We stayed at CA from June 21-26 and had a blast! It definitly doesn't look like the 5 star resorts when you pull up to the front, but it is perfect for what you pay for. The rooms are spacious and nicely decorated. I emailed CA and asked that we have a king bed rather than two double beds and upon arrival they upgraded us for free to a honeymoon suite, which was very nice and had an awesome view! (room 30). Our air conditioner worked the whole time and we had great water pressure/never lost hot water.

The beaches are small but there are plenty of seats and tables to choose from out on the beach. A lot of people have complained about the ocean... it is blocked off by rocks but it is still perfectly fine to play in or get a mat and float around. One thing we didn't like was the specific eating times. Breakfast is 7:30-10:30, lunch 12:00-2:30, lunch snacks (hamburgers) 12-5:00, dinner 7-9;30. There was also a late night snack from 11-12 but we never went to it. They really need to have like a snack bar for a small snack between lunch and dinner, because otherwise you're stuck eatinga hamburger (which are delicious though).

The entertainment staff does a great job. They try to get everyone to participate in activities but if you tell them you don't want too then its fine, they won't badger you to participate.

As far as drinks go...the cups are small but there is a bar within 20 feet of wherever you are in the resort so its not a big deal to just run up to the bar and get a refill...and theres never a line at the bar so theres really no reason to complain about having to get up to get your own drinks during the day. At dinner your waiter will bring you drinks.

You might feel a little restricted at CA because it is small but there are plenty of excursions you can do... we went into Ocho Rios and did Margaritaville, Dunn's River, and the Wilderness ATV tour to Murphy's Hill (I highly reccomend each of these). Also, they do say its safe to walk around Runaway Bay but 1)there's nothing there and 2)it really didn't seem safe to us. We wanted to go get some good seafood one night so the cab driver took us to Flavours...but, he wouldn't leave us until he had checked things out to make sure it was safe. This was a red flag for us so we asked to be taken somewhere else (one look around at Flavours and we were sure we would have been jumped and robbed when the cab driver left). So, he took us to Runaways Sports Bar and Grill. The food there is awesome but we were the only tourists there and got totally ripped off. We were scared to be out there when it got dark so as soon as we ate we hightailed it back to CA. If you're in Runaway Bay the best thing to do is just stay at your resort. We felt totally safe in Ocho Rios.

As most other people have said, the staff at CA is very nice; most notably the front desk workers, neil, winston, and the maids. A few of the bartenders acted like it was a pain for them to have to fill up a cup of red stripe for you, but if you give them a $1 tip every few drinks they will remember you and be nicer.

We really did love Club Ambiance, it was an awesome place to stay for our first visit to Jamaica. We probably won't stay there again only because we like to try out new places when we travel... but otherwise I would def reccommend it to anyone who isn't looking for 5 star but wants a good time and a really great little resort!

My husband and I stayed at Club Ambiance June 7-12 and couldn't have picked a better place in Jamaica to spend our anniversary. We try to get away once a year at our anniversary by ourselves, leaving our children with the grandparents. Because of this it was pretty important to us to find a place that was "adults only" and all inclusive at the same time. Seeing that we had a few choices out there, we chose Club Ambiance based on the positive reviews, the size of the resort, and I'd be lying if I didn't say the price.

I know everyone talks about pulling up to the resort and mouths dropping, worry sets in, etc., but personally for us, the only resort we saw that was in plain sight and considered "mega" was Grand Bahia. Many other resorts are set off the roadway and aren't in plain sight. So when we pulled up, we felt Club Ambiance just fit in with the natural surroundings of the area. We like the fact that this resort is authentic Jamaica. Our outlook was... why go to Jamaica and stay at the Ritz? We can do that at home in Florida. We wanted to experience Jamaica and Club Ambiance allows you to do just that.

