We just finished our "Destination Wedding" trip to SWH, and let me say if you're looking for a place to do your wedding and/or pleasure trip, you cannot go wrong with this choice.

I was worried before we departed because I read almost 200 reviews of SWH, and not all were favorable. In fact, some were downright dreadfull! However, I noted that MOST of the negative reviews were from the 2005 time-frame, which is when the hotel first opened. And now that our trip is over, I'm convinced that any negative reviews are coming from those that would never, ever be pleased by any trip they took.

If you read several of the reviews here, most of the information is the same. It's a 90 minute ride to/from the airport; contrary to most, we enjoyed it - on the way down, we had the "party van" and our driver even stopped half way so we could have a bathroom break and refill on Redstripes. On the way back, it was much quieter, and we enjoyed the scenery we missed on the way there.

NOTE: if you make your driver do stuff like this, you should be nice enough to tip them. Also, do not tip the people inside the airport - only the guy who takes your bags OUTSIDE. I made the mistake of tipping the first non-sandals person I saw inside the airport because I thought he was the one taking my bags out; all he did was put a ticket on our luggage. Yeah, it cost me $5, but no worries, mon.

I will take a shot at the Sandal's greeting area, it wasn't as "relaxing" as I would've thought - in fact, it was downright chaotic...which in fairness might've been because of the time we got there? But it's also "Beaches," which meant kids/families - ugh. After 5 hours of travelling, 2 hours of customs, etc., the last thing I want is screaming kids around me. But nature of the beast. They DO have beer on tap, but only tiny cups to poor it in...so don't be afraid to take 2 or 3 cups, and don't be afraid to fill up a big cup or glass if you brought one.

But in any case, after getting situated and organzied, the trip to the hotel is what it is.

The check-in doesn't take long; it never hurts to ask for an upgrade. In my opinion, this is the heart of the issue for most of the reviews I've read - you should consider before booking what type of people you are and what type of trip you are looking for.

I surmise the people complaining about the rooms and service are the same that paid for the cheapest room possible, and opted not to obtain concierge or butler service.

Let me assure you: the staff at SWH will do everything to serve you; if you want to be pampered and have your hand held the entire time, PAY FOR IT! Do the butler service. Because we did our wedding at SWH, we were upgraded to concierge - this was just fine, and it was nice to have a restocked fridge every day and have the convenience of someone to make reservations for us. But you don't need it; there are bars at every village - take your lazy behind down to the bar and get your drinks. And if you go to the restraunts when they open, you'll never have to wait.

Certainly if you went for the cheap route, the staff will still help you... right after they help the people that actually PAID for the extra service. We are a low maintenance couple that seldom needed any of the extra service. When we sought it, we got it in a fast & friendly manner.

The rooms will have bugs/ants - what do you expect? You're in a third world country, in a remote location. The people complaining about the bugs are the same people who leave their food out all over the place. Similarly, the birds will be around if you leave food out. Just use some common sense and you won't have any problems at all.

We picked up a few bites here and there, but had no problems walking or sitting on the beach without using bug spray. In fact, we got so used to NOT using bug spray, that we didn't put any on when we did our excursion to the YS Falls/Black River - that's where you'll need the spray compared to at the hotel.

Speaking of YS, we did the "combo" YS/Black River trip & booked through Sandals; it was $71. It's from about 8:30 until 3:30; it's well worth the money, especially if you get a good guide and driver!! On our way to the Black River (about an hour) our guide gave us a history of the island and local area - feel free to interact and bring drinks (water, too!). Other reviews describe the rest of this excursion; it was the only one we did. NOTE: when you get to the YS Falls, you can pay $30 (CASH!!) to do the zip line. I felt it was worth it - so for the $101 total, I was VERY satisfied!!

It's laughable to see the reviews about the food - it's such a subjective thing!! One person will complain that it took an hour to eat, while another will say we enjoyed the slow, liesurely pace. If you want fast service, stay at home and go to McDonalds - or do the buffets. But if you do the main "fancy" meal places, go in with an open mind and don't be in a hurry - you'll enjoy it!! I had some food that was "okay" and other food that was exceptional... but this is merely my own opinion. My advice would be to try as many different things as you can; who goes to Jamaica to get a freakin' pizza?? LOL But I will say this: the french pastry place is as good as advertised - I had the "sweetened cappaccion's" every day - YUM! And go to Bluefields (French Village) for the view as well as the jerk chicken - exceptional!! We did not go to Jasmine's because we only stayed 6 nights - if we would've stayed 7 nights, we would've tried it. It was the lowest on our list because something about "caribbean asian food" wasn't appealing to us. But that's just us.

The rooms have cable TV, although they were doing some upgrades as we were leaving. Why would you want to turn the TV on?? I turned it on once...surfed for about 2 minutes...and then turned it off. The rooms also have internet if you have an ethernet cord; we never used it (you have to pay). The main lobby has wireless ($15 per day); we never used it. We were unplugged from the world the whole time we were there...it made the trip SOOOOOO much better. Trust me... you can do it!! haha

The room was pretty good; use the safe and use common sense - if you leave diamond earrings sitting out, you're an idiot. On the other hand, I left things like my camera, watch, and other semi-valuables out, and never had a problem. From what I understand, they track who goes into the rooms. I was worried about theft from other reviews I had read, but I found that using common sense is all you need to do.

