Jusrt returned from a 6 night stay at Beaches Negril in Jamaica. I traveled with my 2 sons and nephew (ages 15.14 and 10) I was a bit hesitant and worried based on the previous reviews I read. I was a bit concerned that I had made the wrong decision in vacation here. I'm here to tell you that not only did I make the right decision, it was the best decision as far as the kids were concerned. We all loved it!!!

Airport/Flights

We flew AA non-stop both ways. Our departure flight was on time and we actually arrived in MBJ a bit early. We cleared customs wthin 1/2hr and it only took approx 7-10 minutes to retrieve our luggage and then we were off to Sandals lounge. I can't really comment on it, because I only had time to use the restroom and then they were summoning us to the van. The kids said it was nice and they were able to refresh themselves and get a cool drink. The 1 1/2 hr ride to the resort was nice--no complaints. The van had AC and our driver kinda gave us a tour and history of various sites we passed. He also made a stop halfway and some guest did get off to use the restroom and get snacks/drinks.

Our Arrival:
First stop was Beaches Sandy Bay. Upon pulling up to this resort I was glad that I hadn't actually booked our stay there. It's appearance was nice, but the resort seemed very, very small and so close together. Upon our arrival at BN I knew I had made a good decision. We were first seated in the regular check-in lounge, but then moved to the concierge lounge because we had a suite in that category. Check-in went smoothly and we were then shown a quick tour of the resort and then taken to our room. Our bags arrived to the room a few minutes later.

Grounds:
Professionally manicured, plenty of tropical flowers and plants. Maintenance was busy everyday, raking, planting painting and various other jobs around the resort. It is truly beautiful and very romantic at night as well.

Room:
I originally booked a Honeymoon suite and was upgraded to a Beachfront suite. The room was very spacious and very very clean. It was not one the recently renovated ones, so yes the furniture was a bit dated, but just fine. The king bed was firm yet very comfy as was the pull-out sofa. My son said the rollaway was comfy as well. The bathroom was fine IMO and very clean. We were given fresh towels daily, our minifridge was restocked daily with juices, soda, bottle water and tonic. We also had nightly turndown service.
There were NO BEDBUGS! The only bug we did have in our room was roaches for 1 day. We killed all three and the next morning I was complaining to mgmt. Our room was sprayed and we didn't see anymore after that. It did take several hours after they sprayed to air out the room from the smell and fumes. They offered to move us, but I was content so I declined. I think housekeeping do a excellent job of keeping the rooms cleaned.

Food:
Very good and plentiful. I'm very picky and so are my kids. We all found plenty to eat that we liked--no complaints here at all. We mostly ate at the buffet (The Mill) and the Last Chance Saloon. There were always a good variery for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Very good non-alcoholic drinks as well and they make sure to keep them flowing.

Beach:
Soft, white, powder-fine sand. Wide and long with plenty of lounge chairs in the shade and out and lots of beach towels. Yes, guests do get up at the break of dawn to secure shaded lounge chairs, but I never did and was always able to locate some on the beach. Around the pool and lazy river was a different story. There aren't too many shaded areas here, so if you wish to get one I suggest you rise early to secure it like everyone else.
Lots of water activities and the kids took advantage of this as they went snorkeling, kayaking and rode the banana boat. They wanted to try windsurfing and water skiing, but never made it to take the lessons (offered early in the am) so they decided to try it next trip.

Activities:
They have so many activities for the kids and teens. They are kept busy all day with various activites by the teen coordinator O'neil and the kids up to age 12 have camp if interested. O'neil is truly an asset to BN and my kids fell in love with him. They spent the majority of the trip with him and the other teens.
There are activities planned every night from talent shows to fashion shows, magic shows, game shows and circus. We had a beach party one night and they have Club Liquid which has different themed night activities. The resort and mostly all activities are geared towards the kids, teens and family.

Staff:
Very friendly, warm and personable from mgmt down to waiters/waitresses. They always spoke and smiled and tried to conversate with you. They went out of their way to make sure we were enjoying ourselves and that everything was to our liking. And no, they didn't know that i was a travel agent.

I could go on and on about our vacation here, but the review is already quite long. If anyone has any specific questions, feel free to PM me or email me at tydupree@aol.com.

