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Caribbean Travel RoundupNewsletter - Paul Graveline, Editor |
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This won't be one of those really lengthy reports. We'll cover the pros and cons of Braco versus Negril also. Late getting into Mobay because of ice in Newark causing plane to be late to Philly. Lost 2 - 3 hours of laying out in the sun. The ride to the resort was as advertised, about 50 minutes. Check in was a little quicker than Negril. Unbeknownst to us, we were upgraded to the luxury suite on the c/o side. Separate bedroom, 2 full baths, 2 a/c's, refrigerator in room, table w/ 4 chairs, sofa, 2 more chairs and a coffee table, and balcony. Had dinner at Piacere the 1st night (faxed a request before leaving). Service and food were top notch, about the same as Negril's except the service was a little better paced. Seemed like the wine list was a little more extensive also. Did the PJ party afterward. Found the room to be smaller than Negril's. Music was LOUD and left before the prizes. Getting too old for that loud stuff. Headed to the hot tub. Did breakfast each morning at the Market. Same thing as Negril - nothing hot in the covered dishes. Had to get an omelet or waffle (which were pretty good) to get something hot. Never did the buffet for lunch. Did the pool bar or Pebbles Beach House for lunch. These were both good. You could get jerk chicken, burgers, fries at the pool bar. Lamb chops and the room service items at Pebbles. Drinks were available at both places. Other than one stale batch of nachos, all the food from these places was good. Other dinners included the Japanese restaurant, the Market one evening, the Street Fair (Sue only, write for details <g>), and the French place again. The Street Fair was typical buffet, but ALL the other dinners were superb. For activities, we played golf (only once because Sue got a birdie and I couldn't handle listening to her again), did the mixology class twice. The first time was a killer. May have had something to do with Sue going to dinner alone <g>. Did pool volleyball almost everyday and water aerobics once. Needless to say the hot tub was a nightly thing. Only one night was it too hot to go into. It must be a Grand Lido trademark to screw around with the hot tub temps on a daily basis. The food was very comparable to Lido. If you closed your eyes you wouldn't know the difference. Braco stands out, in our humble opinions, for a couple of reasons. The service was far superior to Negril. All of the restaurants, including the Market for breakfast, had great service. Your water glass, wine glass or whatever never got more than half empty. The people working there really went out of their way to make you feel comfortable. Smiles were not in short supply. Another huge advantage for Braco is the c/o facilities. The pool and beach are much larger and just beautiful. The hot tub will hold 30 comfortably and there is a smaller one tucked back in the trees for overflow or privacy. The entertainment also seemed to be better than Negril's. They fly in entertainment along with their house band. A violin and guitar played at Piacere. A string sextet from Cuba played at the Market during dinner. Both were fabulous. The band that played after dinner on Monday would take a back seat to no one. We were amazed each night at the quality of the talent. Even the house band was more than adequate. All in all the atmosphere is more alive than Negril. The Village layout makes for a different more festive "feel". The beach was not rocky at all. Some returning guests indicated that it was much better than their previous trips. And those that went diving were satisfied with that. There were typical GL problems with the room, one a/c worked only went it felt like it and one shower didn't work properly. But just minor problems that didn't detract too much from the visit. We will definitely go back.
Grand Lido Lottery Dec, 4, 1998 to Dec, 11, 1998 Hi everyone, here is our trip report for our vacation to the Grand Lido San Souci in Jamaica. I’ll try and not make it to boring (it’s a long report). I will include some information that I wish I would of known before I left. This was our first vacation to Jamaica, and the Caribbean. We enjoyed ourselves immensely. In August, we both decided to go for a winter holiday, and couldn't decide were in Jamaica to go. We thought about Sandals, and SuperClubs. All-inclusive was a must, as it was something we wanted to try for a very long time. After reading many trip reports on the Internet we chose Grand Lido. But which one!! We picked Air Canada Vacations, Grand Lido Lottery, and this package allowed SuperClubs to choose our resort destination in the Grand Lido class of their resorts (5 star). It would be either be Negril, Braco, or San Souci. A week before we left the travel agent called and told us the destination, and type of room. We were pleased with the selection of San Souci (because of the spa, more mature guests, and a less of a party atmosphere). We are both 33 years old, and fairly laid back, not much into partying all night. We like our booze and being active during the day. So San Souci seemed to be a perfect fit, with water sports, spa, and bars all over the place, we were in heaven. The price of the trip for comparison purposes cost us $4600.00 CDN this included airfare, transportation, resort accommodations, and all taxes (including Jamaican departure tax) for the both of us. A very good price, some Americans we met were paying close to $4000 USD. Well, on to the report….. Friday, Dec., 4, 1998 Left Calgary, Alberta at 12:00am on Air Canada for a 3 hour flight, it was uneventful and we tried to sleep a little. Arrived in Toronto, Ontario around 6:00 am. The connecting flight didn’t leave until 10:30am so we just wandered around the airport until then. The flight to Montego Bay was on a 747, WOW what a large aircraft. At about 3:00pm we arrived at Montego Bay airport. (I’ll try to describe the airport as we went though it, it is very detailed on purpose). We got off on the tarmac and entered the charter terminal; it looked very third world. Turned right and walked to a set of stairs that led up and right again at the top of the stairs. Then down the corridor to a Jamaican band that was singing “Welcome to Jamaica". Turned Left then we were in the Immigration area. We stood in the tourist line up and got our passports and airline tickets out. The officer didn’t even look at them and just stamped our papers. Now another right and down the stairs to the baggage claim area. Waited about 20 minutes for the baggage. Then went to the “nothing to declare line” just to the left of the stair case. The officers just stamped the papers again and then out to the transportation area. The Air Canada rep was standing and waiting just outside of the doors. We checked in with her (took down our names and told use to meet our vacation rep "Mark" tomorrow at 12:15pm), and she directed us to the Super Clubs desk (to the right). Checked in with the desk and waited about 20 minutes for our ride. The porter took us to the small passenger bus (tipped him $6 USD for two bags, too much). The bus first went to Breezes then to San Souci. The bus ride was quite wild and fast!! Road