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Our Honest Review of Our Amazing Jamacia Trip!

How has it already been seven months since we were vacationing in paradise in the fabulous Caribbean Island of Jamacia? In May 2023, we were offered the amazing opportunity to experience the fabulous resort, Sandals Ochi, located in Ocho’s Rios, Jamacia. We were so excited to experience Jamacia in what most think are the most romantic resorts in the world. Below is our honest review of our amazing Jamacia trip!

Arriving to Jamacia

Like most international airports these days, the customs line was pretty long, but it did move. Once through the customs line, we headed to the complimentary Sandals lounge area in the airport. In typical Sandals fashion, the fun started in the airport. The airport lounge was air conditioned, had private restrooms, alcoholic beverages, and snacks.

By the time we checked in at the lounge, used the restrooms, and grabbed a drink; we were being called to our shuttle. We were guided through the airport, outside, to our shuttle bus. Our bus was not crowded at all as it had maybe 2 other couples on it. The ride to Ocho’s Rios is a good hour and a half, so thankfully the bus was air conditioned and did stop halfway to our destination for a quick restroom/snack break if we wanted.

Sandals Ochi

Sandals Ochi is a unique Sandals property as it is technically split up into 2 properties, with a highway in between the two properties. One side is on the ocean, and the other is on a hill. Both sides have amazing pools, restaurants, and bars! No need to worry if you are on the hill side and want to go to the beach OR are on the ocean side and want to go to the hill side, as Sandals provides a complimentary shuttle to take you back and forth.

The shuttle driver knows which side to drop you off for check-in. The shuttle driver took us to the ocean side where our room would be. When we arrived, the baggage handlers removed our bags from the shuttle bus, and we were escorted to the check-in desk. We were promptly greeted with a welcome drink, cold towel, and started the check-in process. We had to quickly sign the typical check-in form, and then were escorted to our room.

It is important to note that we did receive our stay at a significantly discounted rate and thus were put in the cheapest rooms. If there was anything negative to say, it would be about the room. If I was to suggest anything, it would be to not skimp for the cheapest room, instead upgrade to a higher category as you will be much happier. Our room was not bad by any means, did have a view of the lush landscaping and a small pool in the distance, but next time I would opt for a higher category.

Property

The Sandals Ochi property is absolutely beautiful! The grounds are lush, vibrant green, meticulously manicured, and just absolutely beautiful! Palm trees, koi ponds, and helpful employees can be found throughout the property.

One thing to note is that the property is pretty big and spread out. To get to basically anything, you have to take multiple stairs. Keep this in mind when its 100 degrees outside – bring a portable fan and be sure to drink lots of water!

Activities

While Sandals Resorts embrace romance; it is important to note that if you want to be around people and do activities, Sandals definitely has these options too. Even on your honeymoon, there will be times when you might want to do something else fun or get away from your new spouse for a little bit. In the lobby of each building, there was a digital board that listed out all of the activities available each day.

One activity that we participated in was the Silent White Disco – this is a party held in the evening on the hill side. Everyone shows up in white, grabs a headset and dances to the songs that they want. The headsets offer about 4 options of different kinds of music – 90s, 2000s, R&B, etc. just to name a few. This is quite entertaining! There is also a chocolate buffet this evening towards the end of the disco. Yum!

We also visited Miss Ethels Bar – located on the hill side. This is a speakeasy where you must know the password to get in. Don’t worry as you can ask any employee for the password, and they will gladly give it to you 😉 The speakeasy singer was AMAZING! She had a heart of gold and belted songs like no one’s business! This was a fun evening!

Restaurants

One of our favorite restaurants at this resort, was actually the breakfast buffet. Usually buffets are mediocre at best, but this breakfast buffet was amazing. There were so many stations setup – breads, fruits, pancakes, hot items, omelet station, etc. The atmosphere was also great as you have the option to sit inside or outside on the patio. Either way, the view is breathtaking!

While on the property, we also tried many of the restaurants:

• The tapas restaurant – Small dishes. BEAUTIFUL VIEW! See below!
• Soy – the sushi restaurant. This restaurant was really quite tasty with a lot of options.
• Kimonos – the Teppanyaki restaurant – One of those restaurants where you sit at the grill and the chefs cook in front of you. This food was really tasty!
• The restaurant on the sand by the big pool – Sandwiches, wraps, etc.
• The Southern Table (on the hill side) – Southern food, pretty tasty.
• The pizza spot – This was located by the pool we hung out at. The pizza was large, hot, and delicious.

Menus for all the restaurants can be found below:

Pools

Between the “two” resorts at Ochi, there were a lot of pools to choose from. We saw 4 pools while we were there.

• One on the hillside resort – this was a very large pool.
• On the ocean side, to the left of the resort is the main big pool
• On the ocean side, to the right of the resort is a pretty decent size pool – this is the pool we stayed at. There were basketball hoops to play with, a swim up bar, and a plethora of lounge chairs!
• On the ocean side, outside of our room, to the right of the resort is a small pool. We didn’t see many people at this pool but looked to be a nice place to relax by yourself.

Final Thoughts

We had a great time at Sandals Ochi! Being a quick flight (many non-stop) from most U.S. cities, Sandals Ochi is a great all-inclusive property to visit if you don’t want to spend a lot of money (this is one of the cheapest Sandals resorts), want a quick flight, and want to get your feet wet with all-inclusive resorts. The grounds were beautiful, the food was good, and the staff were superb.

For a newbie, I would suggest the following, Sandals Ochi Specific:

• Don’t choose the cheapest room category, instead upgrade to a higher room category,
• Go to both sides of the property,
• If you want a small resort, look into Sandals Royal Plantation as this resort is very quaint & ALL BUTLER!
• Be prepared for the long car ride,
• Bring a portable handheld fan,
• Bring a good pair of walking shoes,
• Sandals will tell you that you need to leave 3 hours prior to your flight. Keep this in mind when booking early flights back home. A 7am flight means you have to leave around 4am.
• Book with a Certified Travel Agent, I know a great one, see below 🙂

Ready to Travel Our Purdy World?

Now that you’ve made it to the end of our honest review of our amazing Jamacia trip – are you ready to Travel Our Purdy World? I know, I sure am! If you are interested in traveling to Sandals Ochi, another resort, or even a cruise; please let us know!

We are certified travel agents specializing in Caribbean All-Inclusive Resorts & Cruises. Our services are completely free to you as the cruises and all-inclusive companies pay for our services. Whether you book online or with us, the price is the same. However, we provide a service that booking online does not get you – we have been to the resorts and on the cruises, we have contacts with all of the major companies, and we can provide expert guidance and advice!

Happy Traveling!!

xoxo,

Megan & Sean Purdy