Banana's Garden question

[Mike_D]

I have never stayed there, but please note that Banana's Garden is across the street from the cliffs, so there is no sea view or direct water access, like you had at Catcha. That being said, Banana's Garden is one of the highest rated places in Negril (on TA, that is).

[Accompong]

I have never stayed there. That being said, Banana's Garden is one of the highest rated places in Negril (on TA, that is).

As a person who knows more about Jamaica than I do about Negril, I usually just hang back and read. I know who has been there before and the type of traveler they appear through their posts to be. No offense Mike_D but I would rarely if ever take a recommendation on a property from someone who has never "first hand" stayed there or from Trip Advisor recommendations alone. I do appreciate the fact that you did make a disclaimer about never staying there before so I didn't need to go to TA

I often see posts of places that I have stayed and would never stay again and hear how great they are. Not everyone thinks that paying $100 a night or more for any place is worth that price. I have personally never done that and would rather spend $50 or less for a place to sleep and use the other $50 to eat, drink and be merry.

Funny I have never seen a trip report about Banana's Garden. Anyone on here ever stay there? I would trust their word (probably) more than TA.

Peace and Guidance

[Mike_D]

No offense Mike_D but I would rarely if ever take a recommendation on a property from someone who has never "first hand" stayed there or from Trip Advisor recommendations alone. I do appreciate the fact that you did make a disclaimer about never staying there before so I didn't need to go to TA

Absolutely - I wouldn't either. My intent was not to provide a recommendation, but to point out the amenities (or lack thereof) at the property in question. Since the OP seemed to be comparing Banana's Garden to Catcha, I thought it was important to point out that BG lacks 2 of the amenities that they probably enjoyed most at Catcha - sea views and access to the cliffs. I would hate to see somebody regret booking a stay at a property because it wasn't what they thought it was going to be.

We do frequently stay in that neighborhood, and I have been on the property at Banana's Garden (and Banana Shout) as well as Catcha, so I wanted to make the lack of a seaside location known in case it wasn't evident on TA or the property's website.

ETA: Also, I was not suggesting that a high TA rating means that it is a great place (if that is what you got from my post). I included the reference to TA as a "For-what-it's-worth" footnote. By no means do I put much stock in TA reviews. I think my second post in this thread proves that. Heck, The SPA Retreat is rated #1 and I think the place is pretty soul-less.