was rough and narrow, but we got to see the different parishes as we drove. Why there aren’t any dead dogs and goats on the road is beyond me. We saw some quite poor areas along the way; it got nicer the closer we got to Ocho Rios. The ride took 1 hour and 45 minutes. When we arrived at San Souci, a porter took us to the lobby and told us he would get us something to drink and told us to wait. We waited about 10 minutes (no one was paying attention to us) and went to the front desk. Our drinks never came (Bad first impression). After we talked to the front desk, things were fine. Checked in quickly and driven to “A” block 2nd floor corner room excellent view. King-sized bed, large marble bathroom, 2 sinks, shower and a Jacuzzi tub. Balcony table and chairs. Sitting room, TV, remote control air conditioning unit. It was quite a nice room, and we were very pleased. Porter kind of hung around slightly (TIP?) not too obvious. We showered and changed to rush off to the Friday night GALA buffet. The Friday night Gala was large (about 12 buffet stations). Set on the main lawn area. We met 2 couples, one from Kentucky, and one from San Francisco. The Italian red wine was good. After supper we tried to call out to our parents. Asked for a Jamaican operator, then asked for a Canadian operator to place a, collect call. TIP, try to call collect, it can be difficult but it is less than 1/2 the price of a direct dial call. Preordered room service for breakfast 8:00am- 8:15am, to do this just fill out the card provided and hang it on your door knob by 2:00am. In bed by 11:00pm. Saturday, Dec., 5, 1998 Got up 7:45am showered and breakfast arrived at 8:05am.We ate on the balcony and had ordered coffee (blue mountain, WOW!!!), juice, and a breadbasket with fruit, all items were very good. The view from the balcony was just great, ocean view. We had room service this way most mornings. Oh yeah, don’t leave your breakfast unattended or it will be stolen by little blackbirds who are very tame. After we ate, we applied sunscreen head to toe (this was our morning ritual). Then we left to book our spa treatments. On the way to book spa treatments we were offered GANJA by a guest that was leaving. I think that it is a custom of guests to offer this if they have any left over. But we don’t smoke, so we declined, but thanked him anyway. The spa was completely booked for today and tomorrow, but got our treatments booked for the week. Then booked Casanovas for Monday it was all booked up for Saturday and Sunday. Then off to water sports hut to book scuba and snorkeling. Scuba resort course Monday. Ocean dive Tuesday. Then book plantation tour for Sunday morning, and shopping Thursday. Walked to the gift shop, (at the very front of the property) expensive by our standards. As you may notice, we planned our week the first day. It is important to reserve the spa treatments and Casanovas early. Take a pen and paper to mark down appointments and activities (as you'll read later). Went and looked at C/O (clothing optional) beach, very nice, everyone was clothed. A nicer beach (with a river in front of it) we will return later to try it out. Off to the main beach bar, Coruba and Coke (very good). One tip take insulated drink cups. This will stop a lot of the condensation from dripping on you while you drink your beverage and it will also keep your drink cold. Our drink containers went over well. The bars (4 or 5 of them) were always well stocked (except in the morning) and never took more than a minute or so to get your drink. Weather was partly cloudy with showers but not enough to ruin relaxing on the beach (Lots of SPF 15 applied). One disappointment was both our OAKLEY sunglasses broke. They seemed to crack around the lenses from the heat almost like they were disintegrating. We asked for crazy glue. The front desk said they would look into it for us. 12:15pm, we visited with "Mark" our Air Canada Representative. This was a nice touch by AIR CANADA VACATIONS. He asked how things were going and warned us to put on sunscreen (just general chit-chat). 2:00pm went snorkeling, the water was choppy, and not too clear. The couple from Kentucky was on the boat (Paul and Melissa). And then WHOOPSY, when I got back in the boat I hit my head on the wooden roof cover. I cut my head, about a 2 inch long cut, and it bled a lot. I also chipped one of my front teeth. Not one of the guides seemed to know what to do. Dawn (my wife) immediately took over and applied pressure with a towel. One guy in the boat got sick on the way back to shore! Sight of blood or motion sickness? Went to see the nurse and she cleaned it out and tried to butterfly bandage the cut. But it would not hold. So a doctor had to be called in for $120 US. Had to wait about 30 minutes. Doctor was a surgeon and was very nice. He put 5 stitches in my head. I got tetanus shot from nurse. (The original bottle of tetanus was out of date by about 1 year. Wife requested an up to date bottle). The nurse dug one out from the back some where. The Doctor instructed us that we had to go to the local hospital for X-rays. The hotel arranged the cab (NO CHARGE by the way) to take us to the so-called hospital. We drove ½ hour to St Mary’s hospital (if you can call it one). Got the X-rays done and tracked down the doctor in the hospital. He said it was ok. It was dark and the hospital was closing, if you can believe it. At 6:00pm it just shuts down and a janitor came around and shut the lights off and everyone just disappears. Our driver went down the hill to park and we did not know where he went. It was dark and we were getting very nervous. What happened was the Doctor told me to take the X- rays directly to him after they were taken. The people in line for the doctor were kind of mad and thought that I was cutting in front of them. They were not happy and they were saying that whitey gets better treatment. Wife paid for the X-rays and was ripped off by clerk, she was not about to argue for a few US dollars besides change was given in Jamaican dollars and her brother wanted a few dollars as a souvenir. All in all the whole treatment cost $150 US dollars, and a unusual visit to a hospital with the local people none to happy that a tourist was using their facility. None of the employees were friendly or accommodating to us what so ever, just the physician. We were very happy to get back to the resort. Back at the resort (6:00pm) we changed for supper, and called my dad and told him the story. Went to La Tezza, the main restaurant. Had Jalepino shrimp, beef vegetable soup, chicken fried steak, and pear mouse all okay. Met the couple from Kentucky (Paul and Melissa) in the restaurant and asked them if they wanted to go for drinks later at the beach bar. At 9:30pm went to the Balloon terrace for ShowTime. At 11:00pm got back to room and fixed our sunglasses. Before we left for the hospital the front desk notified us that they located some crazy glue for us NO CHARGE. Rumor has it they went off the resort and went shopping for the crazy glue. This is what makes it so special here. They will go out of their way to make you happy. Dirty clothes went in the laundry bag for complimentary laundry service. The hotel also sent us a complimentary fruit and cheese plate with champagne (see what I mean about service). I tried some of both and went to bed 12:00am. Sunday, Dec., 6, 1998 Rise and shine 7:45am. My head seems ok and breakfast at Pazzaio, nice selection of fruit and regular breakfast buffet selections. 