Just returned from a week at the ROYAL DECAMERON FUN CARIBBEAN in Runaway Bay, Jamaica. This property was formerly a Hedonism II back in its day and then became part of the Breezes family before joining the Royal Decameron group. Apparently it had been closed for a while for the takeover, and has only been open 1 month – there were still a few opening hiccups but on the whole a wonderful experience.
The property still shows signs of its Hedonism life (in the ceramic room numbers, mirrors over the beds and bathtubs) and we thought that maybe the spirit of hedonism was still alive in some of the entertainment provided and the actions of the guests. The entertainment staff were amazing – you never knew what was going to happen from day to day, but they kept it lively. There was a daily contest on the water slide (who knew water slides were so much fun!), afternoon games and guest participation evening shows. The staff had amazing dance moves and we thought that they were even better than the dance troupe that came in a couple of different evenings. Shout outs to Mr. Whacky, Kim, Spice and all the others. Only complaint is that the music is too loud – especially at night. It is impossible to hear what is being said by the people on stage – they have the volume up so loud and the MC practically yells into the microphone so you can’t understand anything being said. I spoke to the MC about it but nothing was every done about it. I participated in one of the evening events and was up on stage but couldn’t even understand what was being said because it was so loud.
When we booked this property we were concerned about what the meals were going to be like – especially since there had been no reviews available to depend on. The meals far exceeded our expectations – there was always plenty of choice and variety available on the buffet for every meal and the freshness was only exceeded by the quality. The desserts at the buffet were wonderful – especially the home made cookies. The a la carte restaurants were just as wonderful. We ate at the Japanese restaurant one night and it was great – the staff really added to the experience – and ate at the Italian restaurant twice. The menu at the Italian restaurant changes daily so it was great to try different dishes. In addition to the buffet and a la carte restaurants, don’t forget to try the grill. It is wonderful to sit by the water and chow down on some awesome food. Sasha will be sure to get you just what you want and however you want it. The grill is open for lunch and then closes for a while, but reopens at 11 PM for a midnight snack.
A free shuttle is provided to the Royal Decameron Club Caribbean where you can go for dinner. We went over twice – once for the seafood and the second time for Thai. Neither meal was very memorable and we found the atmosphere was not as friendly as our property. We were happy to get back to the Fun Caribbean.
The bars – what can we say! Noreen (at the main bar) made sure that we always had a drink in hand. Ask for one of her specials! The day wasn’t complete without a visit to Joel’s swim up bar – over in the courtyard surrounded by the green, yellow, orange and red buildings. Joel closes at 5:00 PM and just before he packs up for the day he makes up a “little something, something” shooter for everyone at the bar and in the hot tub. He created a really tasty special for my birthday – it was yummy! In addition to these 2 bars you can get a drink at the grill and there is another swim up bar down towards the second beach.
The room was okay – definitely not a 5* but comfortable. As I said before, once you got over the mirror over the bed and bathtub is was just a basic room. There was no fridge, the windows all opened, but there was no balcony. Don’t forget to bring your shampoo and facial tissue (neither were provided in our room) – all that was left was small hotel size bar soap. We paid extra for an oceanfront room, but it was next to the waterfront grill (which opened at 11 PM and closed at 2:00 AM) so we had to keep our windows closed. There were no balconies on any of the rooms, although the ground floor rooms did have walk-outs but no lawn furniture available. The maid service was great and the towel art unbelievable.
The beach wasn’t the largest we have ever been to and there were a few rocky spots, but it was in a bay and not too wavy. There could have been more palapas to provide shade but it was great to have bar service provided right to your beach chair.
Don’t forget to get your safety deposit box code before you leave the Front Desk on check-in. They don’t offer it to you and it will be another trip to the desk if you leave without it. There was only 1 hot tub working while we were there and lots of painters around freshening up the place, but the lack of interaction by the management was obvious. We did see what appeared to be a corporate type health and safety guy almost every day (communicating only with staff and avoiding guests) but the Hotel Manager or Food & Beverage Manager were not to be seen. In a start-up situation it is important for the hotel management to be seen, involved and visible to guests. Because of this lack of involvement by management, we give this hotel an 8 on a scale of 1 to 10.
We felt that we got good value for our money and would recommend this property to anyone who is not looking for a 5* resort but wants a good time, good food and fun.
This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC
