Breezes Runaway Bay

May 26^th, 2001 May 31^st, 2001

2 Couples travelling together celebrating 10yr anniversaries.  

Friday May 25^th  

We left Orlando about 2pm, fought our way through traffic and arrived in Ft. Lauderdale about 6pm.  We stayed at the Comfort Inn Ft. Lauderdale/Hollywood Airport.  Very nice hotel with a large pool, restaurant, bar and shuttle to/from the airport.  We went to Dave & Busters for dinner that night.  Great place with great food.  It had a drink menu bigger then most food menus and a huge arcade/game room.  We played 3 holes of virtual golf while having dinner.  We went back to the hotel and got a good nights sleep anticipating our trip in the morning  

Saturday May 26^th  

4:30am wake up call!  All 4 of us were showered and ready for the shuttle at 6am.  Off to the airport for a very non-eventful check in and flight to Montego Bay.  Flight to MoBay was smooth and for the very first time I had fish for breakfast!  Enjoyed 2 mimosas on the way and before I knew it there was the beautiful island of Jamaica.  

Arrived in MoBay about 9:40am. Jamaica is on Eastern Standard Time, but they do not celebrate daylight savings time so they are 1 hour behind.  YEAH, an extra hour as soon as we got there!  We breezed through immigrations and customs, even though there were very long lines.  Made our way to the Super Clubs desk and was on a bus and on our way to Breezes within 20 minutes.  In fact, the driver had to wait for our husbands to pay for their beers so we could get started.  

WOW is that drive exciting!  We stopped to get gas and it was strange to see the gas prices at $25.11 per gallon for unleaded.  We had about 5 minutes to smoke a quick cigarette before we were on our way.  The drive is beautiful coastal road the whole way.  You could choose to stare at the beautiful mountains or the ocean for the entire ride.  Our driver was very funny and said, Dont worry about the driving unless you hear me scream!  I tried to prepare myself for the poverty, the driving on the wrong side of the road & the goats/cows wandering about but you just cant prepare you have to experience it.  We got stopped up in traffic in Falmouth as it was a busy day and then we stopped again for a drink/smoke about 15 minutes before arriving at Breezes.  After reading how bad the higglers supposedly are I was expecting to be jumped on by car salesman like Jamaicans as soon as we stopped, but not 1 single person harassed us to purchase merchandise or drugs.  Yes we were offered harassed we were not!  

When we pulled up and into the gates of Breezes about 11:15AM and I think my jaw dropped at the beauty of just the front grounds/gardens.  My husband and I checked in immediately and got room 2208, our friends had to wait until 1pm in order to get the room next door to us.  Our room was in a great location, it was just up the steps in the center building!  All 4 of us went up to my room to drop off our luggage, change clothes then off exploring we went.  We spent the rest of Saturday wandering the property, eating, drinking & swimming.  We called it an early night and were probably in bed by 11pm.  

Sunday May 27^th  

We hired a local driver by the name of Chef Thompson who picked us up at 10am to go to Ocho Rios and Dunns River Falls.  Our first stop was the falls, which CAN NOT be explained in a trip report you MUST GO and do it for yourself.  I would not recommend someone that is out of shape, old or unhealthy to attempt this climb as it can be quite challenging.  Since we went on our own, we did not use one of DRFs guides, we just gave all of our stuff to Chef to carry for us and started climbing.  The tour groups stick to the left side of the falls so we went up the middle and the right side.  Some of the rocks are slippery and we all fell at least once, but no one was hurt.  We took lots of pictures on the way and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves.  Once we made it to the top we all high-fived, hooted and hollered because you feel like you really accomplished something after completing that climb.  

After the falls we drove through Ochi, did some shopping (most of everything was closed), went to a local bar then drove through Fern Gully.   

We got back to BRB about 4pm and spent the rest of the day relaxing, swimming, eating and drinking!  

Monday May 28^th  

Some of the days now begin to blur together, but we spent the entire day Monday both on the beach and in the pool.  We snorkeled, took out a catamaran, hubby went sailing, laid by the pool, ate lots of jerk chicken & french fries from the grill and drank (a lot!)  

Went to Martinos that night for a wonderful meal, hit the bars and back to the room.  Bill & I ventured to the nude hot tub this night and had it all to ourselves!  

Tuesday May 29th  

At 11am the couple we were with renewed their vows (wedding gown/tux and all).  Immediately following their renewal, my husband and I renewed our vows.  SuperClubs and Kerry-Anne do an excellent job with the weddings.  We meet with Kerry-Anne on Monday, set the time and picked out our bouquets.  11am Tuesday morning Kerry-Anne was waiting on us at the gazebo with our flowers talk about beautiful!  The pastor was wonderful and funny and we just loved the vows they really hit home.  We opted out of the horse & buggy ride because it was sooooo hot and was fixin to rain!  We did get pictures with the horse & buggy and got inside just as it began to rain.  That was 1 of the 2 rains we got while there.  

