Resort is brand new. Another Bob Parrott (owner) gem. Beautiful landcaping design (Robert Schwarz). Excellent suites, lush foilage, beautiful beaches, clean restaurants and eco-friendly. The staff is overly friendly and the food is very good. The facility is centrally located with the restaurants, spa, gym,casino and main bar in one awesomely designed caribbean style structure. Pool is large and the bar is close by with flat screen televisions. Nightly entertainment is provided and is fantastic. This is a truly all-inclusive resort...no one bothers you and there are no hidden charges. If you go, say hi to: George, Jodi, Neal, Vera, Monique, Lionel, Steve, Michael, Jamoy, Dayton, Hilroy and that timid little dog that runs around the resort. Also, take the walk to Devil's bridge and say hi to donkeys on the way.........I'll be back!!!!!!!!!

My friend and I just returned from a stay at the Verandah and here is what we thought

Rooms
Gorgeous, huge, clean, great view. Huge bathroom and lots of room for all your luggage

Food
Delicious food all around. The variety of food was outstanding. Breakfast and lunch were always buffets. Dinner could be a buffet or order from a limited menu. We are kind of picky eaters and we always found something delicious (especially the desserts). We thought there was only a dress code at Nicole's (the upscale restaurant) but there was a dress code at ALL restaurants (collared shirts for guys, dresses/skirts for women, NO FLIP-FLOPS!). Reservations were required at all restaurants which was never a problem. The only 2 issues we had were:

1. Making a reservation through guest services never worked. They never called the restaurant for us.

2. Bucaneers would randomly be closed without anyone telling us. We would try to make a reservation and whoever answered the phone would say they were closed and acted like we should have known that.

Beach/Pool
The beach was bigger and nicer than we thought it would be. We had no problems getting a chair or using kayaks/paddle boats, etc., even in the middle of the afternoon. Since the beach is kind of in a 'cove', it was always calm (and warm!) The pool was gorgeous and there was always a bunch of open chairs and it seemed like everyone sat by the pool but there was rarely anyone IN it.

Activities
BINGO and beach olympics were tons of fun. There were also planned activites everyday (i.e. every Wednesday there was BINGO, every Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday, there was a walk to Long Bay). The walk to Devil's Bridge was the best. Jodi led the walks and he was super nice and informative.


Guest services sucked. We had a bunch of questions about things (dress code, rainforest tour, etc.) and they said they would call us with answers but never did. Also, there was a pool table located in the casino, which was suppossed to be open from 5pm-midnight. One night around 9pm, we wanted to play pool but the door was locked. We asked the bartender if she had the key and she was EXTREMELY rude and kept shaking her head at us and telling us she didn't have the key. It would have been nice of her to tell us who could assist us instead of just being rude. There seemed to be a theme of things not being open when we thought they were.

Overall, we had a great time. The rooms and amentities outweighed the random unhelpfulness and random closing of restaurants and casinos.

We arrived at The Verandah at 11:30 PM and were greeted with courtesy & enthusiasm. They even had a late night snack prepared & waiting for us. Our suite was immaculate & beautifully appointed. Very spacious. Our suite front faced the pool area and we had a very nice view of the ocean off our back patio. Everywhere we went the grounds were manicured, neat & clean. The pool is huge with a fountain in the center. No shortage of chairs.

Our reason for the visit was our daughter's wedding.
The wedding planner went above & beyond all expectations. There is usually some kind of problem with a wedding, but not at this hotel. He thought of every detail and followed each & every step to insure the wedding was perfect. They have a number of location choices for the ceremony & decorate the gazebos in beautiful island flowers. The gentleman who performed the ceremony was very dignified but had a great sense of humor that relaxed all. You really can't ask for more. The photographer was inventive with the pictures & missed nothing.
Our meal after the wedding was excellent. They had the food layed out in displays & it tasted great.
We sampled all the restaurants while there & the food was delicious in all. A wide variety of choices. Service is friendly & the staff if very attentative. We spent a week there & enjoyed every minute. If you're at the hotel, in town or on an excursion the people are friendly & very helpful. I can't say enough good things about this hotel. We have stayed in all inclusives before, but this one tops them all. You feel like they really care about you.
Sorry about the wrong date on photo's, forgot to set it.

