Royal Plantation Ocho Rios 07/2009

Trip to the Resort and Arrival

This was my 15^th stay at the resort, and I was by myself but seldom alone. I had a nice ride to the resort, 90 minutes has become the norm. I had an easy time in customs, too, (arrived at 12:45 & was out of the airport in 22 minutes) though dealing with my luggage was a trial for me since I wasn’t feeling too well on this trip. I knew my driver, Orville, so we had easy conversation, and the refreshments and company made the time pass in no time.

As usual, arriving at the resort was like arriving at home. I was greeted by so many people that I care about dearly, and the rose scented towel was a nice touch.

I was in a luxury double, 260, which is a room I have been in a number of times. It is very spacious with a lovely view, and it is very convenient to the beach elevator and also to the main restaurant  and public areas.

Everything in my room was fresh, and I had the whole fruit basket that I like and other warming things. They know everything that I like to make me feel comfortable, and I don’t ever take that for granted.

Peter Fraser, the general manager let me know that my gazpacho and snapper sandwich were waiting for me at the beach. The gazpacho was scotch bonnet, just the way that I liked it. They all know I have been experimenting with various peppers and other ingredients to come up with my own recipe for our recipe exchange at our Escape in Luxury trip in November. However,  a day or two later, it was not made correctly, and even Peter and the Food and Beverage Manager, Yannis Paravalos thought it was not right. I am sure that was a onetime thing. These two detail-oriented gentlemen make a point of tasting the various dishes at times so that everything continues to be as it should be. There is so much more to it all, as I have seen in the times I have been invited into the kitchen and galley.

Sandals Foundation

Thursdays are the Sandals Foundation day. A lot of staff were wearing the Sandals Foundation shirts on that day and then their Jamaica shirts that night. The shirts help guests know what is going on. There was  a silent auction for something interesting. Shawn Moses, the Loyalty Manager was going around asking guests to donate even a dollar.

I saw someone give $100 bill one night, but $1 is just as meaningful and just as important, 77 rooms, $1 a week, and there is almost $3000 in a year. That goes a long down there. They spend just a short time interrupting people, and a lot of guests seemed to love it. I will try to find some more about the projects, but Mansfield Basic School remains the adopted school. Overall, Sandals/Beaches/RP has a lot of projects, and I was told about a couple of marine protection projects that would be done at RP and Boscobel.

Island Routes – New Tour Co.

The wonderful concierge, Nakemo has moved over there, and he is working with guests around the customizing tours for them. This truly adds to the 5-star experience. We'd been getting a few gentle complaints about the tour department, and I am excited about Nakemo and excited about these opportunities, as I hope this will be an option to just hiring a driver and winging it. The main added benefit is that often staff at RP escort their tours, and tours booked through them are insured.  Here is my interview with Nakemo: http://www.tropictravelonline.com/rpislandtours.htm.

Dining

I finally got to dine at the Royal Grill on my April/May trip, and the menu was so wonderful then.  We had so many good reviews from guests that liked this option (those that found it open during their stay). Well, the menu changed. Honestly, I did not know what I was going to order there and was hoping to get up and leave, but Peter had asked to meet me there at 7 p.m., and he did come down.  The menu was leaning much more to the Caribbean than before, and I did note an interesting looking tapas menu. I decided to order this, and it was a great culinary experience and one of the highlights of my trip.  It had lobster, snapper, pork (which I did not include), and duck or beef. Now I wish I had done the duck as a substitute to the pork. Maybe next time. These tasting portions had beautiful sauces, nice garnishes, and even their own starches. One was a callaloo mashed potato that was so unique and interesting. I am not a big beef eater, and this was SO tender, delicious and beautiful, I easily could have had more of that one.  I also had a nice salad and a spinach and coconut soup. For dessert, I had mango sorbet. The coconut they put in the soup was the baked coconut they serve as a snack at the bar, and there was way too much of it in the soup. I did not care for it.

They also had the Jamaica night upstairs with grilled meats and lots of other dishes in the Jamaican pots. The show included the fire dancer and limbo, and my favorite singer, Patrick performed. He is still doing You're My Angel even without Kay, and he is great, and he did a lovely tribute to Michael Jackson, and he can even moonwalk.  

The returning guest dinner was very nice. It was an intimate affair with just 5 of us (including Yannis and Shawn). Yannis and Jeffeson, the Sommolier paired some nice wines with the food. The other guests were a nice couple that I met at the wine chat held during the week.

At breakfast, you still have the option of ordering from the menu, which offers local and international fare. They also still have the full buffet with fruits, pastries, Jamaican specialties, eggs to order meats, and cereals. Those on the royal plan can mix the menu and buffet quite easily. A variety of fresh juice, coffee, and tea is available.

My favorite meal at Le Papillon is still the sea bass, and I had a nice dinner with Shawn on this dish one night.

Lunch is available at either the Bayside or at the beach in tables or at your beach seat. There is still a spa menu at Bayside. Seafood selections are available at both, along with salads, soups, appetizers, sandwiches, and full gourmet entrees. Missing again was coppa from the antipasti pate, and amazingly one day when I was at Dunns River, Shawn arrived at my suite with a lovely plate right before dinner that RP had gift wrapped and sent him and a driver to surprise me.  We nibbled on this and took a few photos before he went back to RP. Both restaurants have new menus since my visit that I am still trying to get.

I had dinner one night on the terrace with the guest services manager. They had tappas again that night, and he ordered that. I ordered some seafood pasta by just asking for what I wanted.

Entertainment

Roger still performs on Monday, and Patrick was performing 3 nights a week.  More of the guests were interacting – dancing, clapping, requesting songs, etc.

Thursday was the Jamaican show with costume dancers, limbo, bamboo dancing, and reggae.

There is still yoga on the pier a couple of days a week when Maggi comes with his jewelry.

One day, there was a cooking demo with a “celebrity” chef, Jason the concierge/butler. This was held down at the beach restaurant.

On another day, Yannis and Jeffeson had a mixology and wine chat where guests tasted wines and were shown how taste changes with sour, salt, etc. This was popular, and guests asked a lot of questions. This was the first of these, and the men really seemed to have a wonderful time with it.

Tea is still held on the terrace every afternoon. Piano is played then and sometimes in Appleton at night.

Martini moments are still on Friday in Appleton with a variety of choices.

On Monday night, they still have the manager’s cocktail party with appetizers and the mento band. The mento band plays at the beach at lunch.

The hot cocoa is made at breakfast on Fridays.

Spa

I had a nice pedi on the rocks treatment. This is my favorite treatment, as it is the most pampering with the scrub, paraffin, etc. I also had an eyebrow wax.  I am still hoping for the lemongrass scrub to come back. While I was there, Peter had someone working on it that came close. I hope he will continue to pursue bringing this back because it was very popular. I had lunch with Tanya, one of the former spa managers (she is the spa manager at SGOR now), and she said that so many people associate her with that spa and scrub and email her all the time asking for it. I would like to see the lemongrass candles back, also.

While at the resort, I was interviewed by the sales manager, and a copy of the press release is located here: http://www.luxurycruiseandland.com/blogs/media/blogs/luxtravnews/DebbieHoffren-TravelAgentwithapassionforJamaica%20rev.pdf