Sandals Montego Bay, Montego Bay

I love sandals and have been to 5 of there resorts.This trip was a little different.The fashion show for the gift shop was ok at first but the a woman came out with nothing on top but her hands then a purse then nothijg but a hat a man was sporting a wrap that was falling off when he was walking off.Very tacky for a gift shop fashion show for the guest and nothing I have ever seen at sandals before

Our visit to Sandals Montego Bay was without a doubt the most amazing vacation experience we have ever had. When we checked out of the resort the young lady at the front desk asked me, "what was the best part about your visit?" That was a hard question to answer since there were so many elements that made the visit perfect. The people of Jamaica are the most genuinely nice people I think I have ever encountered. Everyone at the resort would gladly go out of their way to help you with whatever you needed. I'll give you an example; we were having problems finding a particular restaurant on the resort property so I asked one of the resort staff where it was. Now, here in the states and everywhere else I have been you get verbal directions or they point you in the general direction. Not at Sandals! The staff would personally take you to where you wanted to go to make sure you found it. It was amazing! The food was magnificent! All-Inclusive trips are the way to go! Each night at one of the restaurants we went to had some sort of lobster dish every night. One night was a seafood buffet and there were so many Caribbean style dishes I had never had it was hard to choose which ones to try. Each meal, breakfast, lunch, and dinner was an event, not just a meal. Special desert areas were set up as well which was very nice. One night was chocolate night and I don't think I need to tell you how wonderful that was! You can also have room service. One morning, on my wife's birthday, they brought us breakfast in bed. Now when I say breakfast in bed, that's exactly what we got. The young man brought us breakfast on a tray balanced on his head and then set the table on our bed! It made her day that much more special. If you're worried about finding things to do while at the resort, don't! You can lay on the beach, hang out by one of the two pools, go snorkeling, diving, sailing, kayaking, or go on tours that are set up through the resort. You can also visit the other two Sandals resorts in Montego Bay while you are there. They also have a great spa and an outdoor fitness facility that rivaled our gym here at home. They each have some very nice restaurants you may want to dine at. There is no way you will get bored here! And if you just want to do nothing but lounge all day you can do that too. We enjoyed laying on the beach sipping exotic drinks several of the days we were there. And as I mentioned, this is All-Inclusive so you don't have to worry about spending money. But once you see the gift shop you will want to bring some memories home with you so plan on spending a little money while you're there. But the prices are very reasonable. I didn't carry a wallet the entire time I was there since they make it easy to purchase items if you so desire. You have a small card with all your information on it that allows you to make charges to your room. Everything is made to be easy there, and the priority is making sure you're having a great time. Speaking of time, leave your watch at home because when in Jamaica, there's no need to worry about time. In fact, we didn't see a clock anywhere on the property except for the alarm clock in our room. It was a slice of heaven on Earth and we WILL be going back as soon as we can! If you're planning on a Caribbean vacation in the near future, this is where you want to go. The resort is exceptionally clean, there is plenty to do, or not do, the food is amazing, the staff is like family, the weather is perfect, the island nation is beautiful, and the cost is a lot cheaper than you may expect. You will not regret visiting this magnificent place!

We loved the resort and had an AMAZING time. However after being back a month and finally getting our credit card statment with $800 worth of charges on it that we did not make we have changed our minds. We only used our credit card at the resort, and we only used it because they would not accept our travel card. So an employee at the resort must have stolen the number and used it the week after we left.

