Ross and I stayed at Sandals Dunn’s River in Ocho Rios, Jamaica for 5 nights in April 2010. We flew US Airways, which was a first for us. We made quick stops in Charlotte both ways. Going through customs on the way home was a breeze! If we HAVE to make a connection, this was definitely the way to do it. Painless.

The one thing we always complain about when we travel is the transfer. It is nice that the transfers are included with the all-inclusive package, but sometimes springing for a private or nonstop transfer is the only way to go. We arrived in Montego Bay and found the Sandals lounge. We had a cold drink and waited for about 20 minutes for them to call us to the bus. We got to the bus and there was just one other couple there. We sat on the bus for another 30 minutes waiting for it to fill up. It was very frustrating. We knew hiring a private transfer would have been about $100, but opted to take our chances with the Sandals transfer. Lesson learned. We WILL be doing private transfers for now on, no doubt about it. The drive to Sandals was about 75 minutes. The ride itself was nice and comfortable. We were just happy to get to the resort!

Upon arrival, we were taken to the Concierge check-in and were told we were upgraded to a Honeymoon Penthouse Concierge Oceanview Room. Nice! With Sandals, rooms below Concierge level do not have room service or mini-bars in the room, both things we enjoy having. The room itself was nice. We had an oceanview balcony that looked out to the Riu Ocho Rios, too. We were in room 3513, top floor, Genoa Building. Our mini-bar was stocked with wine, champagne, beer, sodas, waters and juice. There were 4 full sized bottles of liquor on the bar, too. The bathroom had a huge Jacuzzi tub.

The restaurants were all very good. The breakfast and lunch buffets were good as well. Perhaps the best food there was the Jamaican Jerk Chicken from the snack bar. We could eat Jerk Chicken for every meal in Jamaica. Yum!

I had arranged to spend the day at the Royal Plantation, about 10 minutes down the road from Sandals. Royal Plantation is owned by Sandals. It is a small, boutique, very upscale resort listed as one of the “Leading Hotels of the World.” We met with hotel manager Peter Frasier, sales manager Winsome Chambers and wedding planner Trudane Hardware. The Royal Plantation. Now that’s where it’s at! What a beautiful place! I loved that it was small and quaint. It is luxury, but doesn’t feel stuffy. Just perfect!

Back at Sandals, we enjoyed our days on the beach or pool deck with our Appleton rum and Jerk Chicken. It was a perfect little get-away!