Mr. Big & Carrie

We travelled to H3 for the first time April 13-20 as part of the group escorted by K-Rock radio in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Our group flew Air Canada's red-eye from Edmonton to Toronto, and after a four-hour layover in Toronto, we took off and arrived very tired but excited in Montego Bay around 1:30pm on April 20. Immigration was not a problem, and in a few minutes we were all through and on board the bus for Hedonism III. We made a short Red Stripe stop which stretched our bus ride to about 90 minutes.

Check in was quick at Hedo, and our luggage was quickly up to our room. In no time at all we were enjoying a drink at the main pool bar. Many in our group were hesitant about "getting naked", partially because the radio show would be broadcasting live to their hometown all week talking about what was going on. For that reason, everyone chose a "stage name" from a famous celebrity couple. That way, nobody would have their privacy violated. It seemed to work, because within hours we saw almost everyone from our group at the nude pool, hot tub, or beach! Most of the girls on our trip took advantange of Romeo and Crazy Sean's body painting talents and had their upper bodies decorated.

Getting naked for the first time felt strange for about five minutes, and then it was second nature. For the first day, most of us made distinctions between the "prude" beach and the "nude beach", but after just a day or so everyone knew that when you said "beach" you meant the nude beach. Except for the trapeze and the watersports area, the "prude beach" was empty. I've tried to explain the "getting naked" thing to people back home, and it is almost impossible to explain. All I can say to them is that if they haven't been there, they won't understand! We are not nudists or naturists, and I don't think anyone in our group was. There is something about the place that makes the experience liberating and relaxing. Taking your clothes off in front of a group of people may seem stressful, but I have never had a more relaxing vacation!

It appeared that some people found a spot by the nude pool/hot tub, and pretty much stayed their all week. The same core group of people would be there at 10am, 2pm, 10pm, and 2am! That was cool for some people. We spent some time there, but spent most of our mornings on the nude beach or on one of the piers on the nude beach. We missed most of the naughty nude pool-side games in the afternoon because we generally stayed around the radio station broadcasting in the afternoon from the main dining area. However, some of us took part in a few friendly USA vs. Canada nude pool volleyball games at night!

The best aspect of Hedonism III, in my mind, was the complete freedom to do as you wanted. You could spend 90% of your vacation naked. Or, you could never get naked or wild, and still enjoy your vacation (although I am not personally sure why you would want to!). With waterskiing, scuba diving, windsurfing, kayaking, the glass bottom boats, golfing, day trips, and other "normal" activities, you could certainly book your week up pretty quickly. You can take advantage of the fact that people are friendly and talkative and you can make lots of friends, or you can keep to yourself and not be bothered. You really can do whatever you want! But it only makes sense to take in the atmosphere of Hedo III and spend some time on the wild side. Otherwise, why would you book there?

A lot has been made on various trip reports and message board postings about "What rooms are the best?". In my opinion, there isn't really a bad room on the property. First of all, you aren't spending huge amounts of time in there. Second, each room has its own set of advantages. Those from our group in the "quad" area (buildings 100, 200, 300, 400) enjoyed the clothing optional pool and hot tub being right there, and the bar being right outside their rooms. Some of these rooms also have balconies. Those in the 500 building were right between the quad area and the nude pool. The 600 and 700 buildings were closest to the nude pool/beach, while the 800 and 900 buildings had the best ocean views and were close to the great food in the Scotch Bonnet. The entire resort is small compared to some of the huge all-inclusives, so you can walk from one end to the other in about 2 minutes. If we went again, I don't know if I would even ask for a specific room. It really wouldn't matter!

The food was anywhere from good to great, depending on your tastes. The buffet was as good as any of the all-inclusives we've been to, and better than most according to others in our group. Most of the people in our group were more than happy with the food. My favorite was the jerk chicken in the Scotch Bonnet. There is food available somewhere 24 hours a day, including the party snacks in the middle of the night! It never ends...

Try the trapeze, but stay away from the booze for a few hours before you do it. For that reason, you may want to try the morning session! The beach party night and the trapeze performance was one of the highlights.

We played a little table tennis and pool while walking through the entertainment center. We didn't visit the fitness center, but we did meet Jan the personal trainer for the week we visited, and judging by his physique, he could whip your ass into shape without any gear!

In closing, this was a spectacular trip. We've been to many resorts in many Caribbean locations, but never did I feel the withdrawl symptoms like after we left Hedo III. Many of us spent the flight home trying to figure out how to get back! We'll be back for sure, hopefully sooner than later.

Mr. Big & Carrie - April, 2002