When my partner and I booked this resort, we were looking for a relaxing, romantic end to a stressful year. Then we read the mixed reviews, and got worried that we wouldn't get what we were looking for. Well, I don't know who wrote those negative reviews, but based on our experience, they would have had a rotten time anywhere. We had the most blissful vacation imaginable. The atmosphere is relaxed, fun and easygoing- you can find new things to do everyday or you can spend the whole week doing nothing, it's your call. We opted for adventure. Every day was a new experience- waterskiing, tubing, trips to the hip strip, I got braids in my hair... we went snorkelling and saw schools of tropical fish, we even saw wild dolphins who swam right up to the boat. We went on the zipline tour through Chuka and it was fantastic- Jamaica is so full of beautiful mountains and landscapes, and it was well worth getting off the resort for the afternoon to see some if it. The entertainment never stops, but it's easy to avoid if you're not interested in it- the resort is full of private little nooks for couples to just be together. We loved the entertainment, of course- steel drum bands, there was a fire dancer and a contortionist one night... live music almost every night... fabulous. In terms of the staff, they were the friendliest individuals you'd ever want to meet. Special thanks to Daniel and Collin, who personally showed us around the city, Marva and Roy for their amazingly romantic photography, and all the fabulous playmakers (Gean and Fava Flav!!). The only downfall was when we had to watch snobby, whiny Americans being incredibly rude to these hardworking people. Also, we were NEVER asked for tips by anyone at Sandals- that's not what they're in it for. I found that everyone was really patriotic, which was awesome. They love their country, and they want you to see it the way they see it and have a great experience. In terms of the resort itself, the property is gorgeous. The gardens in particular I find to be understated on the website- it's like walking through a tropical paradise every time you make a trip to your room. Yeah, not everything works the way it's supposed to all the time, but that's the trade-off for visiting a country that's unspoiled by North American comercialism. Our room was upgraded for free, without us asking, and it was terrific- clean, romantic, beautiful art on the walls, great location. The resort was never crowded, so we frequently had pools and jacuzzis to ourselves, as well as large sections of beach. The food was always fantastic, especially at the Oleander (and I'm spoiled- my mom's a chef). The swim-up bar is farther away from everything else because that's where people go to seriously party. I don't really drink, so I appreciated all of the drunkeness (and often obnoxiousness) being maintained to one area away from the other amenities. One day my boyfriend and I ventured over to the Royal Caribbean. Eww. What a stuck-up atmosphere, and everything closes at random times. We got there at 3, but the watersports closed at 4:30, the private island closed at 5, BOTH the beach bars closed at 5:30, and they decided to put chlorine in the pool at 6. We were so bored just waiting for our dinner reservations, which weren't really worthwhile. Service was just okay. The beach sucked. We didn't see one playmaker or activity the whole time. All in all, don't go there, go to MoBay where stuff actually goes on and people can relax. Overall... so much fun, so much romance, so much excitement, and such amazing staff... we're now planning to go back to get married at Sandals MoBay. Ya, Mon!!!

We were married there in March along with 20 other guests. Overall we had a great time, we had a large group and wanted to party. There were lots of groups there, so if you are looking for quiet and romantic this resort probably isn’t for you. It was pretty lively, lots of games and entertainment all day. They have these guys called Playmakers; their job is to get you involved in games and events. The food was just OK. The drinks are LOADED with booze so you get your money’s worth. The pools were extremely cold, and the hot tubs were extremely hot, so we just stayed on the beach the most of the time. One bad thing was shade was at a premium, the huts were reserved for Butler level guests or you could rent one out for the day. If you were lucky you could sometimes find an empty one and use it for the day. They do have the vendors near the beach; we were told by the workers that they allow the vendors to go as far as the pier but they aren’t allowed to leave there. The spa was excellent, almost everyone in our group got a massage. It was well worth the $. The wedding itself was beautiful. The food at the wedding was excellent, the best we had all week. Originally I wanted a beach wedding, but after I got there I liked the wedding gazebo better. We just had the basic wedding package (no Preston Bailey stuff) and it was beautiful. We paid extra for the 3 hour dinner and private bar, as well as for a DJ. The DJ played all the music we wanted. They also set the tables up how I wanted, and the wedding coordinator put out the decorations and favors that we brought. The pictures were beautiful. We did have some issues while we were there, mostly with the concierge. The reason we booked that room was to get the free wedding. I wouldn’t recommend the concierge otherwise; my friends and family all had regular level rooms and they got dinner and tour reservations without problems. The concierge neglected to tell us when our wedding coordinator appointment was (we ended up missing it and had to reschedule), and one night they screwed up our dinner reservations. When we went back to them on both occasions to get the situations resolved, they told us, exact words “it’s not our problem.” They never attempted to call someone or try to resolve those two situations, nor did they offer any apology. That room level is a waste of money. We also had a problem with the photo shop. We paid in advance for our wedding photos, and we went down and looked at the pictures they took and picked out the ones we wanted. They told us to come back the next day to pick them up. My Mom wanted to buy pictures 2, so she had went later that day to look and pick out the ones she wanted. While she was there, they told her that they had forgotten to show us all of our sunset photos since they were in a different place than the rest. The photo shop had made NO attempt to contact US to let us know they had forgotten to show us photos. I had gone back the next day to see all the pictures we missed, and I received no apology. I then had to spend unbudgeted money to buy the extra pictures since they were beautiful. Had I seen them the first time around, I would have picked them originally and wouldn’t have had to spend the extra money. We had 6 members of our group leaving to go back home. Their bus was scheduled to leave at 3:00 to take them to the airport. Well, about 3:10 there was still no bus for them to take. Finally a bus did show up but the driver told them he was the shuttle not the airport bus. After begging, he agreed to drive them to the airport. That should have NEVER been an issue; they had confirmed with the front desk a ride would be there. All in all in spite of the things that went wrong, we did have a great time, lots of good memories. It wasn’t exactly as luxurious as they made it out to be. I probably wouldn’t revisit Sandals, not because it was too terrible, but because it wasn’t all that special, and I would rather go somewhere new.

