This may be a somewhat rambling, but hopefully not too disjointed account of
our trip to Hedo III Jan 25 thru Feb 1. This was our first trip to Jamaica
and it surpassed all expectations we had before leaving. It's almost a worn
out cliche, but it really is the people (staff and other guests) that make
this place so great.
First a word of thanks to a few special people/organizations. Denny,
without your board we never would have met up with all the great people
ahead of time. I'm sure we would have met up with them once we got there,
but it sure was easier this way.
Chris, without your book we never would have gone. Georgette was pretty
leery about going anyplace with the word "hedonism" in it's name. I
wasn't
sure what to expect. Although your book is about Hedo II, much of what you
say applies to Hedo III as well. Thank you.
Go Classy made our first trip out of the country easy and painless. Their
rates were very competitive and the name obviously carried some weight at
the resort. Not only did we get the room upgrade that they said they would
try to get for us, we were invited to a Superbowl party sponsored by them.
Final thanks goes to Air Jamaica. We left Baltimore on the day of the 'big'
snow storm Jan 25. Basically, they kept telling us 'no problem, Mon' we'll
get you out of here today. They did. We sat at the end of the runway for
about an hour deicing the plane, but as soon as the runway opened we were
out of there! The plane was barely 1/4 full, so it would have been easy to
just say come back tomorrow.
First impressions- The trip from the airport was close to 1.5 hours.
Longer than we thought it would be. Mostly due to our slow/cautious driver.
He did talk with us and point out sites along the way though. Would love to
have the flying option that Hedo II visitors have. Check in was a breeze.
We did get in a couple hours later than planned because of the storm, so
perhaps they were expecting us. Champagne was offered while the small
amount of paperwork was filled out. We were then escorted to our room.
The room was great. We even discovered the shade in the bathroom on the 5th
day!! Don't forget, the air conditioner has a remote control. You really
don't have to climb up to the ceiling to adjust the temperature (right
John?). As has been said before, the floors are very slippery. Just throw
some towels down while you are walking around barefoot and wet. We were in
Building 5. Further off the beach than the other beachfront bldgs. For the
most part it was quiet, but we were near the night time hangout of security.
If one of the guards were nearby without the earpiece in their radio, that
could be a little disturbing. The room was very close to the steam room and
sauna. Buildings 6 and 7 were closest to beach/pool. Not sure how the
noise was there at night. Several people we knew were in Bldg 9. That
would be the last choice if you want to spend time at the nude pool and
beach.
The food was very good. Don't have any other resorts or cruises to compare
it to, but the buffet was better than any hotel we've been to in the states.
The Japanese and Italian restaurants were great. Reservations can be made
starting at 7 am. We frequently had large groups (12 to 14) and it was no
problem at the Italian place. The most that could sit at one table at the
Japanese restaurant was 8. The only disappointing service we encountered
was at the Jamaican restaurant. The food was good, but the service was
definitely lacking.
The staff was really great. They were always there to assist in any way.
The activity coordinators were really full of energy. It must be hard to
keep the energy level up day after day, but they did. Even on the Friday
that it rained all day (we'll see if the no sunshine guarantee really works)
they were right there getting things going. A special word of thanks to the
following staff: Angel, Nurse, MJ (Alvin), KC, Anne Marie, Lincoln, Simone
and Orene. There obviously are many others, but the mind is the first thing
to go.
Had fun with all the activities we tried. Went water skiing, snorkeling and
for a ride on the catamaran. The wind and waves are pretty strong and the
catamaran really flies! The lunchtime activities were also a lot of fun.
The level of participation was sometimes low, but we did what we could to
make it fun.
Could go on and on with what a great time we had. The only slightly 'bad'
thing we saw while there was a beach bag being stolen. If you are on the
furthest deck at the nude beach, keep your things near the middle of the
deck. Someone snuck in under the deck, reached up and grabbed the bag. Not
sure what they got, but by the numbers of police and security we saw, they
were taking it very seriously.
If anyone has any questions, feel free to post them on the board or email
us. There is no doubt we will be going back, the only question is whether
we can wait a whole year!