As this is in journal form, it is a tad rougher around the edges than my normal posts.
Sunday, September 16, 2018 - Kingston and Ocho Rios, Jamaica
As I alluded to in the last post, Customs clearance and baggage delivery took a bit, but I was finally officially in Jamaica and thanks to the efficient guys at the Sandals transfer desk, I was on my way to Sandals Ochi Beach within minutes.
It was finally my turn to check in, and after turning over my credentials, I was informed my room wasn't ready, but if i wanted to, a butler could show me around the various food options that were open at the time and I could grab some lunch while my room was being prepared for arrival. Fine by me as I was starving by this point. The butler showed me around to several restaurants and explained what they had, and I decided to try the outdoor Jerk Shack, as most everyone I've talked to so far about this resort swore by it, but after a few bites, I just wasn't much of a fan, aside from the fact I can't really handle anything too spicy while I'm on the medications I'm on at the time. Luckily, there was one of the resident felines lounging at the side of my table, so he got a good chunk of the chicken, while I feasted on the fish. Happy kitty.
Finally, my room was ready, or so I thought. The room looked great, until the Butler showed me around and we entered the bathroom to find it flooded!
"Ya, mon, no problem" replied the Butler as we hauled out of there and back to the lounge.
Another 25 minutes later, I was given another room, a little bit further up the hill from the original room, but that was fine by me. The Butler showed me around and we made sure the room was up to specs, and he left to the rest of his appointed rounds while I settled in and waited for my luggage.
I was assured the luggage was on it's way up within a few minutes twice, but, in actuality, it didn't show up in my room until about 7PM. Not a great way to win a skeptical agent over, but hey, there was 4 days left for that to happen, as I was there to be shown how to market these resorts to prospective Luxury Travel clientele.
Initial snafus aside, my luggage arrived just in time for me to start unpacking, and freshening up for the remainder of the night. On the agenda was a Welcome Reception where I was acquainted with the 32 other agents, including another one from my own AAA Club, out of the Vacaville, CA office. There were a pair of BDM's (Business Development Managers) from Pleasant Holidays as well (that's who AAA uses to book Sandals and Beaches Resorts through). At the time of writing I have only booked these resorts only a handful of times, compared to other resorts like Riu, Hedonism or Hard Rock.
The reception was fantastic, and the accompanying dinner at Kimono, the beachside Teppanyaki restaurant, was pretty good as well, and the conversations I got dragged into with the group I was seated with were laced with hilarity and good vibes.
After dinner a few of us decided to hit up the Rabbit Hole, the only speakeasy on the entire island, and you had to have the password to get in the door or no entry for you! Awesome. Once inside though, there was this killer group belting out some amazing jazz, and the bar was on top of the drink action. I had to have one at least, so I nursed that the rest of the evening there, before retiring for the night.
Back in my room I wasn't tired at all, despite the late hour and needing to be in class the next morning by 8AM. My stomach started growling so I ordered some snacks from Room Service and got to reading my book (I was reading Robert Service's new book The Last of the Tsars: Nicholas II and the Russian Revolution) while munching away. I gotta say this...the Room Service was fantastic, and while they say it would take 40-60 minutes to get the food, it was there in less than 20 each night I ordered.
Monday, September 17, 2018 - Sandals Ochi Beach Resort
Sleeping in those beds was OK, but the height might be an issue for my shorter or older crowds, I bashed my knees and legs several times getting on and off the bed. Ouch!
The morning started off great, even though I woke up late due to my cell phone still thinking it was in a different time zone! Thankfully the conference room our seminar was in was fully catered and caffeinated with that amazingly delicious Blue Mountain Coffee Jamaica is known for. A few cups of that and I was wired well enough to pay attention and power through the entire 4 1/2 hour long training course. If you ask me though, it was so jam packed full of information I need to use to see Sandals and Beaches resorts that it could've served us a bit better had we added another hour or two, but we did have other matters to attend to that day as well.
