The ultimate Jamaican escape: Two luxury stays with with dirt buggying & Dunn’s River Falls!
If you are dreaming of an all inclusive Caribbean escape where you can mix relaxed luxury with a touch of adventure, Jamaica is hard to beat. A split stay between Sandals Royal Caribbean and Sandals Montego Bay lets you experience two distinct resort vibes in one holiday, with an unforgettable day trip to Dunn’s River Falls as the highlight. Although you can stay at either of these two resorts, which are a 5 minute shuttle ride away, and use all of the facilities, pools, restaurants and bars at with Sandals “Stay at 1, Play at 2” exchange programme, we decided to spilt our stay and stay at both resorts as we wanted to experience them both. They are both set on Jamaica’s stunning north coast, both are adults only and all inclusive, and together they give you a real “best of both worlds” experience: one with a slightly more intimate, refined feel, and one with a livelier, beachfront energy.
First Stop: Sandals Royal Caribbean Resort for 7 nights: This resort felt smaller than a lot of Sandals resorts and had a more intimate friendly feel.
We stayed in a Crystal Lagoon Hideaway Club Junior Suite with balcony tranquility soaking tub which we loved. It was set back a bit in a quieter area with its own little lagoon pools, quieter jacuzzi pool and bar area.
Everything was more compact with a smaller beach area, 2 gorgeous pools, fabulous restaurants including Caribbean, French, Italian, Indian, Jamaican and the Cricketers Pub! This resort also has a pretty little offshore island that you can get to by boat which also has a Thai restaurant and is home to it's resident parrot 'Princess Diana'! Some of the rooms here are just beautiful including the overwater bungalows with private pools, swim-up suites any skypool suites with their own private pools on the balconies!
Second Stop: Sandals Montego Bay Resort for 3 nights: This resort is a much bigger resort with a wow factor beach! This resort sits along a beautiful stretch of white sand, with bars, restaurants and pools dotted just steps from the water.
We stayed in a Beachfront Villa Junior Suite with outdoor tranquility soaking tub. This was a beautful suite right on the beach front and we had our own butler which was a real treat!
Everything was much more spread out in this bigger resort. It has 2 pools and, again, some fabulous restaurants, this time including Caribbean, Butch’s Steakhouse, Italian, Japanese where food is cooked freshly in front of you, Jamaican, Sushi bar, Beach club for lunches and an amazing coffee shops for cakes, pancakes and ice creams! The best rooms here include the swim-up suites dotted all along the beachfront.
Water sports at both resorts: Kayaks, paddle boarding, hobie cats and snorkelling are at both resorts aswell as scuba diving for certified divers.
Dirt buggies & Dunn‘s River Falls: We did an excursion during our stay which started with dirt buggying (getting very wet and dirty), followed by feeding the beautiful parrots, then a Jamaican lunch.
We then moved on to Dunn’s River Falls. These falls have been on my bucket list to visit. This natural wonder is a series of cascading terraces and pools that tumble down through the rainforest towards the sea. At the falls, we took a guided climb, linking hands with everyone as we made our way up the flowing water with natural pools. Although very busy and very commercial it was brilliant …. Although the climb was quite demanding (and slippery)! This was one of the best things I have ever done and I would definitely recommend it.
Why This Split Stay Works So Well?: As I mentioned before, you can stay at either and use both resorts anyway so you don’t really need to stay at both but we are so glad we did and we loved them both! Combining Sandals Royal Caribbean and Sandals Montego Bay with a Dunn’s River Falls excursion gives you a holiday with real variety. You will have two different resort atmospheres, from peaceful and intimate to lively and beachfront, plenty of time to simply relax, dine, swim and enjoy the all‑inclusive luxury at both then with a memorable day out at one of Jamaica’s most famous natural attractions.
Just let me know if you would like more information on either of the resorts we stayed at or any of the other 5 resorts in Jamaica.
