SamandKy

Ciao!!

Fiance and I are doing 9 Nights on Grand Cayman and 7 Nights in Jamaica at Sandals Whitehouse for our Honeymoon.
We'll be in Jamaica June 30 to July 7. We're staying in a condo and renting a car in GC so we'll be doing lots of exploring on our own there. Jamaica is more laid back and relaxing before we head back to the real world.

My dilemma is...

Whitehouse is kind in the middle of nowhere...or a long way from anywhere anyways. It would be a wicked shame to go to Jamaica and not SEE Jamacia. So, What's the best way for us to do that?
We'd only want to use a few days to explore...would like to Zipline, Horse back ride, see Dunn River falls...BUT am I correct that it will be 45 min of bumpy roads to do/see ANYTHING?

Has anyone stayed at Whitehouse? What did you think of the resort? What building/suite were you in? Which exursions (sandals or outside party) did you take?


Sorry for 50 questions but a girl's gotta know these things!

Graize Fodorites...

KVR

Have not stayed at Sandals Wahitehouse. We stayed at the RIU in Negril. The YS Falls and the Mayfield Falls will be closer to get to than Dunn's River. You really need to stay in Ocho Rios to go to Dunn's River if you don't want a long drive/day.

Have you checked the tour options offered by Sandals on their website? You can also just hire one of the taxi drivers at the resort to take you sightseeing or you can book with a tour opertator on-line. There are so many to choose from. Go to Trip Advisor and read, read, read.

To answer you question on another post regarding Rick's Cafe, it's located in Negril. The locals jump from a tree into the water. Beforehand they have a guy walking around collecting money to watch him jump. Saw only a handful of tourists actually jump off the cliff.

SamandKy

THanks KVR, I know...my eyes are burning from all this reading

The few sandals exursions I liked were booked up the WHOLE time we will be there. I couldn't believe it!

How do the YS and Mayfield Falls compare? I guess there's such a hype over Dunns River it seems a shame not to go. But...there are priorities of course.
Thanks for the answer on Rick's...funny that's not what I had pictured in my head...must be a tall leaning tree! Can't say I'd pay to watch smeone jump it.

KVR

There are addtional tours offered by Sandals that they don't put on their web-site for pre-booking. Check their tour desk when you get there. Also, if you booked with a Sandals TA, call them and they will pre-book your excursions for you.

We preferred Mayfield Falls. It's actually called a nature walk because you walk in the water all the way down the river to the actual falls. We booked both tours with the tour operator at the hotel.

Yeah, we regreted not going to Dunn's also, but not enough to drive that far when we were staying in Negril. We went on a cruise back in 2007 that was supposed to have stopped in Ocho Rios, but the Captian skipped the port. We then booked Sandals Dunn River for this July, but since the hotel is closing within weeks of our arrival we canceled. We'll eventually get there.

Here's a pic of a guy jumping at Rick's Cafe. They were only collecting a dollar and it was optional.

http://travel.webshots.com/photo/228...38640397hBAGKu

ejcrowe

Book a private tour up the Black River to see the crocodiles and swim in a swimming hole with water that is amazingly clear. The big tour boats have tons of people on them and can't go as far up river as the others. There's a company called Talk of the Town tours who has a great reputation. There's also a man named Dennis, based out of Treasure Beach, who could take you.

That same day, take a ride out to the Pelican Bar, a wonderful, rickety little bar built on stilts about 1/4 mile offshore, not far from the Black River. Dennis or Talk of the Town should be able to arrange that for you.

And the suggestion of heading to Negril for the day, taking in the beach and then the cliffs for sunset diving is a good one, too.

JAGIRL

Diving at Rick's Cafe : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a2hsL...eature=related

doug_stallings

I'm not even sure you can do Dunn's River Falls as a day-trip from Sandals Whitehouse. If you did, you'd be spending a total of 6 to 8 hours or so on the road, and that might be an overly generous estimate. Definitely stick to someplace closer to your resort or move to a resort in a more central area.

SamandKy

Wow Doug_Stallings...That's' what I was looking for is a 'traveltime' from someone. Thats outrageous! We'll definitely be doing YS or Mayfield as an alternative

Thanks ejcrowe for the tour recommendation, I'll look them up.

nice vid JAGIRL