At 1pm, we went to the wedding of friends we made on the bus from Illinois.  We helped with cameras and fell over laughing when both the bride & groom stripped off the clothes and ran into the ocean after their ceremony!  

Needles to say, this day was spent celebrating!  Lots of drink was flowing and quite a bit of ganga was burning that day.  I think at some point my hubby and I went to the room for a nap.  

Went back to Martinos that night for another wonderful dinner, some drinks and back to bed!  

Wednesday May 30^th  

Spent the morning at the pool relaxing.  After lunch we were off to Hooves horseback riding.  Another completely awesome experience!  The ride begins at a plantation built back around 1498 (by the Taino Indians that Christoper Columbus enslaved after he found them living in Jamaica when he landed there).  The ride takes about 1 hour to reach the beach you are in a group of 8 with 2 tour guides.  Ours were Everton & Lincoln and they were both so sweet to us.  Once you reach the beach, you dismount for a small rest before remounting and riding out into the ocean.  The horses actually run through the water its an unbelievable experience!  After riding in the ocean, you & the horses rest again before riding along the beach and back up to the plantation.  The entire ride lasts about 3 hours and is well worth the $65 per person.  

On the way back to the resort, we stopped at a grocery store.  The storekeeper was already locking up, but unlocked the place and let us in!  We picked up some coffee, rum and munchies and BSd for a bit for heading back to the resort.  

 We got Back to resort for some food & rest before dinner and the PJ party!   

The PJ party was probably the wildest night we had in Jamaica.  I thought I was being conservative but ended up wearing less then 90% of the rest of the crowd.  The crowd was a bit more conservative then what I expected.  

Hubby and I left the party for one last trip around the resort.  We spent some time on the beach in a hammock, the nude hot tub, the pool and then the very hot, hot tub behind the gazebo before retiring at about 3am.  I was sad when realizing this was my last night on the island and I really had to come home the next day!   

Thursday May 31^st  

Room service woke us up at 8am for the last time.  I hurriedly packed and off to pool we went for a last couple of hours of sun.  We had breakfast by the ocean, then it was time to shower and go.  I picked up a few things from the gift shop and said goodbye to all the friends (both locals and other guests) we made while there.  The bus arrived at 1pm to take us back to MoBay.  The ride back was uneventful and quiet as I guess most of the guest were lost in thoughts remembering their time in Jamaica.  

Sangster was a mad house when we arrived, but eventually we made our way through the lines, got our boarding passes and off to the gate we went.  The flight home, customs and immigration went smoothly and before I knew it we were back at the Comfort Inn for 1 last night of vacation before driving back to Orlando on Friday!  

Overall Impressions  

Air Jamaica Out of Ft. Lauderdale was fine, but we did have an 8:15am flight, so delays were not a concern.  Out of Sangster is a different story.  After arriving at the airport and seeing the disorganization, the lines and people just looking lost and not getting much help I started to get nervous.  We did make it through the line with about 35 minutes to spare prior to take off.  The flight crew was not very warm or friendly.  The food was ok and I had no problem getting more then 1 drink.  

Super Clubs  - They were very helpful during the entire planning process.  When calling the 800#, I sometimes held for quite a while, but always got an answer to my questions.  Everything they said would happen did happen, including a bottle of champagne being delivered to our room on the 2^nd night we were there.  

Breezes Golf & Beach Resort BEAUTIFUL!  The resort is well kept, clean and modern.  The rooms are not 5 star, but I didnt book at the Ritz either.  The room was large, clean and more then we needed for 5 nights.  Great balcony in which I could see the ocean from, the beautiful gardens, the pool and the game room.  The floors are all tile (great idea), so they get kinda chilly in the middle of the night.  The A/C was good and cold and the water pressure in the showers was great!  Plenty of hot water to go around.  The maids do a beautiful job w/ towel creations & flowers.  

There is a nightclub upstairs above Martinos, a huge lobby bar with piano, gift shop, jewelry shop, arts & crafts shop, massage room, workout room, game room, Starlight grill (buffet food), 3 hot tubs, 1 huge pool, pavilion for dining, beach bar, grill, hammocks all over, beautiful gardens, nude beach and all the activities that go with it!  

Excursions Dunns River Falls is a MUST DO if you can physically handle the climb.  

Hooves Horseback Riding was awesome!  You get to learn the history of the plantation, while enjoying a nice relaxing horseback ride down to the beach.  Yes, you have to cross the road on your horse, but they stop the traffic for you.  Once you get to the beach, you rest before riding out into the ocean.  This is something I will never forget!!  

Jamaica A beautiful country w/ some of the sweetest people I have ever met.  They say we are so nice down here in the south, but I have never met more kinder people then I did in Jamaica.   

Feel free to email me at AprilJ24@aol.com if you have any specific questions.  

Irie!