We arrived and felt we had one of the best rooms on the property. We stayed in Honeymoon 2 and the curved furnished balcony extended directly over the sea. What gorgeous views! Ziggy, who lived on the property next door would wave to us each morning (you have to go visit his "future walmart") The decor was bright and cheerful. The bed was a little hard for our taste, but we still slept well most nights. The a/c unit appeared to be pretty new with a remote control and kept the room extremely cool. The bathrooms are outdated like others say, but again, we are not at the Ritz and this just fit authenticity of the resort. Our jacuzzi tub was underneath a window overlooking the sea. The shower pressure will leave indentions in your back, but I'd rather have that than no pressure at all. Hot water doesn't stay around too long, so get in the shower, do what you have to do and get out in time for your significant other to have some hot water. I have to say there are only two things that bothered us about our room. First, the pool pump room is located right underneath H2 and turns on and off every 30 seconds. If you pay attention to it, it can be bothersome, but if you try to not listen so attentively to it, you can still get a good night's sleep. Second, there is no door or curtain on the bathroom, so if you are trying to have a romantic getaway with your partner, have them go out on the balcony while you do your business as this can ruin the romance quickly ;) if you know what I mean. This was the same in H1 as we had friends staying in that room. I can't tell you how the other suites were, maybe they have doors or curtains.

The staff at CA is phenomenal. Thanks to Gilbert for answering so many questions through email for us even before our stay. We wanted to eat at the Terrace Grill for our anniversary, however it is closed on Sundays, but that didn't matter. Gilbert and Sharon (the restaurant mgr.) set up a special table for us outside decorated with hibiscus and balloons and served us the steak and lobster dinner just as if they would have on the Terrace. Thank you so much for making our anniversary dinner so special! Kerisha down at the Legends Bar is a trip! We met her the first night and felt like we knew her for years. She is so much fun...(Kerisha I hope you don't mind me saying this but I just have to)...she makes the best Bob Marley shots :). A true art! Neil knew us by name the first day we arrived. Kenroy was such a sweetie and knew our favorite drink. Other staff members were also so much fun and worked very hard entertaining the guests, raking the beach, and being just plain kind.

The food was very tasty. Something different each night. Corn on the cob in coconut milk was outstanding. Breakfast omelets were delicious and the eggs benedict was so good. The fruit was sweet, especially the pineapple and mangoes. Jamaican night is the night to be there. During the day they grilled corn and ribs on the beach grill and at night they grilled jerk chicken and pork, served rum with coconut water that they cut open right in front of you, sweet sugar cane and much more. That was by far the best food all week. Desserts (except for the banana's foster type dessert on our anniversary) were somewhat bland, but then again I have an enormous sweet tooth and like very sweet desserts. The jerk burgers were a little too spicy for my taste, but my husband loved it. I thought the grilled cheese was wonderful comfort food.

Having stayed at larger, upscale all inclusives in places like Mexico, we know the positives and negatives of both. Yes, you have more restaurant choices, but it is a huge pain to have to wait for a golf cart to take you from one place to another since everything is spread out so largely at mega resorts. I have to say, the one thing that we absolutely loved about Club Ambiance is everything was right there. Yes, it's small, but for us that is a positive. I left my room 2 minutes prior to my massage at the massage hut at the other end of the property. Not that we are not active people or are too lazy to walk, but when you are on vacation, you don't want to spend 20 minutes or so trying to get to the pool area. This came in handy also if you had to run back to your room for something. The beaches were small, but served there purpose and I still came home with a tan. Overall, Club Ambiance was a great experience. When we travel back to Jamaica in the future, we would definitely stay here again.

I just returned from a short stay at Club Ambiance and had a very nice time. I usually stay at a bigger resort, but wanted to try something a little different for this stay. I wasn't disappointed.

As others have said, this resort is older and small, but very personable. The staff is very friendly and the entertainment staff are a riot and surely try to keep things going.

The food is average....not as many choices as others, but then again, the resort is smaller. There was always something there though that filled you up. The desserts a little disappointing. Breakfast was very very good.

Drinks were very good, especially the mudslides and Jamaican sex on the beach, my favorites, of course!! They didn't lack for a great selection.

I was disappointed that they didn't have the glass bottom boat ride, ...we did try the paddleboats and had fun with them. The pool was nice, but not as clean as I have seen, but, you make do...it cooled you down anyway!! There was never a problem getting a chair at beach or pool, that is one plus for a smaller resort.

My room was ok, bathroom a bit outdated, was very clean though and the A/C worked great, thank god, because it was quite hot while I was there.

The entertainment was very good for such a small resort, the shows in the evening had great singers and the music was excellent, of course, it was mostly all reggae, but hey, your in Jamaica and besides, I love it!!

