Lyle - December, 2015
Hedonism II
13 – 25 December 2015
I visited Hedonism II 13 – 25 December 2015 and following is a brief
summary of my observations and comments regarding the trip:
I used American Airlines for travel from St. Louis to Montego Bay, via
Charlotte, and everything operated per schedule with no delays or
complications.
Arrival in Montego Bay was very smooth and there was minimal delay in
clearing Immigration. There
is a new Immigration form that’s been implemented since my last visit in
March and there is a new arrival procedure.
There are some electronic kiosks we were directed to for
confirmation of identity information that provides a printed receipt
with your picture on it.
Once you clear this step in the arrival procedure, you’re directed to
proceed to one of the Immigration officers in a booth to clear you into
the country. Customs were
also very smooth and not very busy, so there was minimal delay in
getting our bags and clearing Customs.
I used Rocky's Taxi & Tour Service (http://rockystaxiandtourservice.com/)
for ground transportation from MoBay to Hedo.
As promised, a representative was waiting immediately outside the
airport exit to greet me and call in the car from the waiting area
across the street. The car
arrived moments later and I was on my way to Hedo with a cold beer in my
hand.
Arrival at Hedo and check-in was very smooth.
The front desk staff had all the documentation ready when I
arrived, so there was minimal delay in getting my room key and I was on
my way to drop off my stuff in my room and go to the beach.
My room was in the building adjacent to Delroy’s (I just can’t stop
calling it that yet) and everything was as promised and expected.
The room was in good condition, the air conditioner worked
flawlessly the entire visit, the hot water was hot, the cold water was
cold, there was plenty of water pressure, etc. and none of the old
historic problems people have experienced in the past.
In general, I don’t think I’ve ever seen the resort in better condition.
It’s not just the renovations that have been completed in the
past couple of years, the whole place in general just seems to be in
very good condition and everything seems to be working well.
The changes to the lobby, dining room, buffet line, bathrooms,
etc. are all very nice. Are
they perfect? No, but
they’re certainly an improvement and suitable for the resort.
In addition to the physical property and facilities, the staff all seem
‘better’ to me somehow.
Everyone seems to be very engaged in what they are
doing and very interested in doing their very best to do a good job at
whatever they are doing.
They seem to be happy to be there and genuinely interested in making
everything work well.
The Guest Relations folks were very visible and checking with guests
throughout the resort on a regular basis to make sure everything was
working properly and there were no problems.
Donna Grant was also quite visible and accessible if anyone
wanted to talk with her for any reason and also was checking with folks
to make sure everything was going well.
I think the attention and actions of these folks speaks volumes
about the general commitment to making sure things are done right.
They’re not just spewing words; in every case that came up that
needed their action, they immediately followed through with the correct
action to address whatever the issue was in a timely manner.
I certainly couldn’t ask more of them and I think they are doing
the right things in the right manner.
I’ve seen recent reports regarding the food; some favorable and others
not. Personally, I was very
satisfied with the food the entire time I was there.
I thought it was tasty, variety was good, service and
presentation were good, etc. and overall suitable.
I also know there’s a theory that
the food is better when large groups are in the resort and / or when
Harry is in the resort. If
my experience during this trip is an indication, it firmly debunks that
theory. There weren’t any
large groups in the resort during my visit and only one small group that
appeared to be mostly vegetarians, that generally kept a fairy low
profile and to themselves.
Harry was there for a few days, but was out of the resort most of the
time I was there. So, I
conclude the food quality really didn’t have anything to do with whether
groups were there or not, or whether Harry was there or not.
Also, occupancy was fairly low the entire time I was there, so
the food quality really didn’t seem to be affected by occupancy either.
The beach was in good condition and there were plenty of lounge chairs,
floaties, and towels available (perhaps due to the low occupancy during
this time). I never had a
problem finding a chair where I wanted one or something to float on, and
there were always plenty of towels available.
The dining room and bar staff all were doing a very good job the entire
time I was there. The crew
of female bartenders working the nude pool bar always do a great job.
There’s a fairly new male bartender named Floyd that I think is a
great asset and a real hit with the guests.
The guy ‘reads’ the bar very well, has a lot of personality, and
is very entertaining in addition to being a really good and hardworking
bartender. As much as I
still miss Delroy and Scumba, I think Floyd is a keeper and I hope he’s
around a long time. There’s
also a trainee named Lorenzo that I think has a lot of potential.
He’s still learning and finding his own groove, but I think he
has the potential to be really good if he concentrates on learning the
business and developing his own personality and abilities behind the
bar.
The weather was generally good while I was there.
We did have some periods of rain, but nothing anyone really
seemed to find very objectionable or much of a hindrance to their
vacation. We did have some
fairly breezy conditions on one or two days and conditions that stirred
up the water a bit and decreased sub-surface visibility in the swimming
area.
We cleaned a lot of urchins out of the swimming area (some may think
that’s futile endeavor, but it probably saved a few people from stepping
on them). In the process, I
spotted a couple of small Lionfish hanging out around the floating
yellow platform. These
didn’t demonstrate any concern at all about being fairly close to
humans, so I hope the water sports guys get rid of them before someone
gets hurt.
On a walk off property further down the beach one day, I did spot
something I found rather concerning.
Down on the Sandal’s beach, a guest had a camera equipped drone
about 18” in diameter they were preparing to operate on the beach.
I know some Hedo guests have talked about drones in the past,
sometimes in jest, but I’ve never actually seen one down on the beach in
Jamaica. I do hope the
resorts will control these things and that Hedo make sure to prohibit
use or operation to the extent they can.
I realize there are plenty of folks that think they’re experts on
all the issues associated with drones, and I’m certainly NOT one of the,
but I could foresee issues in the future regarding these things,
relative to Hedo. If or when
the time comes, I do hope Hedo management will be prepared to address
the issues in an effective manner.
At the end of the visit, check-out at the front desk was smooth and
effective with no issues.
Overall, I thought the front desk team did a great job with everything
while I was there.
At the time of departure from the resort, the driver from Rocky’s
appeared exactly on time to take me back to the airport.
Even though it was Christmas Day, the trip to the airport was
smooth and speedy with minimal delays due to traffic along the way.
Check-in and departure processing at the airport was very smooth and
everything was operating right on schedule.
Arrival in Charlotte was right on time and processing through
Immigration and Customs were both very smooth, orderly, and everything
was operating exactly as it is supposed to.
The connecting flight to St. Louis was also right on time and a
very smooth final leg of the trip home had no delays, issues, or
problems of any sort.
All in all, it was a very good trip and I enjoyed it thoroughly.
It was great to spend some time with many long-time friends and
also to meet a few new ones.
Everyone seemed to be having a great time and I didn’t really observe
any significant issues or problems with anyone.
It just seemed like everything was working well and everyone was
simply enjoying themselves and each other, without a bunch of drama,
issues, pretense, etc. (like it’s supposed to be….. right?).
Guess I’ll go do this again sometime soon …………… !