9:00am, and off to the Sunvalley plantation tour, $56 USD for two people. ½ hour ride with owner of plantation in her car. Extremely nice lady, and very friendly. We got to see the real countryside of Jamaica. We toured around the farm and plantation and tasted most every fruit and spice available in Jamaica, I’m sure. I highly recommend this tour, however, DON’T EAT BEFORE YOU GO. We tasted Coconut water, Coconut jelly (very young coconut pulp), fried plantain, boiled green banana, and two types of wonderful juice. Grapefruits, oranges, and Ackee with salted cod, the national dish of Jamaica. We tramped through the plantation and saw how bananas and coconuts grew. Along with Vanilla beans, and cocoa pods. GIANT LEMONS, I think the trip was a good one, but again slightly pricey, I think. Got back to resort by 11:45am, changed into swimwear. Laid by pool for a couple of hours. Wanted some beach grill food but too busy and too many people around. Well, there was always the C/O beach. Decided have lunch (we wore cover-ups or shorts while we ate). There were only 2 other couples nude. We ate hamburgers and the jerk chicken was better than at the main beach. After we ate our pedicure and manicure was booked for 2:30pm. This was my first time for a manicure treatment and it was ok. My wife rated it 7 out of 10. As we left the salon it started to pour very hard. Warm rain not like Canada (our rain is ice cold in the middle of summer). We stopped at the spa bar for refreshments and photos. Then went to beach to take some pictures by rocks. Maintenance crew was adding lots of sand to beach around 4:30pm, they were trucking in the sand. We came back to the room and had a warm Jacuzzi bath and changed for dinner. Went to Balloon Bar for drinks before dinner. I had 3 glasses of wine, Valliposa Italian; I drank this brand most of the time. Dawn had a 7-up. Dinner was at Café Lido. For an appetizer we had bruchetta that was very good, cheese and beer soup (ok). Dawn had linguine primavera very good. I had ravioli carbonara also very good. Back to Balloon Bar for frangelico liqueur and a china white. After supper we went down to beach bar to meet Paul and Melissa. We were early so we sat on the beach with tonic and limes. They came later on and we chatted for about an hour and took some photos. Came back to room around 11:30pm and found a GET WELL card from the front desk and our bed was turned down with rose petals (again, see what I mean about special treatment). Ordered breakfast for 8:30am. Monday, Dec., 7, 1998 Woke up to room service at 8:30am. Dawn had a Chocolate croissant, (ladies if you can get your hands on one of these little gems don’t let go, FABULOUS and I could not find one the rest of the vacation, just a tip from Dawn), had coffee and breadbasket very good again. Went to the gym for some cardio. Then met Dawn at the pool. She wanted to get some sun. I went to room and showered then joined her by the pool. I had 2 humming bird drinks (excellent). But Dawn says a little on the sweet side. Dawn had a coconut hat weaved for her and then we came back to our room for lunch room service. I had Calimari and bacon bavarios (good), Dawn had tomato mozza salad and herb chicken was good as well. We forgot our facial appointment for 12:30pm and couldn’t reschedule (we were slightly mad at ourselves). Went to the C/O beach for about an hour. Decided to go to the mineral pool for a swim. Charlie the turtle came out of her cave she was, very old around 97 years old so, (HUGE turtle). They seem to grow everything big here LEMONS and TURTLES. They fed Charlie every morning. We met up with Paul and Melissa at the pool, they had a good time at scuba lessons but most of the water activities were cancelled for most of the week due to rough water. Went to check out afternoon tea in hopes of obtaining a cup of that blue mountain coffee, no luck, just tea available. So we came back to room and ordered room service for coffee. A tip for the resort, have coffee available at the bars all the time. We went for a walk around the pond near "A" block. We sat and relaxed in room till 7:30 PM and got changed for supper at Casanovas. Went to Balloon Bar for drinks then Casanovas our usual routine. Arrived a few minutes early, the maitride seemed shocked we were there early, everything is no problem and no rush in Jamaica, and we had a very good supper, Quail for entrée. The cake at the top of dessert menu is a must; I forget the name but its triple chocolate something. Similar in taste to an Almond Rochee chocolate bar. Luszana was our waiter, a very nice, witty, and funny guy (we really liked him). The fashion show after supper kind of fun. We reggae danced for a while after the show. Then down to the beach bar and talked with Omar the bartender for an hour or so, it was very slow for him. Sitting by the ocean, stars twinkling, surf pounding, free drinks, and reggae music playing…it just can't get any better than this. Sleeping by 1:00am. Tuesday, Dec., 8, 1998 Room service at 8:00am. Coffee, and bakery basket on the balcony again (just wonderful). Went to the pond to feed a few of the leftovers to the geese. They hissed at Dawn. Got to spa at 9:00am, ½ hour early. We are not going to miss this appointment. I asked to be put on the waiting list for any cancellations to get our missed appointments rescheduled. I had a body scrub and Dawn had a facial. The body scrub was superb and it was in a room right by the water and Charlie's grotto (request this location if possible). The scrub was refreshing. Dawn said the facial was 7 out of 10 (best one was in Las Vegas, which she still has not found its equal yet). The spa manager said there were 2 cancellations at 11:30am and we took them. What luck! We went back to the beach and I bought a necklace from a beach vendor and Dawn bought 2 key chains. All for $13 USD. Then back to lobby to mail letter to Dawn’s brother, just to see how long it takes for mail to arrive in Canada. It arrived on January 15, 1999 over one month for delivery. Obviously poor service. Cost to mail letter, $25 dollars Jamaican or 75cents US. Now back to spa again. Dawn had the scrub and I had a facial. Dawn said body scrub quite good!! Time for lunch at the buffet, then off to the C/O beach. We both prefer the C/O beach because it is quieter and people are really nice. There is better service and no waiting for drinks or food. We both went fully naked. Went into the pool and had a couple of pictures taken, proof for my brother. We tanned for a while but it started to rain. So we talked with a couple from Edmonton, Alberta at the bar. Very nice people, they arrived Saturday, the day I hurt my head. And saw me walking through the lobby with a towel on my head. Back to room to change for supper, Jamaican night was moved indoors due to rain. Food was just okay. After supper we lied on a hammock and listened to the band, and watched fire breather, and some bats feeding on the blossoms of the big hibiscus tree. Back to the room by 11:00pm. Dawn called her parents and to bed by 11:30pm. This