I'm in my late 20's and we traveled with a large group of people (10) ranging in age from 26-43, I think I can honestly say we were all let down. We had these high expectations of what to expect when we got there, and it certainly wasn't no working hot tubs, ants in our room, the phone not working, the constant loud construction (which would have been ok if we knew ahead of time), and barely any night life unless you leave the resort. We've all decided we would for sure go to another sandals resort, but just not this one. I really wanted, and expected a lot more for my money.

I'm sorry but, I just cannot believe this is even close to a 4 star resort. I have traveled far and wide and this was a real let-down. The entire resort complex needs restorations. While the weather was excellent, the pools were too cold to go swimming. Even the water of the pool at the swim-up bar was just too uncomfortable to get in. Speaking of the swim-up bar, be prepared to hike. It is not where you would think. One of the hot tubs was so green you could not even see the bottom. A fountain located near our room was not working and appeared to have been broken for quite some time. It was full of dirty water. The resort was generally clean but, not what you would expect from an over $2,000 6-day only resort. The food was only fair. The workers were helpful but, there was no other-side of the counter, waiters / waitresses working on the beach or for the bar. Sorry, I am just not impressed with this particular resort location (at the end of the runway...... literally).

We traveled with another couple to this resort and loved it. We are in our late 20s and wanted an upbeat place. They had a lot of nightly entertainment, but we mostly made our own fun. We partied late into the night(flipcup anyone!) and noone cared. I think they were quite amused by us. The resort was beautiful, the food was good. The boat to Jimmy Buffet Margaritaville was really fun. The staff was incredibly nice. You do need to make reservations at a lot of the restaurant, which was the only downfall.. I would definately go back.

read my review from our trip 9/06 love sandales mo bay so much we did as stated in my last review we had 19 couples this trip and its hard to please everyone but 38 people were sad to leave. the staff we so good to us my friend could not get over it. we cant say enough. we branded our group the RED NECKS and they loved us we all plan to return ASAP . THANK STAFF AT SANDALES MOBAY

My husband and I wanted a romantic, quiet vacation to celebrate our anniversary, and thought that this resort would be perfect, based on Sandals' promise of an 'ultra all-inclusive romantic vacation'. We were so disappointed. From crappy food (dinners were great, but breakfast was sub-par and really, what kind of 'luxury' resort serves mystery meat hamburgers at lunch??) to crappy service to obnoxious staff shoving a camera or bullhorn in our faces every time we found a quiet moment alone (even when we asked them politely not to)... we were really let down. We spent 5 days there and were actually looking forward to leaving. For a couples only resort, there sure were a lot of huge groups of people, and that's who they cater to. We just wanted to spend some quiet time alone together, but every time we tried to quietly relax, there was some form of 'forced fun' event planned. Example - trying to just chill at the pool bar was ruined by the staff member who started a pool drinking game with a bunch of guests. Get involved! Meet eachother! No thanks - that's not why we came. If we wanted to party with a big group of people, we wouldn't have come to a couples-only resort. Every romantic dinner was interrupted by the obnoxious camera man telling us to "Look romantic mon! Smile! Kiss!" Thanks, we *were* until you came along and took our picture after we told you not to. And no, we don't want to go purchase the photos tomorrow. Being '5 minutes from the airport' sounds great - until you learn that the only thing separating the resort from the runway is the resort's driveway and a barbed wire fence. Honestly. Nothing says 'romance' like airplanes at 7 in the morning. At every turn, we felt like we were being ripped off and asked to pay for extras at a supposedly all-inclusive resort. Even the 'fashion show' was just a way for them to parade their gift shop beachwear on stage in hopes that the idiot tourists will buy it. To top it all off, our room wasn't what we paid for (it was described on the website as having a jacuzzi tub where our butler could draw us a romantic bath for two - it turned out to have a tub smaller than our condo at home). When we wanted to compare what the website says with what we got, we were told that both of the internet kiosks are broken. Apparently, they haven't been working in months. Funny. We paid more for this 5 day vacation in Jamaica than we did for 7 days in Mexico because we thought we'd splurge on a Sandals. What a ripoff. There's no way this is a 5 star resort, and there's no way I'd go back. Friends of ours went there too and had the same experience we did, so it wasn't just a fluke. If you're actually looking for a romantic luxury getaway, I'd look elsewhere. If you want to overpay for what is ultimately a Cancun-style party vacation, well, be my guest.