Trip report feb 2-16

[Thatswhatshesaid]

Our chilling out spot. Not much traffic so if one wanted to get an all over tan, it might be the place

[Jamadian]

You got that right gerry.

It took a couple days for us to work out just how traveling with a friend would go. Sometimes it just doesn't work, my wife and I are walkers, putting on several miles a day, whereas our friend is a sitter. We finally agreed we'd just all do what we would normally do and meet up, or nor for dinner.
Our usually routine when staying down the beach is walk up to Sea Splash, get a rum punch, continue on to Cosmos get a beer or two, walk to our "private" beach, chill for a few hours and then reverse making our way back to Fire Fly and having beers there, it gets a little foggy after that but you get the picture.
This time being on the opposite end of the beach we more or less reversed the process, however had a BIG disappointment at Sea Splash which I'll get into later. I think it was gerryg123 who said, sometimes Negril can hurt you or hurt your feelings, something to that effect, and Sea Splash did something that not only insulted our intelligence, but surprised me. They will probably not see us again even though we have stayed there several times and have patronized them for many years.

Thatswhatshesaid you're pulling a gerryg123 and leaving us cliff hanging :-)

[ekfa51]

this sounds like an interesting report coming up!

[Thatswhatshesaid]

Thatswhatshesaid you're pulling a gerryg123 and leaving us cliff hanging :-)

Imitation is the best form of flattery

[Thatswhatshesaid]

OK, I'll get to the Sea Splash thing and get that out of the way.

As I said earlier, SS was a normal stopping spot for us for a rum punch on our treks up the beach. As background we have stayed there several times, going back to when they had the wooden structures that went up to the beach, sort of an extension to where the kitchen is now. I even have a picture of my wife on that swing that was on a huge tree that hung over the beach, so we have some history there.
Anyway the first day we stopped there we asked for a rum punch and I noticed the bartender pour from a bottle of "Captain Jacks Rum Punch", not the usual made from scratch ones we were used to. The price was about what you'd expect, certainly less than 10 bucks(frankly I don't remember exactly because it didn't raise any flags with me).
We finished and left each commenting how yucky it tasted to the real thing.
The next time we went, our most favorite bartender was serving and my wife said, can you make one from scratch? sure mon...and we had a very nice drink, I always thought they were the best. Again, no red flags on the price...a little more which we expected and were happy to pay...but nothing crazy.
A few days later we stopped again. Two different bartenders, one I recognized, one I did not.
My wife asked again, would you please make our rum punches from scratch? Sure, it will cost a little more. Yes we understand.
I watched as she mixed a splash of this a splash of that and then punch etc. into a shaker. She took out 2 glasses, what my parents would have called an "Old Fashion" glass, these were a little smaller even, my guess about 6 oz.
She filled with ice and poured the mixture over to the top. My thought at the time, I bet there's not even 3 oz in there.
We sipped, nothing out of the ordinary, a pink/orange colored drink. My wife commented, gee is there any booze in this?
She brought the bill......
$31..yes thirty one dollars.....
I've paid less than that in a Chicago Strip Bar!
We both were aghast. She showed me a detailed list....Appleton Dark, Appleton Special, Meyers Rum , Overproof...an impressive list....
Doing the math, we have six ounces of a glass, full of ice and I got charged for more booze than would have overflowed 2 empty glasses.
My wife being the negotiator grabbed the bill and headed to the front office, I just smiled because whatever the outcome, they'd never see me again. She was gone a long time, I was just pushing back my chair to go check on her when the phone at the bar rang.....I smiled again.
My wife returned still steaming, she said, "that ass up there was not going to budge. The girl not only defended herself she said we asked for extra vodka...." "vodka?" "yes....who the hell puts vodka in a rum punch".
Her words; "Sir you are in the hospitality business, do you understand what the outcome of this will be?"
They finally settled on a ten dollar refund....so $21 for 2 small rum punch.....
The girl handed me my refund and being the peacemaker I am, I gave her a $2 tip.

File this under "Be careful what you ask for" or "double check what 'it will cost a little extra' means

I always learn something when I go to Jamaica

Anyway...that's the Sea Splash story...I still love the place, lots of great memories there. But something fishy is going on.

[Dana1]

WTF?? $16 US for each drink??? How can one even justify that?? Even if you were charging for a shot of each booze which is ridiculous....would still mean that you would have 4oz of booze in your 6oz glass! I'll make sure we walk right on past this place

[Jim-Donna]

Yippie, I have been waiting for your report. Hope the friend thing works out!

[gerryg123]

But something fishy is going on.

ou
Very believable. You can just NEVER know what to expect in Jamaica. I probably spend more time at Seasplash than any other property in Negril except for Seastar Inn, and the service can be uneven at best. Also, they charge tax AND a service charge, which is something I do not like.

That said, I sometimes park there for many hours and just order fries for $3, and that's not too bad.

[NegrilAddict]

$31.00 for 2 drinks??? WTH!!!

[Bluez]

You've got to be kidding $31 for 2 drinks?? I know where I won't be stopping.... dem thief !!!