Jamaica in December

Scott said we needed a tropical vacation and I wasn't going to argue!  I began the process of searching the internet for resorts in Mexico, the Dominican, and even a couple cruises.  I had a few requirements as I looked at option after option.  So may resorts with different amenities to choose from....my mind began to spin.  I remembered seeing a girl I was friends with in high school had recently become a travel agent. Within minutes I had sent Tai a message and the conversation began. Within a week she had given us options, Scott and I discussed them and we all agreed that Secrets St. James in Jamaica was the place for us!!  The trip was booked!

Jamaica surpassed other destinations due to the short amount of travel time.  We flew out of Evansville at 6am and arrived in Jamaica for lunch.  Flights out of Evansville were the same if not cheaper then surrounding airports, so that was convenient.  An all-inclusive resort was a must because I didn't want to worry about how much we were spending once we were on vacation.  I also wanted to be shuttled from the airport to the resort, I don't like landing at an airport and being unsure of how to get from point A to point B.  And finally, I love water activities and wanted to try paddle boarding, so having that option at the resort was required.  Secrets St. James met each of my requirements.

Starting our day with Delta

After checking the expiration dates on our passports 214 times, it was departure day!  Our flights were on time and as we started to descend towards Jamaica, the blue waters caught out eyes as did how mountainous it is!  It looked very similar to Hawaii with the tree covered mountainous terrain.  It was absolutely beautiful.  We got through customs quickly and were greeted on the other side by a gentleman holding a sign with our travel company listed.  After brief introductions we were whisked away to a large tour bus with 1 other gentleman aboard.  The air was warm and there wasn't much of a breeze, but humidity was low, so it felt great.  The bus ride to the resort was entertaining as the bus driver was more confident in his driving abilities then I was.  He used his horn frequently and I'm not sure all road signage was obeyed.  Many vehicles had dents and dings and I was glad my car was safely home in the garage.

Home away from home

We drove through a few rough appearing areas, buildings surrounded by barbwire fences and litter was a bit of an eyesore.  Beyond the rubbish you couldn't help but stare into the sparkling ocean waters.  After a 10 minute drive, we pass through a gated area and it was like entering an oasis.  The buildings were covered in blooming flowering vines as though it was the middle of summer.  Water fountains dotted the driveway and bell hops is light colored pants and button ups scurried about. The bus pulled to a stop and we were quickly greeted by gentlemen helping us with our bags and offering us a beverage.  Scott hadn't slipped in to "all inclusive" mode yet, but I was ready and said "yes!"

Flowers in December

We were taken to the front desk area where my rum punch showed up while we checked in.  After Scott got a sip of my ice cold beverage and remembered everything was already paid for, he asked if it was too late to get a rum punch as well.  After check-in we were taken to the concierge desk to get information on activities.  Here we met 3 incredible girls that ended up being some of the coolest people we met on the trip.  They gave us information on the resort that we never would have known on our own.  They were funny and friendly and reassured that we had made the right choice in choosing a resort.

Flowers and towel animals 

We headed up to our room and loved the open air hallways.  Our views of the tropical landscape caused us to slow our pace and enjoy everything about the moment.  The light breeze blowing, the scent of the ocean, and this view.  We walked into our room and loved the spaciousness.  The bathroom had a private shower, private toilet, and a large jacuzzi tub right in the center.  The tub was separated from the bedroom by a sheer curtain.  The bed was a king four post  and the bedroom opened up into a sitting room with a table for 2 and a love seat.  The balcony was off the sitting room and gave us views of the property and ocean.  The grass and trees were as green as the Midwest in early May and the ocean was as blue and green as every image I imagined as we planned this trip.

Not an awful place to have lunch

By this point we were starving and headed to the pool area to the Seaside Grill for lunch.  Since this was our first all inclusive experience, we were curious to see how this works.  We were quickly seated and greeted by our waitress and instructed to help ourselves to the salad bar.  We were already impressed with this place, but here's where our expectations began getting surpassed.  Being at a resort that has food available 24 hours a day, we were not expecting the food to be outstanding.  We knew it would be good, but it was more than expected.  The salad bar was stocked with various fresh seafood salads and cheeses that I had never heard of before.  Everything we tasted was delicious.