call was the test for collect call versus the direct call. We usually do little checks like this one. Wednesday, Dec., 9, 1998 Up around 8:30am showered and guess what…room service on the balcony. After breakfast we went and worked out at the gym for 1/2 hour. Then to the water sports hut to try some sea kayaks. Afterward I went and played volleyball out in the ocean. At about noon we went to the C/O beach for Jerk chicken and drinks (delicious). Lazed around pool until about 5:00pm, then went to spa for a massage (both of us were very drunk and happy). Casanovas again, for supper. Still pretty drunk after Casanovas. We came back to room called our friend Barry. Sleeping by 10:00pm. Nice relaxing day today, only a small paragraph. About 1:00am bad thunder and lightning woke us up. The worse we ever heard. Thursday, Dec., 10, 1998 Woke up to hard rain at 7:30am. Showered and room service for breakfast. Spa at 8:30am for reflexology, It was quite good (surprisingly). Back to lobby for our 9:30am tour and shopping trip. I guess some roads were washed out last night, and the resort tour was cancelled. But we booked with AIR CANADA tours and we got to go right on time (very reliable rain or shine). First stop was the market it was very interesting and different. Bought my dad a walking stick and my mom a coconut bird feeder. Dawn bought coffee, a dress for her mom and a hat for about $45 USD (expensive) not a real good deal for her. One tip, ALWAYS take lots of SMALL bills wherever you go in Jamaica they never seem to have change. Also you seem to always get the line. "Because you are my first customer of the day I will give you a deal". Then we went to a Pottery studio, not very interesting for me. Fern Gully was next, a lush garden valley with a road going through it. Then to a botanical garden very nice, so many different plants we don't see in Canada. It used to be an old estate. Then to the Taj Mahal for more shopping. We got T- shirts there at a fairly reasonable price. 3 for $25 US, nice embroidered shirts, not that cheap iron-on stuff. Bought a different brand of Blue Mountain coffee and some hot sauce. Then to Dunn's river falls. The falls were great to see. BUT it is a TOURIST TRAP and the atmosphere sucked. Two cruise ships came in to port that day so it was busy and very expensive, and crowded with high-pressure guides. These guides get paid for taking the tourists up the falls. Each tourist pays $8 USD to climb the falls, the guide is included. WATCH OUT, don't give them your camera, and take a waterproof camera. The guide insists you give your camera to his buddy to keep it dry and safe (this buddy also climbs the falls with you). They make you climb holding on to one another in a long line. Take water shoes or rent them for a good grip. Once you get to the top the guide kind of blocks your way out of the falls until you give him and his buddy a GOOD TIP otherwise they won't give you your camera back to easily. The tip at the end is expected around $5 USD per person. This service was already paid for at the beginning. Dawn did not climb the falls due to her knee so she took pictures along the side and kept our camera. We met a very nice couple from Hanna, Alberta and they stayed at Ciboney resort just down the street from us. The whole trip was videotaped and cost $35 US to buy, expensive as usual. So we bought only one and we sent a copy to Chris in Hanna. Now back at the hotel, we got some more jerk chicken and talked to Angel the bartender. Then back to the Balloon Bar for a card game and some tea. Supper at 6:30pm Casanovas. Good supper again. Back to room early to pack a little and go to bed around 9:15pm (very tired). Friday, Dec., 11, 1998 Up at 7:30am, Great sleep. Packed some more. Room service was about 1/2 hour late. Talked to Paul and got his email address. Weather was better this morning. Went to C/O beach for some morning sun and a couple of drinks (only 2 hours left). 11:00am back to room for final packing, we left our bags outside the room and went to check out. We got a couple more humming bird drinks at the lobby. The supervisor for the spa contacted me, And one of the spa attendants set her wedding ring down to do my reflexology yesterday, and when I left the gazebo the ring was still on the table. It was gone when the girl came back to get it, and she was a newlywed (sad). Maggie (the spa supervisor) just wanted to know if we had seen anyone in the area after we left. Our Dunns river tour tape came just before we left. The bus arrived at 12 noon and got to the airport by 2:00pm and we checked in with the airline. Dawn was watching the luggage closely. The departure terminal was modern and nice. Tip, no matter what other people may say, get all your coffee and liquor at the airport duty free shop. It is cheaper and more convenient. We boarded flight around 5 PM, about 1/2 hour late. Took off to Kingston, a 30 minute flight, to drop off some passengers. Took off from Kingston around 6:45 still slightly late. Arrived in Toronto, Ontario around 11:00pm. A few drug sniffing dogs wandered around the customs area. Layover in Toronto. We stayed at an airport hotel. Saturday Dec., 12, 1998 10:00am flew to Calgary, Alberta, arrived about 2:00pm. Home at last!!!!This was the best vacation we ever had. Both Dawn and me agree that 7 days was almost long enough. 10 days would have been perfect. We would recommend this vacation to anyone.
Trip 2/99 The following is our report on the Grand Lido Braco resort, which we visited from February 4 through 9, 1999. This was our second trip to GL Braco, having visited previously in May 1998. In general, the resort has improved dramatically since our last visit, particularly with respect to the quality of the staff, which was outstanding and rivaling that of GL Negril in terms of attitude and service. Getting there We took Delta to Atlanta and connected with Air Jamaica, arriving in Montego Bay about 11:30 a.m. Immigration and customs were a breeze, since ours was the only flight arriving at the time. (It's not always so; if multiple flights arrive at about the same time, prepare to wait in line since immigration never seems to change staffing levels depending on the volume of people to process.) After clearing customs, Superclubs was on the ball and had us in a bus and on our way quickly. The bus trip to Braco isn't bad - about an hour, including a brief beer stop along the way. On the return, we made it from Braco to the airport in under an hour. For those of you who are used to TimAir or Air Negril going from MoBay to Negril, there's no corresponding service to the Braco area, unless you plan on using a parachute. With the bus ride time, you don't need it anyway. Air Jamaica was fine, arriving and departing on time in all material respects on both ends of the trip. The aircraft were relatively new Airbus A310s. Service and cleanliness of the aircraft were as good as most of the domestic U.S. airlines. Check-in We arrived well before the 3:00 check-in time, but our room was available anyway. Take along a duffel bag with any essentials and you'll be able to deal with a 3:00 check-in without any inconvenience: just head for the pool or beach. Resort overview The main Braco complex is a replica of an island village, with a number of one and two story buildings fronting on a main street running perpendicular to the ocean, which is bisected by two shorter streets, all of which are of pressed concrete resembling brick pavers. The various buildings house shops, the main lobby, disco, piano bar and most of the restaurants. At the intersection of the streets is a fountain, and at the far end of main street is the main "textile side" pool. Facing the ocean from the textile side pool, to the right are first the building housing the piano bar and Nanny's Jerk Pit and then a number of buildings housing the textile side rooms (some ocean front, some not). To the left are the Victoria Market and Stir Crazy restaurants, the workout facilities and the au natural section of the resort. The au natural section of the resort is separated from the rest of the property by a kind of "no man's land;" once past this Maginot Line, nude is the rule in all areas of the au natural side. On the textile side, only about a third of the rooms (at a guess) front the ocean; the rest are what would probably be called garden view. On the au natural side, the buildings housing the rooms are between the ocean and the au natural pool, and all rooms are oceanfront. Unlike Grand Lido Negril, where "au natural" begins at the buildings facing the ocean, at Braco the whole west side of the resort is au natural, and one does not have to suit up when leaving the beach area. The landscaping throughout the resort is really outstanding, though on the au natural side a good bit of the plantings are rather young, particularly the palms between the buildings and the beach. We noticed some maturation of the landscaping since May of 1998, and before too long things should look even more mature. Like GL Negril, there's a small army of landscaping folks working on things just about all the time. There are a number of hammocks strung up between trees in the shade throughout the resort for those late afternoon naps. We'd guess the average age of guests at Braco is somewhat younger than at GL Negril. Not too many in their twenties, but lots and lots of thirty- and forty-somethings. And not an insignificant number of fifties and sixties. Like GL Negril, we found that the au natural side tended to attract the more outgoing, gregarious crowd. There was just a lot more interaction among guests who didn't know each other on the au natural side than on the textile side, where it seemed people kept more to themselves. Brief words about the au natural side for those who've never been to a nude beach: try it, you'll like it. No one will stare or gawk at you; more than likely, someone will offer to bring you a drink from the bar. Ladies, if you want to keep your bathing suit bottom on, that's fine. No one cares. Expecting a crowd of hardbodies? You'll maybe find a few, but most folks look just like the rest of us. Again, nobody cares. One difference between GL Negril and Braco is that the "nude" beach at Negril is a clothing optional beach. At Braco, the au natural side is just that: nude. Women in bottoms are accepted, but that's about as far as it goes. If you're not sure about trying a nude beach, we'd recommend staying on the textile side. That way, you can visit the au natural side and enjoy it if you like it (we bet you will) but retreat to the textile side if that's not your thing. You'll be uncomfortable in a bathing suit on the au natural side of the resort. Rooms There are 174 rooms and 6 one-bedroom suites on the textile side and 52 junior suites, one-bedroom suites and luxury one-bedroom suites on the au natural side. On the au natural side, the junior suites have a large sitting area with sofa nearest the doors facing the beach, with the sleeping area and bathroom at the rear of the room. It appeared as though all the junior suites had two double beds. The one-bedroom suites have the bedroom (with king bed) situated on the ocean side of the suite, together with a full bath. On the land side of the suite is a living room with sofa and chairs, together with a half bath. The luxury one-bedroom suites have two full baths, with the bedroom on the land side of the suite and a very large living room on the ocean side. All rooms have off-white tile covering the floor, which is much better than carpet in this environment. The rooms are similar in many respects to Grand Lido Negril, in that they feature twin double beds or king beds, tile floors, reasonably large baths, and sofas. CD players, satellite TV, ironing boards, irons, refrigerator (stocked with Red Stripe and soft drinks, but bring your own opener) and small wall safe (good for travel documents, wallets, jewelry, a small camera and such, but not much more) are standard. The rooms, at least on the au natural side, were in good repair and comfortable. On the au natural side, the downstairs rooms have French doors which open onto the beach, much like Grand Lido Negril. Unlike GL Negril, the upstairs rooms have balconies large enough that one can open the French doors without bumping into the balcony furniture. It's a toss-up as to whether the second and third floor rooms at Braco are better than ground floor rooms: it's a trade off between the view upstairs and the easy beach access of the ground floor. Restaurants Piacere is the French restaurant and is elegant. Long pants and jacket are required (if you don't want to bring your sportcoat along, the restaurant will lend you one). Very nicely done, and should be taken in while at Braco. The service is really outstanding. For example, my wife Sidney asked about a birthday cake for me when we arrived for dinner (figuring they could put a candle in a cupcake or something). No problem: desert was a first-rate cake, decorated with my name and "Happy Birthday." The string quartet even walked over to the table and played Happy Birthday. Make reservations at the beginning of your stay. Dinner only, 6:30 until 9:30. Victoria Market is the main dining room, and is open air overlooking the main pool. The arrangement is much better than GL Negril, where the comparable area is sort of down in a hole and further from the beach. Breakfast and lunch are served buffet style, and dinner is a la carte from the menu, which we thought had more than adequate variety. Victoria Market is closed some evenings when there is an "event" dinner being held, notably the Friday night street party. Dress is casual, meaning a minimum of bathing suit with cover up or t-shirt at breakfast and lunch, and shorts and polo shirt at night. Breakfast is 8:00 until 10:30; lunch from 12:30 until 3:00; and dinner from 7:00 until 10:00. Stir Crazy, the Japanese restaurant (with tables for eight, each attended by a chef cooking on hot grill built into the table, just like Stateside), was much improved from our last visit. Food was excellent, as was the service. Dinner only, served 6:30 to 9:00. Long pants are required. There is also a separate sushi dining facility within Stir Crazy; we didn't try it, but we heard good reports. Specify sushi or traditional Japanese dining when making your reservation. Nanny's Jerk Pit is open from about 11:00 to about 6:00, and offers jerk chicken, pork and beef. It's very good. The Jerk Pit is near the main textile pool, and offers tables outdoors. La Pasta Sidewalk Cafe is open from