Unfortunately there was only 20 minutes in between the time the training ended and the property tour began, so it was a quick grab n go situation at the pizza stand by the pool, before we were separated and sent off in groups around the property (both the Butler Villa side, and the Beachfront sides were covered), and at one point we were caught in a torrential downpour! I won't go into massive or intricate details on each resort in these journal entries as I'll leave the details for each blog post I do on each individual property (as per my work rules for being on the FAM in the first place), but suffice it to say, we covered just about every part of the resort. By 3PM we had finished the tour and left on our own. I hightailed it back to my room to get back to work with a group I was putting together, and call home and check in on the family before getting ready for the night's shenanigans.
Dinner was late that night, met up with the group at the front desk by 8:30PM or so to catch the Hop shuttle to the lower portion of the resort for dinner at Kelly's Dockside Grill. A fantastic place, with a great vibe and great food.
The festivities after dinner that night were unforgettable. First stop was the Polo Lounge in the Main building for a bit of karaoke. What happened there was insanity, pure and simple. First off, I think I was the only one that was stone cold sober in the lounge, and I was also first up to the mic, doing my rendition of Metallica's "Enter Sandman", and riling the gathering crowd up. After a few of my cohorts did their songs, I was back up, doing a hideous cover of KISS' "I Was Made for Lovin' You". The funniest thing happened during this song though...while I was singing, this girl was grooving to the song and coming up to me and grinding against me...all the while my cohorts were hooting and hollering. I thought it was hilarious. Afterwards, we went for another round down the Rabbit Hole, me nursing water the whole time. The adrenaline started wearing off by then and I made my way back to my room, where I was starting to unwind when the phone rang. Turns out it was that girl that was grooving in the Polo Lounge earlier, wanting to know if I made it back to my room alright and if I needed anything or some extra company. I said I was alright and I'm beat so I was going to sleep. Found out earlier that night she and a few of her friends work at the resort too, and I guess in their off time solicit guests who are there on their own. *shrugs* I passed out shortly after anyways.
Tuesday, September 18, 2018 - Sandals Royal Plantation Resort, Sandals Golf and Country Club, and Beaches Ocho Rios Resort
Gathering with the usual cast of misfits (love you guys, every last one of you. Except for the creeper, lol!) for breakfast in Le Gourmand, the French Restaurant on property, we retold and went over the last night's shenanigans before hopping out buses to the first property on today's tour, the Royal Plantation Resort, adjacent to the lower beachfront portion of our resort. This resort is a neat and luxurious smaller resort with only 74 suites, all with Butler service, and some of the best beachfront I've seen on the island yet. The suites are nicely apportioned, and this would be the place I send my higher scale clientele with no handicaps, as there are stairs everywhere, so the beach is not accessible at all for those in wheelchairs or other mobility devices.
Next up was a trip to the Sandals Golf and Country Club, with its well manicured 18 holes and rolling fairways, not to mention great views of the sea (when it's not overcast and threatening to rain!). After a quick run through the Pro Shop, we all piled into golf carts and tooled around the course with a few stops along the way taking us to the highest point on the island (at 780 feet above sea level) and some remarkable trees and vegetation lurking about. Easily the funniest and most comical part of the day...or so I thought.
Last stop, and my favorite of all, was the Beaches Ocho Rios Resort, which is geared more towards families with small children, teens, or kids on the Autism Spectrum.
From the instant I got off the bus, I turned into a 5 year old when I was met by none other than Oscar the Grouch of Sesame Street fame. Beaches has a deal with Sesame Workshop to use characters and whatnot for programs throughout the resorts, which I thought was awesome, especially after learning the attention to detail the resort go through for their guests.
This property is HUGE, and the tour was easily the longest of all, and took a while to get through, but that's alright, that's what we agents were there to see. We were taken through all three parts of the resort, I especially liked the Greek area, with the buildings mimicking those you'd see on the island of Santorini. The rooms we went through were fantastic (not to mention running into more characters from the Street), and great for families large and small. The waterpark was pretty big too, and I wouldn't hesitate for a second sending a family with kids or teens here at all. Afterwards, lunch was held in the cavernous Venetian Restaurant with, of course, a Sesame Street theme, but with some seriously fantastic adult food. We also got a quick introduction to Beaches Autism Programs as well, something I am pursuing my certification in once I get back stateside.