Overall we had a wonderful stay and we'll definitely be returning next year.

I just got back from Beaches Negril a few days ago and would like to offer my opinion on this resort. I went there for a week with my wife and three daughters, aged 10, 8, and 6 and will tell you that I would not go back.
The bus ride is a bit of a drag after a long flight. Our driver decided for some reason to stop about 15 minutes from the resort so we could get refreshments. He must have some deal with the owner of this overpriced establishment ($6 for a jerk chicken leg?)
Check in was completely disorganized. How you can take a 5 minute process and turn it into 30 minutes of complete mayhem with people arguing about who's next is beyond my comprehension.
The room we had, which was one of their suites, was pretty nice. It was spacious and well stocked with soda, water, and beer. Room service did a pretty good job keeping up with us. Our air conditioner broke one day and, though it took until 1 AM to fix it, they did take care of it.
The beach in Negril is, potentially, one of the most beautiful in the Caribbean. However, it is littered with plastic cups, plates, and other trash that the Beaches employees can't or don't want to keep up with. You can always find chairs on the beach but shady spots are a little trickier to find if and when you need them -claim your spot early if you want the shade.
The water sports area is another potentially great thing. They have plenty of sailboats, kayaks, water skiing, windsurfing, etc. However you better know how to do this stuff before you arrive because they aren't going to help you figure it out. There are also plenty of snorkeling trips, but again, if you happen to be looking for instruction or guidance, like for your kids, forget about it.
The other thing that you will quickly figure out is that the times that are listed for events, whether they are boat trips, snorkeling trips, shows - you name the event - are simply suggestions to Beaches employees. Nothing happens when it should and 30 to 60 minute delays are the norm - bring all the patience you can muster cause you'll need it!
The food is simply okay and I can accept the quality as consistent with most all-inclusives. What is unacceptable is the fact that they are constantly running out of plates, glasses, and certain dishes. Every meal is filled with frustration.
The biggest problem by far with this is resort is its unending failure to deliver service to its guests at a level consistent with its price. This extends through all levels. Everyone likes the fact that there is no need to pay gratuities at this resort and on the surface this seems great. The problem is that Beaches management clearly does not incentivise its employees to provide great service. This results in employees that simply don't care - the lack of incentive results in employees who work in low gear. When you wait 10 minutes for a server to come to your table, wait another 15 minutes for a drink at a meal, wait 20 minutes to get a burger at the grill because the cook is interested in taking one order and completing before moving to the next one, you'll realize that the system doesn't work. Beaches should lower their price by $500 and let guests tip the employees that provide them good service - maybe then the service will be reasonable.
The bottom line is that Beaches is a terrible value. Take your hard earned money and find something else. The place survives because of its name but this won't last for long unless there are some serious changes. As far as the positive reviews related to this resort, I simply can't explain them. I will say that those folks must have extremely low expectations or are under the influence of excess Red Stripe. In a way I wish I had their low expectations because if they think this was a good vacation spot they will be thrilled when they actually do go to a good place.

