Royalton Negril

We only enjoy one big vacation a year so we were really looking forward to getting away. I relied heavily on the reviews from others when booking our vacation. We booked at Royalton Negril because the majority of the reviews were positive. Then after it was booked we started to notice a lot of negative reviews and we became a little nervous. Now that we are back from our 8-day vacation I say…ignore the bad reviews. Diamond Club: The reviews are very mixed for whether or not to upgrade to Diamond Club. We did upgrade and I can’t imagine it any other way. The Diamond Club pool and beach were perfect. It was quieter and more laid back which is exactly what I wanted. There’s a swim up bar and also another bar that served food (the jerked chicken quesadillas were great). We all loved Alee, she was super friendly. Another perk was the Diamond Club Lobby. It sounds kind of goofy but I loved that I could get all the bottled water I wanted at the lobby and they always had snacks out (the sandwich wraps were yummy). I’m not sure where non-Diamond Club people got water bottles because anytime I asked for a bottle, I was directed to the DC Lobby or I could just get filtered ice water. Some people said they just went over to the DC area even though they weren’t DC. There was a security guard or a staff member checking bracelets to get into the DC area so I’m not sure how they did that but I’m a rule follower and would never consider sneaking in. I would say the non-DC pool had more going on and I do recommend it if you want to be in the middle of the action. I prefer the quieter and more relaxed atmosphere of the DC areas Butlers: Lots of people said their butlers were non-existent. I can believe that. We requested a butler (Kenisha) beforehand and she was wonderful. I had no problems with her at all. However, we weren’t needy. She made sure we had dinner reservations and beach towels in our rooms at night for the next day and she left us treats in our room for when we returned after being at the beach. One day we came back to the room and there was a bubble bath with flowers waiting for us. It was nice. I feel as though if we truly needed something, she would have assisted us. We purchased Diamond Club mainly for the other amenities. Also, we got our promised bottle of liquor, we got Absolute Vodka. Room: Our room was great. No complaints. We reserved it beforehand on the Royalton site for piece of mind that we would be near the family we were traveling with. It was worth the $60 to choose our room (it takes about a week for the reservation to show up in order to reserve the room). We were in Building 2, Floor 3, Room 2303. Photo from room balcony is below, There was a tree blocking our view but I could still see the beach and pool from my room. Some other reviews mentioned bad smells in their rooms but ours was fine. We initially reserved a swim-out room but changed it because of the reviews saying the pools were shady. I did notice this and we were happy we switched rooms. Plus I could see in everyone’s 1st floor rooms. I recommend the third floor. Our room was quite far from the restaurants and main pool (probably a 5-10 minute walk). I didn’t mind the walk but I thought I would mention it for others. Food: The food was fine but nothing too exciting. It was plentiful and there was never a shortage. We all feel it was a little better than a cruise we took previously but not as good as what we typically have when we eat out at home. I was never hungry to say the least. Also as a DC person, you get top shelf liquor in your drinks but you have to ask for it. The only beer available is Red Stripe, which is a great lager. We got a pretty good Cab Sauv in the DC Lobby. Fitness: I have to give a shout out to Everton. He remembers everyone’s name!! How does he do it!?!?! It obvious that he loves his job and it’s awesome. I told him he needs to make his own workout DVDs. We enjoyed several of the aquatic fitness classes and we loved them. Entertainment: The reviews are probably right. The entertainment fell flat. My teenagers were pretty disappointed because our last vacation was a cruise and there were tons of activities. I didn’t mind too much. By the time the evening rolled around I was exhausted and ready for bed by 10:30. There were nightly shows and they were fine. I found them to be entertaining but my husband found them to be a little cheesy. Teen Club: My teenagers loved Onissa (not sure how it's spelled) in the teen club. She was awesome and they liked spending time in the Teen Club because of her. Safety/Security: We ended up leaving some of our valuables at home because some reviews made it seem a little unsafe. I never felt unsafe. There’s security all around. We kept our cash in the safe and it was safe. I do not recommend it…but I found myself leaving my phone and bag at my beach chair and walking away to do something else. I came back and all my stuff was still there. Again I say, I don’t recommend others to be scatterbrained like me but I lucked out. Beach Chairs: Many reviews say there’s not enough beach chairs. They are right. The early bird gets the worm. We luckily traveled with an early riser and he would go down at 5:30 or 6:00 AM and cover our chairs with towels. Therefore, we never had a problem getting chairs. If you come down later in the day, you could very well be out of luck. You could probably have your butler reserve your chairs but we wanted to choose our own spot so that we would have a few chairs in the shade and a few in the sun. Also, there was no hammocks (I was disappointed) but there are cool swings and we always reserved one of those too. Sunscreen and Aloe: Bring a lot of sunscreen. We went through more than I thought we would. We ended up having to buy some in the gift shop and it was $28! Also, bring aloe. You will burn and it’s a lifesaver. Keep it in your fridge. However, the vendors at the end of the beach (off resort) have fresh aloe as well and it works great! Marijuana/Vendors: There is marijuana everywhere. We were approached constantly. If you don’t want your teenagers smoking it, keep an eye on them because the Jamaicans have no problem selling it to whoever. The vendors are annoying especially if you’re on the front row of beach chairs. They can’t come onto the resort area so they mainly talk to those in the front row. We did parasailing from one of the vendors and he was great but never accept the first price they give you. Service/Tips: There’s some good servers and some bad servers. There’s those that you can tell just want a tip and those who truly like people. My friend and I asked one of the nicer servers why it seems like the servers are more friendly toward our husbands and not us. She said many of the servers think the men tip better than the women. She said furthermore that the servers will sometimes fight over tables when they see families who are laughing and having fun…they think those people tip better too. It was interesting. We started out tipping quite a bit at first but then we realized we would run out of cash. So we ended up tipping $5 for the buffets and a little more for sit down dinners depending on the service. A few times we went to the buffet and nobody even talked to us or gave us water or anything, so we didn’t leave a tip. For drinks, we tipped a few dollars every few rounds. Sometimes we didn’t tip when we got a coffee or ice cream because they weren’t too friendly in the coffee shop. We tipped housekeeping $50 and the butler $125. I don’t know if these tips are sufficient but that’s what we did. We ended up spending about $400 on tips when it was all said and done for 8 days. Club Mobay: We were disappointed that we missed our opportunity to get through customs quickly by utilizing the Club Mobay at the airport. It was full when we realized it was an option. Once we got there, I was glad we missed our opportunity. It would have been $200 extra for our family and we were only in line for maybe a half hour (I’m not sure how long but it wasn’t bad at all). We came in on a Friday during Spring Break. Transportation: We did transportation through Cheap Caribbean and had no problems. I recommend using a service like this because it is a 90 minute drive. Bugs: I was happy that we did not see any bugs. We brought bug spray but never used it. I did not get a single mosquito bite or any bug bite. Snorkeling/Scuba Diving: My husband and son got their PADI Scuba Diving certifications while in Jamaica. Their instructor Glen was amazing and others told my husband that they specifically come to Jamaica to get their certifications because of Glen. We all enjoyed snorkeling. I saw some neat puffer fish, lion fish, Dory fish (not sure what they are really called), barracuda (small ones luckily), starfish, and lots of others. No sharks…phew. It was fun. Overall: It wasn't 100% perfect but we loved this resort and will definitely come back!

Went to the Royaton Negril and had a great time. New hotel with awesome views! Staff was very friendly, resort was really clean as well. The fitness classes offered were great too. The only complaint is that we paid for Diamond Club and were supposed to have a butler however ours were never to be found. The good news is that our fiends butler stepped up and took care of us. Would highly recommend this resort and would go back!

My wife and I stayed at Royalton Negril 3/23-4/1 2018 in the Diamond Club. Great experience nearly all good things. Only detractors were: - No gin or vodka selection at the Martini Bar on 8 of 9 nights. - Beach is smaller than nearby hotels which leads to crowding at the beach as well as too few loungers. - Some arrogant guest reserving loungers at pool and beach and taking towels to mark their territory at both.a The frequently reported towel/reserved lounger could be resolved with the resort rearranging the beach areas to allow for many more loungers and the towel issue could be resolved by using a system more like their neighbor resorts where you are given one beach towel when you arrive and you may exchange it as many time as you like (thereby not having a person taking 10 towels at time. The good things: - Beach is beautiful and the water is perfect. - Loungers are the best quality we have seen in 20 years of Caribbean travels. - Food at buffet is very good and specialty restaurants is excellent. - Rooms are very well appointed and the showers are top notch. - Had zero elevator issues in out 10 night stay (our room was on the 4th floor). - FYI, the first floor is considered zero in the room numbering (we were in room 2306 on the fourth floor). first digit is building number, second is the "floor", and third and fourth are the room number on the floor. - Our Butler service was nearly perfect, and far exceeded our expectations based on reviews. Dorrett and Keno are superb Butlers! - We felt that the Diamond Club was well worth the money. - The view out over the Caribbean Sea is breathtaking. - The beach cocktail service is awesome. (Tameka is always on the spot to keep us hydrated) Seriously, it is a excellent rest and the few things that were less than great are a combination of growing pains for a new resort/newer hotelier and rude /self-absorbed guests. the idea that you can go to a resort and simply through towels anywhere you wish and command that the locations are your's is insane. Guest breakdown (as I speculate) is 40% USA, 30% Canada, 15% UK, and 15% remainder of the planet. The rude guest were spread across all of the nationalities. Finally...You should experience Royalton Negril. It is a top shelf resort with great employees and a wonderful location just north of Negril. respect mon'

The sun kissed beaches were amazing. You could lay in peace at the Hideaway portion of Royalton Negril and allow the breeze to softly kiss your intire body while the ocean waves lap at your feet. The place really puts you in a zen mood. Although a beautiful place to stay the food/restaurants left little to desire. I wish that portion was better and the selection was better seafood was very limited.