4th time to Jamaica, 1st time to Couples
May 1, 2024 Islandtime11 Brooklyn, New York
Clearly, we love Jamaica. Can't go wrong, especially if you stay in Negril. BEST beaches! (1.5 hour drive from Montego Bay airport)
Couples was a nice mixture of a mature crowd, lots to do day or night, and a relaxed atmosphere. We LOVED that there was reggae music all day long throughout the property. Not loud, just right. True chill, vacation…
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Clearly, we love Jamaica. Can't go wrong, especially if you stay in Negril. BEST beaches! (1.5 hour drive from Montego Bay airport)
Couples was a nice mixture of a mature crowd, lots to do day or night, and a relaxed atmosphere. We LOVED that there was reggae music all day long throughout the property. Not loud, just right. True chill, vacation vibes set in the second you get there. Friendly, smiling, helpful staff everywhere you go. And that concept of "on island time" does not seem to apply here! Food, drinks, service were all completed in a very timely matter.
Food was plentiful with lots of variety. Menus changed a few times a week at the restaurants and of course it was different at the buffet for each meal. We loved the Jamaican beach buffet dinner, complete with a show and dancing! Make your dinner reservations before you arrive to ensure you get the time you want for the 1 restaurant that requires a reservation and a special dress code. (Otaheite) Food portions are smaller than what we get in the US, but you can literally restaurant hop or ask for another serving if you're still hungry. The fruit and coffee bar were great options as well.
Drinks did seem watered down a bit, but the few different ones I tried tasted great! They have Red Stripe on tap. Ask for a Bob Marley shot...very cool! We bought big bottles of water from the gift shop, but I saw many people refill their own reusable bottles. Great idea! Beach service was prompt.
Download the Couples app before you go to help you plan your day and night activities. There's a different schedule every day! Take advantage of the free snorkeling trip and water sports. The evenings are not wild by any stretch of the imagination, but there is definitely some fun performances. We hired a driver to take us to Rick's Cafe - a must as it is only 20 minutes away. I wish we did the night luminecsents boat tour as it sounds amazing! Apparently you can go to the Couples Swept Away down the road for a day too, if you choose.
There are different local vendors on property every day, all day. So bring some cash! The beach is public and there are locals that walk up and down the beach all day trying to sell their stuff as well, however there is a rule (law?) that they may not come up to you, they must stay near the edge of the water. There are security guards on the property.
We had a Deluxe Beachfront room, one step down from "the best/most expensive" room. I requested building 5 as it was away from the restaurants and nude beach.I requested a first floor, corner room and it was honestly perfect. The room is called beachfront and it is, but not the way you might imagine it. It is angled towards the beachfront. So we actually looked at the garden straight our of our windows/doors, but once on the porch, you can see the beach, at an angle. I'm so glad we didn't splurge for the Beachfront Suite as they are only on the corners closest to water but none had a desirable view. They were too close to the nude beach, the water sports hut, or the restaurants. Our room was perfect, I'd request it again. However, most of the garden view rooms also have a (far away) view of the beach, so they would be a good choice too especially since most people spend time ON the beach, not looking at it from the room.
One disappointment was the $55 "tropical bouquet" I purchased in advance to be in our room upon arrival. It was pathetic. It had about 8 flowers in a tiny, skinny vase, most of which were roses and carnations. Very disappointing. Another disappointment was that our room wasn't ready at 1pm when we arrived at the resort, We waited for 3 hours before getting into our room! They did offer us other rooms on a higher floor, or a hospitality room to wait in, but I said no. We took that time to become familiar with the grounds, shop in the gift shops, eat, and plan out the rest of our stay. In all fairness, check in is 3 or 4pm, so I can't get too upset.
We met lots of like-minded people during our stay, from the US but also from England. We stayed for 4 nights, 5 days. A perfect amount of time. Next time we go to Jamaica, we plan to stay for a week so that we can hire a driver to take us to Kingston for a night (4 hours from Negril), but spend the rest of the time in Negril.
I'm not sure this should be considered a 5 star resort as we have stayed in the Ritz Carlton in the Caymen Islands and The Cloisters Boca Raton, Florida, which are true 5 star hotels. But the friendly service and good vibes at CN can't be matched anywhere else! Thanks for the good memories! Ya mon!
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