Couples vs. Sandals - Ocho Rios
 

I am interested in scuba, snorkeling & all the water sports we can find. Can anyone tell me which is better: Sandals Ocho Rios or Couples Ocho Rios. Thanks

I have not been to Couples but we were at Sandals Ocho last April and having been to many Sandals, we feel Sandals Ocho is really one of the prettiest properties. The grounds are so luch and tropical - the books do not do it justice! Really beautiful and so peaceful.<BR><BR>The beach there is not big but nice and you do have access to Sandals Dunn's and Beaches Grande Sport which is literally right next door.<BR><BR>Snorkeling was very good - you can go as many times as you want. Never a problem getting water sports equipment and it was in good shape. <BR><BR>

Sean,<BR><BR>My wife and I were in Jamaica last year. We stayed at Couples Ocho Rios, and it was excellent. Sandals has a small beach and didn't seem to have quite the pizazz as Couples.<BR><BR>At Couples the food is excellent. The beach is very roomy. They also have their very own little island for nude bathing.<BR><BR>For your scuba, snorkeling and other water sports you will be pleased with their services. It's all inclusive so just make sure when you arrive to begin planning out each day. Need to sign up for certain activities.<BR><BR>You will not be disappointed at all choosing Couples Ocho Rios. It's mostly for couples. You will see a lot of newly weds.<BR><BR>If you need any more specific info, shoot me a email and I will help.<BR><BR>TC

Couples Ocho Rios also includes horseback riding, a trip to Dunn's River Falls, a Shopping Trip, A Plantation Tour and a Glassbottom Boat Ride.<BR>I found it to be a beautiful, enchanting property with good food and drinks.<BR>The beach is small, but nice. The gardens are magnificent.<BR>So are the gardens at Sandals Ocho Rios.<BR><BR>

I don't think that anyone can ever tell you which resort is "better". It depends upon what you are looking for in a resort, what your frames of reference are, what your expectations are, and even the particular week you happen to be at the resort and the particular people you happen to run into or things that happen to you while you are there.<BR><BR>What I can tell you is that we have been to both Sandals Ocho Rios and Couples Ocho Rios, and we personally preferred Couples for many reasons. We have visited 7 different AI resorts in Jamaica, in addition to traveling in Europe and North America, and our trip to Sandals Ocho Rios was the only time we have been anywhere and actually been happy to be leaving to go home. However, we had some real issues with rude staff, a theft from our room, and ineffective or uncaring management while there, and these things may have negatively influenced our overall opinion of the resort. I do know that management has changed since we were there. <BR><BR>I should also note that although hubby is an avid windsurfer and I like to snorkel (off the beach rather than from a boat), we do not spend a lot of time watersports so my point of view may not be particularly helpful to you. Also, I think you will find the same limitations on watersports at both resorts, in that both are in the Ocho Rios area, which is on the north shore of the island and often tends to be quite windy (great for windsurfing but not for some other watersports), so you may find that at either resort, there may be some days when the watersports activities might be cancelled if they feel it is too windy. <BR><BR>With that in mind, some of the things we preferred about Couples in comparison to Sandals:<BR>- although the beaches at both resorts are relatively small, we thought that the beach at Couples was larger (it is certainly deeper) and nicer, had more places to find a lounger, also we found the sand on the beach at Sandals to be much coarser<BR>- Couples has a slightly old world European feel to it, which we personally preferred<BR>- we personally found the staff to be more personable and friendly at Couples<BR>- we liked the included free tours at Couples<BR>- preferred the food at Couples, felt that the breakfast and lunch buffet choices had more of a Jamaican feel than at Sandals (i.e. Sandals food was more Americanized) ... I could get rice & peas (as opposed to plain white rice, or fried rice, or whatever) and Jamaican patties and Ting if I wanted every day ... however, many people would prefer more Americanized food so it would really depend on your tastes<BR><BR>Good luck deciding!