Destination Wedding - Sandals Royal Caribbean

Hi Hilary,

Really sorry for taking so long to get back to you! Its been pretty busy past few weeks. Congrats to you also on your baby. Thanks so much for everything you helped us with the whole trip couldn't have been any better! Everyone had an excellent time and our wedding was perfect and exactly what we wanted.

Being our first time to an all inclusive resort, we werent really sure what to expect. We heard lots of great stories about peoples trips, but our trip far exceeded all of our expectations, and I would absolutely recommend Sandals to anyone who is thinking of a trip like this. Were already thinking of going on another trip next year!

The people working there were amazing and made us feel like we were at home and like their sole purpose on earth was to please us! We dreaded the day we had to leave, but definitely left with memories that will last a lifetime!

Ill send over some pics for you, let us know if you would like some more.

Thanks again Hilary for everything, you were very helpful and made the planning much easier for us and completely stress free.

Sincerely,

Aaron & Megan

SANDALS EMERALD BAY Exumas, Bahamas - As seen thru Honeymooners eyes

Hillary,

Almost everything was above and beyond everything we’d expected. The conditions I provided (white sand, blue water, privacy, nightlife or lack thereof, golf, excursions) were met fully. WE HAD A BLAST. We will go back there someday, but probably on a different budget. That was totally once in a lifetime for now….we’ll work on making it a more regular trip.

Thank you so much for putting it all together, and for the special treat sent to our room.

 I dinged the resort on their technology. When I’m there I don’t want to use the internet often. So, when I had to use the internet to sign a contract and return it, it took way too long. They tried to charge me $6 for computer/printer use, but then the fax was free =) Since I didn’t get charged in the end, the hour that it took me to complete the task was not terrible. When I was asked about what I would improve, I said “the internet, so when I have to use it, I can get in and get out in just a few minutes”

On the last day, the resort couldn’t even call off the island to run my credit card (phone systems down) so that’s where they were with technology. Sprint cell phones no longer work there. So, if you’re sending people there, let them know that cell phones are iffy, and internet was very sketchy. There were a few days where I could not use the internet at all. I actually lost the deal on my new house while I was there because I wasn’t receiving emails. Not a big deal, because we’re back on track with the house, but it was just one of those things that we shook our heads about both at the bank and at Sandals internet.

Again everything went very well. I’m a “lessons learned” kind of person so I’ll always have a list of “what worked” and “what could be improved”. The issues I ran into were minuscule so we had no hard feelings (or arguments) for the resort.

 Thanks Hillary for providing a week of memories to last a lifetime.

Travis

Clients give Sandals Whitehouse rave reviews!

Hey Terry!!

The resort was SO much more than we expected! The grounds were amazing, the beach was beautiful, our rooms were perfect - and at the very end of the French Village, so we were able to walk right out to the beach and get chairs each morning. It was not loud by our rooms at all - well except for when the 6 of us stayed out till 3am one night :) Did you know you can order food at the one restaurant between 12-5am? :) that was a fun night... the water toys were always available - we kayaked, took a sailboat out, used wakeboards, went snorkeling - sooo much fun!! And the food!!??? It was SO good!! Everyone enjoyed all the meals we had... Kev and I would totally go back again.It's definitely a high end all-inclusive resort and aimed for the more mature crowd - which we all loved (except maybe Mom and Kate when Mom wanted to party and Kate wanted to meet boys)...

Thanks for taking care of everything!!

Iberostar Bavaro Punta Cana - A Review

Hi Amy!

We had a GREAT trip! Absolutely no issues with flight, resort, weather. The Iberostar was very nice - the Bavaro section where we stayed is comprised of many two-story buildings, each with 8 junior suites (4 up and 4 ground level). We had a second story unit -- the room was large with a huge closet, high ceilings and fan, sitting area, desk, and mini-bar which was restocked daily with plenty of bottled water, pop, beer.

The grounds of the Iberostar were beautiful. The whole place was constantly being raked, swept, floors buffed, etc. -- very neat and clean. Food was very good, and all the workers very friendly. We were quite impressed.

We would definitely consider staying at another Iberostar somewhere else next time. Probably won't return to Punta Cana simply because we haven' traveled that much and want to see other places. We would highly recommend it though!

We appreciate your help in making our vacation so wonderful!

Thanks!!

Mary

Fun Family Vacation Spot - Marival Resort in Puerto Vallarta

HI Hilary! Been meaning to fill you in on our trip.  I loved Puerto Vallarta and plan on going back again.  The weather wasn’t very good though, it rained a couple of days and for the most part was very overcastL.  Our accommodations at the Marival was nice and it was a great place to take our families.  Our service was great and we were able to get reservations each night in a different restaurant on the grounds (we went into town a couple of nights).  Our original flight coming home was delayed for more than an hour and we were afraid that we were going to miss our connection at Ohare, so they booked us on another flight (delta) and we ended up getting back to Grand Rapids an half hour earlier (that was pretty lucky!) All in all it was a good trip and if the weather had cooperated it would have been ideal! Thanks Hillary for all your work on this and I will definitely be using you again.

Terri

When the unfortunate happens, Trips Ahoy is by your side!

Sometimes the adventures we plan for our clients don't always go according to plan. No one ever arranges a much deserved vacation with the intention of cancelling it. And then...life happens. A sickness or injury occurs making it impossible to take that trip of a lifetime, and now the cancellation process begins. Our service and committment to you doesn't stop here. Here's a quick note from one of my clients who had to cancel her cruise 2 days before departure for a medical reason:

Dear Hilary,

Thank you for helping us cancel our cruise and for being so responsible and knowledgeable. I was so out of it and was wishing we had more info in our own paperwork before calling you, but from what I could tell you were a gem with such speedy resolution of our issues.

Thanks so much for all you did to make the process so easy and smooth for us. It's such a bummer to miss that great trip :(. However, I'm so glad to be ALIVE! Having it happen during the cruise could have been life threatening or at the least "bank depleting"! HA! (Helicopters, Evacuations, Oh Lordie!)

I am still in sorry shape but thank God I had a tan belly! Looking forward to another trip!

Beaches Negril - A Rave Review

Hi Hilary,


Just wanted to say how impressed I was with the whole experience starting with your agency to the resort and back. Top notch! While it was extremely unfortunate that the wedding didn't play out as planned, all of us I think undoubtedly had a great time. For most of us it was our first time to Jamaica and I think I speak for all in that Beaches Resort Negril was far above expectations.

Your description of how things would proceed to the resort after arriving in Jamaica was accurate. Friendly Sandals employees met us in the Sandals lounge and we were off to the resort soon after. At the resort, I was met with cool towels, a nice mixed drink Jamaican style and again a very friendly staff. Oneal took care of me and I had my doubts at first when he said he had looked after my requests and set me up with a VIP room. He wasn't wrong! And thank you for submitting my requests ahead of time. Room was great, view was great, food was great, staff was great. For a beach lover like me, I was amazed with how warm the ocean was. Incredible! And the water related activities go with out saying.

Great place, great weather, great time, great friends! I was not disappointed in really any aspect and that is unusal for me to say. So ya done good! Job well done! Can't wait to go back to JA! And if it helps, I didn't encounter any of the negatives reported on some reviews of the the place on tripadvisor.com.

In conclusion, I had a great time and would definitely recommend your ageny as well as Beaches to anyone interested in going to Jamaica. I'm looking forward to writing an equally laudable review for Beaches when I receive their interent questionaire from Beaches.

Thanks again for the outstanding vacation!

Jim