My husband and I have just returned from a week at the Jolly Beach Resort (13 May - 20 May 04) and had a fantastic time! This is not a five star resort and we were aware of that when we booked it , but it is more than worthy of the three stars that it does hold. I do wonder what type of three star hotels the people who have complained are used to. As a previous reviewer has stated you get out of a holiday what you give and I agree wholeheartedly. We stayed in room 3008 which I believe is a standard room and I have no complaints at all. It is basic but you have what you need and a few extras like air con and a large t.v. The rooms are cleaned and changed daily and as for the power cuts we had one and it was off for about two seconds. The rooms have fantastic views and a day bed on the balconys which is also a nice touch. At home we have a King sized bed and the bed at JBR was quite alot larger than this. We ate at all the restaurants and the food was great but if you do fancy a change and enjoy lobster I would recommend Oj`s at Crab Hill , which is about a ten minute taxi ride away costing about 11.00US dollars. The restaurant has decking which hangs about two metres above the beach and the waves are lapping beneath you a truly romantic setting and a whole lobster was only about £25.00 with all the trimmings. The staff at Jolly Beach were all fantastic but my husband particularly took a shine to Marcia at the beach bar who seemed to be able to make a different rum cocktail for every day of the year and he assures me that they were all delicious . Also my husband had his fortieth birthday during the holiday and we ate in the Italian that night , we mentioned this to our waitress and when we finished our main course all of the staff gathered around our table whith a cake with candles in and sang happy birthday , which was a levely touch. The hawkers on the beach would approach you but a polite no thankyou was all it took and when they saw you on the following day they would just say hello and by the end of the week they were stopping for a chat! The beach is glorious and we only saw one person go topless. I could go on praising for hours and I probably already have so I will finish by saying this was really a fantastic reort and Island and we cannot wait to return with our children.

I would not recommend Jolly Beach, the staff were miserable and the food was awful. The only good thing was a restaurant near by called Melini's. I would never go back to Jolly Beach. It is a rip off! If you like quiet places to go on holiday do not go there, sometimes it feels like an 18-30's! We paid more for our room (US $350 per night) and the room was the only good thing about it. The other rooms are so small, and i heard lots of people complain about them being so small. If you like somewhere a bit more special and posh - dont go to Jolly Beach.

Was at Jolly Beach Resort from April 28th through May 6th, 2004. Beach is georgeous, staff if friendly and there are many non motorized activities.
I was amazed for a FAMILY ORIENTED resort there were many TOPLESS sunbathers. Didn't really impress my 16 year olds or my 10 year old because they were older nude women (as they say). We thought we could get lobster! NOT! Don't do Lydias seafood restaurant it's terrible! And NO LOBSTER! The best restaurants there were the Italian and the Coconut Grill by the pool. Open 10:30 to 5:00, hamburgers, hotdogs and chicken w/fries. I would not suggest doing the all inclusive because the food was not worth it! You are better to taxi out of the resort and do your own food. There are many restaurants in St. Johns one good one is Millers By The Sea - where we finally had lobster! Taxis are spendy $8 US dollars per person when you take one. So if you have a family of five like we did, $40 to go somewhere outside the resort. Money value is $1 US = $2.70 EC (eastern carribean) You can rent jet skis right on the beach for $40 US for 1/2 hour. The beach really is beautiful and you can find a secluded area where no one is. The sunsets are beautiful and the mornings are wonderful on the beach. Take a catamaran around the island. You cross the Carribean into the Atlantic, but its rough so take you dramamine. You get to see where Eric Clapton lives, snorkle and go to Shirley Heights where there was a wonderful Steel Drum Band. The resort also had a steel drum band on Tuesdays. There is no good snorkeling at the resort so plan on doing it elsewhere!

Just returned (6 May 04) from 2 weeks at Jolly Beach. At first glance the staff appeared slow and possibly a little off-hand. However I treated them with a smile, respect and thanks and within days their attitude had changed, nothing was too much trouble. The resort is great if you are travelling alone. There is no single supplement on the supersaver rooms. If you make an effort with the staff they will be friendly back to you. The beach is fantastic, the rooms clean and adequate. The food is fine and plentiful. However do not allow the beach vendors to give you massages or the like, use the salon at Jolly Harbour. Security staff are very helpful and vigilent. Will definitely return.