We are planning to be married in Jamaica in Feb, and are trying to decide between Sandals Oho Rios and ciboney Oho Rios-
We have gotton a good rate on both, includes air-
and would like your opinion and comparison.
The Sandals seems to have a larger beach, and is right on the beach, and we would pay 750. for the wedding package. I know that we can also use the other Sandals resorts.I also like that it is for couples only. It would cost us about 500. more to go to Sandals than Ciboney.
Ciboneys' beach looks far from the rooms, and very small. They also are not just for couples- which is somewhat a negative-
I noticed in the Apple guide, that Ciboney is rated a golden 6- and Sandals Oho Rios is rated a golden 5..
I like the free massage and pedicures offered at Ciboney. The rooms /villas at ciboney seem nicer-Sandals always shows the suites in their brochures, and we would be staying in a deluxe/standard room- and don't know what to expect.
As far as the 750. fee for the wedding at Sandals, it seems like you really get alot for that price.
------
I realize it is a matter of preference, and for us, we like a nice beach, great pampering service, fun activities, golf, watersports, and great food-
I wondered if at Sandals, because it is all couples, if we would not get treated as special, even though we are getting married there, because every couple is celebrating, where-as at Ciboney- maybe we would be pampered a little more?????

Please e-mail me asap, as we need to make our decision by this week to get the great prices!
Sincerely,
Lynn in MI

We did not get married at Ciboney, but celebrated our 25th anniversary there. I picked Ciboney because of the villa styled units with your own pool. We thought the food was wonderful, with different resturants. The beach is just a very short ride away, under the highway. It takes about 3 minutes. The beach itself has it's own pool with a swim up bar and menu. They have a volleyball court and plenty of boat type options. On the main grounds they have tennis and life size chess. The grounds are beautiful. We felt very pampered. I am a travel agent and had been to other properties in Jamacia, and I was very happy with my choice. There was a couple from England who were getting married in our unit, and he wore his kilt. They said all the plans that were made were wonderful. If you chose Ciboney, ask for the unit at the top of the hill, it's quiet and has a wonderful view. As for the Sandals hype about using other sites, I think you'll find getting from Ocho Rios to Negril is really a pain. If you have any questions, you can Email me....Happy Wedding

I stayed at Ciboney in 10/1995 and it was not the hotel we chose but our hotel (Jamica Grande)overbooked the hotel and we got bumped-up to Ciboney. The grounds at the resort were very pretty,the people
that worked there were very nice. We were not the nicest customers when we found out that we got bumped from our other hotel. However, it all worked out for the best as this place had better food, 24 hour room service, the room came with a small bar and it was restocked each day. The maid said drink as much as you want it was included. Even though we did not drink beer and rum, we enjoyed all the soft drinks. There was a free massage and everynight there an event at the resort.
The only thing we did not like was the beach was not in walking distance, you had to take a bus to the beach. But on the otherhand, you could go 6 feet out in the water and yellow tangs were swimming by your feet. That was amazing. Take an underwater camera wherever you go. Also all the snorking, windsurfing, glass bottom boat, etc... are included.
Another thing I want to warn you about is the room are nice, but none of the windows have screens. They seem to use shutters, so, once and a while a reptile or bug will run across the floor or wall.
E-mail me if you want any more info.
I will be happy to answer any other questions you may have. Have fun.

My husband & I vacationed at Sandals Ocho Rios last July. We stayed in a Deluxe room. We were at the back of the resort with a nice garden view. If we went back, I would consider upgrading one level to a premium room and requesting to stay in the main building (I believe the Oleander building). There was nothing wrong with our room, it was nice, just nothing spectacular. We enjoyed the property in general. The couples only feature really appealed to us as there were no kids. The staff was great and really friendly. I think that they treated everyone good. By the end of the week, I feel as if they had gotten to know most of the guests. They really encourage participation and interaction among the guests. We had a lot of fun and met a lot of other couples. However, we visited another Sandals resort, where we kept to ourselves, and the staff is not pushy or obtrusive as far as encouraging guests to participate in activities. Diving is included at the Sandals resorts, and we really like that. Even if you are not certified, there is a resort course that you can take. We saw several couples that had gotten married at the resort. I would say that you would have absolutely beautiful wedding pictures. The grounds were fantastic and very lush.

