Just booked a vacation to Punta Cana
06-11-2013, 09:58 AM
#67
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^Nice.
And nice pics OP, I know it's safe to assume that Chocolatini is yours.
We just rebooked for Negril for this fall. Already dropped a ton of money going to Manhattan in April.
My wife's desire for vacations is starting to hurt my track budget.
And nice pics OP, I know it's safe to assume that Chocolatini is yours.
We just rebooked for Negril for this fall. Already dropped a ton of money going to Manhattan in April.
My wife's desire for vacations is starting to hurt my track budget.
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06-11-2013, 10:14 AM
#68
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and it was an expresso martini. Pretty much a shot of expresso in kaluha, cream, and vodka. So a white russian that keeps you up at night; just like my boyfriend Soviet. The other was peach liquor in champange.
My resort was in Uvero Alto which was about an hour from the aeropuerto. The entrance into the customs with the travel visa is a joke, but I cant blame them. We allowed someone to take our bags for a small tip and he nagivated us around customs and we saved tons of time to find our driver. One of the few times I was glad to spend the money. Luckily we booked private transportation and had a comfortable private drive in. They seem to be building a new highway so the roads werent that bad (but it was still 2 way while they were still building the other side), maybe 30 minutes in were turned off it and got on some **** road with major holes.
The beach was awesome, sun all day long, really nice breeze, just large rough waves cause this resort wasnt blocked by much coral. The resort had entertainment each night (see MJ show pics) and we went early enough in the season that it wasn't too busy. Our last night it was significantlly more busy and the bugs started coming out. My wife ended up with about 50 bites on her feet from that night alone wearing nice shoes where I had long pants and dress shoes on. We were wearing bug spray and had a little bug blocker fan thing as well.
We never made our way off the resort, we thought about during a few excursions; one was a 2-3 hour dune "boogie" tour but one of the vendors left a sour taste in my mouth and I was enjoying the pool too much (Our resort let select vendors walk throughout the pool grounds, not just the beach, and we couldn't book through the hotel and just pay at the end). It was seriously hard to tell where the water ended and air began.
All-in-all we had a very pleasant time, but I'm not sure we'll go back to this island. The food and drink was medicore at best and that's a huge turn off. The next trip we go will be someplace with a direct flight and closer to the airport (and probably not all-inclusive); kinda stunk travelling all day long for a total of a 4 hour flight. But it felt really good being back in the states.
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06-11-2013, 12:04 PM
#70
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I've done Sandals before and we almost booked again this trip but I wanted to try a different resort. So if I ever do this type again, I'll stick with them. I remember the drinks being great (actually made from scratch each time not with mixes/syrups) and the food decent enough.
Last edited by Braineack; 06-11-2013 at 12:58 PM.
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06-11-2013, 12:22 PM
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Yep, it's why we decided not try somewhere else this year, even going back to the same Sandals as last year.
Although this time we bring an extra bag since we ended up with enough free rum last time that our free rum, ended up costing a $75 overweight baggage fee.
Although this time we bring an extra bag since we ended up with enough free rum last time that our free rum, ended up costing a $75 overweight baggage fee.
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06-11-2013, 12:58 PM
#72
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ha. I came home with a bottle of Kahula and Vodka, but I wasn't sure the limit; I could have brought back a bottle of rum as well. The TSA website wasn't very clear on what I could bring and what to declare and stuff, but I saw something that said you didnt have to declare if only 1 liter each, so that's what we did. Our airline didn't have baggage weight and it was just like $25 a bag.
Which Sandals are you reffering to? I went to the St. Lucia one(s).
Which Sandals are you reffering to? I went to the St. Lucia one(s).
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06-11-2013, 01:41 PM
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We've been to Montego Bay and Negril, and we are going back to Negril this year. We wanted to try St. Lucia, but getting out of Tulsa to anywhere in the southern Caribbean is almost impossible to do in one day, since we have to go to Dallas/Houston/Atlanta/Chicago, before we can get to Miami.
Montego Bay was good, crazy partying, even from the old folks. Negril is a bit more laid-back, a bit nicer with a few less rooms, but more beachfront. Food was better too.
Montego Bay was good, crazy partying, even from the old folks. Negril is a bit more laid-back, a bit nicer with a few less rooms, but more beachfront. Food was better too.
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06-11-2013, 02:01 PM
#74
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The only think I didnt like about the Sandals St. Lucia is that I booked the cheapest of the 3. They are all within 5-10 minutes of each other and they give you access to all.
