My husband and I took our 4th trip to a Couples resort the second week fo December 2009. We have been to Swept Away in Negril and Tower Isle in Ocho Rios. We have returned to Swept Away twice because it really suited us in every way. We got a good deal to Sans Souci so thought we'd try another Couples Resort since we've had such great experiences at their other locales. It took us a few hours to quit comparing Sans Souci to Swept Away. But then Sans Souci won our hearts. We weren't able to pin it down at first but we finally realized that besides the beautiful property, it is the general manager Pierre and his staff that make this place complete. He conducts himself in such a way, that you feel as though you have arrived at his home, and his staff is his family who follow his lead and are happy to do it.
Swept Away also has a wonderful staff, but there seemed to be a more personal touch that we felt at Sans Souci that won our hearts forever.
I did the pre check in for the Romance Rewards (for repeaters to Couples resorts) information about a week before we left. It is online and I did not receive any confirmation so wasn't sure what exactly that did for us until we arrived.
When you get off the plane and get through customs etc.. and get your bags, you proceed straight to the Couples Lounge at the airport. They give you complimentary drinks, soda, water etc.. and have a private bathroom facility. A bellman will ask you what Couples resort you are going to and will take your bags. We sat and relaxed in the Couples Lounge for about 20 minutes then was called to get on the bus to Sans Souci (and Tower Isle). Only us and another couple were going to Sans Souci.. .the rest of the bus was filled with Tower Isle guests. We were dropped off first. We couldn't believe how much the road to Ocho Rios has improved since our last trip... plus it was a much shorter trip. Only 1 1/2 hrs instead of over 2 last time. A gentleman came on the bus after we were seated and asked if anybody wanted a Red Stripe for $3 each... this seemed ludicrous to me since we got free drinks at the Lounge and were going to get free drinks at the resort... but unbelievably several PAID to get MORE beer for the ride. Then of course guess who needs to stop to go to the bathroom?? We just want to get to the resort as quickly as possible. And so we had to chuckle to ourselves when these people were begging the driver to stop for a break (and to buy more beer) and he refused because it was late at nite and he didn't want to let a bus load of tourists out. So they had to hold it.
We arrived at the resort and it was later at nite, so it was dark and really couldn't see the beauty of the place at that time. We were greeted by Lij, who is Sans Souci's greatest asset in my opinion... he is everywhere, all the time, and does everything... no kidding... and always with a smile on his face and relaxed. I think he must be a robot! He never sleeps!
He greeted us and said "welcome home" which was wonderful, and another gentleman took our bags. Lij took me and the other lady to the reception desk while the bell man took my husband and the other husband to handle the bags.
I was pleasantly surprised when Lij handed me an envelope with everything already taken care of... it had our invitation to the repeaters dinner in it, our free massage certificates, our gift shop credit gift certificate and a letter from Pierre in it, along with our room already assigned. It also included a map of the resort, a list of the week's acctivities, and other resort information. It had our name on it and everything. All I had to do was give Lij our credit card for the imprint, and fill in our departure time and sign the form. All done! I knew then that the online pre check in for our repeaters romance rewards did what it was supposed to.
Then we were scooted off to our room, but we were so turned around with the stairs and turns and it being dark. But it was gorgeous, a penthouse in D block and we quickly did a tour of the room, and headed out to find the beach grill for a late nite supper.
Well we were still so turned around that we went the wrong way and climbed stairs and went down stairs forever before an employee took pity on us and took me by the hand to take us to the beach grill... he was so nice and said "in the morning in the daylight, you'll see where everything is"... he was right.
We enjoyed chatting with the bartender at the beach bar, and had pizza and cheeseburgers at the grill and had our first smoothie of the week... one of many! We don't drink alcohol except for a bit of wine with supper, so we always got virgin smoothies with bananna and strawberry.
Our routine became a late rise... room service breakfast about 9am on our balcony, enjoy the view of the beach, relax in the room, go down to the beach, find some shade (lots of shade on the beach). Read, go out and float in the water, read some more... eat lunch at Pallazine or Beach Grill (we alternated)... back to our shady spot, read some more... go to the swim up bar at 2:30 or so... play around over there. 4pm we would get fries from the beach grill (WONDERFUL)... then at 5pm we'd go over to Sunset Beach and watch the sunset (BEAUTIFUL) then back to our room to get ready for dinner. Then to the Balloon Bar afterwards to see what trouble we could get into before going to bed about 10:30, or 11:00 each nite.
The beach is a complete 360 from Swept Away. It is literally a couple minutes walk between cliff to cliff... it is SMALL. And the bottom is slimy with algae. But once I got used to that I was fine... I quit missing the vendors walking along like at Swept Away, and I quit missing the "people watching" that I loved at Swept Away when all the other resort guests would stroll the shoreline as we were laying on the beach. This beach is so private and quiet... we decided we LOVED it... and there were seldom more than a few other couples on the whole thing... and no hut hogging as is the case at Swept Away... we wouldn't get down there until 10am sometimes and we always got a hut to lay under or a big palm tree. Most of the time I was the only one floating in the water.. .the privacy at Couples Sans Souci is a great feeling. It really helped my husband and I to reconnect and fall in love all over again.