Hello, We were married at Sandals Ocho Rios on Feb 10th, and I was
wondering if you want to compare notes- Very rushed meeting with the
wedding coordinator when we arrived at the resort--rushing to pick
music,flowers. etc.) Not organized-not detail oriented-- ------- I was
very dissapointed in the photos- which we paid $140.00 extra to have a
package of 13 taken. They all were dark~!! The photographer and wedding
coordinator said it was the lab.......I will take the negatives to a lab
today to see what they say- but I don't think it's the lab....I studied
photography in college- and the pictures are terrible!!! Also, the video
was very poor quality- my voice was cut off in part of the video, and
the rest of the video you could not hear the voices of the minister my
husband and myself -Granted- we were married on the gazebo on the water-
yet they should have adjusted their microphones! We cannot re-create the
moment The other dissapointment was that the whole ceremoney,
"reception" and photography was very rushed- The ceremoney was at 4:00-
the best part was the ministers' words, then we were wisked away quickly
to a reception area - we sat down and then the wedding coordinator
orchestrated the cutting of the cake- the champagne toast, the dance
quickly...then the photographer said he wanted to take photos-(photos
should have been taken first!!!!. I think we were in the reception area
for a whole 1/2 hour-( The whole thing was not the typical "slow
jamaican way".... our wedding was the mo st rushed part of our trip I
thought that after the photos were taken, we would be able to go back to
the reception area, and have some drinks, yet they had already cleared
everything away. I was very mad but blew it off in anticipation of the
"great photos and video" we would be getting-- I was expecting great
photography- a great video- The experience was fine, but not as great as
it should have been, or as they advertised- I called Sandals customer
service when we returned, ( 4 days ago) , yet no return call- I plan on
writing to "Butch" the owner to complain and get a refund of the wedding
fee and photography fee.. I have been to "Couples" in Ocho Rios several
years ago, and wish we would have gone there to get married. The only
reason I didn't choose this resort was because I had been there with a
different person, and thought it would be tacky- I am glad they are
opening a Couples in Negril- because that is where we plan to go next.
The service- just everything at Couples was perfect-I have not one
complaint about Couples- It is fun and very elegant-best service!
Sandals always has something to sell you- and not all of the employees
are friendly- To top it off, two nights before we left- our room had no
hot water- and the water was brown- When I called they said they were
fixing the hot water heater-and did not accomodate us to take showers in
another room- as they said they were booked. We got a decent rate for
Sandals -$1,200. pp including air- Thank god we didn't pay more- The
only positive I can say is that they did upgrade us to a grande lux room
when we first arrived ( when I asked for a complimentary room upgrade)
(But all the rooms at Couples are more elegant and romantic- Sandals
rooms are very plain and lower end-the bathrooms were run down as well-)
Yet , when we arrived at sandals- some received champagne-some didn't-
very unorganized-I didn't get offered champagne- It was like herding
cattle at Sandals- Couples takes more time for individual attention-
Couples was much more friendy- much better service- just better-- I do
not recommend Sandals to anyone- Do yourself a favor and go to Couples-
they do not advertise like Sandals- but they are 100 time better- My
neighbors were married at Couples, and their wedding video was awsome co
mpared to ours- Couples really took time to make everything in their
wedding perfect-- -------------------- Thanks, Lynn in MI
[email protected]

Was the maid of honor at my best friend's wedding at the Ciboney in November. A sweet woman by the name of "Mavis" was the wedding coordinator and she was wonderful. We had a wonderful time and the bride and groom stayed in their own apartment with private pool where we had a fun pre-wedding party. Everyone was so supportive and helpful. I am already married, but if we did it again, I'd do it at the Ciboney. I've never been to Sandals but my impression is that it is a little more commercial that Ciboney. I felt like I was staying in a small Jamaican village while at the Ciboney. Congratualations and have fun! By the way- Make sure you get the Ciboney Bus or Taxi from the Airport, the other taxis and buses are scary! We recommend Evita's in Ocho Rios for dinner-We went there twice-Take your camera.