We stayed at Idle Awhile from Jan 22 to the 28th. This was our 5th trip to Jamaica. We have been to St. Martin, Bahamas, Dominican Republic, Antiqua and Puerto Rico. Husband has gone to Mexico, Thailand and Costa Rica. Once we visited Jamaica we have not strayed. We stayed at Couples Swept Away twice, visited Couples Negril, stayed at Couples Sans Souci and rented a villa in Silver Sands in Duncan. Food was good at the all inclusives, but not enough Jamaican food. We love Jamaican food. The meals at the villa were fabulous, prepared for us by a wonderful in house cook. But we missed Negril. We love the beach, the water, that there are no tall buildings and that you can walk forever.
Couples resorts are wonderful. But we realized we were paying for many things that we never would do, like golf, scuba diving, water skiing, and not into the gym on vacation. Don’t drink fruity drinks. The glass bottom boat and catamaran cruise were nice, but twice was enough of that. The airfare from NJ to Jamaica is cheap. We paid $248 roundtrip this time. Fifteen years ago we spent $500 roundtrip to get to Antiqua. We would love to visit St John’s, Turks and Caicos, Barbados and St Croix, but with the prices you just can’t beat Jamaica. When we went to St. Martin 20 years ago it was $500 a night for the room and a continental breakfast. This year considering all of the above we decided it was time to do a non-all inclusive in Negril. We loved the villa but we went with two other couples, on our own it was too costly.
We felt that the $585 a night at SA was not worth it for us considering that in the end we don’t do all those activities don’t eat that much and though we do drink we don’t drink enough to warrant the cost of all inclusive. The drinks are cheap anywhere in Negril. Especially when compared to here at home, let alone other islands.
We were familiar with places along the beach and cliffs from our two previous trips. Beach setting is paramount. There are plenty of places that might be ok to stay but the beach front is marred by fencing, not deep enough, buildings too close to the water line and so on. Looking on line many of the rooms appear to be much too basic for us. Feeling comfortable with the Couples brand, knowing Idle Awhile is owned by the same family and liking the look of the resort from the water we booked.
Since the flights from NJ don’t get you to Negril until after 6 we decided to leave a day earlier and stay at a hotel by the airport so we could get up and head to Negril on Sunday morning. Idle Awhile arranged everything and Anthony arrived on time, was pleasant and got us there in no time. We checked in, left our bags in the lobby and headed to the beach. Our vacation in Negril was off to a great start!
Resort/Beach: Small, which we loved! Set between two wide resorts, making our spot so quiet. Our spot on the beach was chosen and set up by wonderful staff and each day upon arrival to the beach, everything was ready for us. No scrambling for chairs. SA is the worst place I have ever seen for the early setting out of a towel to save a chair that always seems to remain vacant for the remainder of the day. There is plenty of shade. But we enjoyed being able to sit closer to the water under the umbrella. These were the nicest umbrellas I have ever seen. They dig them in and even the fiercest breeze would have no effect on them. Going to use this technique for our Jersey shore trips! Neither the trees nor the umbrellas will keep you from getting a burn so sunscreen is a must, all day. We love that the sun sets in front of you so you get plenty of light until the sun disappears. We averaged 9 hours a day on the beach. We had our coffee and espressos brought to our table on the beach. They will serve you meals there as well. We loved the size of the resort. The beach is what it is all about in Negril and this resort is on a prime location along the shore. It was like a microcosm of Swept Away. When we ventured down along the beach to SA we felt no remorse that we were not there.
Check in/Front desk: We arrived hours before check in time. The gracious staff was accommodating and helpful. They made all taxi arrangements and reservations for us during our stay. Everything was no problem.
Rooms: We had a garden view, reserved back in June. Since there are only 8 of these rooms and 6 suites the earlier the better to get an ocean view. We would have loved to have seen a bit of the beautiful sea from our veranda, but we were ok with the second floor view of the tree tops. Since every resort is along Norman Manley Blvd. you could hear some road noise. But compared to our two other stays in Negril we felt that the road was less travelled, drivers seem to have slowed down and cut back on the honking! We had no problem crossing the street for Best in the West.
Our room was clean and bright. Loved the high ceilings, which is why we chose the second floor. The bathroom was large and it was fine for the two of us to get set for a night out in. I don’t understand the whole no shower door being a problem. I love an open shower. The whole place is tiled and it is water, dries in no time. And the shutters make the room bright and airy, as close to an outdoor shower as you can get. I love that the room is open to the ceiling. But then my husband and I have known each other since I was 17 and we are in our 50’s now.
The bed is the same as SA and comfortable. The fridge had a hard time keeping the red stripes cold, but we asked at the bar for a pitcher and filled it with ice around a bottle and rotated. Nothing in Jamaica is cold enough, only had a few martinis as a result. We loved the veranda, the couch and great chair. We positioned the great TV so we could watch the Giants win the final play-off game to get to the Super Bowl on the veranda. Though I can see where some people might think that the room is too colorless we love the white and wood. I purchased a dress and beach bag that added color hanging on the many hooks until it was time to take the souvenirs home.