Ian & Devina

Lots of good things have already been said by many others, before this...Great food, nice hotel, very clean, blah blah blah. So, I will tell you what you really need to know...

This is a fantastic holiday for couples mid 20's and upwards, older couples, and small families of 3 or 4. I would not recommend this for young couples or large groups. This is only because the evening entertainment is quite low key and there is not really a large main "strip" nearby for all night entertainment, as seen on larger caribbean islands. The bar and restaurants get quiet after about 10.30 to 11pm.

This hotel is mainly visited by English tourists, and a few Americans.

Nicoles a la carte restauarant is fabulous. But you need to keep booking, as it gets full up most nights. The waitresses here are all very friendly and helpful. Its well worth befriending the staff as they are warm and funny people who love to talk and joke. The buffet restuarant is fine, plenty of choice, but the setting is not great. Sea Breeze is somewhere in between the two. The only problem is that it is very rare that all 3 are open together, so you are limited on occassions.

The beach bar grill is only open until 4pm. So there is nowhere to get mid evening snacks before dinner, which starts at 7pm, or late night snacks after 10.30pm. This is one of my few complaints. (aswell as there is not yet a jacuzzi on site).

The main beach is quite small, as the hotel is in a sheltered bay. The water is turqu, turquio, turqoisue, turquiose...light blue, warm, shallow and safe. Definately try out the water sports, sailing/hobbie cats. This is great fun and easy to sail. (If you can, try and meet the abusive American woman who lives in the big house near the reef. she thinks she owns the bay, and is always up for an argument if you sail close to the jetty. She even swims out and chases the boat and continues to shout abuse. she is absolutely priceless). The beach staff guys are all great, and worth befriending to make your stay more enjoyable. "Garjo" is always looking for drinking buddies to accompany him into St.Johns. And they all love a game of cricket on the beach...

The main towns of English Harbour (south coast) and St Johns (West coast) are 25 to 30 mins away. Return trip in a cab costs £25 to £30. It is far cheaper to hire a car for a day than use taxis. But do not hire a car from the office stationed at the hotel, they are more expensive, not very helpful, and argue over lateness and petrol. There is one in the nearby village of willikies. They charge about £40 for a day, for a Rav 4 jeep.

You must visit Shirley Heights on a Sunday evening. Great entertainment, music, food, and views of the bay below. Recommend you hire a car for a couple of days and see the island. drive on the left. Visit Half moon bay, darkwood beach, Nelsons dockyard, Dickenson Bay, and St. Johns at least. Also, take a drive through the middle of the island and get lost in Fig tree drive...Also, hire a boat and go deep see fishing, £250 for 4 hrs, upto 5 persons. Bargain!

We had 2 whole weeks of glorious sunshine, 30 degrees every day. I would recmommend visiting at this time of year as you get a better deal. The rain doesnt usually start until late June/July.

Overall, this was a fabulous 2 week vacation. But I would recommend you shop around for prices before you book. All inclusive for 2 weeks at this time of year is anywhere between £1250 and £1800 per person. Dial-a-flight were the best agents we found. If I paid more than about £1450 each, I would feel slightly cheated. I was more than happy with £1250 price tag agreed.

But what else can I say, We shared the hotel with the likes of Maxi Priest, Damien Marley, Shaggy, oh, and our very own Wayne Sleep made a visit !!! Even Kenny Rogers visited for lunch one day!!! There was a 3 day music concert staged at The cricket stadium. So, if the hotel was good enough for shaggy, then its good enough me!

And lastly, "No worries", Big up, ere me now, nuff respect to "Captain" Zac, Jess "laugh straight in your face", Big Daz and Helen "Lush".

Ian & Devina
"We aint no Chavs"