hello to the Budges! :-) WOW and THANKS! I thought I was a bit "obsesive compulsive" LOL!!! but you seem to have me beat just a little LOL :-) I truly appreciate your info and it was a huge help! Thanks and I will be sure to post my opinions once we get back at the end of Jan. :-)

I have stayed at FDR resort twice. I only wished I had discovered them when my kids were younger. They really cater to the kids, you will be so spoiled from any other vacation you ever go on! I can only compare the outside appearances of the two resorts as we only stopped by Pebbles to let off passangers. To me the Pebbles appeared to be more rustic like. While FRD is not a Ritz, the rooms are clean and well maintained. The food was awesome. We all loved the snack bar (afternoon burgers with jerk sauce - yummy). Breakfast is very good and we really enjoyed some nice dinners as well. The nanny's make the experience. The only down side is the beach, but you can simply go next door to Breezes and their beach is beautiful. Swim and snorkel in the water, just can't put anything down on the sand or use their chairs.

Definately a good compromise for the lack of beach at both the FDR resorts is that they are next door to two of the nicest beaches on the North Shore that you can at least walk over to use. This is truly two fine examples of just how huge of a difference there can be in the beach quality, just from one property to the next !

Blessings and respect to all.

Much respect to your excellent post Mr. or Mrs. Budge !!!!!

Steve

Yes, Congratulations and our thanks and praise will go out to the Budges who always make very good posts that help out visitors. Especially this one which is so detailed and exact as an answer.

thank you all soooooooooooooo very much you have helped up greatly!

We have been to FDR twice and are going back in 45 days!!! We all cannot wait. We go with all of our children ( ages 1, 3 1/2, 5 1/2, 6 1/2, and 8 1/2) and my parents. We all have the time of our lives and are sad to see the vacation end. I can't see how you couldn't have an awesome time. The nannies are so wonderful and they are in our hearts all year long. We correspond during the year. Last year when we were on the bus to FDR, another family was on the bus that was supposed to go to Pebbles. They had four children that were all teenagers. The family was not really sure about their final destination, and they wound up at FDR. They were given lunch and then they were sent to Pebbles. I would only offer you this wisdom- when we asked the nannies about Pebbles, they told us that it is for older children and teens and that the FDR is the best place for our family. They said we would not be happy there.

Now, about the food- there has been so much written about this subject!!! We will always find a great meal. The jerk chicken at the grill is divine and the breakfasts, lunches and dinners are more than just edible. There is a large assortment and there are both Jamaican and American styled dishes. I recall reading a review that complained about the Jamaican dishes---what do they expect?? They are in Jamaica. The food at the FDR will never be world class cuisine, but it is not trying to do that either. You will not go hungry, and you will probably get quite full. I am probably less fussy than most, because any meal that is cooked for me and served to me and I don't have to clean it up, well, it has to be good!!!

The beach is not great for adults, but the children sure do enjoy themselves in it. It is very safe for them. The pool is better than adequate and my son waits on line for the water slide.

Good luck with whichever resort you pick. Have a great trip!!

B

We just returned from Pebbles and had an absolutely terrific time. I, too, was nervous about some of the negative reviews I had read, but we had absolutely no complaints. I just wrote a review on tripadvisor.com, which should be posted today, so take a look (I list myself as being from New England -- should be the most recent post).

Feel free to get in touch if you have any questions: lisa@epicembroidery.com.

Can we get to FDR Resort on a package deal from Toronto. We were interested in going to the FDR rather than pebbles but we could not find a tour operator in Canada who offered it . They only offerred FDR Pebbles.

FamilyTravellers,

I am afraid that you will not find a package for the FDR from any of our "tour companies"....

However, FDR Pebbles is currently being offered through Sunquest (this is who we booked through).

The odd thing about this is, during the begining of the season "Sunwing" was carrying both the FDR and the FDR Pebbles however, it now appears that "Sunwing" "dropped" Jamaica all together from their winter offerings....

However I noticed their "website" has yet to reflect this change.... So maybe they intend to "pick up" Jamaica once again for the upcomming season...

It might be something you could talk to your travel agent about....

I have included a link to "Sunwing's' website, I have booked several of my Cuban vacations through these guys and have had no complaints... Good Luck!

http://www.sunwing.ca/Destinations.asp