Rob & Melissa - Hedonsim II 7/98

1st-Timers' Trip Report 7/21-7/27

Posted by Rob & Melissa on Saturday, 1 August 1998, at 11:28 a.m.

We arrived on Tues. 7/21 after a delay at MoBay airport. It was pouring in Negril when we arrived so our Air Jamaica Express flight was cancelled three times (keep that in mind when you book a return trip - make sure there's enough time between your AJExpress flight and your flight departing from MoBay to account for probable delays). When we finally arrived we got settled in, rested, and headed for dinner. At this point we were unsure of exactly what to expect, we saw people returning from the hot tub in towels, so we weren't sure if we could walk from our room to the nude pool without one, and what level of behavior was actually tolerated here. There were no rules posted anywhere, and we had heard there were basically no rules at Hedo, but we weren't sure exactly what that meant (those questions were soon answered to be you can go just about anywhere in the nude, people smoked ganja out in the open, and almost anything is tolerated if you at least attempt to be discrete). Our room was great (2278)! We had a view overlooking the nude pool/beach, so we could hear when there were activities going on that we wanted to attend. Our air conditioner and shower worked very well (other than the hot-one-min.-cold-the-next that we heard was pretty common in all the rooms), we would definitely recommend either 2278, 2279, or 2280 as preferred rooms.

We arrived in the main dining room and saw the juggling, the band, and we hung around for the "battle of the sexes." Then we decided to get ready for the pajama party. I was so thankful that we had downloaded info from this site before our trip so we were prepared with sexy pajamas. We'll be even more prepared during our next trips, but I felt we were adequately prepared for first-timers (thanks Denny!). The disco was pretty crowded, lots of people turned out in a variety of sexy outfits. There were a few single guys who were obviously there to gawk, but in general everyone was participating and having fun. After we danced up a storm, we checked out the hot tub for a couple of hours before turning in for the night. The hot tub became the end to our nightly routine. We met a lot of people there (and in the nude pool), (Hi Rufeebaby!) and we got to see from our first night that people could do a lot out in the open, and even security (who walked around regularly) didn't hassle anyone who was being at least somewhat discrete (the only people we saw security speak to was a group of two couples openly fooling around while sitting on the side of the pool in the middle of the day, other than that they usually joked around with the couples being amourous in the hot tub/pool/jacuzzi).

While there were no clocks/alarms in our room, we managed to wake up early everyday without them (despite our late nights in the hot tub). We'd do breakfast in the main dining room and usually go directly from there to the nude pool/jacuzzi. We definitely got the best sun in the mornings; other than Wednesday it rained for a couple of hours every afternoon, which we passed in the dining room watching the daily scheduled activities. Since there is the possibility of rain there anytime, we suggest if you come across an activity you want to participate in take advantage of it when it presents itself. Wed. was our 1st full day there, and was the only day it didn't rain. Luckily we took advantage of things as they came our way, if we would have put them off until later in the week (not expecting the daily rain), we would have missed out because of the daily 2-hr. storm (which usually occurred in the middle of the day). Wed. we went parasailing, had lunch at the nude-beach grill, and flew on the trapeeze. The trapeeze crew were all great! We were lucky in that the circus director (Graham) was there for our stay, but he is only there for limited stays during the year (he's leaving Hedo on Aug.5, so if you're there during that time I highly recommend you try the trapeeze). When we first got to the trapeeze clinic there were a lot of people who just wanted to try it once. By the end of the session there were four of us who had done it several times, and had learned a trick that they were going to let us do in the circus performance on Friday night. This was definitely one of the biggest highlights of this trip. The first time you climb up it's scary, but they have you hooked up to safety lines, and as long as you do what they say when they say it, it is easier than you think. The crew is great, and I felt perfectly safe the whole time (thanks Graham, Steve, Guthrie, Kilroy, Akido, Amy, and Terry!). Unfortunately it rained Thurs. and Fri. afternoon during trapeeze time, so we didn't get to practice before the circus show (which went great anyway), so definitely try it as soon as you can so you don't inadvertently miss out.

