My wife and I have traveled throughout the Caribbean and the world for that matter, and found CSA exceeded what we expected after reading some of the reviews. We booked an Ocean Verandah suite, that in all honesty, could use some upgrading, but we were hardly in our rooms. The bed wasn't the most comfortable, but I have slept on worse. From checkin to the resort tour conducted by Garfield and Clevon we were delighted by the incredible food and the friendly, smiling service was top shelf. We experienced none of the problems that many reviewers complained about, i.e. insects, room issues, etc. All the restaurants we dined in were above average, Palms, Feathers, Lemon Grass, Sea Grapes, and the jerk chicken at the Cabana Grill was enjoyed on more than one occasion. The repeaters dinner was probably the best dining experience we had at CSA. Many of our fellow beach goers constantly complained about the beach vendors who pitched everything from parasailing to jet ski to smokes (legal and otherwise) local art. First of all,Jamaica is a very poor country and these people depend on the generosity of tourists for their living and besides, a simple smile and a no thank you is sufficient. We found many of them to be very engaging and intelligent.The beach vendors in Mexico wouldn't take no for an answer and sometimes followed us. This is what we took away from our Jan 08 trip to CSA, an above average resort, with a tremendous beach, above average service, terrific food and a very relaxing vibe for a well deserved winter work break. For those reviewers who complained about everything, take a deep breath, slow down, be alittle more tolerant and stop with the annoying ugly American attitudes of right here, right now. Jamaica will always be a place that we will return to with its beautiful sunsets, beautiful beaches and most of all its beautiful people and CSA will be visited again. ddman-1

I can not say enough great things about CSA! The resort was fantastic, the food was good, and the service was excellent!!
We came in on a Monday and left Friday--I would highly recommend staying a little longer. The first day is mostly travel, it is about a two hour drive from the airport in Montego Bay. The drive wasn't so bad, nice cool bus and lots to look at.
We arrived at our resort and got checked in and we were escorted to our room. The room was great--it was clean and it smelled good. The bed was pretty comfortable for a hotel (it is not the Westin though). We had a beach view room--really couldn't see the beach that well but was a great room. We had a mini bar and other liquors that were restocked daily!
There were six different places you can eat--it was all a little confusing but we had it figured out by the time we left. You must make reservations at Lemongrass (Thia food) the food was great there. Feathers I could have done without--the entree was not good at all but the rest was pretty good. We should have done lemongrass again. The buffets were good and breakfast was always good. The jerk chicken at the pool bar was great.
The first day we went out on the Jet Skis--there are several people trying to get you to jet ski or para-sail; be sure to bargain with them to get a better price.
It rained on the first day so we spend our day at the pool bar with Ricardo and Richard and had a great time. The Bob Marley shot is not good but very pretty. :)
Would also recommend taking a trip to Rick's Cafe--a 20 minute drive but the food and the view is well worth it.
We also enjoyed the bonfire--had a great musician playing and it was a beautiful night.
I can not say enough great things about CSA!! The beach was beautiful, loved that you put up your flag and get another drink and they also bring around cold towels for you!
We are already planning our next trip!!

We spent 2 weeks at Couples Swept Away for our wedding and honeymoon. In case you don't want to read another big long review, let me just say right up front that resort was amazing and exceeded our expectations. I've read the odd poor review here, and now that we've been, I honestly wonder how these people could have been at the same resort. We had 14 friends and family along with us for the first week, and all of them had an incredible time as well.

Our wedding was perfect. They took care of all the details. The food was delicious. The inclusions are many (seriously, Couples offers more than other resorts) The diving was relaxing and fun. The list goes on, but the best thing about this resort is the fabulous, friendly staff. The service was not only impeccable, but always with big smiles. We were spoiled and pampered, and not even any tipping allowed! We miss it and will absolutely go back!

The Beach
Let's start here, because face it, isn't this what it's all about?! The beach sprawls from one end of the resort and is plenty wide enough, except for one narrower section. It was always clean. We never had trouble finding chairs with floaties, tables, and even ash-trays. There's a sectioned off swimming section away from all the boats. The bottom is nice and sandy.
Ok, now what really sets this beach apart is the flag service. We'd heard about this, but didn't really think people used it that much. After all, there are 2 beach bars plus the swim up bar and the bar at the Palms. But how can you not take advantage when someone was always around taking drink orders?! Horatio was our most amazing beach server. We didn't even have to stick the flag in the sand much of the time. He remembered what we were drinking. He always brought us bottles of water and glasses of ice too, keeping us well hydrated. Empty glasses were always cleared away. In the mornings tray of little fruit kabobs were brought around, and even cool, damp towels. Absolutely pampered.

The grounds
The property is gorgeous, with all the buildings set in the foliage, with paths winding through. It's lush and well kept. We always noticed maintenance staff watering and sweeping walkways. Everywhere was clean and tidy. For those who complain about bugs... hello.... it is a tropical place, but we even saw them spraying. We saw more little geckos than anything else, and no bugs made it to our room.

