How Do You Get Ready???

As I've stated before, our February reach will be our 10th consecutive year in Negril. As it is now January we are in Negril mode and continuing our preparations. As we have been preparing, I started wondering how others prepare for their trips. Our prep starts during our current stay:

February - Make reservations for our same room at our hotel for the dates we want to be there (always 10 days between our birthdays)
March - Start checking airfare the day that it becomes available (330 days)
April - December - keep checking airfare until something reasonable is available. This year it was $550 pp from MSP.
July - Jamaican bar-b-que with our friends. Jerk Chicken, Rice & Peas, Red Stripe, Ting and Appleton...
August - At least one visit to the Seastar webcast just to get a fix.
November - the snow and cold start to arrive... but the though that Negril is out there and half paid for gets us through.
December - Trips to Barnes and Nobel to start buying the books that we are going to read. We've thought about bringing the iPads but, at least once a year, as we are lounging on our rock by the cliffs edge, we get hit by a wave.
December/January - Visits to the sunset webcasts while making Hummingbirds or drinking Mud Slides that we purchased the year before. You have to picture the snow building up outside and the warmth of a fire.
January - Contact Rocky for our airport transfer, finish buying the books we will be bringing, 8 for her, 5 for me. Although I'm a slower reader I also like to read educational stuff. Last year it was Team of Rivals, Beasts in the Garden, A Biography of Thomas Jefferson, The Greater Journey and I always throw in Vince Flynns latest (candy stuff).
January Continued - Make sure that we have travel sizes of all the essentials. Start thinking about where our meals might be in Negril. We have our favorites but always looking to try the most talked about/new places that we have never tried. Check webcasts and the board for suggestions. Buy chocolates and other essentials for the housekeeping staff. They and their kids love it.
February - Start watching the weather reports to make sure that there are no snowstorms on the horizon for travel day. Re-confirm with Rocky. Board the plane!!!!

To me, Negril is really a a value vacation because I enjoy the anticipation! A state of mind that lasts the whole year long.

How do you prepare????

LOL - I read trip reports and spend way too much time on Negril.com absorbing everything and asking all sorts of questions!

saving

wow, i thought we have it bad, first we booked for our jan 25th trip in august, confirmed our reservation with Westjet in sept and then again last nite,, confirmed our prearrange seats, called ROOMS again to confirm our room, and will call again the nite before we leave, call our driver every 2 weeks to make sure he has a large cooler with ice and Redstripes and subs for the trip to Negril, and will call him the day before we leave to check, no stops except to pee, which Lisa always gives me crap??, now with 2 and 1\2 weeks left called our driver that is taking us to Toronto airport to confirm, all is good, finishing packing, fishing rods, snorkeling gear, coffee grinder for subs, few bathing suits, JA money, 4 cameras, yes 1 for lisa,1 video camera and a underwater camera, and nice camera for me, 2 large soft cooler bags with velcrov lift tops for Redstripes, small extension cord, ja phone, almost done, soon some

by reading trip reports on negril.com:)

We start by booking our accommodations for the following year while still in Ja. We have found it easier to negotiate room rates face to face! We book our flights using travel miles,and they allow 10 months out for ticketing. Once those two things are done...let the list making and packing begin!! We also leave a large cooler with Errol (he's our driver) full of incidentals such as some kitchen items rafts and that sort of thing! And I'm with you Russ In Mn all the planning and doing through out the year is part of the whole process I love!

All that planning and anticipation actually makes you happier!

http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/0...our-happiness/

It must be a minnesota thing Russ. I to reserved my room when I checked out last feb. Two weeks at the White Sands. Best spot on the beach. I start my packing usually octoberish. This year is different than other years as we will be getting married on the beach. So we have 20 newbies coming along to experience what has become a ritual for us. Maybe we will see you there!

Hey Russ, Where do you find the ting in MN? Would love a vodka ting about now! Soon come January 21

Yep... It's for sure a MN thing!

We've been booked for our upcoming April trip since last April... and the time has now come for me to haunt the airline websites to find the best deal!

It's also time to plan our pre-jamaica get together with the friends we are traveling with.. Reggae, Red Stripe, and Jerk!! (plus our other pre-jamaica get together with friends that are traveling to the resort we usually went to before changing it up this year! Doesn't mean we can't still have a party!!)

Inventory is being taken and lists are being made of what items we need for our trip!

Did the double digit dance yesterday! 98 days and counting!!

saving up the NYT crosswords, and lots of anticipation!

MN Ting can be purchased at the mid-town global market in Mpls but is real expensive. I usually pick up 6 20oz bottles at Sangster on the way home and save it for the party.

Thanks Russ will pick some up at Sangster

I try to get to Negril 2x per year -- Summer trip and Winter trip. So, as soon as I get back, I start to plan for the next trip.

Hi Russ,
I am also in MN. The first week in March will be my husband's and mine first trip to Jamaica but we travel somewhere every year about that time, either with friends or just the two of us. Prep starts in October by deciding where to go and booking flights and lodging. We are Eco travelers who hate AI and love to stay in small resorts, eat out, and meet the locals. We always find a board like this where we can learn from people who are passionate about the destination.

This year it took us sometime to decide on Jamaica and then find a resort. We chose the Treehouse. We finally booked in mid-December. We spent the holidays telling our friends where we were going and getting their insights if they had been to Negril. January/February I shop for clothes for the trip and usually end up doing all my casual summer clothes shopping. I have learned not to take too much wherever we go because we keep it casual.

February - book drivers for here in MN and in Jamaica. Reconfirm hotel and introduce ourselves by email, plan restaurants and activities like the One Love Pub Crawl. Start to go to the tanning booth so I don't freak out the natives on the first day.

Begin to pack 30 days in advance. There is lots of laying clothes out, packing and unpacking until I fit everything into a carry-on suitcase. Remember all the extras like a surge protector with multiple outlets, speaker system for our tunes, citronella candles, bug spray, tanning lotion, corkscrew, etc.

Make sure we have arrangements for care for our pets.

Last week - watching weather everyday both here and there (praying there is not a big snow storm that will delay us). Reconfirming everything and everyone.

After we return - we always have a party where we serve drinks and food from where we have been. I count on the Midtown market to find brands and spices.

We are especially excited about Jamaica because it has a well developed culture with its own dialect, food, philosophies. That is what makes travel fun for us.

Hope you enjoy your trip.

Book flight 4 -5 weeks ahead. Call Chris or Samantha at Seastar and get a room.

Tell the kid I'm coming and come carry me from Mobay. Pack an overnight bag. Most of the clothes I need are already at the yard.

GO

Will be their in 51 days, 19 hours, 25 minutes and some odd seconds. Haven't bought anything yet or touched my suitcase, which is unusual for me. Been looking at airfare, don't think it will go down, and doing a lot of reading on the forums. Been their 7 or so times before, know what to expect and still love it. Will have to get going on the preparations.