We just returned from a 7 day (6 night) stay at the Beaches Resort in Negril. I was hesitant after reading many negative reviews but I thought we would give it a try anyway. I am so glad we did. My husband and I loved it as did our kids, ages 12 and 13. Upon arriving in Jamaica we were taken to the Beaches/Sandals air-conditioned hospitality suite. We were shown to the cold drinks and used the restrooms. The beer tap was empty and I took this as a bad omen relecting back upon the negative reviews I had read. Nothing could be farther from the truth, this was the only disappointment of the week and not really a problem at all as we only had to wait 5 minutes to board the shuttle bus to the resort. Baggage handled efficiently and off to the resort. It was an hour and a half ride to the resort which we were prepared for. The bus did stop halfway at a local market there were only 4 people from our bus who got off so the stop was quick. Nest stop, the resort. We arrived and were immediately taken to check-in. We did have a beachfront suite with concierge service so we were taken to the concierge suite for check in. The process took only a few minutes and were shown to our room by Nicholas the concierge who gave us a tour of the resort along the way. We arrived to our room just as our bags did. The room was large and easily accomodated the 4 of us. King sixe bed very comfy. Pull-out couch and rollaway bed for the kids was great and we still had ample room. Seperate area for double vanity sinks and seperate room for toilet and shower. I had read many bad reviews about cleanliness of rooms, no hot water, noice from other rooms and poor air conditioning. We had no problems with any of that. Minimal signs of wear in the bathroom, mostly tub and tile work, but clean and what hotel doesn't show wear and tear. The view from the balcony was beautiful. We were on 2nd floor in Savannah building and overlooked the beautiful gardens with glimpses of beach and ocean through the trees. Housekeeping every day with plenty of clean towels and turn down service at night. Mini fridge stocked with water, soda, juice, Red Stripe beer and I had asked for a bottle of chardonnay. As long as you choose a "house wine" there is no additional charge. We had one delivered every day to enjoy on the balcony while hubby and I played cards and watched sunsets. The kids would take this time to cool off in x-box room before dinner. Based on reviews I was concerned about the food. We were pleasantly surprised as to how good the food was. The Mill is buffet for all meals. Atmosphere is wonderful- open air overlooking the pool. Breakfast was fantastic with more choices than you can imagine from the buffet as well as made to order eggs, omelettes, pancakes. Variety of cereals, breads, bagels and pastry. Plenty of fresh fruit as well with yogurt and granola. Lunch and dinner very good too. Make sure to utilize all the restaurants because no matter how good the buffet it is nice to have a variety. The Last Chance buffet was very good for dinner. Steaks good-not as good as your favorite steak house- but not bad. Salads very good and appetizers were good. Kids loved the nachos. Kimonos Japanese restaurant excellent and a lot of fun. It requires reservations so make them early. We booked ours at check-in. Seville restaurant was also excelent. It does have an age limit of 16 or older and dress code. The food and service were excellent and just as good as any upscale restaurant you may enjoy at home. One night there was a beach party and dinner set up and served right on the beach. It too was very good. There are also grill options and pizza sewrved pretty much all day and night. Entertainment on the beach as well. As for entertainment, we didn't attend too many of the evening shows because we were usually tired from all the beach and sun. But the few nights we did go out the shows were good, not spectacular but entertaining just the same. The beach is gorgeous and the water every color of blue you can imagine and warm as bath water. The beach is raked every night and kept clean. The pools were clean and we saw them treating them every night. Our kids were very busy with pool, beach, kayaks, volleyball, waterparks, hobie cats and snorkeling adventures. We didn't see much of them, they would check in during the day and then off again. We felt very safe with them going off on their own. The only thing we had to pay for was para sailing. Despite many trips to the caribbean, we had never tried this before and were glad we did. It is not offered by the resort but arranged by locals on the beach. Can be pricey so shop around with the locals offering it on the beach. They say they work on commission and you must be loyal to whoever speaks to you first, but reality is were going with whoever gave us the best price for the longest ride. Snorkeling trip was great and we saw tons of colorful fish.
Local markets bring there things to the beach on selected days and we learned early that they will take no for an answer, but if you waver just a bit they try to reel you in. If you really want something don't be afraid to negotiate with them. They will usually take a fair offer. I could go on and on because this was such a great vacation. We will definately go back, in fact we booked for next year before we left. Can't wait to go back.

Jamaica: Beaches Negril
Date: April 5 to 12, 2008
Reviewer: Tourist from Michigan, USA
We left the cold climate of Michigan to enjoy the warm sunny climate of Jamaica and to attend our daughter’s wedding on the beach at Beaches Negril resort. We stayed seven days at the resort and were reluctant to leave at the end of our stay. While there, we attended our daughter’s beautiful wedding on the beach coordinated by Beaches wedding coordinator. Beaches Negril has two large pools, the water is wonderful and the swim up bar is great. We also swam in the ocean in the roped off swimming area. The ocean was actually warmer than the pools. Snorkeling is also available and included. They took us out to a coral reef where the water is about ten feet deep, we put on the fins, mask, and snorkel supplied by the resort, and swam around for approx. thirty minutes observing the ocean creatures. Very enjoyable and recommended. The five restaurants, which were included in our all inclusive package, all had very good food and we enjoyed them all. Be sure to try the Seville restaurant. It is adult only, has a dress code, has great food, and is a delightful experience. Our room was the Honeymoon Deluxe Seaside. The room was clean and neat and very comfortable. Overall we had a great vacation and would be glad to do it again.