Scuba Diving
Being avid divers, we need to mention this near the top. We were expecting mediocre diving, but the whole diving experience at this resort was much better than we hoped for. As certified divers, the diving is all-included, as many as 2 dives per day, every day if you wish! You can go for a one tank dive at a time, morning and afternoon. We usually did one or the other, more so in week 2, and ended up doing about 10 dives in all. They took a max. of 12 divers, but it wasn't usually that full, and the boat was nice and spacious. All the sites are close to the resort.
I loved the morning dives... leaving shore to the sound of Bob Marley playing, with a bright morning sun and water as calm as glass. Perfect. Our highlight was seeing dolphins on our very first dive! Amazing! The viz. was great and the water calm. Perfect, conditions for easy, relaxing diving. Our profiles were a bit short and shallow, but hey, this is resort diving during a beach vacation, not a hard-core dive trip. If you're thinking of trying diving, this is the perfect place. It was all about relaxing and have fun. But what really made the diving special was the dive team... Franz, Shaggy, Wade (aka "Capt. jack Sparrow"), Anthony and Shrek. Very professional, yet lots of fun too.

Water Sports
The water was typically very calm in the morning, so it was a popular time for water skiing. Not my thing, but my husband tried it, and my niece went quite a bit. In the afternoon the wind usually picked up, so we took hobie cats out sailing several times. That was a lot of fun. With a good wind we could go all the way to the island to the North. One afternoon they came out in the ski boat to make sure we were ok, since they couldn't see us. They're very concerned that everyone is not only having a good time, but is also safe. Since we're divers, we only went out snorkeling once, but it was very good. We were surprised by all that we saw there… eels, a turtle, octopus, etc. The reefs are all close by, and the staff, Trillan and Dexter, make it lots of fun. There were also kayaks, and pedal boats... too much work... haha. When the wind was right we saw some windsurfers go out. They even give you lessons for everything if you like.

The room
We just had a basic Garden Suite in the original section. We considered upgrading, but really, we liked our room fine. Sure, the bathroom could use an upgrade, but the shower was very roomy and the water was always hot. That's what counts. The room was clean and the bed was big and comfy. The location was private, which was nice for sitting on the huge verandah in our Couples robes in the morning, or end of the evening. I will admit, we could hear the road noise a little, but it never bothered us or kept us awake. If this will bother you, upgrade to a room closer to the beach and you will be fine.
Only one comment to make about rooms. My brother and his wife were given a room with 2 beds, and these couldn't be pushed together. They tried to change rooms, but nothing was available that day, so they decided to unpack and stay in it. I understand having some rooms with 2 beds. My niece and her friend appreciated having one of these. However it would be nice if they weren't given to couples who want only 1 big bed! ..or if they at least pushed together. There, my only "complaint" and it's not a show stopper. Just be sure to request 1 bed... or upgrade, as I think these are only in the garden suites.

The food
First, let me start out by mentioning how wonderful it was to wake up to room service knocking on our door every morning with our thermos of coffee and fruit plate. We really enjoyed having coffee on our verandah. We started out with pastries or croissants as well, but it was just too much food. Most mornings we went down to the Palms for breakfast, where the selection was good and the food tasty. We only did Patois patio for breakfast once. The food was fine, but we just preferred the convenience of the buffet.
We ate at all the restaurants and enjoyed them all. The lunch buffet at the Palms was very good, but we also often had a later lunch at the Cabana grill.
For dinner we ate several times at Lemongrass. We'd heard it wasn't very authentic Thai food, but I don't know what those people think Thai is. We enjoyed it. Stacey Ann was usually our server there, and she was great.
We also went to Feathers a couple times. Andrew gave us wonderful service, and the food was very good. The portions seemed small, but by the time we had an appy, salad and entree, we never had room for dessert.
We enjoyed the international buffet at the Palms on Mondays, with all the stations displayed by the pool. I even had sushi, which I was missing. But the best was the Friday night beach parties. They start setting up already in the afternoon. What a lot of effort goes into this. The buffet is stations of various Jamaican fare, and of course salads, and desserts. They even have ice sculptures. A full bar is set up right there, and they even do special coffees. Then the entertainment starts. This was an assortment, from the mento band, to steel drums, to various acts, like fire eaters to limbo dancers.
Except for the very first night when we arrived on the resort late, we never went to the Cabana grill late night. We were always too full from dinner.

