Transportation:

Same as last year we used Olympus and had no problems they were on time friendly and everything worked great.

Arrival:

We were greeted with cold towels and champagne and were into our rooms within 15 mins of arrival.

Room:

Our room was cool (a/c was already on) and neat and clean. With chilled water in the fridge ready for drinking. We had no problems sleeping on the bed (others have complained theirs was too hard). We had a gardenview room with the queen sized bed (oceanviews were all booked up). I will say our gardenview didn't have that little step alongside the bed that almost caught me by surprise several times last year in our oceanview room.

Grounds:

The grounds looked pretty well considering the storm (Ivan) had only passed through there two weeks or so before. They were still repairing rooms and the barrier wall. Along with replacing various plants. Not fair to compare to last year since there were no storms last year.

Pools and Jacuzzi:

The pools were the same as last year.. warm and inviting. This year we actually saw people in the lobby pool which last year we pretty much thought was just for show or the occassional crab that falls in. They even had various floats the EC's would put into the pool every morning for guests use along with the floats brought by guests.

The jacuzzi was warmer (at times) this year than last but not too warm. The new shower is a nice feature but I think we only saw it used once or twice. Most of the time people used the area to put their towels! The floor is still VERY slippery and we saw two people fall as they walked out of the jacuzzi even though there now is a matt at the bottom stair and a wooden walkway. The seats in the jacuzzi are not any smoother this year contrary to what we heard and I have the scratches on my hamstrings to prove it. The bar staff at the jacuzzi was great with the exception of one night where the one NEW bartender was overwhelmed with a big group that came up to the jacuzzi but over the next few days we had no problems and at one point there was THREE bartenders up there tending to us. Towels as always were not a problem as there was always plenty of them available.

Food:

The pool side grill was ok but there were ALOT of flys around.. yukka. The grill setup in the mexican restaraunt was the place to eat for afternoon snacks. With fresh grouper, chicken and steak prepared for you as you asked for it.. YUMMM. Not to mention a variety of pasta, rice and vegetables in the typical steel containers heated by sternos. My favorite for a pool side snack. The main buffet area was always good. I could always find something I liked in the selection. Breakfast.. my personal favorite was EXCELLENT... Matilde is GREAT and deserves a raise. She slaved behind the grill every morning for us.. ALWAYS pleasant and greeting us with a smile. Her omelettes and waffles are the absolute BEST. The fancy international restaraunt was excellent as well. We ate there several times during our stay and loved the beef, seafood pot and the shrimp in soy sauce. Daniel.. the only staff member still around from our last trip was a pleasure as always. He charmed the ladies and was very courteous towards the men. The mexican reservation restaraunt was not exactly my cup of tea so I can't fairly review it (I don't eat spicy food). But I can say the beef dish was very tasty. And the fire coffee show just has to be experienced. Noberto was alot of fun and a pleasure to deal with. Giesella (the hostest) was absolutely a pleasure. Geisella,Hector and Noberto worked with us and our Desireplayers group above and beyond what they needed to. They never had a problem adding tables as more and more people showed up. They allowed us to have group seating at dinners even at one point adding three extra tables to our already overlarge setup for 22! Never once complaining or saying no. That is true VIP service.

Entertainment:

The EC's were great.. Janna, Maria, JJ and the DJ's (mini me and the others ...sorry didn't get your names). The music was MUCH improved from last year and the Desire time games were as fun as ever. Theme nights had a pretty good participation and everyone had fun and enjoyed the shows. ;)

Beach:

Was raked everyday but because of the various storms the water was still kinda clouded up. The water was warm and we had no problems with jellyfish or anything like that.

Well that's about all I can think of for now.. if anyone would like to know more.. just ask.