The kitchen was behind our room. It made for getting ice and room service very convenient. They were very quiet and made no impact on our stay.
Since the resort is on a slice of land between two properties the privacy from the side was lacking, but it was quiet over there and if we wanted extra privacy we put down the roll shade. They really do have things in order for their guests.
The bar/restaurant: The staff was great. They were pleasant, helpful, quick and unobtrusive while still being attentive. Drinks were great. They did not seem to mind that we brought our own drinks to the beach much of the time. In fact when we were given our water bottles at check in the woman stated that this is for our filtered water or whatever else like rum, you want to use it for. We had room service for our first night. Both dinners were delicious. Shrimp Roundabout and Curried Lobster. Fab. We had not yet gone to the hi-low so we ordered wine for with dinner and we kept the glasses to use all week. We brought them filled to the beach for sunset. We had breakfast there the first morning. Had the eggs benedict, which I had read was great. It was the only disappointing meal of the week. Over poached, stingy on the sauce and out of English muffins they cut the bread into rounds. But the juice was good. So we just ordered room service for a pot of coffee for our getting ready for the beach and hailed the fruit lady, juice guy and bread guy the rest of the time for breakfast. And of course the juice was great for our rum drinks! We dined at Chill Awhile and we were the only people there. It was wonderful! Kind of like a private candlelit dinner on the beach that SA does for an extra cost! We went local and had curried goat and oxtail stew, delicious. With two glasses of wine the meal came to $40. What a bargain, really. And considering we were steps to the sea which shone with the moonlight it was such a wonderful evening with the entertainment from Cherela wafting through the air it was perfect! Since our last night was Friday and they have their reggae band that night we went elsewhere. Next time we will stay and enjoy the show.
Vendors: No problem! The folks selling their wares were far less aggressive than we remembered and very pleasant and nice to deal with. We loved getting our morning items. A tip of hand kept unwanted folks/items away. Truly felt that everyone was respectful in every way.
Miscellaneous:
The message hut between Idle Awhile and Charela offered a nice massage for a great price. The vendor had nice items. They were nice unobtrusive shop keepers. The resort brought in vendors as well.
We did not venture over to SA fitness area. Thought we might to use the hot tub. But the beach and ocean were enough for us!
We did venture over to Hide Awhile one day, free transportation. Lovely spot. But a bit too isolated for us with a very limited menu for lunch so we had them call a cab and we had lunch at Pushcart since the Rockhouse was closed. We enjoyed the pool and the drinks at Hide Awhile, but we are for sure beach people so we would not take time away from the beach in future trips.
We loved Best in the West jerk. It has an awkward bar so next time we would bring our food back to the resort.
We ate at Xtabi, Ivan’s and Kubaya. All great. Good food, great atmosphere. There are so many places to choose from that the idea of going back to Negril again and again you will not feel limited in dining choices. Aside from out dinner at Chill Awhile we had lobster and sea food for all our meals. The most expensive meal was at Ivan’s. We had a conch salad appetizer, Lobster Thermidor and Snapper in a Papaya Boat, two cocktails (a fabulous, huge Bloody Mary) and two cups of coffee, all for $81!
Niah’s patties were unbelievable! One is more than enough for two people. Not knowing that these patties were not the institutional variety we ordered three and enjoyed them the next day since they were so large, fresh and unbelievably delicious! We took all our leftovers with us and kept them in the fridge and would put them on calaloo bread the next day for lunch. Lobster Thermidor was fabulous as a sandwich!
We shopped at the duty free before our flight and picked up two bottles of Johnny Walker Black. On our first full day we taxied to the hi-low and bought a case of beer, three bottles of wine and a bottle of rum. So we were set for the week. Those two purchases came to under $200. Prices are comparable to here in NJ. We enjoyed spending time after dinner on our veranda enjoying our scotch.
We figure that we spent an average of $150 (probably less, I wanted to keep a strict accounting for comparison, but the minute we exited the plane that was forgotten) a day. Add that to the $220 for the room, and $250 for liquor purchases and taxis, we figure we spent an average of $154 less a day than our stay at SA would have been. We probably saved $1,000 over the 6 nights. Not a great savings, but it was a vacation more to our liking. We liked dining out at different restaurants better than at the all-inclusive resort. We liked the smaller resort. We liked the quiet.
We probably will head back to all inclusive should we vacation with others since they seem a better way to go for a group to vacation.
This was a trip to spend time by ourselves. We did not mingle much but the other guests were pleasant and a nice good morning greeting started our days. My husband left the day after we came back for a 10 week trip in Thailand. It was a great way to spend some time together, doing nothing but lounging on the beach, walking miles a day, door to door travel to wonderful restaurants and enjoying the wonderful water.
We will be back to Negril for sure. May venture to another resort, but for us this little spot was just the right mix that suited us just fine. Next year we will miss our winter get away to the islands as we will be heading to Italy twice to visit our college student son twice. So 2014 will be our next reach. Bet it will just keep getting better and better during our absence!

