Kevin & Lori - December 4-11, 2014
I'll save the chronological trip report and instead focus on the chunks. We checked in Thursday, December 4 and out Thursday, December 11.
First - Travel. We splurge for a private taxi each time and he's totally worth it. Aside from some MoBay traffic, we can get door to door in a little over an hour. What sucks is the immigration and customs line. Immigration was just stupid this trip. We know that every person we out-walk between the plane and the ramp to immigration saves us a good 3 minutes in line, so we high-tailed it there and were only three left turns from the immigration booths so we thought we were lucky. Until we realized that only about 4 booths were operating, even as the lines filled up behind us from 5 planes that landed within a 30-minute timeframe. We spent more than 30 minutes making those 3 left turns. Only to get through there, grab our bag and see customs lines as well. That's right, a line...make that five lines, all the way back to baggage claim just to get through the 'Nothing to Declare' customs line. Ridiculous. Next time we're also splurging for Club MoBay. That hour and a half spent processing into Jamaica is wasted time we'll want back someday.
Food and Beverage - We haven't had any complaints for two years and this trip was no exception. Lots of variety in the main dining room at breakfast and dinner. The carving station was particularly appealing at every meal with ham at breakfast daily, a rotation of beef, turkey, duck, lamb, and pork at dinner. Everything was well cooked, juicy, and hot. Gala night featured lobster by the truckload cooked on two gas grills out around the main pool. Our regular May week is during the lobster hiatus so it was a real treat for us to be there in season. We dined at Martino’s twice and HarrySan once. Nothing has changed at either restaurant – plenty of food, good service, etc. Personally I think breakfast is the best meal of the day at Hedo. Two egg stations this trip made the wait shorter than we're used to. We sampled fresh cooked waffles and pancakes daily. I discovered my new favorite-a fresh hot waffle topped with coconut, slivered almonds, chocolate sprinkles, and then doused in hot syrup. Yummmm. This is why even my underwear feels tight. Breakfast also featured lots of fresh fruit and a great selection of baked goods, cereal, bagels and breads, juices, and new fruit-infused waters. I loved that a bottle each of Smirnoff and iced champagne grace the juice counter. Hair of the dog, you know.
Top shelf beverages are plentiful at all the bars including Johnnie Walker in all colors, Absolute, Grey Goose, Crown, scotch and an array of rum choices. Service was friendly and quick even at the height of nude pool craziness with as many as four bartenders working there. I don't know that we ever waited more than a half a minute for a drink. We visited the wine bar one night before dinner to check it out. It's beautiful, but we aren't the type of wine drinkers who need to spend a great amount of money. By that, I mean our pallets aren’t that refined. Especially not after the amount of coconut rum we have consumed by dinner time. The wine list was extensive and prices ranged from a reasonable $20-$30 all the way up to more than $300. It wasn't terribly busy, but it may be later in the evening. For the most part we saw people grabbing a bottle for dinner at Martinos. I wish they sold wine by the glass. We would be happy to have a nice glass each after or before dinner, but we don't need a whole bottle. It is a nice option for many though.
Rooms and occupancy - Our room was second floor H-block, as requested. Our a/c was pumping, the room was spotless, and we had zero issues until the very last morning when the water in our bathroom was only steaming hot. In the shower, sink, and the toilet. We know our way around a plumbing system and have no idea how that happens. A steaming hot toilet. Huh. That's new. And in our ten trips, we can say this was our first water issue of any kind. For all the complaints we hear, it seems surprising that we've never had any trouble. We found the boiling toilet somewhat amusing and reported it at check out.
Occupancy on our first day felt high. By night two, the night before the reggae marathon, it was a full house - 100%. Again, something we've never seen in our ten trips. A great deal of people were on the clothing optional side exclusively. It didn't seem the nude pool was a whole lot more packed than we've seen it at 70-80% occupancy. The difference was at dinner. Every table was set and occupied and both restaurants were packed all night. Table space was at such a premium that we had to shoo people away from our table when we came back with our dessert. Squatters in the Hedo dining room!
