Royal Plantation/Royal Caribbean visit Nov 22 – Dec 2, 2008
First, let us start by saying that Debbie Hoffren, agency owner of Tropical Travel Online is the best travel agent, and if you are not using her, you should start now. Debbie is extremely talented at getting to know you, what your personal preferences are and then taking very good care of you! Thank you Debbie for all the special touches you added to make our “Thanksgiving Reunion” with our friends, very, very special! You are wonderful!
Second, we would like to especially acknowledge Mr. Peter Fraser, the General Manager at Royal Plantation (RP). Mr. Fraser has built himself a winning team at RP. He has trained them well and they take very good care of us, the guests. Mr. Fraser also went out of his way to take care of a few personal favorites, without even asking. Thank you, Peter, and all the best for you in the future! We look forward to seeing you again soon.
Third, we want our dear friends, Randy and Cyndi to know how much we love them and consider them a blessing in our lives! We met at Sandals Montego Bay six years ago for a drink and have been best buddies ever since, traveling to Sandals once or twice a year together. Here’s to Reunion Week ’09 at Whitehouse!!!
Last and certainly not least ….. Joan and I wish to thank our Reunion group for the BEST vacation we have had to this point in our lives! Each and every couple added something special and to this day, we smile at the very thought of each one of you! You see, Sandals has become so much more than a vacation, we are developing true lifelong friendships that can not be replaced. Thank you: Bill & Trish, Jim & Annette, Larry & Terri and Randy & Cyndi. You all are so special to Joan and me!
Onto the trip report that we all know as: “Thanksgiving Reunion of Friends”
On Saturday, November 22, 2008 our plane departed the Atlanta airport at 8:40 am arriving in Montego Bay at 11:25 am with no hiccups. Customs went well and we were in the Sandals lounge in no time at all. Brad went to freshen up and before we had a chance to get some refreshments our private driver to Royal Plantation was there to sweep us away to paradise. Debbie, along with help from Cyndi and Peter, certainly had all the details taken care of right down to a perfect bottle of wine and delicious sandwiches for our ride. The ride took about 1 hour and 30 minutes, less now that the highway is completed.
Arrival at Royal Plantation was about 2:00 pm and we were
checked in complete with a cold towel to freshen up and a cold glass of
Champagne. We were then escorted to our suite which, much to our delight was #
355 which was so special to have the suite we had requested in the category we
booked. The view is fantastic from this suite and we love the big balcony with
the bar stocked with all kinds of goodies. Thank you Peter for making sure
every detail was taken care of and we want you to know it didn’t go unnoticed. 
We went straight to the balcony to have our traditional
arrival toast to “officially” begin the vacation. After unpacking a few items,
we ventured out to see if anyone else from the group had arrived. As soon as we
got back to the main lobby, down the stair case comes Trish and what a reunion
of hugs, tears and catching up. As we talked another vehicle pulled up and
much to our delight, Jim & Annette jumped out! It was so good to see
everyone arriving and so looking forward to all being together. Randy &
Cyndi were the next couple to arrive with Larry & Terry arriving just in
time for our 8:00 pm Grand Table for 10 Reunion Dinner. Before dinner we
gathered in the Pub for our first official toast of all being together again
and looking forward to a week full of fun and building memories as a group.
They accommodated our large table in Le Pappion restaurant and did a fantastic
job serving everyone their dinner at the same time and everything was hot and
delicious. 
The week progressed with many special events which were planned for the group and each couple went about doing what they liked to do on vacation which was special as when a group as large as ours get together often people feel they need to do everything everyone else does but this was not the case. Seven of us went golfing at the near by Sandals Golf & Country Club but with much disappointment we were unable to play as two of the ladies didn’t have collar shirts or sleeves in shirts so unless we purchased a shirt they said no play for you. (It is a good time to mention that the beginner was the only lady with proper Sandals golf attire!) We all discussed it and decided if we all couldn’t play none of us were playing. We went back to the resort and turned what seemed to be a bad situation in to a great day. As soon as we got back to the resort, we went to the gift shop to inquire about the Jamaican Bobsledding. As soon as we learned how much fun Mystic Mountain would be and that there was room to go in an hour, we all booked it, went back to our rooms to change and met back in front lobby. We had a blast…doing the ski lift ride to the top of the mountain, bob sledding Jamaica style and finally zip lining through the jungle. It was an excursion filled many laughs and memories. We would highly recommend to anyone visiting Jamaica.
Peter had the resident band play in the bar area one night and of course the group rocked Royal Plantation from everything from Mojito’s to Congo lines
until the
band retired for the night…they were outstanding…oh we started that evening out
with a Jamaica Martini and for any of you who don’t know it is one huge Martini
glass filled with what ever your favorite martini is but enough for everyone in
our group to have a straw and drink at the same time. We took lots of pictures
so be sure to visit our collection of shots in the photo album section. (No bubbles
Larry!)
During our trip Jim & Annette received sad news that Jim’s mom had a stroke and their vacation ended early, all our hearts went out to Jim & Annette.
The weather during our vacation was far from which you would
expect and what we have always had when visiting Jamaica. It was warm but windy
and cloudy mixed with rain except the last two days but of course the group
didn’t care we just carried on with what ever we were doing for the day and if
that was sun bathing that was what we did…since there was more clouds and rain
than sun, a few of our couples decided that if they were sun bathing and all of
a sudden it started to rain, well… time for some “rain bathing.” Again, we have
pictures to prove it.
