Moon Palace Jamaica

Just arrived back from two weeks in Jamaica. Amazing weather and beautiful location!

Location and beach: The setting of Moon Palace is absolutely beautiful. The beaches around the hotel were stunning, with bright turquoise water and white sand that we could hardly believe was real. One of my favourite parts of the trip was watching the pelicans fishing right in front of us, as well as snorkelling and spotting crabs and colourful fish.

Arrival and staff: The hotel itself was lovely, and we received a warm welcome on arrival with a rose. The staff were consistently happy, positive and friendly throughout our stay, and they could not have done enough for us.

Room and service: We upgraded to a sea-view room on arrival, which saved us a lot of money. Our tour operator had quoted us over £2,500 for a Juliet balcony room, but by waiting until we arrived, the upgrade cost 1,000 USD for two weeks. The room was nice, the beds were super comfortable, and we had a lovely view of the beach. We could even see the dolphins from our balcony. Room service was surprisingly good, although there was usually a wait of around one hour. The only negatives were that housekeeping often came late in the afternoon or early evening, which we found inconvenient, and our mini fridge was only topped up a couple of times during the trip.

Food and drinks: The 24-hour café was very handy for coffees, milkshakes, cakes and crepes, especially as the pool and lobby bars did not open until 10am. The Italian restaurant was really nice and we visited several times. We also enjoyed the Indian restaurant, the Jerk Hut and Pier 8, although we were not as keen on the Asian restaurant. During the day, the Jerk Hut served delicious Jamaican food. I am a fussy eater, but I really enjoyed the flavours. There were plenty of drink choices too, and the espresso martinis and strawberry daiquiris were particularly good. Branded drinks were also available if you asked for them.

Pools and sunbeds: There were always sunbeds available around the beach and pools, and the pool sunbeds were really comfortable. The swimming pools were lovely and just the right temperature, and the bar staff were fun and friendly. Our favourite waitress around the pools was Lorraine, who was such a joyful, positive and wonderful person to get to know over the two weeks. Every morning she automatically brought over our favourite drinks, and it was lovely watching how she interacted with each guest and made everyone feel special. The staff are the biggest credit to Moon Palace; they clearly love their country and genuinely want guests to have an amazing time. The only downside was the number of Diamond Club sunbeds that remained empty but could not be used by other guests. On a few afternoons, guests were looking for sunbeds while plenty of Diamond Club beds sat unused. It would be better if these could be made available to all guests later in the day when they are clearly not being used.

Entertainment: The daytime entertainment team were great. They were motivating, kept guests entertained and were still enjoyable to listen to even if you did not want to join in. We only went to the evening entertainment once and, compared with other holidays we have had in Mexico, we did not think it was particularly good.

Excursions: We did two excursions: Dunn’s River and the Blue Hole. Dunn’s River was stunning and we really enjoyed it, but the Blue Hole was the highlight for us — beautiful, fun and such a great experience. I would recommend both excursions as they are close to the hotel and still leave you with the afternoon to enjoy afterwards. We booked through Know Jamaica Tours and organised everything via WhatsApp. The prices were very reasonable, and the lady we dealt with was friendly and helpful. I would happily book with them again.

Ocho Rios: We also went out into Ocho Rios and walked up the main high street. It was a good experience, and the local people were friendly. We did not feel pressured to go into any shops; it was simply nice to see more of the area outside the resort.

Transfers: We organised our own airport transfers through Holiday Services, as the journey is quite long. Our driver, Bernard, was excellent and felt more like a tour guide. He explained the different places we passed on the way to and from the airport and shared stories about meeting the Queen and Mick Jagger, as well as how Jamaica has changed over the years, having lived there his whole life. He also explained about the hurricane recovery which is ongoing in some areas.

Overall: We had an amazing trip, mainly because of the beautiful location and the friendly Jamaican people. We will definitely return to Jamaica in the future. 😊

Eli was amazing and food was delicious!!! 10/10