The problem was, we had to work around the restaurant's schedules and that was annoying, plus the shuttles only came at certain times. The one place we liked best for breakfast stopped serving very shortly after the shuttle would arrive and we missed it once or twice. Then it became a pain to go back and clean up and change for lunch/dinner. Other than that I think I preferred Sandals over this; that was 7 years ago last week and I still remember our favorite drink, the dirty banana, and our favorite food, the beach bread.
Good thing is, we totally expect to book something else for next year, none of this waiting around another 7 years in poverty BS.
The problem was, we had to work around the restaurant's schedules and that was annoying, plus the shuttles only came at certain times. The one place we liked best for breakfast stopped serving very shortly after the shuttle would arrive and we missed it once or twice. Then it became a pain to go back and clean up and change for lunch/dinner. Other than that I think I preferred Sandals over this; that was 7 years ago last week and I still remember our favorite drink, the dirty banana, and our favorite food, the beach bread.
Good thing is, we totally expect to book something else for next year, none of this waiting around another 7 years in poverty BS.
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06-11-2013, 02:07 PM
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Yeah, that's how the crummy place in the Bahamas was (Breezes) stupid restaurant rules, etc.
The Montego Bay and Negril only had a few of the dinner places that wanted a reservation and you could still typically get one that night or at least for the next day.
At Negril they had a grilled cheese sandwich with bacon and avocado......awesome.
Probably the best was watching a guy go out in the bay, snag a lobster, bring it in and grill it for us, drizzled with garlic butter and fresh grilled toast.........just amazing.
The Montego Bay and Negril only had a few of the dinner places that wanted a reservation and you could still typically get one that night or at least for the next day.
At Negril they had a grilled cheese sandwich with bacon and avocado......awesome.
Probably the best was watching a guy go out in the bay, snag a lobster, bring it in and grill it for us, drizzled with garlic butter and fresh grilled toast.........just amazing.
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06-11-2013, 02:08 PM
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I think for us going to Negril for 9 nights with flights later this year will come in around $5200.....but we always get the cheapest rooms since, if you're doing it right, you're only in the room to sleep and shower.
Sandals has another resort line called Beaches, that is for families. You can also find resorts that allow only 13-14 and up, so no small children.
cheapcaribbean.com is good place to get an idea of costs/amenities, family/adult only, etc
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06-11-2013, 02:20 PM
#79
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Also, if you use tripadvisor or alike to read reviews, take note of where the people are from. People from Kanasas or Arkanasas will always say the food is awesome and they've never had anything better, but that's because they've never eaten anything but PB&J on Wonderbread and canned beans.
I came in knowing the food wasn't going to be top notch, but I was below my standards. They try to cater to Americans but having a bunch of themed places: french, italian (pizza), asian, greek, etc. I've had school pizza better than what they served, and it was sad they didn't have much to offer that was freshly grilled. They did have lobster in one place and I made the mistake of eating there on the last night, where I had 2 lobsters that were delicious. I would have eaten there every night had I know, but we wanted to try it all. The menus actually sounded really good, the execution was rediculous. I ordered some grilled shrimp salad at the first place and I was really excited to get my first taste...they used the tiny little shrimps I use for bait for fishing, they werent grilled and it was covered in thousand island dressing; and it only got worse from there.
Also the breakfast buffet was always changing and I wanted to continue eating the plantians I had the first morning, but they never came back. I ate a lot of fresh fruits last week, much better than overly cooked meats and dishes without the use of salt and pepper or any other sort of seasoning.
I came in knowing the food wasn't going to be top notch, but I was below my standards. They try to cater to Americans but having a bunch of themed places: french, italian (pizza), asian, greek, etc. I've had school pizza better than what they served, and it was sad they didn't have much to offer that was freshly grilled. They did have lobster in one place and I made the mistake of eating there on the last night, where I had 2 lobsters that were delicious. I would have eaten there every night had I know, but we wanted to try it all. The menus actually sounded really good, the execution was rediculous. I ordered some grilled shrimp salad at the first place and I was really excited to get my first taste...they used the tiny little shrimps I use for bait for fishing, they werent grilled and it was covered in thousand island dressing; and it only got worse from there.
Also the breakfast buffet was always changing and I wanted to continue eating the plantians I had the first morning, but they never came back. I ate a lot of fresh fruits last week, much better than overly cooked meats and dishes without the use of salt and pepper or any other sort of seasoning.
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06-11-2013, 02:34 PM
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I like they way you strategically picked states around me, well played. 
But yes, it's sad how many people in this area of the country think Red Lobster or Chili's or *insert other generic chain* is good or even great food.
We only support locally owned restaurants, no chains.
But yes, it's sad how many people in this area of the country think Red Lobster or Chili's or *insert other generic chain* is good or even great food.
We only support locally owned restaurants, no chains.
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