Hello paradise!!

After we had finished our meal, we sampled dessert before heading back up to our room to freshen up.  I slipped into the bath and was more relaxed at that moment than I had been in the previous 4.5 years.  That's not even a slight exaggeration.  I did FaceTime the kids after I got out of the bath, but their happiness and excitement while on the phone confirmed this trip was good for ALL of us.

Working this tub into our upcoming bathroom remodel.  Seriously.

I won't give you a play-by-play on each moment that followed, but I'll reflect on the highlights of the trip and thoughts for our next adventure.  As I mentioned in my requirements, I wanted water activities on site.  Scott and I snorkeled with a guide 2 different times and paddle boarded 1 afternoon.  The snorkeling was just as good as snorkeling along the Ke'e beach in Hawaii.  The fish were brightly colored and the sea fans were beautiful.  The second day we snorkeled we ended up swimming with jellyfish which was as scary as it was beautiful.  They were clear with a purple tint and perfectly round.  Luckily we didn't come into contact with any.  Paddle boarding was as awesome as I had hoped and I can't wait to do it again.  We were going to take a Hobie wave out one afternoon, but with the lack of wind that day they recommended against it.

Paradise

We spent some time soaking up the sun and scenery laying underneath one of the many cabanas on the beach.  This is where I lived out my tropical fantasy of laying on the beach and having someone serve me frozen beverages.  It was spectacular.  An added bonus was the jerk chicken smoker guy.  At various times throughout the day, a guy with a smoker on wheels would walk along the sidewalks and give everyone plates of freshly smoked jerk chicken.  It was the best chicken we had ever eaten.  There was also a lady standing just off the beach with a stand full of fresh tropical fruit.  As you approached her, she began slicing fruit and before you knew it, you had your hands full of the most exotic delicious fruit you never knew existed.

The resort was larger than I expected, 7 restaurants, each with a different theme, various bars, and my favorite....a coffee bar that had an iced coffee waiting for me every time I turned around.  There was various activities scattered about from badminton, pool, ping pong, beach volleyball, horseshoes, bocci ball, and shuffle board.  There were at least 2 private beaches that we could lounge on, numerous hot tubs, and many pools, including one with a swim-up bar.  Scott and I enjoyed sitting on the underwater stools (they are harder to sit on then you would image....I floated off a couple times) and sipping fruity concoction in the water.

From fellow vacationers to the Jamaicans, every one we met was friendly.We tried to figure out if people come to Jamaica and become friendly...or is everyone that travels to Jamaica already friendly?  Either way, we loved speaking to people from all over.  We never left the resort once we arrived, mostly because we were only there for a handful of days and there was plenty to do and see at the resort that it never got boring.  The next time we go back there are a few excursions we plan on taking outside our gated resort.

Here is the critical part of my review on Secrets Resort.  While our room was clean, open, airy and the view was beautiful, it was not what I would consider a "luxury" room.  The love seat had been well worn as imagine it is hard to keep any upholstery clean looking when people sit on it in wet suits, etc.  The shower was incredible with a rain cloud head, but somehow when using the shower water would seep into the bathroom and create a wet floor.  The light surrounding the mirror in the bathroom worked, sometimes.  It was not a light bulb issue, more of a switch connection issue.  The refrigerator in our room didn't really cool items, it was more like room temperature minus 1 degree.  And finally, at the end of the day we would turn the news on to make sure nothing crazy was happening in the United States....however the remote would only occasionally work.  I did call for new batteries but that didn't help the issue.  I think the remote needed to be replaced.

With that information under our hats, Scott and I talked about the resort overall, the good and the bad.  Our decision was the GOOD far outweighed the bad.  Our room was only used for sleeping and getting clean and the rest of the time we were outside.  The amazing and plentiful food and beverages, the kindness of the staff, the views, and the water activities far surpassed a room that had a few quirks.

We will return to Jamaica....the only question is do we take our children with us to the family friendly sister resort of Secrets.....or do we leave them at home again and have adult time?  Time will tell!! :)

If you are interested in contacting our wonderful agent, she can found on Facebook under "Destinations by Tai."