Moon Palace Jamaica

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ A fantastic first trip to Jamaica – the staff made this holiday unforgettable.

This was our first visit to Jamaica, and I can honestly say it won’t be our last. We stayed for 12 nights as a family of four, and overall had an absolutely brilliant holiday.

The hotel itself is excellent, but the people who work here are what make it truly special.

Every single day we were greeted with smiles, conversations and genuine warmth. It never felt fake or scripted – the staff seemed genuinely interested in us, our family and whether we were enjoying ourselves. We’ve stayed in some lovely hotels over the years, but the level of hospitality here is probably the best we’ve experienced.

A few members of staff deserve a special mention.

Oshane from the snack bar was an absolute legend. Every single day, without fail, he’d greet us with “Shearer, Junior Shearer, Mrs Shearer and Daughter Shearer!” after finding out we were Newcastle United supporters. It became part of our daily routine and always put a smile on our faces. He’d then stop for a chat, ask how we were getting on and tell us more about Jamaica. It never felt forced – he genuinely cared that we were having a great holiday, and his warmth and sense of humour summed up everything that’s special about Jamaican hospitality.

Omar and the team at the main pool bar made every afternoon a laugh. We had plenty of banter with them, especially during the World Cup games, and they always made time for a chat. From day one they welcomed us like regulars rather than guests, and it genuinely felt like catching up with friends every time we walked up to the bar.

Derek, one of the lifeguards, helped us with parasols, always took time to chat and showed a genuine interest in our family.

Carlton, the bellman, also left a lasting impression on us. He took our luggage to our room when we first arrived at midnight, which you’d expect. What we didn’t expect was that around a week later, when we were heading out of the hotel, he spotted us and greeted me with, “Hello Mr McCartney.”

How he remembered my name after meeting hundreds of guests every week is beyond me, but it perfectly summed up the warmth and genuine hospitality we experienced throughout our stay. It wasn’t just good customer service – it was the pride and personal touch that the Jamaican people seem to have. Moments like that stay with you long after you’ve gone home.

Karleen from the Loud Bar was an absolute star. She always welcomed us with a warm smile and was such a genuinely lovely person.

Javeen seemed to work across several bars around the resort and was another fantastic member of staff. Wherever we saw him, he always asked how our day had been, greeted us with a smile and was genuinely pleased to see us.

Rayon from the lobby bar kept us topped up with drinks (and the odd shot!) and was simply a genuinely lovely person who always had time for a laugh and a chat.

Deomar from the lobby bar was another standout. We had some great conversations about football and his love for Liverpool. Those chats are the sort of memories that make a holiday special.

Sherene was wonderful too, taking time to recommend Jamaican food and tell us more about the island.

A special mention also goes to Veronica at Momo. She looked after us brilliantly and made our evening there feel really special with warm, attentive service.

While I’ve mentioned a handful of names, every bartender, waiter, waitress, lifeguard and member of the wider team deserves credit. They are the reason this hotel stands out.

The hotel…….

We stayed on the 15th floor, the highest floor in the hotel, and the views across Ocho Rios Bay were absolutely stunning. Waking up to that view every morning was one of the highlights of the holiday.

The room itself was spacious, comfortable and kept spotlessly clean by housekeeping, but it is starting to look a little tired in places and would benefit from a refresh. We also found that the sockets in our bathroom weren’t working, which made it a bit of a pain for my wife when she wanted to dry her hair. That said, none of this detracted from our overall stay, and given the amount of time we spent enjoying everything else the resort has to offer, it was only a minor inconvenience.

The food is one of the hotel’s biggest strengths. You genuinely will never go hungry.

For breakfast you can choose between the buffet at Buccaneers Reef or a more relaxed à la carte breakfast at Pier 8 overlooking the sea. If you fancy something lighter, the Boulangerie serves freshly baked pastries, croissants, cakes and excellent coffee, which became another favourite of ours.

Lunch options are endless too. The buffet is available if that’s your preference, although other than breakfast we didn’t use it ourselves. Instead, we enjoyed Pier 8 for a relaxed sit-down lunch with a glass of wine, the Jerk Hut for fantastic authentic jerk chicken, pork and fish, the snack bar for burgers, fries, nuggets, nachos, hot dogs, fried fish and salads, and the pizza oven on the sundeck serving freshly made pizzas throughout the day.