midday to about 2:00 a.m. (open 7:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. for breakfast croissants, etc.) Offers mix and match pasta and sauce dishes (including chicken and escargot) as well as some really great pizza, made to order with your choice of toppings and cheese. Also features an antipasto bar, and a visit to the bakery next door will fix you up for dessert. Food quality was generally very good. If the lunch buffet on a particular day doesn't appeal to you, just hop down to La Pasta for a pizza or pasta. On balance, we thought the food at Braco was better than at GL Negril, and that's saying something in light of the generally legendary reputation of GL Negril. Liquor is abundant as always, with most top shelf brands available. Remember to ask for what you want though: "gin and tonic" will get you some rotgut stuff, while "Tanqueray and tonic" will get you just that. To our surprise, Heineken was available in bottles in addition to the Red Stripe on tap or in bottles that is the mainstay most everywhere in Jamaica. We like Red Stripe, but it was nice to have an alternative now and then. Wine quality was much improved from our May 1998 visit; you'll not find anything of outstanding quality, but enough to make do. At all restaurants, tables for six are available; it would be wise to call ahead if there are more than six in your party so they can set up a table (except for Stir Crazy, at which the tables are set up for eight). In addition to the restaurants, there is room service available from two "club houses" on the property, much like the "houses" at GL Negril. Each of the houses has a seating area if you want to eat there instead of in your room or at the pool. In addition to food service, the club houses have 24 hour a day bar service. A pool table had been added to the au natural clubhouse since our last visit, and now accompanies the ping pong table. Room service is similar to GL Negril, and available 24 hours a day. In addition to traditional room service, a continental breakfast can be ordered the night before for delivery to your room in the morning. The room service menu is much more extensive than GL Negril; for GL Negril fans, Braco *does* have the lamb chops and potato skins on the room service menu. Room service is also available served at the pool bars if you don't care to head down to Victoria Market. Also available at the pool bar on the au natural side is jerk chicken cooked on a grill in the bar, which is a nice change from a buffet lunch and is the same jerk chicken served at Nanny's Jerk Pit. Beaches and pools The au natural side beach is, in our opinion, better than Negril. While the resort faces the Caribbean Sea (unlike Negril, whose beach is on Bloody Bay), management has constructed a man-made reef around a swimming area on both the au natural and textile sides of the resort. Unlike GL Negril, the water off the au natural beach is clear Caribbean Sea, not filled with plants. While the beach and ocean bottom at Braco are a bit rockier than Negril, we didn't find that a problem and never broke out our surf shoes. The au natural side beach is much better than the textile beach. On the textile side there are many more large rocks on the ocean floor than on the au natural side, so if you stay on the textile side, those surf shoes might be a good idea. The main textile pool is large and features a swim up bar. On the au natural side is the largest pool we've ever encountered, also equipped with swim up bar and, at one end, a sloping entrance to the pool much like a concrete beach. Both pools featured lots of tables and chairs with umbrellas, especially on the au natural side. Both beaches and pools feature many new lounge chairs of aluminum frame and webbed fabric construction: much more comfortable than those heavy white plastic lounges at GL Negril, and no need to have one of those fancy pool/ocean floats in the chair to use as a cushion. Another improvement from our last visit was the replacement of all the water floats throughout the resort. The old ones needed replacing, and management didn't skimp on doing so. There are plenty of floats around for use in the ocean or the pool. There are two hot tubs on the au natural side, a large concrete one next to the pool and a smaller one surrounded by wood decking a short distance from the pool, set back near some trees. There's also a hot tub near the main pool on the textile side, as well as a smaller tub next to the textile side club house. There have been a number of posts and reports on the 'Net and various proprietary service providers like AOL that the windy conditions make Braco undesirable. Braco is on the north coast of the island, unlike Negril on the west end, and there is definitely more wind at Braco than Negril. A couple of days during our trip the wind might have made sailing a Sunfish problematic for the uninitiated, but the wind was never a problem on the beach, in our opinion. In fact, the breeze kept things comfortable when temperatures rose to the mid 80s, and in the summer, when temperatures get into the 90s, things might have been very uncomfortable with the generally still air of Negril. The breeze also seemed to keep the humidity lower than Negril (not an issue in February, but could be an issue in the summer, absent the breeze). Service The service level by the staff was outstanding, and was the most notable and dramatic improvement since May 1998. Last trip, we thought the food service staff was pretty good, but it ranged from indifferent to outstanding. This time, service was virtually flawless, and the attitude and friendliness of the staff just wonderful, without exception. We were rather surprised to be greeted, by name in some cases, by staff we met on our last trip. Some staff working on the textile side even came over to the au natural side to say "Hi." How they knew we were on the resort, we don't know. (And we're not any special kind of VIP guest or anything. We *did* write a lengthy letter to the general manager after our last trip, praising the good things (including special staff members) and offering suggestions for improvement; my suspicion is that management shares these comments with the staff, and maybe they have files "flagged" for repeat guests who've written to management in the past.) Service at the "club house" on the au natural side was excellent, even very late at night. Bar service was great everywhere, from the piano bar to the pool bars. Since our last visit, Braco has added cocktail service on the beach and around the pool. A cocktail waitress cruises around to take your order, so if you never want to leave your chair, you're all set. The resort offers 48 hour laundry and dry cleaning service at no extra charge. Learning from our experience at GL Negril, we packed light and still didn't have reason to use it. The pool guys did a great job keeping the hot tubs and pool in good shape throughout our visit. Always clean, and the right temperature in the hot tub. Activities and Nightlife Daytime activities (organized by the social directors or other "specialists," such as aerobics instructors) include things like nature walks, water aerobics, reggae dancing lessons, trivia games, volleyball (in the pool or on the beach), tennis lessons, beer drinking