I am returning to Jamaica, but will probably go back to the resort that I usually stay at, but would recommend CA to anyone that wants a quiet , relaxing and enjoyable vacation!!

When an older lady on the bus sang “Cheeseburger in Paradise” I was glad my wife and I were on our way to the airport. After months of counted days and our high levels of anticipation were spent, our Jamaican vacation came to a close. But as I sat on the 8 o’clock bus, weary from hangovers and other mood enhancers, I was happy we had chosen Club Ambiance.
Of course there are more modern, nicer hotels all over Jamaica. We passed a few on the way. Yet we picked Club Ambience for the value.
When the nice bus ride dropped us off at the front door a tray of drinks awaited us. As we entered our room I noticed it would only take a half-hearted kick to open the door, and the balcony door as well. So a safe key is something they knew we were going to rent.
We arrived on a Tuesday. That week Tuesday night was Italian night. Having had our fair share of pizza in the airport we were dismayed to hear that. Thankfully we were surprised. The Chicken Marcella was second to none. And the breaded red snapper was the best thing I ever washed down with a Red Stripe.
Overall, the food was very good. Jamaican day had to be my favorite. The terrace grill served great cheeseburgers, but would be a hit of a miss with having chips from day to day. My biggest complaint with the food was desserts. Chocolate was close to non existent, and the other pastries were not all that good. Breakfast served the same variations of food every morning. So if you stay over three days you better like omelets.
We wanted to do something special on our last night so we made reservations at the Terrace Grill. When we made reservations we were told we had to pick what we wanted then. But when we got there we had to pick again. I picked the surf & turf, and my wife chose the filet mignon. The salad was just lettuce, and the appetizer (fish cakes) was pretty much just another salad. We only received one fish cake apiece, which is the size of an American silver dollar.
The entrees arrived after we sat for over an hour. Instead of my steak being a sirloin, and my wife’s a filet mignon, we both were served flank steak that was dry, overcooked, and tasteless. The lobster was overcooked. This meal was a disaster. The food and wait staff were both better at the buffet hall. We had to go to the bar to get our own drinks! Not worth the extra $25US apiece.
The staff was excellent. Some better than others, but everyone’s main objective was to have a good time.
We never finished one of their nights of entertainment. Instead we chose to sit on the abandoned beach, or go swimming while everyone else was occupied. When we wanted to be left alone, everyone gave us space. Very nice quality.
The room stayed clean. Our maid seemed to know when we went out for the day, and would keep our room in great shape. Towels were picked up in the late morning and dropped off in the late afternoon. We reserved honeymoon suite 1. Oddly enough no one mentioned in prior reviews that it had no bathroom door! The was a fence that ran through the view, but not really a problem.
Club Ambiance has three beaches. Each one was no more than thirty meters long. So don’t expect long walks on the beach unless you are going to pace back and forth. Although during the day it was never hard for us to find a covered place to enjoy the sun. Snorkeling out past the wave breaks was great.
On Thursday we decided to get a massage since nothing much was going on. The website claims the massage hut was on the beach, and it technically was, buy you can’t see the ocean. My thirty minutes was generously extended to forty, but only four or five minutes was dedicated to my back. A good bit of the time concentrated on my legs because the lady could sit down at the back of the hut while she rubbed me. Definitely not worth the money.
This review leaned toward the negative, but as I said we had a blast. We were glad we had stayed at Club Ambiance. We met cool people. Even though we didn’t participate in the games, and we shied away from the entertainment, we got exactly what we wanted. Our own small piece of Jamaica. In the end, Club Ambiance was what we made of it.

Helpful tips: Even though food is served thorough out the day, take some snacks with you. After twelve you can’t get any food. The gift shop charges $7US for a big bag of potato chips. One of the couples we met said the gift shop charged $12US for a small bottle of aloe vera. Do not go on the shopping trip to Ocho Rios unless you really like very high pressure shopping and people trying to con a dollar out of you. If you do go flip your bracelet around, or take it off. Otherwise all the hawkers will tell you they work at the hotel. Take only small bills. Ones, fives, tens, and twenties. Make sure you know the exchange rate. The hotel has the best rates of exchange.