There also were more curious day-passers than we have experienced. One couple each from Sandals, Point Village, Grand Lido (which nobody had anything good to say about), and Couples Negril throughout the week. All were open minded and bored to tears at their own resorts. We suspect their next visit will be exclusively to Hedo. The Wet, Wild and Wicked group was in the house. They are not a takeover group by any standards and, not being group people, we appreciate that. Another group on the prude side was BLOOM, which appeared to be a gay black men’s group. Some of them ventured over to the nude side, but they didn’t socialize much. They had events lined up for their own group on the other side several nights in a row. Seemed like nice guys, but kept very much to themselves.
Watersports-We generally spend a lot time in and on the water. This trip saw lots of others doing the same. There are four Hobie Cats now, two with new sails. One of those is huge, taller than the other three. We took one out for a spin one day around the bay. We saw at least two other novice operators tip theirs and have to get rescued. How embarrassing. Sort of like when yours truly dumped herself from her kayak. I didn't need rescued, but that didn't stop someone from watersports from jumping in the boat to make sure I was ok. The only bruises were to my ego. Nothing to see here, move along.
We never made it on the snorkel boat but it was in and out twice daily as was the dive boat, both consistently full. The Hedo Diver boat continues to sit, apparently unused, in the bay. We kayaked to it one day and while it’s a regular perch for pelicans, it doesn’t look like anyone else uses it. The canopy is torn, the paint is chipped and the thing is covered with bird poo. I don’t know what the story is there.
We snorkeled in the swim area plenty and one day got ambitious and headed toward Booby Cay. Me swimming with a snorkel and my love kayaking as my safety. I was ill-prepared for the amount of current in the channel and am not a strong swimmer so we turned back about half way. We saw someone from another resort swim it alone one day and were afraid for him the whole way until we saw him get his feet under him on the other side of the channel. The deep part of the channel isn’t far across, but the intense current means you swim twice as hard as anywhere else. There were people out in the kayaks every day as well as on the stand-up paddleboards. I think those are new, but they may just be windsurfing boards without the sail. Nonetheless, guests were enjoying them regularly.
There's a new sign at both beaches cautioning guests about sea urchins in the swim areas including that the water sports shed now carries beach shoes that guests can check out. If you don't bring your own, I highly suggest you borrow. Or float. There are a lot of creatures in that water. I spent 20 minutes digging a spine out of my foot from the one time I went in the water without my shoes.
Lots of guests were enjoying the pelican show most of the week. A large school of little shiny fish (technical term) had camped out and at any given time there were 2-4 pelican diving in to take advantage. I think it's a testament to the improvement of the ecosystem that so much more wildlife was present. At any rate, I adore watching the Pelicans. They're completely indifferent to naked people floating on rafts and consistently dive into the water not 10 feet away. They are quite a unique bird. BTW, the one with the dark head and darker belly is Matilda. I named her.
Just a word about the sea and some of the creatures in it... People seem to forget, or have no concept, that humans are merely guests in the ocean. Even in the swim areas and even at Hedo. For a balanced Eco-system to produce the clean and healthy water we all love to use, you have to let the ocean critters take care of it. That means urchins, and yes, they're ALIVE. So when you step on one, don't pick it up and throw it out to bake in the sun like garbage. Step carefully around it, warn others to avoid it, or move it gently to an area where fewer people are walking. Likewise when you see a starfish doing its job of eating/cleaning the ocean bottom, and you must pick it up to marvel at it, gently put it back where it was. Also, if you say “let’s dry that starfish out so we can take it home!” it’s the same as starving a kitten to death so you can enjoy it without its bothersome traits. If you want a starfish at home, get a saltwater tank and nurture one. The ocean is alive. You are an observer and a guest.
One last story about that beautiful ocean we all enjoy, and that is to not be surprised at what other creatures live in it and off it. With my snorkel I spotted my fair share of barracuda, puffers, snakes, rays, and lots of spiny urchins directly under Hedo guests. But nothing was as surprising as what we saw off the dock while feeding the fish Tuesday night. Out about 30-40 yards from the dock, roughly where the floating life vest marks the anchor tie for the big catamarans, something very, very large jumped from the water and crashed back in. It was too dark to make it out clearly but we've watched enough shark week TV to know that it was predatory, very large, and it likely won whatever the brief battle was. The splash it left was unmistakable. It had to have been a shark.