contests, etc. The resort has a nine hole (I think) par 3 type golf course and at least four tennis courts (one of which is on the au natural side: try nude tennis some time!). The tennis courts are hard courts, in very good condition. At least one of the courts on the textile side is lit for night play, and it appeared they'd run power to the au natural court and that installation of lights was in process. Regulation golf is available off site at, I think, Breezes Runaway Bay, without additional charge. I think it's about a 45 minute bus ride to the course. Watersports are abundant, including water skiing, windsurfing, kayaks and Sunfish sailing. There's also extensive scuba diving offered, included in the "all inclusive" rate except for night diving. Diving was reported as fairly good. There's also a workout area adjacent to Victoria Market, facing the ocean. There are about eight Cybex machines, treadmills, bikes and dumbbells, but no free weights. The equipment is in good repair, and there's plenty of it for all the exercising you're likely to do on vacation. Most of the "organized" daytime social activities centered on the textile side, in or around the main pool. There were also activities scheduled on the au natural side, but they were fewer in number since the au natural side has only about one-fourth of the rooms at Braco, and I guess the management feel (probably correctly) that it's easier for the au natural guests to be comfortable going over to the textile side than vice versa (and this also avoids having the textiles on the au natural side). Activities outside the resort (but which can be arranged through Braco) included horseback riding (reported as a lot of fun) as well as a trip to Dunns River Falls. While not an official "activity," we quickly found out that, at least in May, the sun sets over the water when viewed from the au natural beach. This was truly spectacular, and was attended most afternoons by a considerable number of folks, nude and textile alike. Unfortunately, the sun doesn't go down over the water in February. Nightlife at Braco can be rather thin. There's a disco that opens most nights about 10:00 or 10:30, which attracted some folks, but not what I'd call a crowd. The Thursday night pajama party generally is very well attended, and the attire is considerably more revealing than at GL Negril. Lots of thongs, g-strings, etc., but with a mix of people in more traditional garb. Everybody gets along fine, despite the disparity in dress. The Friday night street party, for which the resort sets up a pretty lavish buffet in the streets, together with tables, is usually the best attended event. There's reggae dancing for at least two hours for those who have the stamina; most people take a turn here and there, then make way for others. On most nights things pick up in the Piano Bar about 10:30 or so for the non-disco crowd. Some nights there are some people (local to Jamaica) jamming in, so to speak, with the official pianist. All of them were more than slightly talented, we thought. The hot tub on the au natural side, as expected, attracted a good crowd most every night, and sometimes late into the night. Late night activities weren't the bother for people in their rooms trying to sleep since, unlike GL Negril, the hot tub is considerably farther (on the other side of the pool) from the buildings than at Negril. The au natural hot tub adjoining the pool is about four times as large as the one at GL Negril. Summary With the recent improvements to GL Braco, it's now really difficult to decide whether we like Braco or GL Negril best. The one thing GL Negril still has going for it is that Hedo II is right across the street, and you can jump over there for an evening or two of more lively entertainment than you'll find at Braco or GL Negril. The service at Braco is now at GL Negril standards, and based on discussions with management at the cocktail hour for repeat GL guests, we think management is committed to making Braco the best resort in Jamaica. We'll be back to Braco, and would recommend it for people who want a relaxed, classy vacation in Jamaica.
Trip 2/99 Just got back on the 18th and had 6 days and 5 nights of what I would call paradise. It all started Friday the 12th,went to work 7:30 am and got home about 6:30 had dinner had to leave the house and meet up with a couple of band mates to go to a local bar and interview a singer for our band. The reason I'm telling you about this is because this turns into a marathon, so bare with me on this. The wife and I are no early to bed people, so we decided to stay at the bar till one in the morning listening to the singer, anyway we left with her driving of course for home and took showers .Left to go to the airport and arrived at 3:30 am, Sat. around and drank coffee for 2 hours. Finally left Detroit Metro at 5:35 am. I can never really sleep on a plane maybe no more than a couple of minutes per flight. Landed in Atlanta at 7:20 with a layover till we left on Air Jamaica at 8:45, finally landing at Mobay at 11:58. Still no sleep but who can at this time were in Jamaica. We go straight to immigration guess what? There is anywhere from two to three hundred people waiting to go through. Lesson learned, never fly on a Saturday and when kids are on winter break. We check in with the Superclubs desk and was told we would be leaving by bus in about 15 minutes.So we went out side and had 2 quick Red Stripes a piece. Driver told us it was about 1 hour drive so if we wanted more to drink we better get them right now, so I asked the other two couples who were going to Braco who wants one? They all said yes after finding out the air did not work on the van I brought everybody 2 a piece. Were driving about a half a hour, everbody's beers are gone and were all sweating like crazy, so I say. Driver we gettin kinda thirsty, no problem mon you want beer I stop, we all at the same time say yes. So I had him buy us a six pack nice and cold. Finally arrive at Braco all I can say just fabulous. The cold towels and champagne hit the spot, we were then told our rooms would be about another hour before we could use them, I politely asked if a c/o room is ready they said yes, giving it to us at no extra charge! John and Morissa who we hit it off with right away were told they could not have the same deal because nothing was left on the c/o side had to wait, plus they had friends that they were meeting from Germany were also booked on the clothing side with them, so at the time they didn't think it was right to put them on the spot. What nice people. They asked us if they could walk with us to our room and see what it was like we said of course. Soon as we walked past block A it hit all of us at once! How cool. Never doing a clothing optional, just seeing everybody talking, swimming, drinking, and just having fun, just to cool. We arrive at our room finally, block B room 3044 2nd floor, just beautiful. Front door looks at the pool the back doors open to a ocean view. All four of us are there hungry so we call the front desk and ask them to call John and Morissa at our room when there's is ready. WE order the chicken sandwiches and heeding Carol Hill's advice 4 orders of potato skins because each order you only get 3 and I would say they