I will start by saying I was prepared for the worst on this trip. We had booked our trip at the Couples Ocho Rios Resort, but were told a month before that it was to be renovated when we were supposed to stay and that we would need to pick another resort. or accept Sans Souci. At first we were disappointed as it was our honeymoon and had taken time to choose the original hotel, but accepted the alternative. I had read many good reviews on this site, but also many bad...so I was a bit worried. I shouldn't have been.

After a red-eye flight, the lounge at the airport is wonderful, relaxing, and cool. We only had a short wait and the ride to the resort was comfortable and uneventful.

Our room was beautiful, Ocean Suite View in B block and it was an ocean view.The bathroom was a little dated and water pressure is come and go, but that's to be expected whenyou holiday in other countries.

The activity directors were incredible , Nolan & Kimberlee, Fluffy & others are so much fun! They really try to get people involved in the big activities. I do think that some of the smaller activities get by if you don't read the schedule and look for them. MAKE SURE YOU READ THE SCHEDULE AS SOON AS YOU GET THERE. Some of the activities are only offered once a week and if you miss them, you miss them.

The food was excellent at every restaurant. We made reservations early on and had no problems getting tables. BELIEVE ME THEY ARE NOT KIDDING ABOUT THE STAIRS! We never counted from our room in B building to the Ballon Bar/Spa? Itailian Restaurant and there were a lot of stairs to climb, each way! It is great exercise...but not good if you have any disability that makes climbing stairs difficult

We found all staff extremely good and nice, if you smiled, called them by name, and were nice to them...they opened up, smiled, and treated you much better. Our maid was a Sandy. Our favorite bartender was Rohan...but most of them were very nice...make sure you try some of the special drinks...but stay away from the "White Lightening & Bob Marley's"

When they say all-inclusive they mean all-inclusive. We have been to many "all-inclusive" resorts that you ended up having to pay for good liquor, pay for the trips, pay for the activities... not here! Everything was included (EXCEPT the spa, and some of the Golf fees, but more on that later).

A MUST DO is Dunns River Falls, it is incredible! But be warned...you must be able to climb and hike. This is not a good trip for someone that has any disability that makes walking or climbing difficult. Make sure you have water socks and wear a bathing suit...you will get very wet and you have to have shoes that can grip the rocks and be under water the whole time.


I have heard complaints that there are too many older people there, but we saw all ages. Our group consisted of a couple in their 30's, a couple in their 40's and a couple in their 60's...we all felt comfortable. Because it is a Couples Only resort, there is no "meat market" or "party animal" feel to the place... so if that is what you want, go elsewhere.

As with any hotel, there is some theft. Be wise...leave anything of value in your safe when you leave the room. I would never leave cash, credit cards, jewlery, cell phones, cameras, etc. out.

All in all, an absolutely incredible Honeymoon! We truly hated to leave! I came home fully relaxed and want to go back soon, it was a holiday we'll never forget-...the best part of a Couples Resort is there are NO

My husband and I stayed at Couples Sans Souci (CSS) from May 16 to 23rd. Excellent. I was so pleasantly surprised and I am pleased to recommend this hotel.

When we arrived at the airport, we were directed to the Couples Lounge where we enjoyed cold beers and clean bathrooms prior to being shuttled to the resort. An additional surprise is that the lounge had WiFi so we could check our emails upon landing.

The ride was long (1.5 hrs) but pleasant as we convinced out driver to stop for some roadside jerk. We took an air conditioned van with just one other couple.

Upon arriving at the resort, check in was friendly and efficient. Champagne was offered and we were quickly escorted to our room. The check in clerk recommended that we take the resort tour. We did not take the tour but I would recommend it because the resort is very expansive.

We stayed in one of the Penthouse suites. The room was very large with a beautiful view. Now, please know that the rooms are not reminiscent of the Ritz Carlton; however, they are very clean and well maintained. It is a tiled room with nice basic furniture. We walked into the front door to a very long hall way. Immediately to the right was a bedroom, closet with a safe and shelving, a flat screen tv and a bathroom with shower, vanity and small tub. Further down the hall was the large living room with a flat screen tv, sofa, chair, dining table and desk. To the right of the living room was a wet bar with a sink and fridge stocked with beer, champagne, sodas and juice. There were also bottles of vodka, gin and other liquors. To the left of the living room was a large balcony with 2 lounges and a small table with chairs. Needless to say, most of the awake and out of bed time in the room was spent here.

The resort is very hilly. You will climb many, many long hills. Great for keeping the extra pounds off. The resort is very beautiful and perfectly maintained.

We arrived on a Friday night which is Gala night. It is a very pretty banquet on the lawn overlooking the beach with tons of tasty food. The food at the resort is excellent. I suggest sticking to the delicious Jamaican dishes for the general buffets -- much more flavorful than the traditional Euro/American dishes. PLEASE NOTE: The entertainment for that night is absolutely spectacular. There is a young man who performs everything from Reggae/Marley to Opera/Puccini. He is truly amazing. Everyone was talking about it. That alone was almost worth the trip. Also of note was the Beach Party - another fun event with lots of tasty food.