I know there are nurse sharks in the area so maybe it was that or something else. Whether they might prey on humans or not (and they do not), I for one respectfully give the right of way to Mr. Shark as I am at the wrong end of the food chain. While snorkeling the next day I was sure I felt something watching me. And not in a good way.
Entertainment - The ECs, now under the management of Winston himself, were ever-present. They have updated much of their poolside trivia games, and are less insistent on participation. A couple of days, when nobody seemed interested, they thanked the crowd and played some great background music. At a decibel level that didn't interfere with conversation. The evening shows were not as tired as they used to be. Winston seems to be settling into his new role and was all over the resort in his 'big boy clothes' rather than the standard EC garb. We had a fun time joking with him, but gave him much-deserved congrats as well. I don't think there was any outside entertainment while we were there. Other than an obnoxiously loud party at the prude pool Friday night. It was so loud it shook the windows and went on half the night. Many guests were there for the reggae marathon the next morning. Complaints were made, but little was done by the DJ.
Note: Someone posted on the boards that the loud music was from Deon in the piano bar that night. That's not correct. The piano bar had closed up before they pool party even started. No way the piano bar could ever be that loud. Rumor has it the pool party could be heard three miles away. Crazy.
Naughty fun-It was interesting to hear day passers talking about why they had come. 'This place is legendary.' 'We heard anything goes here.' I’m certain they weren’t disappointed if that’s what they came to see. Lots of PDAs at the pool and in the swim area all week. Interestingly, for the first time in our ten trips, we saw an appearance by the sex police on our last night. One couple started getting hot and heavy at sunset and a few others joined in -in solidarity, not like a full on beachfront orgy - triggering a visit from security to tell everyone to take it to their rooms. The interesting thing was that one of those couples had done the exact same thing in the same chair every night for a week, at sunset, and nobody batted an eye. For some reason Wednesday's security guard didn't appreciate the show like the rest of us did. Other than that, just the usual stuff in the pool, in the water, on the floats, on the chairs, in the grotto, in the hottub...we love Hedo. :)
Changes and improvements-wow this is a long list. The first thing we took in was the courtyard. Not a complete fan of the AstroTurf, but it looks nicer in person than it does in pictures. The chairs, loungers, and love seats are comfortable and well-placed for hopping on the free wifi hotspot, having an after-dinner drink, relaxing before dinner, or even taking a mid-day nap. About half way through our week, a large canopy was attached at the end that makes up the outer wall of the new bathrooms (former tv room). The canvas was in three parts, similar to a ship's sail, and made a nice shady area. Cecile Levee, the master designer of all the changes, was under it within hours and was unhappy with how it turned out. Though brand new, it had some stains on it that made it look a little too vintage. Before the canvas had been up for 24 hours, it was back down and off to be repaired. It makes a lovely shaded area and I would expect it will be up permanently before long. They also added some cool lights to the courtyard that light in a rainbow of colors. They're funky and cool. And look a little like vaginas.
There are some engraved pavers on display behind reception in three different sizes that nobody was able to explain. It appears that you can buy one to place on the resort, but perhaps the program isn’t quite up and running yet. It’s a fun idea and a replacement for the tacky rocks that lose their paint after just a few years. But when I asked what the story was with the pavers, nobody at reception knew what was going on with them. Next time.
The new bathrooms-Oh. My. Goodness. The new bathrooms where the tennis shack and 'TV room' used to be are absolutely stunning. I've included some pictures but as always, they don't do it justice. Marble counters, vessel sinks, cool modern white tile everywhere, lots of mirrors and just enough sparkle made me want to spend the whole week in those bathrooms. The a/c was bone chilling as well. The men's is nice too, but not as impressive as the ladies. If the new nude bathrooms are anything like it, that'll really class up the joint!
Directly behind the new bathrooms, adjacent to the tennis courts is a new clubhouse where Garfield keeps all his tennis equipment. Just in front of that is a designated outdoor smoking area. This was a bit of a theme throughout the resort with stern signs about smoking not being allowed. That includes the nude pool deck, though it was confusing. Plenty of people were smoking IN the pool so we thought maybe the signs were only for the pool deck against the wall? Or maybe it was meant to be the whole nude pool but wasn’t being enforced. The courtyard is absolutely no smoking. That was clear.
