Hedonism 2 April 7 14, 2005
This was our first trip to Hedo2 and the Negril side of Jamaica. This was our eighth trip to Jamaica that includes two trips to Hedo3, 5 trips to Grand Lido Braco and one trip to Couples Ocho Rios. We had an excellent time and found the resort to be nicer than we expected. Overall this was a very quiet, relaxing tripmaybe not what one would expect from Hedo2, but very enjoyable none the less. Overall, the whole trip was positive, we have a few things to nit pick, but nothing significant. The weather was great all week. We had rain the day we arrived and a couple of light showers during the week, but overall very nice.
We arrived in Jamaica around 11:00 AM. We checked in at the super clubs desk and boarded the van to Negril. We found the road to Negril to be much better than the road to Ocho Rios. We arrived at Hedo2 around 2:00 PM. We booked an A/N Ocean view Room. We were put in room 2167. We found this to be a perfect locationclose to the pool and hot tub, but not so close to hear the noise late at night. It was also a reasonable distance to the lobby, disco, etc. We were surprised at how spread out the resort is, especially when compared to Hedo3. The room has been updated and was in excellent shape. The bathroom is very small. The shower has been updated and has 5 shower heads. Our view of the beach and the water was great. We really wished that there was a door or patio on the beach side. Maid service was excellent.
The beach is much nicer than Hedo3, but then again any beach is nicer than Hedo3. The beach is very acceptable, but you do feel a little envious when you walk the beach down to Sandals or Beaches Resorts and see how much nicer the beach is in front of those resorts. The pool on the A/N side is small. There is not enough room for pool volleyball or to float around. The separate shallow pool with the grotto and fountain became our favorite place to soak up the sun. The hot tub is very nice, larger than Hedo3s but smaller than the one at Grand Lido Braco.
Overall, the food was pretty good. The buffet was a typical buffet you could always find something to eat that was acceptable. We really enjoyed the Japanese Restaurant, and thought it may even be better than the ones at Braco or Hedo3. We ate at the Italian Restaurant twice and enjoyed it both times. It was very much on par with the one at Hedo3. We made reservations to eat at the Scotch Bonnet one night but they cancelled our reservations. If the Scotch Bonnet was open during our visit, we never saw any evidence. Most days, we had lunch at Roberts Grill at the A/N pool. We found everything we got there to be excellent.
The bands that played every night were some of the best we have heard at any resort. We were extremely impressed.
We were in bed most nights by 10:30 PM and up by 7:00 AM the next morning. The only night we went to the disco was on PJ night, Tuesday Evening. PJ night was well attended. We found the disco at Hedo2 to be the nicest of any resort at which we have stayed. We liked the seating arrangement and the bar. Most nights at the Buffet, it did not seem that many patrons were participating in the themed activities. We arrived on Toga night. We wore our togas to dinner that night and saw that only 25% at best were wearing togas. I thought it was No Sheet, No Eat?
There seemed to be very few activities started by the entertainment staff during the day. At other resorts, the entertainment staff seems to have something going on most of the time. Of all the resorts we have been to, we found the general staff at Hedo2 to be the least friendly. They were not rude, just not bubbly and friendly like most resorts. We were not impressed by the bartenders. We drank mostly simple drinks all week. The frozen drinks we had were not up to par and we really thought the bartenders acted like it was a chore to make anything but a simple drink.
We have three trips booked to Jamaica this year and thought while we were at Hedo2; we would take a look at Grand Lido Negril for a possible future trip. We talked with the people at the front desk who told us that tours of Grand Lido Negril were at 11:00 AM and 3:00 PM, just show up at the Grand Lido gate. We went over at 11:00 to ask for a tour and were informed we were too late; tours were at 11:00. I looked down at my watch and it was 11:04. I said Oh everything is on Jamaican time around here except this tour. Needless to say Grand Lido Negril lost a potential customer.
We went out on the glass bottom boat one afternoon. We also went on the catamaran party cruise from 10:30 to 1:30 Tuesdays and Saturdays at a cost of $45 per person. It was well worth it, we had a great time. It included snorkeling, a trip to the cliffs and caves of Negril and all you can drink.
Overall we had a great time and were impressed by the resort. The first couple of days of the trip we gave the edge to Hedo3, but as the week went on, the two Hedos became more equal in our minds. The two resorts seem to attract a slightly different crowd overall. We would recommend the resort and would return.