Returning to our resort, I went back to work on the group I was putting together, only to find out they had gone around my back and booked everything on their own, piece by piece, saving them a grand total of $14 per person. Ugh. Oh well, now I can unwind and relax until dinnertime, which was our farewell dinner, again at the swanky Le Gourmand, and let me tell you, hilarity ensued at my table, thanks to several of us imbibing a bit too much, and over analyzing certain songs, or digging up others somewhat famous ex's (I'm STILL laughing about that, by the way). Another final round down the Rabbit Hole, then saying my goodbyes I headed back to my room to get some of my stuff ready to leave tomorrow.
That does it for Part 2, hope you enjoyed it, Part 3 will be published October 8, 2018. Stay tuned!
I was assured the luggage was on it's way up within a few minutes twice, but, in actuality, it didn't show up in my room until about 7PM. Not a great way to win a skeptical agent over, but hey, there was 4 days left for that to happen, as I was there to be shown how to market these resorts to prospective Luxury Travel clientele.
Initial snafus aside, my luggage arrived just in time for me to start unpacking, and freshening up for the remainder of the night. On the agenda was a Welcome Reception where I was acquainted with the 32 other agents, including another one from my own AAA Club, out of the Vacaville, CA office. There were a pair of BDM's (Business Development Managers) from Pleasant Holidays as well (that's who AAA uses to book Sandals and Beaches Resorts through). At the time of writing I have only booked these resorts only a handful of times, compared to other resorts like Riu, Hedonism or Hard Rock.
The reception was fantastic, and the accompanying dinner at Kimono, the beachside Teppanyaki restaurant, was pretty good as well, and the conversations I got dragged into with the group I was seated with were laced with hilarity and good vibes.
After dinner a few of us decided to hit up the Rabbit Hole, the only speakeasy on the entire island, and you had to have the password to get in the door or no entry for you! Awesome. Once inside though, there was this killer group belting out some amazing jazz, and the bar was on top of the drink action. I had to have one at least, so I nursed that the rest of the evening there, before retiring for the night.
Back in my room I wasn't tired at all, despite the late hour and needing to be in class the next morning by 8AM. My stomach started growling so I ordered some snacks from Room Service and got to reading my book (I was reading Robert Service's new book The Last of the Tsars: Nicholas II and the Russian Revolution) while munching away. I gotta say this...the Room Service was fantastic, and while they say it would take 40-60 minutes to get the food, it was there in less than 20 each night I ordered.
Monday, September 17, 2018 - Sandals Ochi Beach Resort
Sleeping in those beds was OK, but the height might be an issue for my shorter or older crowds, I bashed my knees and legs several times getting on and off the bed. Ouch!
The morning started off great, even though I woke up late due to my cell phone still thinking it was in a different time zone! Thankfully the conference room our seminar was in was fully catered and caffeinated with that amazingly delicious Blue Mountain Coffee Jamaica is known for. A few cups of that and I was wired well enough to pay attention and power through the entire 4 1/2 hour long training course. If you ask me though, it was so jam packed full of information I need to use to see Sandals and Beaches resorts that it could've served us a bit better had we added another hour or two, but we did have other matters to attend to that day as well.
Unfortunately there was only 20 minutes in between the time the training ended and the property tour began, so it was a quick grab n go situation at the pizza stand by the pool, before we were separated and sent off in groups around the property (both the Butler Villa side, and the Beachfront sides were covered), and at one point we were caught in a torrential downpour! I won't go into massive or intricate details on each resort in these journal entries as I'll leave the details for each blog post I do on each individual property (as per my work rules for being on the FAM in the first place), but suffice it to say, we covered just about every part of the resort. By 3PM we had finished the tour and left on our own. I hightailed it back to my room to get back to work with a group I was putting together, and call home and check in on the family before getting ready for the night's shenanigans.Dinner was late that night, met up with the group at the front desk by 8:30PM or so to catch the Hop shuttle to the lower portion of the resort for dinner at Kelly's Dockside Grill. A fantastic place, with a great vibe and great food.
