S Hotel Review

I’m sure you’ve heard it from the airline attendants “if the plane hits turbulence and the oxygen masks come down, place a mask on yourself first before turning to help others. This is absolutely critical. If we don’t, we may not be able to help anyone.” At this point of the pandemic I literally felt as though I hit some turbulence and I needed some time away from the walls of my apartment to relax, breathe and recharge.

Being one who prefers a short and spicy vacation - I just need enough time to unravel and unwind then get back to reality - by that usually my budget is done anyway lol. Last weekend, I planned a solo staycation just to relax and get out of Kingston and keep my mind off this horrible pandemic that has been riling up my anxiety.

I booked a stay at S Hotel in Montego Bay. Arriving in the COVID pandemic and despite the adversity, the staff made sure I had a wonderful time. They were also very thorough about mask wearing (whilst traversing public areas, not needed at pool, beach, whilst dining etc.) temperature checks and hand sanitizing every few steps.

There are two gorgeous pools (one downstairs and one on the top floor), beach adjoining (Doctor’s Cave) and location (on the Montego Bay Hip Strip). Highly recommend the ocean-view suites - spacious with lovely balcony.

View from my room.

Sitting by the poolside, peep my mask to the side.

On a plus side for someone like me, the hotel was really empty. So I wasn’t faced too much with the issue of thinking that I might contract the virus from another guest.

The beds in the room were very soft and smelled fresh, the suite was so spacious (I did do laps running around it. Why? Because I could).

In the Room.

Jacuzzi.

I got 25% off spa services which I used and I enjoyed my treatment. I did a coffee coconut body scrub and a full body massage. I also did a flash facial and a manicure and pedicure.

Waiting Area.

The infinity pool was so worth it even though the roof top bar was closed you could call downstairs to order drinks and they would have someone carry it up for you. It is important to note that the resort is not all inclusive - we are really spoiled by that offering in Jamaica but they do offer a cashless system - so for meals, the spa or by the bar you just tell them your room number and pay the bill at checkout. I may have stayed in the pool till my fingers went wrinkly… #ItWasWorthIt.

Views from the Infinity Pool

The view of Doctor’s Cave Beach from up there was amazing and I felt like I was whisked off somewhere entirely different from the stresses of life as it were. There is free entrance to the beach from the property so I lay on the beach just before checkout on Sunday.

My only issue was with the food offerings - this was very limited even though items from the menu were inclusive, the paid menu was extremely limited as well.

I didn’t regret checking in, go and enjoy!

St. Lucia

For the past four years I have been going to Trinidad Carnival (this deserves a post on it’s own which I will definitely get to!) and 2020 was nothing short of awesome only one missing thing was missing otherwise it would have been the perfect year, I had a ton load of fun. This year I decided to treat myself to a vacation after the vacation so after spending five days feteing, drowning myself in alcohol and leaving my dignity in the streets of Port of Spain I decided to head to St. Lucia for a few days for a well deserved breather.

Okay so if you really want to talk about heaven, let’s actually talk about heaven!

Wait, no that’s awkward.. Heaven as in St. Lucia. Hopefully we are on the same page now.

From the landscape to the people I enjoyed every second! Saint Lucia is a sovereign island country in the West Indies on the eastern end of the Caribbean Sea. Because of its history of a “toss up” between British and French colonial control, St. Lucia is known as the “Helen” of the West Indies and consequently they have a French/English dialect they converse in but which is not taught in school (bits and pieces of what I learnt on this ATV excursion I went on whilst there - I’ll get to it!).

I landed in St. Lucia on Ash Wednesday around 10 AM, in their domestic “airport”, this place reminded me of the back room at your grandma’s house where she keeps all the good stuff that she doesn’t use all year round but pulls them out at Christmas time since everyone is coming over, yes that room. Quaint and simple airport and it gives you the Caribbean feel that people spend money on to come and enjoy. As you land, you are greeted by the warm temperature and the warm smiles, you literally step from the plane and onto the streets. That was my first time travelling on such a small plane and I was terrified but I fortunately made it with my heart in tact. Depending on where you are coming from though, there is an international airport further south, I only landed here because I was coming from Trinidad.

George F. L. Charles Airport (SLU), formerly known as "Vigie Airport", is located on the outskirts of Castries in the north and is used for inter-island flights.

I hurried along to pick up my rental car, I took all of five mins to step through the airport (as I said, from plane onto street, lol). The roads in St. Lucia are not as narrow as in Trinidad thankfully because that’s a fear of mine but I am not used to the deep ditches to the side but the streets are generally clean and the motorists are decent (coming from a Jamaican that doesn’t really say much but hey).