Because we had the concierge, we had the option of breakfast in bed room service; the food options aren't the greatest. The earliest you can get it is 7 a.m., and we were usually out and about by then so we ate at Cafe Paris and Baymont (buffet). However, if you are doing the "wedding" package, you get your honeymoon breakfast - this was VERY good (in the context of where you are)! The concierge level also provides afternoon and late evening room service, but we never used it. We never had a need to. Who needs french fries when you can go get jerk chicken??

There is a defacto "reserve" system at the pools and beaches; the butler service rooms can have pool/beach chairs reserved for them, so if you need this service, PAY FOR IT. But there are ample more chairs available at the beach and pool!! We NEVER had a problem getting one, but we usually put some stuff on a chair by 8 or 9 a.m. And that's how it works (apparently?)... you go put your book or bag, hat, or whatever, on the chair, and no one will mess with it. In fact, we'd put something on a chair at 8 a.m., and then leave it until 1 p.m., come back, and find no one messed with it and no one took our stuff. So if you're really worried about a certain spot, just get up early enough and leave some kind of invaluable on the chair and you're good to go.

The pools/hottubs were cleaned daily. Each pool area has a bar, but some not open as early or late as others. If you have a stocked fridge, I advise bringing some kind of collapseable cooler-thing. I bought one for $6 dollars at walmart; I was able to fit 5 beers and a bag of ice into it - this took care us for any of the times where the nearby bar might not have been open. I recommend the RS light over the RS, but that's just me.

If you're doing your wedding and have any of the "photo" packages, don't be afraid to tell them where you want your photos' taken - they'll do whatever you want. If you don't tell them, they take you on the standard path. We were very pleased with our photo's and service, and the view of the ocean - you can't get that in the states... breathtaking!! If you do your wedding in the day, or even after noon, consider the shaded gazebo hut - it is VERY hot in the other areas, especially if you're wearing a suit/dress. And you'll be squinting in all of your pictures, unless you're going to plan to be wearing sunglasses. Ew.

We went in April, and the weather was great/awesome 90% of the time. We had one strong rain shower in 7 days, and we never got a decent shot of a sunset because of the clouds. Other than that, it was heavenly!!

I'm out of time; I hope everyone else who goes to SWH has a great time!! If you're considering a "destination wedding," I might be able to give you more info if you had questions (heyitsjohn2001@yahoo.com). While not "perfect," I would rate the vcation as a 4.75 out of 5....
which is still 95% (an A!).

It's Ai'reee, mon!!

We had a simply wonderful time. There were 14 of us in total who had gathered at Sandals Whitehouse to celebrate my mom's 80th Birthday. We had the Butler Christoph, who could not have been more attentive to our every need. He was with us from the early morning hours untill late at night, and was the best butler we could ever have hoped for. He was so caring, and assisted us with everything and always with a smile.

On my mom's actual birthday, he set up our beach chairs early in the morning, brought us a cooler with cold drinks on the beach, ordered us lunch, that was served on the beach, and then later accompanied us to Elenor's restaurant, where he placed a birthday card on the table for mom , that he had sprinlkled with flower petals. How amazing.... Christoph is the best!

When we later accompanied mom and her fiancee back to their room after dinner, we were surprised to see that Christoph had decorated her room and bed with flower petals and placed , palm froms on the bed posts, and had lit candles and placed them in their room. He went out of his way to insure everything was perfect and even was at the lobby the day we were leaving to see us off and to insure that we had a trouble free return to the states. He is the reason we will be coming back!

My husband and I celebrated our 20th anniversary at Whitehouse. We were upgraded to a concierge room and came back to a candle lit, champagne, bubble bath, on our anniversary! The resort was wonderful and the service was excellent! This resort is a little bit of a drive but well worth it; it's secluded, peaceful and the beach is private. Sandal's all-inclusive was a better value because it also included airport transfers. No worries about finding a taxi or shuttle service at the airport. You just check into their airport lounge, get a drink and wait for them to call your hotel. Motorized and non-motorized watersports are also included.
As airline employees we travel a lot and have stayed at many all-inclusive's but this was our first trip to Jamaica and with Sandal's. We will definitely come back!

A part from a few minor travel glitches, the trip was great. For those of you who get car sick, the bus ride to the resort is a bit long, but it gives you time to realize how lucky you are and how wonderful things are on the resort.

The resort is fairly new but it is being used hard. We as guests need to treat it as we do our own residences and then things may hold up and remain in better condition.

The staff was friendly and very accommodating. The food was excellent, the drinks kept flowing, the pools and beaches were well kept. There were plenty of activities to keep you occupied.
Beds were rolled back at night, the refrigerators were restocked with juices, water and soda. Housekeeping did a good job. The grounds are beautiful.

We enjoyed our Sandals experience and would return again.
It was nice not having to deal with screaming children or irate parents. Cannot wait to do it again.