The festivities after dinner that night were unforgettable. First stop was the Polo Lounge in the Main building for a bit of karaoke. What happened there was insanity, pure and simple. First off, I think I was the only one that was stone cold sober in the lounge, and I was also first up to the mic, doing my rendition of Metallica's "Enter Sandman", and riling the gathering crowd up. After a few of my cohorts did their songs, I was back up, doing a hideous cover of KISS' "I Was Made for Lovin' You". The funniest thing happened during this song though...while I was singing, this girl was grooving to the song and coming up to me and grinding against me...all the while my cohorts were hooting and hollering. I thought it was hilarious. Afterwards, we went for another round down the Rabbit Hole, me nursing water the whole time. The adrenaline started wearing off by then and I made my way back to my room, where I was starting to unwind when the phone rang. Turns out it was that girl that was grooving in the Polo Lounge earlier, wanting to know if I made it back to my room alright and if I needed anything or some extra company. I said I was alright and I'm beat so I was going to sleep. Found out earlier that night she and a few of her friends work at the resort too, and I guess in their off time solicit guests who are there on their own. *shrugs* I passed out shortly after anyways.Tuesday, September 18, 2018 - Sandals Royal Plantation Resort, Sandals Golf and Country Club, and Beaches Ocho Rios Resort
Gathering with the usual cast of misfits (love you guys, every last one of you. Except for the creeper, lol!) for breakfast in Le Gourmand, the French Restaurant on property, we retold and went over the last night's shenanigans before hopping out buses to the first property on today's tour, the Royal Plantation Resort, adjacent to the lower beachfront portion of our resort. This resort is a neat and luxurious smaller resort with only 74 suites, all with Butler service, and some of the best beachfront I've seen on the island yet. The suites are nicely apportioned, and this would be the place I send my higher scale clientele with no handicaps, as there are stairs everywhere, so the beach is not accessible at all for those in wheelchairs or other mobility devices.
Next up was a trip to the Sandals Golf and Country Club, with its well manicured 18 holes and rolling fairways, not to mention great views of the sea (when it's not overcast and threatening to rain!). After a quick run through the Pro Shop, we all piled into golf carts and tooled around the course with a few stops along the way taking us to the highest point on the island (at 780 feet above sea level) and some remarkable trees and vegetation lurking about. Easily the funniest and most comical part of the day...or so I thought.
Last stop, and my favorite of all, was the Beaches Ocho Rios Resort, which is geared more towards families with small children, teens, or kids on the Autism Spectrum.
From the instant I got off the bus, I turned into a 5 year old when I was met by none other than Oscar the Grouch of Sesame Street fame. Beaches has a deal with Sesame Workshop to use characters and whatnot for programs throughout the resorts, which I thought was awesome, especially after learning the attention to detail the resort go through for their guests.
This property is HUGE, and the tour was easily the longest of all, and took a while to get through, but that's alright, that's what we agents were there to see. We were taken through all three parts of the resort, I especially liked the Greek area, with the buildings mimicking those you'd see on the island of Santorini. The rooms we went through were fantastic (not to mention running into more characters from the Street), and great for families large and small. The waterpark was pretty big too, and I wouldn't hesitate for a second sending a family with kids or teens here at all. Afterwards, lunch was held in the cavernous Venetian Restaurant with, of course, a Sesame Street theme, but with some seriously fantastic adult food. We also got a quick introduction to Beaches Autism Programs as well, something I am pursuing my certification in once I get back stateside.Returning to our resort, I went back to work on the group I was putting together, only to find out they had gone around my back and booked everything on their own, piece by piece, saving them a grand total of $14 per person. Ugh. Oh well, now I can unwind and relax until dinnertime, which was our farewell dinner, again at the swanky Le Gourmand, and let me tell you, hilarity ensued at my table, thanks to several of us imbibing a bit too much, and over analyzing certain songs, or digging up others somewhat famous ex's (I'm STILL laughing about that, by the way). Another final round down the Rabbit Hole, then saying my goodbyes I headed back to my room to get some of my stuff ready to leave tomorrow.
That does it for Part 2, hope you enjoyed it, Part 3 will be published October 8, 2018. Stay tuned!
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