The Anderson Ocean Club and Spa exceeded our expectations! The room was huge and very recently updated, including a kitchen and full-size fridge. The uber-clean bathroom had a huge whirlpool (which, as one of us learned the hard way, should in fact be filled to the top with water before turning on the jets – unless, of course, you’re looking for a Bellagio-style fountain show).  The Murphy bed was comfy and a great use of space – and much better than the uncomfortable hide-a-bed we were expecting. The oceanview balcony was perfect for reading a book and sipping morning coffee. The view was gorgeous.

Since pampering was the whole point of the trip, we all got massages in the on-site spa. The half-hour back-and-shoulder massage was reasonably priced and really did the trick.

To keep our post-massage “zen” going, we headed out to the fantastic pool area to read and chat. Just off the beach, the pools were perfect for soaking in the ocean vibe but without the fuss of battling the crowds on the beach for the perfect spot – although beach chairs were available and there were plenty for guests. Our very low-intensity activities alternated between walking on the beach, wading in the ocean and getting food and drinks at the poolside restaurant. (Not a swim-up, but as close as you can get.)

Of course, being moms, we all noticed a couple of truly amazing and thoughtful features of the pool. First, there was a lazy river complete with tubes. The kids were having a blast and had to have been dizzy after going around all … day … long. But the smartest feature was the kid-friendly pool that was tucked under the building and in the SHADE! We all agreed that any place savvy enough to help reduce the number of sunscreen applications on squirmy, antsy kids who don’t want to wear sunscreen could have our business any time!

We found some great restaurants and nightlife, too. The hotel provides a breakfast buffet across the street at Magnolia’s. River City Cafe is a peanut bar, just off the resort strip, with a great patio and tasty burgers – but hold the fries. Landry’s is a chain of seafood restaurants and their food and this location are great. It’s at a complex called Broadway at the Beach, which is not at the beach. Don’t be fooled. It’s about a mile away.

Our cab driver told us Broadway at the Beach was like Bourbon Street, but it isn’t. At all. Still fun, but not nearly as … hmmm… gritty. The one similarity is that you can roam with your drink in your hand. The KISS coffee shop (yes, the band – how random!) and kid-friendly shopping closed early for the party to begin. A dozen or so nightclubs have live music, dancing, karaoke, an arcade… And if you don’t want to venture inside a club, grab a beer and a paint-on tattoo from a street vendor and just enjoy the gorgeous weather and people-watching. Our tip: Leave a half-hour before closing time to avoid a long, long, long line at the cab stand.

The resort strip on the beach has exactly the pastel-painted, retro feel that we expected and loved. The trip was low-key and convenient enough to make a long weekend feel like it stretched out to a full week.

Thanks for all the great recommendations and hookups!

View from Balcony at Anderson Ocean Club & Spa

My husband and I stayed at Breezes Grand Negril for a quick 4-day getaway because it was on special and we got it for a steal. To get there, you can fly into Montego Bay and take a shuttle. The ride to the resort was about 2 hours, but the drive along the coastline is gorgeous, so sit back and relax!

The beach and boardwalks are beautiful at this resort. Lots of trees and flowers on the grounds. Lots of chairs on the two beaches: One with a sandy bottom all the way to the far edge of the roped swimming area and the other with coral and rock – perfect for snorkeling. We saw seahorses, eagle rays, lobsters, shrimp and a school of at least a million fish.

There were several restaurants and bars to choose from and all were delicious. Some all-inclusives are known for having chintzy, not-so-great food and that was definitely not the case here. The ambiance at each was different, but all were very relaxed and casual. Even the small beach bars had top-shelf rum and tasty frozen pina coladas and daiquiris right on tap!

Short of the beaches, the spa was the best part! The reception area was lush and surrounded by private cabanas and a shaded pool just for spa guests. I opted for an hour-long massage in a beachside cabana. The breeze and waves set the perfect stage and it was my favorite part of the trip.

My husband took advantage of the free SCUBA amenities (very rare to find in all-inclusive) and did a morning dive with the on-site staff. The equipment was clean and quality. He had a great time. There were Jamaican dance and art classes, live bands throughout the day and many other fun activities.

The buildings and rooms were outdated, in need of some maintenance/repair and could use some deep cleaning, but with all the beautiful beaches and great things to do, eat and drink – who wants to be inside?

The Gran Melia was lovely. The service was great, and the room, pools and beach access were perfect. I liked having several restaurants to choose from at the resort, and I thought the prices for food and drink weren’t outrageous. I mean, $10 for a cocktail at the pool is pricey, but you’re at a swim-up bar for goodness sake – you’re paying for the coolness of that.
 
I was very glad we had the car, because it gave us a chance to drive to the southern coast, explore the rainforest, and wind through the mountain roads in the inland. We always felt safe, and with just a general map we were able to get around just fine. And the weather was a perfect 85 degrees all week.
 
If you have any golfing clients in the future, I’d point them to the Berwind Country Club – about 20 minutes from the Gran Melia. While the Trump course would have ran us about $600 for greens fees, cart and rental clubs for two … This club had $25 greens fees with $40 rental clubs. The clubs were pretty old and mis-matched, but the course was beautiful (one of the longest courses on the island I understand) and we had a lot of fun. And they don’t need tee-times! You just walk on whenever. It was great.