I was ready for a change from the big, fancy all-inclusives, so after much research decided to choose Idle Awhile. Here's the good and not-so-good for my first trip to Negril:

1) Trip from Montego Bay airport: excellent! Booked Juta Negril for $36/person round trip. Only waited a few minutes for another family and then we were on our way. The driver was texting while driving which made me nervous, but he got us there safely. Ride back was in a brand new van...very nice, polite driver. Highly recommend this service...especially for one person.

2) Arrived late at the resort...it's very dark and hard to find your way around in the dark, but the front desk people (especially the guys) were very helpful. When I walked the resort for the first time, my first thought was: what am I going to do here for a whole week? It's very small! You could toss a water balloon across the beach area. However, there was always room to sit in the sun or shade. Speaking of shade, beware of the umbrellas...they are not sunproof...got a bad sunburn one day for not reapplying sunscreen thinking the umbrellas would keep off the sun...but they are very cheaply made.

3) Room is comfortable, but non-descript. I did like the bed...king sized and very comfortable. Bathroom is a bit sparse and that lack of shower door is just plain weird....had to keep sopping up the water that went everywhere. I'd suggest some paint in the rooms... Also, they should've blocked out the bathroom instead of leaving it open. No problem for me as a single, but uncomfortable I would think for anyone sharing a room. No hairdryers in the room...luckily, the front desk had a few to spare. There's no power in the bathrooms, so you need to shave/dry your hair in the bedroom...odd. Also, bring your own conditioner...they didn't have any. Wifi was good...and so was the flat-screen TV. Patio off the room is very nice and decorated well...wish they could bring some of that color into the room and bathroom. Housekeeping kept everything very clean.

4) Food is pretty good. I enjoyed the grilled fish and the jerk chicken wrap; chips and salsa were surpisingly delicious! The jerk chicken salad was delicious but tiny....not a meal for $10.50. Drinks were also good, including a California white wine I tried. Chill Awhile doesn't have much personality, is usually very quiet, and the bar stools are absolutely the worst I've ever had my butt in...many people complained about the cheap chairs. I went to "Best in the West" jerk across the street...excellent but difficult to eat there. It's good to order and bring back to your patio. Best food I ate was at the Rockhouse and Kuyaba seafood down the street...excellent grilled lobster for $23 at Kuyaba and they will pick you up for free.

5) Noise is fair. The first few nights were very noisy...i was in a "garden view" room...and the people in the next resort had some late-night, loud parties. Sounded like they were on my patio. Luckily, they left within a few days of my arrival. The crickets are annoyingly loud, but you get accustomed to them. I slept with my music/TV on throughout the night to help block out the street noise/neighbors/crickets.