It was a little baecation actually and our reservation was at Royalton, the resort was beautiful, as soon as you pull up the view takes your breath away. The hotel compliments the natural beauty of the island and blends in seamlessly with that polished tourist feel. The hotel lobby is open air so as soon as you step out of the car you can see straight through to the ocean. Being all inclusive the food was pretty good (nothing to really write home about though), I have no complaints even though it was a bit generic and there was a lot of options.

View from the lobby at Royalton.

The staff was so friendly - our concierge was wonderful and led us to our room. She took time out to explain how everything on the property works and how all the gadgets in the room worked as well. She was sweet and helped us to a bottle of champagne. The only negative I would give the hotel is that there was was an oldish smell at times which I think they could easily get rid of and the staff who are eager to invite you to the presentation to buy into their deals - outside of that I would say it was perfect.

Image from RoyaltonResorts.com, an exact representation of the room.

The pools were great and we had mimosas flowing and flowing as we chilled in our little cabana set up. The place was chill and quiet, the bartenders did a good job too. For the most part we ate at the buffet but one of the nights we tried The Steakhouse and that was a pretty good experience.

A vacation is incomplete without mimosas.

I’m a believer that regardless of where you go on vacation, your time should be spent however you would like. If you want to sit your little cheeks in the sand all day long without moving, do that. If you want to have every hour of your day planned on a color coded agenda, well why not do that? For the first day we decided to rest and in the night we went for dinner at The Harbour Club. It is a hotel under the Hilton brand so they have day passes as well as rooms available for accommodation. We went to the 14° North Restaurant which sits the sixth floor, overlooking the beautiful marina in a modern yet comfortable romantic setting. It offers Asian-Caribbean Fusion cuisine and one can experience the seamlessly and masterfully blended rich flavors of two different cultures, that of Asia and the Caribbean.

The following day we journeyed to Soufrière, a town on the West Coast of the island. Originally Soufrière was the capital of the island as it was colonized by the French. There are a few sights to see in the town, such as the popular catholic church - Church of the Assumption as well as markets and other monuments. Soufrière is also the home of The Pitons, Sulphur Springs, Soufrière and Fond Doux Estate amongst other popular tourist sites.

Church of the Assumption.

It was pretty much a day trip as the drive from our hotel was about two hours, along the way we stopped at a look out point to view The Pitons. The twin volcanic peaks of Pitons rise up from the ground like two great ogres (some beautiful ass ones!). They are definitely one of the most beautiful sites on the island, no trip is complete without coming to see Pitons. It really is one of the best things to see in St Lucia. From there we headed to Sugar Beach, A Viceroy Resort - it cost US$20.00 per person for a day pass which gives you a shuttle ride (you can walk for free - not recommended in the blazing sun) and access to a beautiful beach and pool smacked right between The Pitons and we lounged and had our Aperol Spritz there. We then traveled to The Sulphur Springs and Mud Baths which is the hottest and most active geothermal area in the Lesser Antilles and is famous for being the Caribbean’s only “drive-in” volcano! It is an important site for historians who believe that the entire Caribbean basin was founded here. Tours to the springs will take you through the crater and past tranquil pools and hissing hot springs after that quick geography lesson, we dipped in the mud baths, they are also a St. Lucia must. The mud baths at Sulphur Springs attract people from all over the world and according to the guides it detoxifies the body and helps heal sun burns, eczema, arthritis, sore joints, and more.

Sulphur Springs.

Our final full day was spent on a 3-hour adventure in St Lucia riding an ATV (all-terrain vehicle) through lush tropical forest. It started with a quick orientation and test drive then we took off down paved roads and dirt paths, through beautiful scenery and local village areas, stopping at historic sites and ending up on the top of the mountain with a lovely view of the Atlantic Ocean, peering down at a turtle sanctuary beach (Grande Anse Beach) as we stopped in Marquis. We used Aanansi ATV Tours in Babonneu, the guides were friendly, patient and took care of everything, even serving us water and juice at the top of the mountain and letting us enjoy the view for awhile. The ATVs are all automatic -- didn't take long to get the hang of it. It does take you on a bumpy, off-road ride with some hills and turns (which I thought was part of the fun!)

ATV.

I loved the fact that Anansi was so close to where we were staying in Cap Estate. Our tour guide was so cool and laid-back. Kareem, our driver (lol) big props to him for stopping to let us grab something to eat on the way back. We stopped at Keylargo Italian and got some nice ass pizza before we got back to the hotel.

Photo by Nico.

For me, a vacation is not complete without a nice full spa treatment so just before heading to the airport we took the day to relax and be pampered with hour long massages and mani-pedis.

Have so much fun in Saint Lucia! I know I did and I can’t wait to go back!