March 31st – April 7th 2003
This was our first trip to Hedonism III and to Jamaica for that matter. We had decided to try a different destination partly in celebration of our 20th wedding anniversary (see below), and partly because very few of our group of friends were going to St. Martin this year.
Bottom line is we had a great time!! One of the main reasons is the people we met..........made some new friends, who made the vacation into a really enjoyable one!! The people who worked there were also very friendly and willing to accommodate, although some made more of an effort to make our stay a special one.
Our flight out of Toronto was delayed an hour, but otherwise was uneventful. We arrived in Montego Bay around noon, went through immigration and customs with no problems, and easily found the Superclubs desk (turn to the left after customs), where we waited only for a few minutes before being directed to our bus. We've heard this bus ride described as a "ride from hell" but honestly we found it to be no problem, mon and the bus driver we had was quite entertaining. We made the usual pit stop for a beer and a pee and then were off again for Hedo (can't remember the time we arrived........might have been about 2pm or so). The time suddenly seemed unimportant once we arrived at Hedo!!
We waited only a few minutes to check in........our room was ready, although initially they assigned us to one which was already occupied. When the bell man opened the door, apparently the occupants were a bit "busy" and he quickly shut the door again.......oops!! But finally we got our proper room.........we were in 415 which is on the Quad in the 400 building on the first floor. This means the Quad pool was literally a couple of steps outside our door, and when we took a shower we could have reached out the window and touched anyone walking by. Needless to say we didn't pull down the window shade..........wanted to conform to the hedo tradition!!
We were really close to the Quad pool, however we didn't spend any time there, except one afternoon when the nudes invaded the Quad........apparently this is done once a week. We spent most of our time at the nude pool and hot tub.............that's where most of the guests and activity seemed to be. Even though we were in the 400 building, it was only a few steps over to the nude side. We found the resort to be much more compact than it seems on the map. We had taken large drinking cups as suggested on Denny's site, but found it more convenient to just use the glasses they provided. You have to get off your chair sometime, and it's really not far to the bar. Besides, we were trying all kinds of different drinks!!
The rooms were more than adequate. Ours smelled a bit musty when we first checked in, however we never noticed the smell again. Because we were on the first floor, we were unable to leave our windows open all the time, but running the air on low seemed to control the humidity. There were two small safes in the room, but we only were given one lock, so we could use only one of them. Each is relatively small.......but we were able to fit our camera, our money and important papers into one (just barely).
The facilities were quite nice…….lots of attractive vegetation and concrete walks. The tiles around the pool, as I'm sure you've heard, are slippery when wet, but it appears they have tried to "fix" the problem by installing areas of concrete between the tiles. You still have to be careful. The tiles around the prude pool are still slippery when wet, so be careful when walking through that area to the front desk or dining areas. We didn't want to wear shoes if we didn't have to!
We found the food to be very good, with lots of variety. We ate at the Italian restaurant twice but didn't try the Japanese one.........maybe next trip?! The breakfast menu was similar each day, but there was enough choice to allow sufficient variety here too. Make sure you say hello to the guy making the pancakes.......a very friendly fellow!! For lunch, we always ate at the nude grill by the pool...........didn't want to get dressed anymore than we had to!!
The bartenders were always friendly and would make almost anything you asked for. The drinks tended to be quite strong, and in fact on a couple of occasions were too strong to drink. Usually, however, they were just right!! They certainly must go through a lot of booze in a day!!!! It took us a little time to get used to being able to order a drink whenever we wanted and not "pay" for it (I know we actually paid for them!). One day we went over to the Scotch Bonnet and asked for a bottle of champagne, and then watched the sunset from the gazebo overlooking the water............very romantic!!! It was good champagne too!
Linda had arranged before hand for us to renew our wedding vows (this year is our 20th anniversary). Once we were there, we met with Karen who made all the final arrangements. On the phone, we were told we could do it in the nude, however once there we were told no. But it did come off very well and they go all out with flowers, cake, champagne, minister, etc. The cake was really good too..........apparently the traditional Jamaican chocolate rum cake. Yum!! We asked a couple we had met there to stand up with us, as well as invited others we had met to attend. Everyone said it went very well, and appreciated being able to come. We also arranged for a video of the event, and I must say they did a pretty good job. Besides the ceremony itself, he took us to different locations within the resort to film short clips and then the entire film was edited and music added, etc. After it was done, we became "the couple who renewed their vows" to lots of people we had not officially met!
As far as PDA's go........yes there were some but I think Hedo's reputation is a bit exaggerated. I'm sure it also depends on the people there, and we may have hit a "quiet" week. Only saw some activity a couple of times in broad daylight......more in the hot tub at night, but still fairly tame compared to what we had heard. Perhaps it depends on what it takes to shock you?! And there are some "sex police" who seem to keep things from getting out of hand. The games which are played certainly have sexual innuendos and some rude language but don't go too far, and besides they're fun!! The ED's do a really good job to get people involved and are very enthusiastic (which must be difficult since they do this day in and day out).
Theme nights were fun, although it seemed that only the PJ night and toga night had the most participation. The piano bar was fun too. One night 3 guys got up and stripped to the music. After spending all day on the nude side, it was no big deal for us........however, it was fun watching some of the other guests (prudes?) who seemed a bit surprised and horrified!! Linda enjoyed it at least!
Unfortunately, the time came for us to return home. Our bus was scheduled to leave at 8 am for a noon flight. As a result, we had to have our bags outside our door by 7am, followed by a quick breakfast. The bus ride to the airport was much more subdued than our arrival and without any pit stops. We don’t want to go!!!
Our flight back to Toronto was uneventful, except for a few rough spots. However, we were greeted by winter-like conditions…….yuck!! Somehow, walking up our driveway through the snow in bare feet and sandals was not quite how we had planned it!! Brrrrrrr!!!
To sum up……..it was a very enjoyable vacation with many pleasant memories! This is due in large part to the great people we met and with whom, hopefully, we will remain in contact. I haven’t mentioned any names, but you know who you are!!! Thanks, guys………we had a blast!!!!
April 2003