6) Location is great. I walked to many bars, restaurants, shops, and the Couples Swept Away work-out facility from the street. EAsy to walk on the beach as well. Never felt unsafe walking...even at night. There's a convenience store right next to the Harley shop where I could get my snacks and Coke Zero...Also, a bigger mall is down the street for souvenirs...very nice called "Times Square".

7) Beach was tiny but fine...swimming area was quite large. Even though I thought there were no children under 16, I counted 6 of them one day. They were fine. The vendors on the beach were ok, except the drug dealing was irritating. I felt like I was in a Cheech and Chong movie somedays with the guests buying/smoking dope. Weird atmosphere for me.

8) Night life was great! I listened to Reggae almost every night. Alfreds is very fun for music, but cover charges for local "parties", including those at Roots Bamboo are costly...cheapest was $6 which was reasonable but $20 was just too much.... Try to catch the free music on the beach like nearby at Sunsets. Idle Awhile has Reggae music on Friday nights...very fun. I also went to the Jungle disco down the street...crazy busy on Thursday nights (free ladies night) but a great mix of locals and tourists. Beware of the pick-pockets...but security there is excellent...always was checking on me to make sure I felt safe.

All in all, many of the guests seemed perfectly happy to be staying there. It would be better probably for a weekend than a week, but I prefer either more luxury or more things to do. It wasn't much of a fit for me, but if you like the rustic, basic, clean but not fancy resort, this may work just fine for you.

Just returned from five nights at Idle and in a word it was fantastic. It began with Nathefa who took my reservation so nicely on the phone and it moved on to Tony who after picking us up at the airport became our lifeline to the island with his excellent driving and local knowledge. I recommend using Tony as your driver/guide if possible. He is a great young man who treats you with respect, kindness, and care. If otherwise occupied, he will still make sure your needs are met. Upon our arrival, Kareem at the front desk greeted us with a smooth "welcome home" and we began our trip. The property is fantastic. This is a beach property and they keep it immaculate. You do not need to move very far if you do not want to. You can eat well prepared, healthy food and drink fresh fruit cocktails on the beach all day under the care of Jenorah and her excellent restaurant staff. This is what makes this property truly special.
They cater to your needs throughout the day and it soon becomes evident that service is a top priority at Idle Awhile. Aaron and Eric at the beach will set your chair and umbrella up and protect your belongings as if they were their own. Seriously, we would walk up and down the beach or slip back to the room for a treat and we felt extremely secure leaving all of our belongings ten feet from the ocean as well as in our room. There is even a wonderful woman named Marcia at the front parking lot to help you cross the street if you want some of the "Best in the West" jerk chicken! Yes, they allow some local folks to peddle their wares on the beach, but this is part of the experience of Jamaica. Have a heart and infuse a little money into the local economy. We felt great giving out just $5.00 American for some cool reggae cds or a local lobster pulled fresh from the ocean. Enjoy the experience and all it has to offer. This is a wonderful property with wonderful service and the employees deserve a ton of credit for that.
Thank you, Idle Awhile for a rejuvenating and extremely satisfying vacation to Negril. You are the best!

We have been traveling to the Abacos in the Bahamas for the last 10 years and decided to finally try a different destination. We researched places on Tripadvisor and various other sources and decided to go to Idle Awhile in Negril. We loved everything about this resort. We let the resort handle our transfers from the airport, which were private and perfect, a surprisingly beautiful ride. After checking in with our new friends at the front desk we were taken to our room. We were in the deluxe garden view room (upstairs). Wow, a beautiful room with a one of a kind patio in the treetops with the woodpeckers, hummingbirds and various other birds. Then we went down to get our welcome drink and take a walk on the beach. This beach is absolutely beautiful. We spent most of our time on the beach eating lobster and patties from the vendors, swimming in the warm ocean and just soaking up the sun. We really enjoyed the musicians on the beach, the whole beach vibe was wonderful. This resort has excellent security, as does the resorts on each side of it. We were never bothered by anyone. Even when we walked the beach away from the resort if we did not want to buy something we just said "no thank you" and there were no problems. When we needed a break from the sun we would go back to our room for a little rest on our beautiful patio and some room service. Room service was a nice surprise! Everything we ate at this resort was excellent and we thought reasonably priced. After the first day we ate all our our meals on our patio ordered from room service. All in all it was the perfect beach vacation. Also everyone we met were repeat guests and such nice people. Yes we are going back and next time we do not plan to leave the property at all. Irie!!!