Any suggestions? I am posting for a friend (a rich friend) of mine who wants a nice al for a 4 night getaway.

Thanks!!

If this is for a short getaway, I recommend the Ritz Carlton on their Key to Paradise plan, which is basically an AI plan. The service is excellent and the property is beautiful and the food very good. It's ideal for a short getaway because it is only 15 minutes from the airport, whereas the other upscale AI's are near Negril and Ocho Rios which are 1 1/2 hours or more from the airport. The Executive Suites at the Ritz are well worth the extra money -- two balconies, two bathrooms and a separate living room and I think only $60 more a night(?)

Thanks Eileen!

Is their beach nice?

Rich friends for whom money is no object tend to want exclusivity and class... so why would they want an AI (the antithesis of both exclusivity and class).

How about a luxury villa with private pool at Round Hill, or else Strawberry Hill in the blue mountains above Kingston ?

Hey Tom. Actually, Round Hill is where they are booked now but they were told it has no beach or not a good one.

They have never beem to an al before (neither have I) and were wondering if there are any nice ones...I guess not!

Which of the 3 places you mentione dhas a good beach?

Thanks!

Oops, I meant which of the 2 places.

take a look at the villas on the beach in negril at moondance villas - you can opt for a/i or not there.

http://www.moondancevillas.com/

The Ritz beach is not great and can be very crowded given the size of the resort. They have shuttle service to another beach nearby but it's not as convenient as an onsite beach. Your friend may want to look into Tryall Club which I believe has a better beach than Round Hill. You can opt for an AI plan there.

Most of the nicer properties in Jamaica offer an AI plan as an option. But when you say AI, one tends to think in terms of Sandals, etc.

Yes, I agree one downfall of the Ritz was the not-great beach. Another idea but it is all the way in Ocho Rios -- Jamaica Inn is on my wish list. The beach looks wonderful and it consistently rates very high (was recently on the cover of Caribbean Travel & Life) They have a meal and drink inclusive plan. And the accomodations look wonderful!

Wow, Moondance Villas look wonderful, right on the beach. Dream Walk looks prefect for a future vaction spot, I'm just not a big fan of Jamaica. Is this a safe area? We have stayed at Couples before. Thanks for posting that link gingele.

Moondance is beautiful and is on an incredible beach (the 7 mile Negril beach but Moondance is on a really nice part of it, lots of palm trees and the beach is deep there, not narrow).

Friends stayed there in 2002 and I was there a couple of times to hang out with them...has all you'd want really and much more personal service than any large resort can provide - you have your own maid, chef, bartender etc there. It's actually not that expensive, especially for a group.

Other luxury options in Jamaica:

Villas at Tryall - not sure about that beach

Goldeneye: http://www.islandoutpost.com/content...e/overview.htm

eileen,
I absolutely adore the Jamaica Inn! We've stayed there twice and are heading back for our anniversary in May. The reason I hadn't suggested earlier was due to its farther distance from the airport than the resorts in MoBay. They have a very nice cove beach that never feels crowded due to the size of the property. No TV's, CD players, or anything like that in the rooms so would not be suitable for anyone looking for "modern" amenities, but that suits me just fine.

...just thought of another, Trident Castle near Port Antonio. Rates start at just $21,000 a week in low season but go up to $52,000 in high

http://www.jamaicavillas.com/trident.html

I have stayed in Negril twice in the last few months, both times close to Moondance Villas... I'm sure they are very lovely, but the beach there is not a patch on Seven Mile Beach or Colliers Bay in Grand Cayman, not to mention that Moondance Villas is no more than 200 yards from the (noisy at night) Margaritaville party spot.... not my idea of exclusive....

If you want a really superb beach... frankly Jamaica does not have one that can match Turks or Grand Cayman

Heading to Ritz MB in 2 weeks for the 3rd time, but wanted Half Moon- Just couldn't quite afford it- They have an AI plan, and many, many options for accomadations. First visit was a la carte, second AI, and this time club level. Service can't be beat there, except maybe at Half Moon!

P.S. Half Moon is next door to Ritz- They don't share a beach- We keep returning to play White Witch golf course- Fabulous! www.halfmoon-resort.com

Must check out these 2 places:

1. Royal Plantation by Beaches. Ocho area.

2. The Caves. Negril cliffs. (This would be my first choice.)

Kristen1206,

Here are a couple of suggestions for your rich friend:

A villa at Tryall - private pool, full staff, pretty good beach (but they may not even leave the villa for the beach), great golf, great views, very luxurious.

A villa at Half Moon - much better beach

The White Suite at Jamaica Inn - and have them fly to Ocho Rios from MoBay. Great Beach, great AI package -- and they can have all their meals room service (The White Suite was Sir Winston Churchill's fave when he stayed at the JamInn).

I was at both the Caves and Moondance a month ago. Both nice hotels, I prefered Moondance because of the beach. The food at The Caves was fabulous, the best I ever had in the Carribbean but we got bored of not being on the beach. The Villas there are a bit "rustic", no A/C and lots of bugs. Moondance accomodations are superb although a little generic. It has A/C, satellite Tv and DSL with a Dell computer. You can do AI or pay as you go. We did the latter and saved about $50 a night. They have all kinds of toys on the beach (hobie cat, raft etc.) and we didn't find Margaritaville to be distracting. It is convenient to be able to walk to some of the beach bars at night. Our house had 3 hot tubs and a private pool as well. Let me know if you need more details.

TomCayman, have you been to the east coast of Jamaica? There are some beaches there that take my breath away, nothing like Negril - no hotels or restaurants or bars on them, just beach and usually not crowded at all.

Negril's 7 mile beach is a world unto itself...the "sand highway" I call it...