We walked around the grounds the next morning and discovered many wonderful spots. To name a few:
- There is a lovely hidden Jacuzzi by the mineral pool near the spa. The mineral pool is a really nice spot with a juice bar (they also have beer , wine and champagne). The gym is also over there. Nicely equipped but we did not use it this trip.
- The main bar by the beach is a central spot. Excellent and plentiful drinks, fun conversation and when the grill is open - amazing jerk and burgers. There is also a nice large Jacuzzi which my husband and I relaxed in after a long, drunken, fun night. We also swam in the ocean that night which was romantic but we thought about the stupidity of that the next morning. It was still fun. (Note: It may be a good idea to bring water shoes for the beaches in Jamaica in general. I heard a lot of reports of urchin and stingray bites during our time in Jamaican. Not just this resort as we went to another one too)
- We also discovered the really cool little paradise called the au natural beach. It is like a whole other resort. There is a really nice beach -- very pretty BUT rocky to swim in. There is a nice pool with a waterfall/grotto. The swim up bar and grill are the social spots. NO, you can not wear any clothes, not a stitch, I tried -- but when you take it all of there is a sense of freedom and all of the people there are too cool. We spent our water time there. If you do not want to take it off, there is a sunset cocktail hour there as the sunset is amazing from that spot. Do not be shocked if you see some nude people in the pool while you are there. It is so nice, the nudies don’t like to leave. We were some of them.

We went to the French restaurant at night a couple of times. We liked that one because it was dressed casual (ie: Bermuda shorts and polo shirt for men). We just did not feel like being dressy although we brought outfits. The food was excellent. On par with any great restaurant . The room service food was good but they took a long time and the order was not always right. Good wings, get 2 orders.

We highly recommend that all valuables are placed in a safe. We personally had no trouble at all but a couple who we spent some time with had incidences of items “going missing”. Definitely use the safe!!

The couples massage in the ocean side treatment rooms was a MUST HAVE. Incredible.

In general GO - you will not be disappointed.

My husband and I traveled to Sans Souci for five nights at the end of May. By way of background, we are professionals who travel 2-3 times per year and typically stay in high end resorts and hotels. For example, our prior trips to Jamaica have been to the Ritz in MBJ and Royal Plantation. While we enjoyed our time in Sans Souci, the resort is seriously lacking in attention detail and we are not likely to return.

The rooms are not at all luxurious, not well laid out and ours was not updated. The best I can say about the rooms is that they are very clean.

The food is actually pretty good here. We preferred the menu at Cassanova over the French restaurant and found enough variety to keep it interesting. The house red wine is not very good, but the wine list is reasonably priced.

The spa offers unique locations for its different services. The couples massage in the cabana overlooking the ocean was wonderful.

The final positive was Fabian - the fitness trainer and instructor. He is HARD CORE. His workouts were fun and intense. Worth it so you can eat and drink to your heart's content.

At most other all-inclusives I've stayed at in the Carribean, you can lounge around the pool all day and have staff cater to your every need. Not at Sans Souci. If you want a drink, get it yourself. Equally disappointing is the foolish one towel per person policy and the requirement that towels must be exchanged for a fresh one. The towels are old and nasty leaving little chance that someone would want to steal them.

Although not politically correct, I will agree with a prior reviewer about the "caliber" of people who stay at Sans Souci. More like the folks I'd expect to see at a low class resort than the Ritz Carlton.

Bottom line, for a short trip at a reasonably low price, this is a good option. But if you are looking for luxury, pampering, and a true experience, stay at the Royal Planation.

We stayed at CSS for 2 weeks May 12th to May 26th.
Must say we had a really great time there. Weather was good, quiet hot, only rained a couple of times and not for very long.
We went though Thompson so we had a taxi transfer there which only took about 1 hour 35 from Montego Bay. A big improvement since 2003, the last time we where the main road was being done and the journey was a nightmare. Stayed at the Sun Set Jamaica Grande last time. Both hotels are good but CSS definitely wins


On arrival we were checked in quickly and showed to our room which was in D block. This is a very convenient location as it’s in the middle of every thing. our room was smaller than some but it had been refurbished and was clean and fresh. We also had a lovely view of the sea from 2 angles and it was a in quiet spot.

All food was very good and well presented, portion sizes are more than adequate and you can order several courses if you wished in the a la carte restaurants. The fish dishes where fabulous. Both snapper and tilapia (a fresh water fish) and the lamb was also great.
I also had a fantastic sea food curry (rather spicy and hot) for lunch one day, had to go back and get more!
Some of the chocolate mouse deserts were to die for. I gained 6lb while there, just couldn’t get enough of the one in the Italian restaurant, Casanovas . Drastic diet starts now!
Breakfast and lunch is a buffet but you can order lunch from the beach grill too.
We never had any problems making reservations for any restaurant.

The only thing we were disappointed in was the beef. The tender loin/fillet is tasty but very chewy and in fact every thing we had that was beef turned out to be the same. They could really do with offering some real fillet or sirloin that is tender.

The main beach is a little small but never too full. They could do with some more shade as it is very hot and you do need to take some cover during the mid day. We found that people were putting towels on sun beds with shade very early in the mornings and then not lying on them till later in the day, so if you weren’t up early you would fry. The other beach does seem to be nicer but you do have to go au natural to sun bath there.

The sea is very calm, more like a large swimming pool. We snorkelled off the beach, down the left hand side and we did see some fishes. There is also a reef under the white floats out in the sea. You can also got out in the boat to snorkel too.

While we were there I was quiet shocked not to be bitten once by mosquitoes! I did use Jungle formula spray in the evenings which is something I always use. My husband did have 3 bites which was rather unusual as it’s me who normally gets eaten alive.

The staff are mostly happy and work extremely hard to make your stay as perfect as they can. A big thanks to Adrian the waiter. Leighton and Andrew the bar staff.

The evening entertainment is mostly low key but not too bad. The entertainment crewe work hard and try to get the party started and do a good job. Hi to Kimberley, my karaoke encourager.

There’s a large pool/lake at the back of block A & B, we had fun feeding the fish, birds and turtles there, they go absolutely crazy. We also spent a some time with the parrot Cracker, he enjoys a little company.

We also went shopping a few times in town, it was nice to get out for a bit.


All in all we had a really relaxing and enjoyable stay at CSS, but would not recommend it to any one with problems walking or climbing stairs as there are a few.