We used Resorts for a Day last time too and for the most part agree, but next time in January we'll be trying to book the day pass with the resort directly and trying a cab. Why? Time/Value mostly.
We'd just like to get the most time as possible at the resort to maximize our beach time mostly. I will issue the caveat that I going from memory so my timings may be slightly off, but the concept will be close enough. It was our first Resort for a Day experience, so we took everything literal. Booking documentation said some like first shuttle to the resort is 45 minutes after ship arrival or 9 am. Again, may have been 8:30, just going from memory. Well, the boat was in by like 7 so we eat leisurely breakfast because we have time but still head over about a 1/2 hour early just in case we can leave early. Sure enough we can, that is as soon as everybody else who is booked shows up. Again they're all thinking they can't leave until said 9. So we wait and wait and wait and most of the other passengers make their way to the shuttle by 10 till or so, minus one couple. So we wait and she decides it's time to go about 3-4 minutes "early". So what happens, you guessed it, she gets a call as we're about 5 minutes out they are at the service counter looking for us. So we fight through traffic to go back, which easily costs us 25-30 minutes. So then because of tanker accident we have to go out and around, which a taxi would have too, taking the 25 minute trip to 45. Then we have to be back on board by 4:30, 25 minute trip, so pickup about about 3:45 maybe 3:30 right? Nope, 2:00 or 2:30 something like. I even ask the question, so with a normal trip we're going to be at the ship almost 90 minutes before we have to be right, yep right. So on the return trip, sure enough no problems at the ship way early. So we look around by the port and make our way back on to the ship. As it gets departure time we head the casino for our free drinks, but we can't get any until we depart. No problem, it's time to leave so we'll just wait a little bit right, wrong again. We sit in the window and watch excursion after excursion and group after group come back late and on and on. Some arriving 30 minutes well past and then the people just taking their sweet time, looking at stands,etc. I think the last people made it on board almost an hour after our scheduled time.
Now I would not want to press it past time based on that experience, but I also wouldn't put in such a giant cushion either. Plus I don't want to have to wait for everybody in the group that believes they can't go earlier to show up. Plus there will be 4 of us this time in January so the cab becomes pretty economical from what I've read. We'll get up early and have our breakfast out of the way and looking for a cab to the resort as early as we can. Then we'll ask for return cab to pick us up 45-60 minutes before we need to be back.
The resort itself is wonderful and we really enjoyed it.
Hilton Rose Hall from Falmouth/website
in Jamaica
Posted · Edited by tortugabuzz
We used Resorts for a Day last time too and for the most part agree, but next time in January we'll be trying to book the day pass with the resort directly and trying a cab. Why? Time/Value mostly.
We'd just like to get the most time as possible at the resort to maximize our beach time mostly. I will issue the caveat that I going from memory so my timings may be slightly off, but the concept will be close enough. It was our first Resort for a Day experience, so we took everything literal. Booking documentation said some like first shuttle to the resort is 45 minutes after ship arrival or 9 am. Again, may have been 8:30, just going from memory. Well, the boat was in by like 7 so we eat leisurely breakfast because we have time but still head over about a 1/2 hour early just in case we can leave early. Sure enough we can, that is as soon as everybody else who is booked shows up. Again they're all thinking they can't leave until said 9. So we wait and wait and wait and most of the other passengers make their way to the shuttle by 10 till or so, minus one couple. So we wait and she decides it's time to go about 3-4 minutes "early". So what happens, you guessed it, she gets a call as we're about 5 minutes out they are at the service counter looking for us. So we fight through traffic to go back, which easily costs us 25-30 minutes. So then because of tanker accident we have to go out and around, which a taxi would have too, taking the 25 minute trip to 45. Then we have to be back on board by 4:30, 25 minute trip, so pickup about about 3:45 maybe 3:30 right? Nope, 2:00 or 2:30 something like. I even ask the question, so with a normal trip we're going to be at the ship almost 90 minutes before we have to be right, yep right. So on the return trip, sure enough no problems at the ship way early. So we look around by the port and make our way back on to the ship. As it gets departure time we head the casino for our free drinks, but we can't get any until we depart. No problem, it's time to leave so we'll just wait a little bit right, wrong again. We sit in the window and watch excursion after excursion and group after group come back late and on and on. Some arriving 30 minutes well past and then the people just taking their sweet time, looking at stands,etc. I think the last people made it on board almost an hour after our scheduled time.
Now I would not want to press it past time based on that experience, but I also wouldn't put in such a giant cushion either. Plus I don't want to have to wait for everybody in the group that believes they can't go earlier to show up. Plus there will be 4 of us this time in January so the cab becomes pretty economical from what I've read. We'll get up early and have our breakfast out of the way and looking for a cab to the resort as early as we can. Then we'll ask for return cab to pick us up 45-60 minutes before we need to be back.
The resort itself is wonderful and we really enjoyed it.