Our All-Inclusive Resort
After getting married in Las Vegas, we couldn’t wait to spend our honeymoon in Jamaica! We had a week booked at an all-inclusive Sandals resort in Montego Bay, Jamaica. There are 9 Sandals resorts on the island of Jamaica located in 4 main areas (see below).
The resort we stayed at was the Sandals Inn (Montego Bay), which is part of a “stay at 1, play at 3” deal. This means that there are free shuttles running between the three resorts in Montego Bay (Sandals Inn, Montego Bay, and Royal Caribbean). Shuttles run about every 30 minutes and schedules can be found at each resort. Each room receives a free newspaper of events being held at each of the three resorts daily so that guests may plan accordingly.
The Sandals Inn resort was the smallest of the three located in Montego Bay. I had mixed feelings about our stay here. The pros were that it was very quiet (meaning we got great sleep every night) and that it was more affordable than most of the other resorts. The cons, however, were that it had no private beach nor water sports and very little nightlife, so we had to take the shuttle to the other two resorts to experience these things.
As you can see in the pictures below, there is a beach near the resort, but this is frequently crowded with locals and is often home to many vendors trying to sell you wares (and marijuana). The other resorts have private beaches that are only available to Sandals guests, so they were much less crowded. We definitely did enjoy our stay, but depending on your priorities, this resort may or may not be the one for you.
We stayed on the second floor and had a balcony looking over the pool and beach.
Private Beaches
Like I mentioned, both of the other resorts had private beaches, so we spent a lot of time there. If you get there before noon, you often get your pick of the beach lounge chairs. Although there are no outside vendors allowed on the beach, the resort does send many of its spa employees to the beach to try and sell you on their services. They are generally pretty nice when you politely decline, however.
Drinks
We were OBSESSED with the pina coladas – definitely recommend (just stir before drinking…unless you want a big gulp of the alcohol that settles to the bottom!). Remember, since the resort is all-inclusive, you can have as many drinks as you want!
Wildlife
Snorkeling
Our second foray into the snorkeling world fared much better. The water was incredibly choppy, but we saw many more, and much bigger, fish! This snorkeling trip departed from Sandals Montego Bay.
Glassboating
We also tried glassboating, but were not able to see as many fish as I had hoped.
Kayaking
We kayaked; I probably hindered more than helped, though. It’s a lot harder than it looks!
The rest of our vacation time we spent eating, drinking, and relaxing. I would definitely recommend this sort of trip and hope to do it again some time. Choosing an all-inclusive honeymoon was definitely worth it – we never had to touch our wallets the entire time! And in case you were wondering, no one tips here. I’m not even sure if the employees are allowed to accept tips, so don’t worry about that!
