vacation24

We are planning to stay at the Tropical Bay in Feb (with 2 kids - 2 and 5) and just wanted to get some feedback from the experts about the hotel.
How is the food, the beach, the rooms and will there be some entertainment for the kids? Overall, how is the place and what can i expect. This is our first trip to Jamaica so any tips would be appreciated. Also, what should we not miss in terms of sightseeing (keeping in mind, that the kids are young)
Thanks alot

camlec

Hi,

I was there for my honeymoon in 2002, so I can't help you much with the kids part! I did notice the kids' pool was drained the entire week we were there so families seemed to congregate at one of the other two pools. There was a kids' group led by hotel staff that operated each morning. They would play games, run on the beach, etc. It didn't seem to operate in the afternoon or maybe they went inside. The beach is absolutely beautiful and very clean - we spent most of our time there.

We didn't have any problem with our room - we were upgraded to a beachfront suite. The regular sized room we visited was pretty standard looking. You may want to bring your own shampoo as thye only give you little plastic packages (like a ketchup pack). The food is good - you had to choose which dinner seating you wanted for the whole week. We chose 9 p.m. - most families seemed to be at the 7 p.m. Since it was buffet, there was always lots to choose from. We did get tired of it though after the 4th day. The a la carte restaurant required you to be there at 7 a.m. to reserve for that night. The service in this restaurant was really bad and slow so we only went once and stuck to the buffet, where we had a great waiter assigned to us all week.

Our only external excursion was to Rick's Cafe, which (even if it was open) probably wouldn't be of interest to you! Have a great time!

liza

For sightseeing...they might enjoy a boat ride (glass bottom), the older one might like to try snorkeling. Boats cruise out to the reef, over to the cliffs or can be chartered to go up the Negril River to Royal Palm Preserve.

The cliffs are wonderful but nightmarish with a 2 year old as the cliff restaurants and hotels generally do not fence off the cliff edge, to preserve the view.

An afternoon around Negril, perhaps with a stop to Jamaica Jurassic Park might be fun for hte kids, as I recall there is a little swing set there but the main attraction are huge metal sculptures of dinosaurs and flowers and things. It's only about 20 minutes from Negril. See www.talkofthetowntours.com for more info , Sala is a driver/guide I highly recommend.

vacation24

Thanks for the info...
As far as the meals are concerned, are there snacks, etc available all the time- just incase the kids get hungry before our chosen dinner seating? Also, is it advisable to tip them to get an upgraded room - and how much? We booked an oceanview double so any suggestions as to which bldg/room to request would be appreciated.
Was the water safe to drink and did they provide you with bottled water in the rooms- sorry for all the questions, I am just getting nervous about travelling with my 2 yr,. old.
Thanks

camlec

There was a no-mans time between 6 to 9 when you couldn't get something to eat, which isn't an issue if you take the 7 p.m. sitting. We learned the hard way to go to the pizza place around 4 for a snack or else we'd be starving by 8 p.m. with an hour to go to dinner. Otherwise, there's usually a buffet open or a jerk hut on the beach (it's spicy so your kids might not like it). There's no room service or snacks in the room other than alcohol so you may want to bring some granola bars, cookies, etc. for desperate times!

We were upgraded because we had requested a room off the ground floor and one wasn't available and also it was our honeymoon! We didn't tip anyone other than our cleaning lady (I brought goodies such as nail polish, kids' stickers, hair baubles, etc. and left them for her the first morning which got us great service all week, and we left her U.S. cash on the last day) and we tipped our dinner server U.S. cash which kept a non-stop supply of wine to our table.

We were in building three. There was one building very cloes to the road which I would have been unhappy to be in because of road noise but I don't know what number that is. Perhaps their website has a site plan? Or your travel agent might have one? The closer to the beach and farther from the disco, the better!

The room's bar fridge had a big jug of bottled water which we drank without any adverse effects. I don't think I had water with any meals. It was either juice, coffee or alcohol! The juices are all fresh-squeezed.

liza

We always drink tap water in Jamaica (except this last time which was just two weeks after Hurricane Ivan, we were advised that the water might be not quite right yet) and have not had any problems.

vacation24

Thanks everyone. Also, what kind of clothing do you think that i should pack - would we need long pants and a light jacket in the evenings? Are there alot of bugs in the evenings? Does the hotel stock the room fridge with juice? (thats what my kids love to drink)
Camlec, did you get a transfer from the airport to the hotel thru a tour package or did you arrange that on your own? We are getting one thru Apple Vacations and just wondered how long the tranfer is - are they going to have alot of stops? Just wondering if maybe we should consider arranging one on our own.

xxxx

I believe the Riu requires (or at least strongly suggests) long pants for men for dinner.

camlec

Our transfer was included in the tour package and it was about a 90-minute bus ride from Montego Bay to the hotel. It likely would have been faster but we stopped at a store for about 20 minutes each way for a bio-break.

I don't think juice was included in the fridge - I remember the water, beer, coke and tonic water. You might want to pack some juice boxes for your kids.

I am pretty sure men have to wear pants to dinner - I really can't remember though. For women, clothing ranged from sun dresses to cocktail dresses to nice pants. This was for the later seating though and it might have been more informal at the earlier one.

We were there in July so it was hot at all times of the day (and night!). The bugs seemed worse around dusk, especially on the beach if you were trying to watch the sunset. Those damn no-see-ums!