In search of AI

Howdy all,

We've been doing the Couples Negril thing for a while now. Back in October I finally talked my bride into getting off the reservation. Took her on Lenbert's tour and she really enjoyed it. With that in mind, we are now looking for an alternative to CN. Would still like an AI, preferably adult-only. Not interested in a Hedo type place. With as much as we were paying for CN, she felt guilty eating at other establishments. If we could come up a less expensive AI alternative maybe she would be a bit more adventurous. REALLY not looking for a place with a small kitchen as we have no interest in cooking while on vaca. Just did that last year with some friends in Mexico and did NOT enjoy it. Thoughts or suggestions?

Try Grand Pineapple, it is right on the beach and easy to get to all the beach places from.

Charela Inn - one of the nicest properties on a great stretch of beach. You can have all inclusive or a variety of options for meals. Their restaurant is one of the best in Negril (with both Jamaican and French cuisine, reflecting the long time owners Daniel and Sylvie Grizzle (he's Jamaican and she's French).

http://www.charela.com/index.html

Fun Holiday is another.

Grand Pineapple,soon come

I would suggest Grand Pineapple also..but it is not adults only. It's a quaint small hotel owned by the Sandals corp, but is not a Sandals, or a Couples for that matter..you can look up reviews of it on Trip Advisor. We were there last June for our 30th Anniversary and loved it. We thought it was a great value, and that we were not paying for things we would not use at the Couples or Sandals resorts. It left us with more mooola to take a couple of exscursions. We are planning another trip there for the end of May / June time frame again.

I would think GP or especially Fun Holiday would work only if you're willing to take a huge step down in quality. Otherwise, look at RIU or Breezes (16 and older). If you go during school time, not that many kids at the RIUs.

The small AIs like GP, Fun Holiday and Legends have a MUCH smaller food selection and little or no entertainment.

Sea Wind and Charela both have AI options.

Try Sunset at The Palms One of our best trips to Negril. It is now adults only.

Grand Pineapple is wonderful, but do not expect anything fancy like Couples! This is a basic AI resort that has 1 bar and 1 restaurant, but is very clean, has great food/drinks and the staff is friendly and courteous. My husband and I have stayed here twice and have referred friends who have never been to Jamaica to stay here and they've absolutely loved it. We've stayed in February both times and there were no children. The youngest there was a few 19 year old boys from Germany. You get the best of both worlds here, because you don't have to worry about going out to find food or drinks, but at the same time it's affordable enough so if you can go visit local bars/restaurants and not feel guilty about spending extra money. If you're looking for the ease of AI, but want to experience Negril more for what it truly is then this is the way to go.

Thanks for all of the replies so far. We realize that the Couples brand is pretty high end. There are things that we just don't use and would like to save some cash. Would also like to be able to experience more of the real Negril.

We've had multiple trips to Couples Negril and Couples Swept Away. One year we decided to save some $ but still wanted adults only AI, so we booked Breezes when they had the Grand Lido next to CN. FWIW, stepping down in quality and still wanting AI didn't really work for us. We had a great time at Breezes, but were always kind of "not enthused" at feeding time, yet still felt obligated to eat there due to the fact it was paid for and right in front of us. We do non AI on the cliffs and if I don't want to spend the $ on Couples in the future (very likely), we'll start staying non-AI on the beach also. Our take on the AI thing is to do it right or do something else. Just something to think about.

You also might want to try Sandy Haven...If you all have been staying at CN i would not suggest Fun Holiday..I would also suggest Sea Wind or even or one of the suites at Treehouse Negril..Also you all should look into the suites at Seasplash..Also Charlea Inn, RIU, and Sunset at the Palms!!