One thing to note... I usually sunbathe topless on the beach. We aren't quite up to the au natural thing but I like to lay out topless. This beach is SO small that I felt more comfortable laying out topless on a floatie in the water instead of on the beach. Topless is allowed so no problem there. I just found myself not as comfortable with it on this beach as I had been at Swept Away. At Swept Away there was usually at least 10 or more ladies laying out topless so I felt fine. At Sans Souci I only saw one lady laying out topless at the far end of the beach (by WaterSports)... and she left during our stay and nobody else was topless during the rest of our stay that I noticed. So I just floated out a bit in the water and pulled my top off out there... I actually found I liked that better and really enjoyed it... there was rarely anybody else out in the water and I felt very comfortable. I was told there were a LOT of guests over at Sunset Beach ( au natural) but neither my husband or I are quite ready to do that yet. That may explain why it's so nice at the main beach as far as very few guests at any given time. So it's the perfect set up in my opinion... neither beach is crowded but everybody is happy.
Periodically throughout the time of our stay, while we were laying on the beach, , staff would come around with offers of cold fruit on a stick (kabobs) and would ask if they could get us anything from the bar. There are blue flags you can stick in the sand for service as well.
Lunch is either the Pallazina (buffet) or the Beach Grill. We loved both and enjoyed both.
Dinner is 3 options... reservations at Casanova where the men have to wear long pants and closed toe shoes (women can wear anything... I always wore a sundress and my flat summer sandals mostly like flip flops but dressy tops on them or leather)... the other choice is reservations at Pallazina... men can wear dressy shorts and sandals.. the last choice is Bella Vista, no reservations and just shorts and casual dress. No problems making reservations... Lij took care of it and since it's such a small number of people at this resort, even if it's full... we got any time we wanted for reservations.
The mini bar in our room was stocked as we requested... per a little form they leave each day for you to complete after they have refilled it. We requested Ting and soda and water.. and that's what we got each day. Perfect!
I wrote on the bottom one day that I'd love a bottle of white wine if possible, and sure enough, that evening when we got to our room, there was a bottle chilling in the fridge.
Housekeeping service came each day in the morning because sometimes at noon we'd go to our room and it was already done, which we liked.
They remove the blue/white striped bedspread after your first day and fold it up and put it on the shelf. Not sure why, but we just left it there.
We went on the Dunns River Falls excursion twice.. once on Thurs and once on Sunday. We'd done it twice before when we were at Tower Isle so we knew what it was and we love it more each time we do it. It's just so much fun! We wear leather "water" sandals we got at LL Bean and I carry a waterproof container around my neck with tip money and my husband carries the waterproof camera. Wear your swimsuit and take nothing else. No need to take towels, or clothing, and don't wear glasses or a hat. You'll get soaked completely and the bus seats have plastic on them and you'll be dry by the time you get to the bus anyway after leaving the falls. The market you wak through to exit can get aggressive at times, just say no thanks and keep walking, unless you are really good at haggling and can handle the pressure. It is not for the meek and easily swayed.
On the resort you don't tip (except for spa personnel after your massage)... but for the excursions you'll need tip money. Here's what the deal is for Dunns River. You need to take 4 different tips. What we do is plan ahead in our room. We take four $5 bills. All separated and folded up ready to go. I put those in my waterproof container with our room key.
After you climb the falls you tip both of your falls guides.. (one is in front and one is in the back of the line during your climb) Then you'll tip the videographer (get the video.. it is fantastic) who also is like your chaperone during the climb. And finally tip your driver when he drops you back off at the resort.
We also did the glass bottom boat tour and snorkeling (all included). No tipping to watersports guys, they are Couples employees. Again, the only people you tip is the spa/massage personnel.
We skipped the beach party and instead had room service deliver supper to our room and we ate on the balcony and watched/listened to the beach party from there. We really enjoyed that and the meal was superb.
We attended the Starlight Gala on Fri nite and WOW is about all I can say. We got dressed up and just was in awe of the whole production. They start setting it up on the lawn (back from the beach, in front of the beachfront suite buildings) that morning. There are tents all around with all different flavors to try and cuisines. One is just for dessert. It is fantastic. There were four beautiful ice sculptures as well . The entertainment is top notch, and afterwards you go over to Sunset Beach for the after party where it gets a bit wild for our taste so we just stayed for a bit and then retired to our room. Nothing that outlandish that we saw, but just a lot of people drinking too much and getting loud and acting a bit more outgoing than they probably would if they were sober! All in fun though. Lots of the staff go over as well and get right in the middle of it and have fun with the guests.
At the resort you don't use any cash to buy anything in the gift shop or services in the spa. You have to charge to your room or use a credit card. This is a change from in the past when you just bought things at the gift shop as you wanted. It's much easier this way. You just settle up when you leave the resort at the end of your stay... THEN you can pay cash if you wish instead of having anything on your credit card, which is what we did.
The nite before your departure you will find a letter in your room telling you when to have your bags outside your door and when to be in the lobby for your bus trip back to the airport.