Our wedding
What can we say. It was perfect. Tamika was our main wedding coordinator, but Keneisha also helped with our wedding. I think they generally spilt them up. They are wonderful, and take care of every little detail. We met with them 2 days beforehand and went over everything. We brought along fans and bubbles for our guests chairs, and those were all nicely laid out.
The morning of our wedding was nice and realxing. We got married at 11am on the beach. They put out "wedding in progess" signs and keep onlookers back. It was the perfect time of day. The sun was shining bright and the water sparkled. Our minister was a very nice man, and the ceremony was perfect. We just used a CD with 2 songs, and that worked fine. We added a sand ceremony with sand and vases we brought along.
We then had a very nice garden reception with cake and champagne for all included. We brought along chocolate shells for our cake, and they decorated it with them. We had the Jamaican spice cake and it was delicious. We brought a guest book, and that was also laid out for our guests to sign. They even brought us cool towels and little fruit and cheese kabobs.
We brought in outside photographers, Paula and Damian from Sungold Photography. We did have to pay a vendor fee and guest passes for them, but it was well worth it. They were amazing and we have about 700 wonderful photos of our day. So after the garden reception we went back to the beach to take more photos.
We then went and changed to take the cat cruise that afternoon (see below). When we returned we got ready for dinner off resort. We went to Norma's at SeaSplash resort just down the beach. We decided to do this only because we wanted something more private and special than another dinner in one of the resort restaurants. The resort does have a banquet room, but it is upstairs in the Great House, all closed in and tucked away. Not what we wanted. The resort does also offer wedding reception dinners on the beach, but no music, and I was worried about being right on the sand and being bug bitten. (bugs always find me, but with lots of bug spray I was fine)
So, our dinner in a private, open air banquet area at Norma's was very nice. It was right on the beach, but upper level and with a thatched roof. They decorated it nicely and we had a steel band and a delicious dinner.
Then we went back to the resort and joined the bonfire on the beach and listened to the solo guitarist play his mellow music. Perfect end to the perfect day.

Catamaran cruise
We took the included catamaran cruise with our group on the afternoon of our wedding day, and what a lot of fun it was. We drank rum punch and socialized on the way to Pirates Cave. Once there, we dove off the cat, used the slide, and swam into the cave. If you're brave you can jump, but I saw the results from jumping the wrong way... huge purple bruises.... so no thanks!
Ok, so now comes the only negative aspect of my review, which is in no way a refection of Couples. While we were at Pirates Cave, the cat came from Hedonism. Ok, sure, they're all naked. No big deal. We didn't have a problem if they limited it to that, but they didn't. They performed sexual acts right there on the cat! Being blatant exibitionists, it was obviously for our viewing "benefit". Well, no one was impressed, let me tell you. It was quite disgusting seeing people doing that (and these were not attractive or "in shape people", btw. Don't envision playboy bunnies there guys) . So I just turned my back to keep from hurling. They can do what they want on their resort, but when in public, they should have some respect! There were children on the cliff! It just reminded me that Couples is a classy resort, unlike that trashy place.
Ok... where was I... Luckily, we left quick enough after they arrived, and had a peaceful trip back as the sun was starting to set. A must do trip (but perhaps not on Wed, haha)

Pirates Cave by bus
We did this one afternoon too. You leave in the day light, so you get a chance to see a bit of Negril. Then at Pirates Cave you can have a couple of drinks (so bring some cash) and watch the sun set from atop the cliff, before returning to the resort in plenty of time for dinner.

Land sports
Sorry, can't say much about this. The sports complex looked amazing, and we saw lots of people going over to take full advantage of all the raquet courts and such, but we are water babies and had no time for land-lubber activities. Oh, except my husband did play beach volley-ball one day.

Salon and Spa
Prior to our wedding, 4 of us ladies went to the salon for manicures/pedicures. Even with only one lady working in there, she was very quick and efficient. It was enjoyable.
My husband and I took our half hour massages included in our wedding package and upgraded to 50 minutes. Very nice!

Wow, did I even cover everything? Let me stress that the people at this resort really make it the extra special place it is. The entertainment team, Michael, Natasha, Richard and the others were so much fun. Everyone here absolutely goes out of their way to make your stay the best it can be. We even met the owner of Couples, Lee Issa, and his friend Stanley. If you didn't know who they were you would think they were just more friendly guests! We chatted several times with them at length, and let me say, what a couple of very nice, genuine guys. At what other resort would you ever find big-wigs socializing with just the average guest?

Forget the other resorts, Couples is first class resort all the way. We can hardly wait to return!

My husband and I stayed at Couples Swept Away 1-7-08 to 1-14-08. We have previously stayed at about 6 all inclusive resorts in Mexico and the Carribean. This was our first trip to Jamaica. We were looking for an all inclusive that had the following: Adults only, beautiful beach, food and drink options more upscale than the average AI, dining options other than buffet and a quiet atmosphere. I paid more for this vacation than most of the all inclusives I have stayed at before, but I have to say I thought it was well worth it. The beach is beautiful and the food, drink and service was excellent.
We stayed in a Garden verandah room. This was the lowest priced room with a mini bar and tv which we wanted. Not all rooms come with that. The beach front rooms have a beautiful view but are more money. I thought our room was small and basic but it had everything we needed. We were located to the back of the property by a fairly busy road. There is some noise, but no worse than the loud guests you encounter at some resorts. The mini bar was fully stocked and filled daily and house keeping did a great job.
The buildings at the resort are very simple, not filled with marble sculptures etc. I guess you would be disappointed if you were expecting something like some of those big mega resorts going up. My favorite things would be the amazing beach, the food and bar options. This is one of one place I would like to return to. I booked this vacation thinking I am only going to Jamaica once and I want to see Negril. This place, and beautiful beach has changed my mind.