There’s some construction at the back of the dining room. A coffee and espresso bar. I’m not a coffee drinker at all, but if you are, you can look forward to that before long. I snapped one picture when the plywood was down one day. But there wasn’t much to see yet.
The nude pool bathrooms are under some much-needed construction. Again, we managed to get some pictures which only show that the structures themselves are staying the same. They’re reconfiguring the guts of them and finishing them. We ran into Cecile Levee and gushed about the quality of the courtyard bathrooms and her response was ‘wait till you see the nude pool bathrooms.’ Can’t wait to see those changes. In the interim, the first four guestrooms on the first floor are being used as bathrooms for the nude pool.
The piano bar has had some lovely updates. There is some new furniture in the form of big, sexy upholstered benches. Sort of like oversized ottomans. The seating area by the door is all reupholstered and very classy. The room to the right when you walk in has been stripped of its decades-old décor and freshly painted with game tables set up for backgammon and poker and Chinese checkers. It looks fresh and clean. Good for rainy days I guess. The room to the left as you walk in is no longer a room (that nobody ever used). The empty aquarium and the wall that it was in are gone so the whole space is open to the piano. The biggest change is the deck outside. It wraps the rounded part of the building and is known as the ‘smoking deck’ but lots of people were out there. It’s painted bright white and really looks nice.
Some additional cleanup outside the piano bar has created a much more open feel. I can’t remember what was between the Japanese restaurant and the piano bar before, but now it’s this open, paved walkway where you can get to the back deck of the piano bar (or the miniature golf course) from the courtyard. I included a picture. I almost think they salvaged all those old hedo pavers from the old courtyard and used them to pave the area between these two structures. Another way they’re blending old and new. It’s a great look in and around the courtyard now. Fabulous job.
Pool & beaches – as mentioned, the clothing optional (formerly prude) beach was busy all week. We saw people playing volleyball, lots of people sunning on the beach, and generally more activity there than we’re used to seeing. They’ve added a giant floating mat to the water. It’s super easy to get on and by my estimation something like 6’ wide by 18’ long. There’s been some significant beach erosion at that end. In some ways, I’m guessing those things are seasonal. It felt a little like the sea was taking back its natural spot up to the seawall on that end of the resort.
The nude side was exactly the same, aside from a few new signs and the rather unenforced no smoking rule. One with bigger lettering about photography, but I love that the old No Gawkers signs and others remain. Plenty of beach chairs, lots of umbrellas which are holding up well to the elements, and people enjoying themselves around the clock. Beach floats are in short supply, but the real problem is beach float hoarders. Seriously, if you want to lay on a beach float while you’re on your chair, that’s fine. But when guests come out early and grab a beach float, put it on a chair and then pin their towels over the top but NEVER SIT IN THE CHAIR, that’s just selfish and annoying. For the number of people that float at any given time, there are plenty of floats. As long as people don’t pull some from rotation on the off-chance they might want to use it during the day. There was also a healthy stack of inflatables in use, marked with names and dates and left to share on departure. Oh, one other big difference at the nude pool that happened sometime while we were there (Thursday-Thursday)…they painted over the mural on the end of the building overlooking the nude pool. Kind of a sad thing to see go. I’m wondering if they’re going to replace it with something new, or just leave it painted neutral like the rest of the buildings.
Announcements – At the Wednesday repeater’s party, trips were won by someone with roughly 17 trips with the backup having 15 trips. It was a big crowd and while occupancy was definitely lower on Wednesday than it had been earlier in the week, it seemed like 75% of the population was crammed into the piano bar. Harry was on property and announced that the next big project would be a total renovation of the front reception area and dining room. He didn’t provide any details other than his desire to make it look less like a ‘1970s high school cafeteria.’ J I thought that was a little harsh, but it’s his place, he can say whatever he wants to about it. He may have suggested the work would be done within the next year, but it was hard to hear in there.
As always, we had a great trip. The highlight of this one was getting to meet the man, the legend, Denny P himself. In true Hedo fashion, I met him in the naked pool with a big warm Hedo kiss. It’s great to put a face with a name. I always appreciate him. And now I can say I’ve met him!
Looking forward to trip #11 in 2015.
Click on thumbnails for a larger picture.
