salad, they will take your order then. We did not have dinner here. Pool Grill I loved the pool grill. They had the best food. I enjoyed their jerk chicken, fries and patties. It’s open most of the time except for dinner. Verandah No reservations required. We had one meal at Verandah and we enjoyed it. It was a casual but relaxing atmosphere. Bayside I am Asian and I approve of the food here. The food was very tasty, not 100% authentic but pretty close. We enjoyed all our meals here. However, depending on time of year, it can be STIFLING hot here. If it’s not windy and it’s hot, wear very light clothing and bring a fan if you have one. It’s probably amazing when it’s breezy but both times we went we were very hot. Eight Rivers Eight Rivers was my favorite restaurant. It had a lovely relaxing and upscale atmosphere. Food was always good here and I always wanted to try everything. Veggie Bar We had one snack here. The sandwiches/wraps/paninis were great if you wanted a light meal. Martini Bar We usually had an early night so we only made it on our last night to have a martini. They have any kind of martini you could want. I asked for a peach one and my partner got an espresso. Both were very good. It’s a very nice vibe. Room Service We ordered breakfast one day. It came promptly, and even included two glasses of ice water which was a nice touch. Beach The beach was not big, but usually (during low season) you can find a nice shady spot. It was the only place I’ve been to where it was super easy to get drinks on the beach. They’re always keeping an eye out. The beach is lovely and it’s very swimmable. Pools We enjoyed all the pools at CTI. They were very clean and it was very easy to get drinks. Gym and Yoga. Gym was not big but was sufficient. It had water and towels. There were two yoga classes a day (which is amazing since I sometimes do not want to wake up early for yoga). I did the 4pm class and it was wonderful. I really enjoyed it. Au Natural Island We did not plan on going to the island because although I’m not a prude and would probably be okay with topless, the idea of full nude scared me a little. Finally, after a couple of days we decided we were going to try it with the intention that if we did not like it or were uncomfortable, we would leave. I was very nervous on the boat ride. However, once we arrived we realized it was no big deal. To be honest, I still don’t like the idea of anyone or staff seeing me nude so I made my partner do all the ordering (LOL). However, it was very enjoyable the view was unobstructed and beautiful. Trading Spaces – Couples San Souchi We booked trading spaces on the first day we could. The other hotel is only about a 10 minute drive away. It’s much larger than CTI and more spread out. The beach was lovely, and it’s very nice foliage and views everywhere. We did prefer the food at CTI (at least for lunch anyways). They do not treat you any different. Service For those that frequent AIs, you know that once you find a server that is prompt, you always try to sit in their section. After 2 meals, I realized this was not necessary. EVERYONE at CTI gave exceptional service. I mean everyone. It was so refreshing to get the service from everyone that you would find the one gem at other AIs. Car Service CTI called a cab for us to go to Dunns River (unfortunately since we booked late it was not included). The driver brought us there and brought us back, service was good. Our drop off to the airport was also great. Summary CTI was the best resort I’ve ever been to. We went in August were occupancy was extremely low (there was a day where nobody was in the pool) so this could affect your experience. While it was not the newest or most modern resort, everything else made up for it. The staff were outstanding and it is such a RELIEF when you know that you won’t get pushed aside because someone had a bigger bill than you. This was the first trip where I felt everything was romantic. No kids, no singles, just couples. It made for a very romantic and pleasant trip. I really hope we can continue going to Couples resorts. I would love to try them all.