Reunion dinner was held in the conference center with a pianist playing during the dinner and we had Lobster and Steak which Peter knows we all love. There were eight couples (all 8 great couples from TTO, 7 couples were in Debbie’s group) in attendance with Peter and his management members Suzanne, Christine, and Shawn. Once again the evening will be remembered as RP does things first class style and will always be our special place to visit!
On our second last night Peter offered Randy & Cyndi and
Brad & Joan to move the next day over to Villa Plantana
for a taste of the separate cottage and we accepted the invitation and were so
glad we did. The cottage came with our own personal butler (Jason) and the new
head chef. We had a dinner party for the entire group and all we had to do to
prepare was tell Jason the menu, how many was attending and he would take care
of the rest with help from his staff. While we showered and changed, the staff
went to work turning the villa into a candle lit paradise!
All we can say is that when Randy & Cyndi and Brad & Joan came out from their respective bedrooms, it was so beautiful, not a word was spoken. We just all stood there in complete amazement and soaked it in.
When everyone arrived, they couldn’t believe their eyes…we
had them all sign the guest book and we dance and we reminisced about all the
laughs we had together over the past week. We even had Reba McEntire make a
special appearance at the party and she was a smash hit as always. Not the real
Reba, but a good internal joke that provided us with so many laughs that
evening. (Durant you looked great in Reba’s wig!) 
We sat
down to dinner which will be remembered by how special and perfect the Lobster,
Steak and Chicken was. The meal came with all the extras you could imagine and
we enjoyed every bite under a star lit sky. It was like living a fairy tale.
Peter stopped by of course as he always did to make sure everything was meeting
our expectation and to see if there was anything he could do to make our
evening more enjoyable…we didn’t have one request as Peter had thought of
everything. After our friends retired for the evening (as they were all
departing for home next morning) the Randy & Cyndi & Brad & Joan
enjoyed a few after dinner drinks out on the patio. We just didn’t want the
evening to end.
The next day was departure day for Bill & Trish first and then Larry & Terry. It is always hard to say good bye but we all know we started something special together and look forward to our next Reunion of Friends!
It was departure day for Randy and Cyndi and Brad & Joan as well BUT, the four of us were off to Sandals Royal Caribbean for three more nights!
Since the day was full of sunshine for the first time in a few days, we decided to hang out in our “backyard,” enjoying the weather, the surroundings and of course, each other!
The time had come to do our final pack and share a glass of wine with Jason our butler. (Because he had completed his final task of taking our luggage to the car, he was officially off duty)
We finally said our good byes to Peter, Suzanne, Christine & Shawn, thanking them for EVERYTHING!
When we arrived at Royal Caribbean (RC), our rooms were not what we expected, as we all had booked Butler level. Entered our Travel agent, Debbie… we emailed her immediately and within minutes, she was speaking with the GM. To make a long story short, everything got straightened out and for three glorious days, the management at RC could not do enough for us.
We used these three days to unwind and relax from what was a
very busy, exciting week at RP. We spent the days lounging around the main
pool together, the boys played volleyball each and every day. 
We
had many good drinks, a ton more laughs, food which was delivered poolside and
many hours relaxing on the floats in the pool.
On our last night, our butler had arranged a very special,
private dinner for four over on Cay Island on the clothes optional side of the
island. (We want our group of friends to know that we did opt to wear clothes!)
It was special not only because we had our favorite food, Lobster & Steak, but because, just like at Villa Plantana, we had the Executive Chef prepare our meal. It was a nice personal touch for the chef to come out and talk with us after we were finished eating.
When the perfect meal came to completion ending the perfect vacation we boarded the Dragon Boat to return back to RC. The gentlemen went back to the rooms to retire their jackets. We then went back to the main area to play a game of music trivia, of course more drinks and laughs! We just didn’t want it to end but we always must leave so we can come back. (Isn’t that right Randy)
Day of departure had finally come for us all. It was a very
touching send off with all the managers standing out front and waving good bye
as we drove off to the airport.
Randy & Cyndi left earlier in the morning so we went with them to the airport. We did an early check in so we could then go over to Sandals Montego Bay (SMB) to see some old friends.
Before we did that, the four of us had our final farewell
for this vacation and through the tears, reminded each other that April WH 09
is not that far away!
When we arrived to SMB, the first person that was there to greet us was Zukie he thought he had seen a ghost when we came around the corner to the entrance lobby! We have not seen each other since we were last there in 2004.
Dawn Smith came out to greet us and then Zukie took us on a tour, in which we walked down to the piano bar and back.
We had an awesome lunch at Cricketters
and just before we ordered our meal, we saw Brad & Debbie, a couple we used
to hang out with when we traveled to SMB between years 2001 – 2004.
We had our lunch and then met them down on the beach for a few drinks and got caught up with the regulars that we all know that returns to SMB year after year.
Dawn Smith was nice enough to give us a room in the Almond Block so we wouldn’t have to change in the Departure Lounge.
We had more good byes on a vacation that never seemed to end.
We had a safe and uneventful flight back to Atlanta.
I could have a long, drawn out closing but I will not. Instead I will close by saying this was the BEST vacation Joan and I have had and we would like to thank; Debbie, Peter, Bill & Trish, Larry & Terri, Jim & Annette and Randy & Cyndi.
If it was not for y’all…. We would not and could not have enjoyed ourselves as much as we did.
Brad & Joan