There is a game room by the lobby that has 4 computers to check email, or facebook or whatever you want to do. We sat there for about 20 minutes before our bus had arrived and that was nice because it's air conditioned and you have on your travel clothes now instead of your swim suits so it can get hot if you are walking around the resort like that... waiting for your departure time. They come and call out "AIRPORT" when it's time. At this time you can see your bag sitting there waiting to be put on the bus, so this is your opportunity to be sure your bag goes with you.
The game room is also where you check and purchase any pictures the roaming resort photographer has taken of you anytime during your stay.
The turn down service each nite was done about 8:30... most nites they turned down the bed and put rose petals on it which was so touching and romantic to return to after dinner. Some nites it was just the turn down service and a quick clean up of the room. She also always straightened and lined up our shoes which was really neat too.
There are a couple beach vendors that are allowed in at the far end of the beach (by WaterSports)... selling the wood carvings, straw bags/hats and sandals. You only see them if you walk specifically to them, they are very polite and easy to deal with if you are interested in their wares.
We attended the repeaters dinner on Thurs nite and it was fantastic. It's held in a private room off of the Pallazina. Pierre personally came over and chatted with us and seemed to somehow know us... he's amazing. That next nite our romance rewards repeaters gift choice came... a gentleman knocked at our door and brought us champagne and chocolates... we loved it, sat on our balcony and relaxed. The next day we saw Pierre walking by the beach behind us and my husband hopped up and said hi to him... Pierre came over and remembered our names and we thanked him so much for everything his resort had done to make our vacation so special and he asked how we enjoyed our champagne and choclates... wow! How does he keep track of all that? We were so touched. So of course we told him that we very much enjoyed them and thanked him again.
Lij also was at the beach grill a few times and came over to see how we were doing, calling us by name. I honestly don't know how they do it, but it makes your vacation really special.
It rained two times during the day when we were there (8 days) and one time late at nite. The two times during the day was about 10am or so and only for about 15 minutes.. we just kept on reading under our hut and hardly noticed... it was really beautiful actually.
The others on the beach didn't really do much either... it was just a nice break from the hot sun and wasn't like a storm or anything, just like the clouds came over, dropped a bit of moisture and moved on...
The stairs are something you just have to do here... there are stairs up, down, left and right pretty much anywhere you go... we learned to just stop and take a breather at each turn and not get in a hurry. We are reasonably active people but the stairs will get you out of breath anyway. The beachfront suites in block A and block B are the farthest from the front desk/lobby/Casanova/Balloon Bar. We were in D so kinda in between the beach and the lobby. The spa is a bit down from D. It goes from Sunset Beach to building A, B, C D, E, the Lobby, and then the other buildings... so if you're at A you're in a beachfront suite, with the lawn, swim up bar, Pallazina and beach kinda right in front of you and Sunset Beach just down beside of you. It's a neat layout and easy to figure out once it's daylight and you have went to a few things. This is not a place where you "zip" back up to your room several times during the day unless you're in Block A or B which are right there. The other rooms are a little trek up the stairs and around. We did that a lot at Swept Away because of how the layout and rooms are.. you can run up to your room anytime in just a minute or two. But we found we didn't miss that either because we came to love Sans Souci so much and its charm and staff.
It was easy to use our gift shop credit... the gift shop is way out of the lobby and down to the road where cars enter... it's two story which is cool.. you walk in and think, is this it? Then you go downstairs! And there is a WHOLE STORE down there with anything you need. We got tee shirts, sarongs, pic frames etc... then just give them your gift shop credit gift certificate and all done... anything over your amount is just charged to your room (you sign and they give you a receipt so you can reconcile at checkout)
Same thing with the spa credit when we got our massages. Just make your appt, give the lady your certificate and all is done.
We tipped each of our massage therapists $10... they will come and say goodbye to you after you are dressed and that is when you give them a tip of the amount or your choosing.
I got another massage, a hot stone massage and that was just charged to our room and I paid it when we checked out. By the way, the hot stone massage with Janelle is heaven. My husband and I got our free repeaters massages in the hideaway hut, over the cliffs and it was amazing. Marsha did my husband and Janelle did my massage. She recommended her hot stone massage and so I took her up on it, and was so glad I did. I'd never had a hot stone massage and will definitely have Janelle give me another one on our next visit (yes, we will be back!)
The airport at Montego Bay has greatly improved over the last few years... there are many places to eat and shop... GOBS of places to shop at! We got a sweatshirt, bag, hat and several other things at all the shops at the airport after you go through security. It's the best shopping in Jamaica in my opinion. And they've now got several restaurants. We used to always eat at Margaritaville there, but this time we went on down and ate at the Bobsled restaurant... delicious! But it's weird to have to pay for your food again and tip... harsh reality after a week at Couples Sans Souci.
A tip when the bus drops you off at the airport... unless you have many bags, just grab your bag when the driver gets it off, tip him, then move on. No need to let the people there get your bag, it's just a few steps to the door of the airport and most on our bus did that as well. Just tip your driver, get your bag and move on inside the airport.