On Thursday we followed our daily routine of breakfast, the nude pool, and lunch, and were planning on experiencing some more outdoor recreation, when it started pouring. I was amazed at how hard it rained, but it only lasted about 2 hours. This daily afternoon shower was inconvenient, but cooled everything off for the rest of the afternoon. I had definitely expected it to be hotter and more humid than it was (we actually had much nicer weather at Hedo than everyone back home did). Every day there are activities they do in the dining room. We watched Sumo wrestling (which was too funny), and volunteered rfor the toga tying demo. I highly recommend participating in as much as you can. I volunteered for everything, and had a blast doing it (when at Hedo, we think you should try to exeprience everything at least once!). That evening was toga night, and even though I had direct instruction during the demo at how to tie my toga I couldn't get it exactly right that night. It didn't matter, we improvised (as did many others), and there were countless variations in the dining room that night. Dinner was followed by the toga contest (sexiest toga, most revealing toga, etc.), and afterwards lots of people continued the toga party at the disco, and then the hot tub.

Friday's routine was pretty much the same as Thursday's; breakfast, the nude beach. the jacuzzi, and lunch during the daily storm. We had met a great couple from Texas (hey Rufeebaby), that we had lunch and dinner with. This was definitely another highlight of the trip - meeting so many fun and interesting people. The variety of people that we talked to was amazing. I was actiually surprised at how many people hadn't known what to expect at Hedo (those who were shocked at the sexual activities in the nude pool/jacuzzi/hot tub), most of them not planning return trips. We also met some Hedo veterans, some on their 14th or 15th trip, some on their 3rd or 4th. Then there were the other 1st timers who were planning their next trip before they even left (like us!). There were also a bunch of single guys there, some looking to hook up with someone, but they were easily discouraged. There were some couples that wre looking for people to swing with, and some couples that were there to just be with each other, there were even two couples who got married there. I hope to meet more people and make more new friends with every trip. I did wish that more veterans would have introduced themselves and showed us around a bit, as it took us a couple of days to initiate with other couples.

Friday evening the circus performed, and I was one of the two guests which performed a trick on the trapeeze during the second half of the show (Hi Joan!). This was beyond awesome! The performance was followed by a beach party, the disco, and the hot tub.

On Saturday we went on the Catamaran (nude cruise), which was so much fun (hey Robin and Lisa!). We went snorking, swam at the caves beneath the Pickled Parrot, and limboed with Rosta-Ralph. The cruise was great fun, I highly recommend that all first-timers try it. Hedo sends a photographer to videotape it, which we bought before we left. I was surprised at how many people brought videocameras, and how many people took pictures of everyone. They say you can't take pictures of anyone without their written consent, but that isn't strictly adhered to. After the cruise we spent the afternoon in the nude pool, and then had one more flight on the trapeeze (which we both tried this time). It rained later Sat. than during the week, so we enjoyed an afternoon nap before dinner. I really enjoyed the buffets in the main dining room (except on Wed. it was Chinese food night, and I couldn't get into Chinese food in Jamaica). I haven't eaten so well and so healthy in a long time. There were a variety of choices of food for every meal, including some jamaican foods, fish, chicken, and vegetables. There was also a salad bar, with a variety of selections, and a dessert bar. The service, in the dining room and all over the resort, was great! The people were friendly and conscientious. We definitely saw that Hedo values guest (and employee) satifaction very highly. This was also my first experience at an all-inclusive resort. I was amazed that everything, even alcholic drinks were included.

We decided to make Sunday a relx-in-the-sun day, so we spent the majority of our last full day at Hedo sunbathing in the pool and jacuzzi. We also went for massages on the nude beach (which we highly recommend). We spent most of our afternoon and evening in the jacuzzi and hot tub, except for dinner. We even passed on the disco and spoent the evening in the hot tub, where we made more friends. It was a fantastic way to close a fantastic week.

On Monday we weren't quite ready to leave, but already planned on coming back, and on checking out Hedo III when it opens. Since we had rain every afternoon, and remembering that our first two Air Jamaica Express flights had been cancelled we were hesitant about relying on AJE getting us to MoBay in time for our flight home. Thankfully we called ahead to see if the flights were leaving on time, and were told about the accident that occurred the night before and that the flight may be delayed. We decided to brave the bus ride back instead. Our expectations of the bus ride were much worse than it actually was. The bus was air conditioned, and except for the traffic jam right before the MoBay airport (make sure you schedule an early bus ride too, we barely made our flight on time and had left three hours before our flight), the ride was very scenic and pleasant. If you want to experience the AJExpress we would suggest you do it on your trip into Hedo rather than your trip out of Hedo, where you could miss a connecting flight.