Inside the hotel there’s also sushi, freshly made sandwiches, pastries, cakes, crepes, more pizza, and excellent coffee from the Boulangerie throughout the day.

In the evenings our favourites were Momo and the Teppanyaki experience. Pier 8 also serves great steaks, while Gondola, the Italian restaurant, was probably our least favourite. The evening meals at the Jerk Hut on the beach were another highlight and felt like a really authentic Jamaican experience.

Although the buffet is also open for lunch and dinner, we personally didn’t use it beyond breakfast because there were so many other fantastic options around the resort.

There are plenty of sunbeds available too. One thing we really appreciated was that there was no need to be out at 6am reserving beds. Even at 10am there were still plenty available, and the hotel’s no-reserving policy clearly works.

The beach is lovely, peaceful and never felt overcrowded. The North Beach also offers kayaks, water bikes and other water activities, all included within the all-inclusive package, which was another nice touch.

A few honest observations………

No hotel is perfect, and there are a few things worth mentioning.

The lifts definitely need some investment. They’re old, slow and seem to require constant maintenance. Unfortunately, our daughter and son became trapped in one for around 30 minutes, which understandably shook them up. We regularly saw the lift engineers working on them during our stay.

Being on the 15th floor also meant we could clearly hear Ocho Rios nightlife, particularly on Friday and Saturday nights. If you’re a light sleeper, it’s worth bearing in mind.

The only other thing that wasn’t really for us was the Palace Elite membership sales pitch. We understand the hotel wants to promote it, but we found the sales approach at check-in a little too pushy, and we were asked again at check-out. It certainly didn’t spoil our holiday, but we’d have preferred a softer approach.

One thing that surprised us was that both the Loud Bar and the Piano Bar are adults only. Our daughter is 18 and our son turns 17 next March, so it meant we couldn’t spend our evenings together as a family enjoying the live bands, karaoke and entertainment. It felt like a missed opportunity because those venues looked brilliant, and we’d have loved to experience them together.

The entertainment around the main pool wasn’t really for us either. It was extremely loud and sometimes felt like forced fun. That’s purely personal preference, but if you’re looking for a quieter day relaxing with a book, it can become a little overwhelming.

Exploring Jamaica……….

Don’t just stay on the resort.

We booked Dunn’s River Falls and Blue Hole through GetYourGuide for around £65 per person, which was outstanding value and significantly cheaper than booking through the hotel. Both experiences were absolutely superb and are must-dos if you’re visiting.

We also booked a private tour to Bob Marley’s birthplace and final resting place at Nine Mile with Travel Jamaican Tours, arranged entirely through WhatsApp. It cost $160 for all four of us for transport, which again was excellent value. The service was superb, and visiting Nine Mile was one of the highlights of our entire holiday.

Overall…….

Moon Palace gave us a fantastic first impression of Jamaica.

Yes, there are a few areas that could be improved, but none of them came close to spoiling what was an incredible holiday.

The hotel is beautiful, the food is excellent, the location is perfect and there is so much to do.

But above everything else, it’s the people who work here that make this place so special. They made us feel like friends rather than guests, and that’s something we’ll never forget.

Thank you to every single member of staff who made our first trip to Jamaica so memorable.

We arrived as first-time visitors to Jamaica.

We’ll leave already planning our return.

One Love, Jamaica. 🇯🇲

We stayed with our family of 8. This was our first time at the Moon Palace Jamaica. We have been to the Moon Palace in Cancun twice and always enjoyed it. We enjoyed swimming with the dolphins and snorkeling. The view was beautiful. There was food that everyone enjoyed. Fresh made sushi, brick oven pizza and gelato were some of our favorites. The drinks were delicious. Try the Bob Marley! The best part of our trip though was the service we received from Lorraine. She is one of the servers at the pool. She goes above and beyond what is needed in every way. She ensured we had anything we wanted or needed. She constantly cleans up and ensures the pool area is tidy for guests. She is great with adults and children. I watched her assist a family with a special needs child and show so much kindness and patience. It was well above what is asked of her. We had a wonderful time and are so glad we met Lorraine!