The laid-back, easy-goers loved the casual atmosphere of San Pedro and the quiet beaches, piers and hammocks while looking out across the second longest barrier reef in the world. San Pedro had all the beautifully colored buildings and beachfront restaurants and bars that you’d expect from a Caribbean paradise – but none of the pretense. Our homebase for the week was north of town and only accessible by water taxi, foot, bike or golf cart. It was quiet, but not isolated.  A short walk brought you to excellent bars and restaurants, each with an awesome rum punch recipe. We opted for dinner at “home,” poolside, a few nights and the provisions from the local grocery (delivered, thank you very much) were fantastic!   

The adventurers among us found amazing dive masters for our first real SCUBA trip at Chuck and Robbie’s. One blew air bubble “smoke rings” at 40 feet and the other dove with a baseball cap. 

Another excursion brought the crew to the Mayan ruins of Lamanai located deep in the jungles of mainland Belize. The “commute” to the ruins was scenic enough, but the birds, wildlife and view from the top were even more amazing. We snorkeled with sharks and pet (yes, touched!) stingrays in the world’s most amazing nature preserve, Hol-Chan. They feel like wet mousepads, BTW. 

And we had the most unique adventures with the local fishing guide who we kept busy for three straight days! We fished the most remote and beautiful shoreline for bonefish – and caught a huge barracuda. We took him up on his offer to show us his favorite kind of fishing, night fishing for grouper – and we caught huge SHARKS! We also took up the first mate on his offer to take us on his favorite kind of fishing trip: spearfishing  – which most tourists aren’t privileged enough to experience. We got fresh lobster and did some free diving for conch. Let’s just say our shore lunch was not the usual Minnesota fare: conch ceviche, grilled lobster. Yum! 

The nightlifers and foodies were satisfied, too. During the day, johnnycakes, fry tacos and ceviche were a hit. At night, it was all about rum punches and Belikin (the locally brewed beer). We even found a hopping Midwest Super Bowl party, thousands of miles from Green Bay. 

It was a beautiful resort! The food was really great, which sometimes I’m not a fan of all inclusive as the food is mostly buffet style and not always good. They had 6-7 restaurants to choose from – with at least 3 for every meal and no reservations required which is great! They also have 24 hour room service with a box that they will just leave your food if you don’t want to answer the door. This is nice for morning coffee, late night snack, etc.
 
The rooms were really nice – a Jacuzzi in every room – and for once in Mexico – REALLY GREAT BEDS! Normally they are really hard and uncomfortable. These were really nice!

We stayed at an Oceanview, junior suite which was literally 5 steps from the pool. This was handy to lay out towels in the morning, use our own bathroom while by the pool, get a drink, etc.
 
One bonus of this resort is that we checked in online and got to pick our exact room 48 hours in advance on their website. You can view all available rooms and the exact location and see a 360 view of the room and the view from the patio of that room which was cool. Drawback of this is that we thought since we had already done all of this online, check- in would be quick – not the case but oh well.
 
The location was great. A couple nights we walked into Playa for dinner which was only about a 3 block walk. While we didn’t do the party scene or late night beach walk, I felt very safe! I have heard otherwise from some people about Mexico lately.
 
I’ve stayed at probably 8+ resorts in Mexico and this was my favorite so far!

Here are some pictures and a few things they thought other travelers might want to know:

Rio Mar Beach Resort:
- Seemed to be the most beautiful resort  in the area!
- They had very nice tennis courts – some clay, which was fun. Lessons were really good, too.
- It was really nice to have separate adult/kid pools.
- The staff is polite and helpful. (They brought us a free cooler – and put a bottle of wine in it – no charge!) The concierge was helpful.
- The rooms were nice. There were some signs of age, but not bad at all.
- It’s really close to El Yunque, and about halfway between San Jan and Bioluminencent Bay – which is a must-see!
- No free parking, but the valet was $20/day plus tips (self park was $15/day).
- Internet fees were $15/day/device – which can get pricey when you have iphone/laptop/ipad. There were some free computers in the biz center.
- food and drinks seemed expensive ($8 beers, $10.50 mix drinks), though I’m sure this is pretty common.
- We didn’t eat a whole lot there, seemed more fun to get out into the city, but what we had was just OK.

Some other stuff we learned:
- 3G service everywhere we went in PR!
- A rental car is a great idea – lots to see!
- Driving wasn’t bad, as long as you have a GPS. Lots of roads are not marked.
- A neat hotel in Old San Juan that people might not know about: www.thegalleryinn.com
- It would be a good idea to stay 2 days in San Juan, then 2 days in Rio Grande or similar because it is a good hour drive each way.
- Most people there speak english and are insanely nice.
- There’s a definite “work week” there, nothing was crowded Tues-Thurs and then really picked up Friday and Saturday (or maybe it was the slower time of year?).
- Every day is beautiful. 83, intermittent clouds, rains somewhere for 10 minutes. Neat ecosystem!