AN OASIS FOR NOW….A TRADITION FOR ALWAYS…ROUND HILL JAMAICA
Many of my clients are asking.”Where can I go now?” Sadly, I am not comfortable with sending them to most destinations out of the country. Jamaica, however, in particular Round Hill Resort, is currently an oasis…a place that I feel completely comfortable sending my clients. It is now….and always will be!
Once upon a time……in the year 1986…..My husband and I were married, and went on our honeymoon to Jamaica! We were living paycheck to paycheck at the time, so the honeymoon was going to be what we could afford. In the 80s, the all inclusive phenomenon was in full swing. Club Med had been going strong worldwide for a few decades, but now the island of Jamaica, which had been suffering from a tourism decline, became the destination for development of a string of all inclusive resorts. There was Couples, Sandals, Jamaica Jamaica, Hedonism, and one that we found worked with our budget and taste….Eden II. The price was right and I had not flown out of the US before, so Jamaica was quite exotic in 1986. It was settled, we would have our honeymoon at Eden II in Ochos Rios.
What can I say about Eden II? Well, at the time, I loved it! The food was fine, the drinks were included, the grounds were lush. The staff was accommodating and friendly. We enjoyed the Jamaican motto, IRIE….which means good vibes in Jamaica. It was repeated everywhere on the resort, and within a couple of days we were enjoying the “good vibes”, making some wonderful friends, and having a perfect honeymoon.
I spent some time lately looking back at pictures from the trip, and they are pretty damn funny. Tom (my husband) and I enjoying an excursion to Dunns River Falls. Tom getting some “air” in a beach volleyball game. Me winning the beer chugging contest at the daily pool games session…..I love Red Stripe, and Tom was one proud husband! Back then, the idea of an all inclusive was heaven to us. We were struggling young professionals, and the chance to spend a week at a beach resort on the beautiful island of Jamaica was heaven.
Well…….flash forward 32 years….and I returned to Jamaica. We had not been back although we truly did love the island and the people. Why? There were other islands to visit, Disney World, ski vacations, hockey tournaments…..And truthfully, I had become a travel “snob”, and Jamaica, in particular, all inclusive resorts, just did not appeal to me anymore. The problem is that there are so many that are crowded and mediocre, so it sadly gives that resort category a bad name. We weren’t a big resort family anyway, so Jamaica fell off the radar.
In June of 2018, I was invited by a business colleague on a FAM trip to Round Hill in Montego Bay Jamaica. I had booked trips to Half Moon, to the Tryall Club, and a few to the new Hyatt Ziva/Zilara, but none to Round Hill. I was very intrigued, as I had tried to sell this old world property a few times, but it was either out of the budget, “WAS JAMAICA SAFE??”, the client decided they wanted a bigger beach, or they were afraid it was too quiet. What I discovered on that trip, was that I had found the best resort in Jamaica, and possibly one of the best in all of the Caribbean. Round Hill is a classic and it takes you back to a time and place where decorum, details, and manners matter. This hotel “spoke to me” in a way that not many places do. It is hard to put in words….you just have to go and you have to experience it.
This was where John F Kennedy and Jackie spent their honeymoon. Alfred Hitchcock, Grace Kelly, Paul Neumann, and Bill Paley also vacationed here. Ralph Lauren owns one of the villas, and has lent his impeccable design direction to the Pineapple House, the main lodge. Our group of agents had the fortune to stay up in a 5 bedroom villa, with our own pool and expansive terrace. We had views looking down to the sea, as the resort is set on a hill and slopes down towards the main house and beach.
Each villa has its own staff, so every morning we were treated to fresh fruit platters, and made to order breakfast. The staff quickly becomes like family, and it isn’t fake…..they care. That is what sets Round Hill apart. Many of the staff have been here for years, and they are proud to be a part of this tradition.
Speaking of villas…..this is what elevates the property…….Each one is privately owned and the design of each is distinctive and distinguished. We toured many of them as this was low season, and I would describe it as an upscale Swiss Family Robinson home tour. We were seemingly on our own island….but the designers had been imported and the art work, wood work and fabrics were exceptional.
The resort has its own private beach. It is not expansive, yet it is PRIVATE…..and this is a commodity in Jamaica. You can have meals served in your villa, or you can dine under the palms, strings of lights, and stars at the fabulous Grill at Round Hill. The food is farm and sea to table, hi lighting Jamaican specials and utilizing many of the ingredients grown on their private farm on property. They also have a weekly Beach BBQ buffet, complete with steel drum band. Dress code still survives at Round Hill, and I love it!!! Gentlemen are required to wear long pants and collared shirts to dinner. The beach BBQ night allows for shorts and bare feet…..but the crowd is sophisticated and classic.
No night is complete without a visit to the Cocktail Bar. When we stepped into this place, I immediately felt as if I had stepped into the movie “Casablanca” It is exotic and intoxicating in a wonderful way. We loved the black and white photos lining the walls, of past VIP guests. We sang along with an extended family that was on holiday, and clearly knew the piano player……They didn’t mind us joining in, and I felt that this type of scene was recreated night after night.
During the week, I used the fitness center, took a glass bottom boat tour of the bay so we could learn about the reef regeneration in their Coral Garden, toured the onsite farm, hit some tennis balls with the tennis pro who had been beckoning me to grab a racquet every morning since I had arrived. I do love my family, but I can honestly say that I did not miss them at all during these days. Sorry guys……
The management at Round Hill took the time to really show us every wonderful detail of the resort, and also took us to their competition, Half Moon. While Half Moon is a beautiful resort, and they have just finished a much needed upgrade on the villas……I have to give Round Hill the nod for it’s magical atmosphere. We also took a tour of Rose Hall Great House, the historic and somewhat spooky mansion/museum in Montego Bay. It was an informative historical perspective on the slave history of Jamaica, coupled with some voodoo tradition. The final stop on that “outside” touring day was to stop at Scotchie’s for some Jamaican Jerk Chicken and Ribs, and of course, some Rum Punch. It is street food at its finest, and a Jamaican standard for Jerk BBQ.
I could go on and on about Round Hill, but the most important thing that I took from this trip, was that it would not be another 32 years before I touched down on Jamaican soil again…. Wish we had the Kennedy’s money when we got married…….