are the size of a small egg.... Thanks Carol for that info. The chicken was just great. The call comes John and Morissa get to their room. Still no sleep... were just not tired got the second wind going for us now. Amy and I took quick showers and put on just suntan lotion and walked out the doors. We never felt uncomfortable at all, what a feeling of freedom a first time experience never to be forgotten. The wife and I are just floating when a bunch of people of about 14 hit the jacuzzi, That's when a couple named John and Lisa come by ask us our names and ask us to come and be introduced to the people in the Jacuzzi. There we met some of the nicest people we have ever met, Annie,Mike,Traci, Bob, Cindy, Jim, Martha, and another John. At about 8:30 after more champagne and lots of laughs ,the wife and are finally raising the white flag and go to our room for a much need of sleep....more to come We awoke Sunday morning and I looked at my watch and it read 10:10. I said no way we could of slept for almost 14 hours. So Amy looked at hers. Guess what ? Hers also stopped but read 7:20. Took showers and got dressed to go to breakfast, ran into a guest and asked him what time it was? His response? He didn't know neither. You guest it his watch stopped working the night before....How freaky is that. None of us thought to turn on CNN or call the front desk. Turns out it was only 7:40. Went to Victoria Market for the buffet. The buffet had everything you wanted for a filling breakfast. Back to the room, we open the door, which in turn caused a back draft to the second leading to the bedroom... The bedroom door slams shut due to the fact we left both balcony doors open....it locks us out of the bedroom. We try the door key it doesn't work. I call the front desk they tell me somebody will be right there. Forty minutes later a maid is there, she has no key. She calls front desk tells them the problem, tells us maintenance we be here shortly. Another 40 minutes later he arrives, he says he sorry but this is the third door the same thing has happened to this morning. Get this they have no keys for those doors so they have to rip the molding off the door to get it open. Just would be simpler to get all new locks, or better yet have no locks on those bedroom doors at all. Anyway went to the beach till lunch. Ate at the clubhouse, Amy and I had the Club Sandwich not bad at all. Because of Valentine's Day one of the directors came around with paper, glue, and glitter so you could make your better half a Valentine's Day card. Dinner was at the Japanese restaurant excellent. Went back to our room, then hit the hot tub till 1:00 am...As usual more champagne and lots of laughs.. Amy and I went golfing and hooked up with a couple we met there named Cindy & Jim, nice couple. After golf us four had a few cold ones at the piano bar patio. Back to c/o side for a shower and back to the pool bar for..........Mixology. A pretty good time by all Amy & I survived...Biggest laugh came when one gal went running off in the middle of the game to the bathroom, when she got back Renald ask who gave you permission to leave my class? She said she was sorry but felt totally naked with out her lipstick. We went to beach for a couple more hours and canceled our dinner for the French restaurant, people were saying it takes about 2 1/2 hours we were having to much fun so we settled for the Italian restaurant. We thought the food was very good. We met 4 other couples at Victoria's for the entertainment a very good show ..back to the hot tub at about 11:00 but we all were not very happy to find it very cold, so everybody called it a night....Tuesday was a better weather day than Monday I forgot to mention Monday was windy as heck with very little sun.By Tuesday afternoon sun was out for good a bunch hit the hot tub before dinner, as we were all leaving to go to our own rooms to shower and get ready a couple, Martha & John got out of the hot tub and we all noticed a green substance all over them. Turns out most of us did. We figured out somebody or some bodies got in the hot tub after the body painting contest. We all met down at Victoria's for dinner. Amy had the Roasted Pork & I had the Jerk Swordfish. Very good. A bunch pushed tables together so we could all sit together after dinner, so we danced, and partied till 11:15 ....all of us back to the hot tub till 12:30....back to bed. Wednesday I got up at 6:30 knowing it was are last full day. I went out side to make sure I got pictures of our side before everybody got up. We were poolside by 9:00 am. We ate hamburgers at the pool bar for lunch. Pretty good. We played nude trivia with 4 other couples. By 5:30 I was ready to stay another day so we went to our room and called the front desk. They told me it would cost us 740.00 for one extra night that's before we even checked about changing our flight. Which was a extra 150.00.We thought about it but declined not knowing what the weather would be like...Went to dinner at 9:00, overslept so we missed the beach party. So Wednesday evening we missed the Beach Party Buffet & Party. We ate Italian again. This time the sauce was so spicy we could not finish. The waiter noticed this and ask. What is the matter? I politely told him the sauce was hotter than any chili I have ever had. He then went on to say Jamaican food is usually spicy. I agreed and told him, yes but not this. My wife and I mouth's and lips felt like we both ate a plate full of jalapeno peppers! I told him twice to go check the sauce for the other guests sake. But I don't know if he ever did. Anyway we went back to our room for the night.......Thursday morning the dreaded check-out day. We got up at 7:00. Took video this time of the grounds. Went back to the our room to shower, dress and go to Victorias for breakfast. Eggs over easy hash browns and toast. Went back to our room and sadly did our packing..We then got undressed for one more time of what I call total freedom. By this time other guests were stopping buy to talk to us for the last time and exchange e-mails. At a 11:45 I went to the front desk to check out, then went back to the pool bar till two...I'll never forget the feeling, how quite, and the look on everybody's face when we all were on our way back to the airport. Leaving GL Braco put us all in a somber mood. Boy what a difference from the bus ride going there. Just so quite...I'll skip the details from Mobay to Atlanta to Detroit..except to say when we finally landed in Detroit it was 21 degrees. The good news is a lot of the people we became friends with are planning to be back to GL Braco next February. That's why the E-mail exchanges. I hate to keep repeating myself but the those people and new friends we made are the most friendly and laughable people we ever have met on a vacation...AS of right now my wife and I are really thinking about returning in May or June & still go back in February We found our spot for vacations to come..One other note: Carl the Program Director...Class Act. Denton the bartender a great guy...Anybody who is going To GL Braco anytime soon, tell them and any of the staff that Amy and Matt will see them soon and what a great job they all did. I don't think you can tell them enough.
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