Just a quick update on the vacation at the Iberostar Beach resort in Montego Bay, Jamaica:
This is a fabulous resort! Only 2 years old, it is obviously spotless and beautifully maintained.
Beautiful beach and pools.
The restaurants alone are worth the cost of going there – we ate at the Japanese and steakhouse restaurants as well as the buffet, which changes its’ items daily. Imagine my eyes (not to mention my tastebuds) when you walk into the buffet and you can choose fantastic smoked salmon to start your meal! The bars serve premium brands of liquor and the Spanish wine is not shabby.
For those who are concerned about security – all 3 properties, the Grand, Suites and Beach, are accessed by one main gate off the highway, so this is very safe.
Thanks for suggesting this. We will do this again next year.
Cheers,
Harry
- Harry & Maureen G
Once again we thank you for putting Vancouver & Cuba trips together for us.
Vancouver was a blast .
Going to Cuba by Sunwing was great. A great meal and good seat roominess.
Although the weather was windy and cold, we still had a great time. I recommend to your clients, that a 5 star hotel is the best way to go. We heard stories about the 3 and 4 star hotels were terrible
I also recommend this hotel. but not for a handicap or person who cannot walk. The Marina is a hotel that spans 2 kilometers and walking can be a problem. Great people,great food,great rooms and a great travel agent like you.
Thanks Marlene for your support and fast action to make a great holiday.
- James & Jeannette
We stayed at the Palladium Vallarta in early January 2009 and loved it. We did not take our kids and it turned out to be a fabulous place to go and get away.
Service was excellent, weather was perfect at +30 everyday, water was great, tour options were lots of fun, flights were all on time. Everything was just great. We could watch the hump back whales from the adult pool at the hotel almost everyday! Restaurants were excellent at the resort. Portofino was by far my favourite and I HIGHLY recommend anyone staying at the Palladium to go to the Beach Barbecue which was amazing!! All in all it was a great retreat for us. The line-ups for the restaurants can be long, but you are on vacation so what else are you doing? It is a huge resort so some people needed to relax about how fast the staff could clear tables during the dinner rush. We thought everything was just perfect for us but we were just happy to be gone. Best to get a beach chair in the morning or else you’ll be out of luck for the whole day. The entertainment nightly was great, always lots of fun. We wandered up and down the beaches to collect sea shells and even THAT was excellent. I emailed kids everyday and although dial-up is slow and tedious it was nice to have the option, although I may take a laptop on any future vacations! I had one day when the internet wouldn’t work and it wasted almost all of my paid time trying to load and the front desk simply replaced my time card with a new one. I would recommend everyone learn a little spanish, even if it is just to say hello. They really liked laughing at our attempts to master it. Leaving $2 tip on your pillow every morning ensured extra care to your room and extra water in your fridge!! This was great because it was HOT outside. And the staff appreciate it as they don’t make much. I suppose the only things to remember is 4.5 stars in Mexico is really about 3 to us and life is way more laid back there so you just need to go with the flow of things. I recommend a small bottle of hand sanitizer in your beach bag. You never know what you are touching and you do not always have time to go wash your hands. Do money exchange before you get to the hotel. They will do it at the hotel as well, but the rate is NOT good. It is a convenience thing.
The resort is only a 15 minute bus ride ($1 per person) to Bucerias and they have an awesome flee market and we enjoyed spending the entire day there shopping and eating and just wandering around. We also did a boat tour of Bandaras Bay and saw the whales up close and saw some amazing marine life snorkelling! Didn’t care for the food on that boat trip but it was the ONLY downside.
I would not recommend the hotel to anyone with disabilities or even small kids as there's a lot of walking to do, but for couples or older kids it was perfect. Those wanting close shopping and do not want to use taxis or the bus should not stay either as it is "out of the way" which is why we picked it.
Thanks again Marlene for a wonderful vacation.
- Dave & Renae
Hi Marlene.
Olly & Ernie here, on our return from a most wonderful visit to your lovely Canada.
It started as a complete nightmare as our 4th member Phil collapsed as we were about to book our cases in at the airport, and had to be taken to hospital. Luckily, we had a nephew who lived a short distance away and he met up with him at the hospital to keep us informed.
Eventually, the Dr advised him not to travel. After frantic phone calls to family members, we 3 were virtually ordered to take the flight as planned.
On our arrival at Vancouver, we spoke to Marlene on the phone, who said that she would notify all 8 hotels of our predicaments plus cancelling his cruise tickets. Which meant that we were able to sit back and chill out. and start our holiday the next day in earnest.
Each one of the hotels, which were recommended to us, and booked by Marlene, gave us first class treatment. The Pan Pacific at Whistler even upgraded us to the Penthouse Suite, which was out of this world.
Our second week of four was spent on board the Celebrity Mercury to Alaska. It was a most memorable experience from start to finish, again made perfect by the free upgrades which Marlene negotiated for us. We cannot thank Marlene enough for all her help and guidance. First of all, in the pre-planning and also the aftercare. We have a lot to thank her for.
The trip itself started in Vancouver and the Island for the first week, followed by the cruise, and the third and forth week was travelling to Banff via Whistler, to Clearwater and Jasper. From there we drove down to Lake Louise and Banff, and then to Calgary Airport for our return. A good time was had by all.
Regards. Olly, Ernie and Joan. UK.
- Olly, Ernie & Joan, U.K.
Marlene:- Just wanted to let you know the trip to Jamaica was excellent!
The resort (Sandals) was top notch, the people and the service fantastic, and the food superb!
Sandals Negril sure knows how to make you feel spoiled.
Thank you for a wonderful vacation, I would recommend it to anyone.
Debbie & John
Red Deer, AB.
- Debbie & John
Hi Marlene,
I had a wonderful time at the Decameron los Cocos in Rincon de Guayabitos.
Thanks.
Dave
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Hi Marlene!!!! I would like to thank you so much for helping us find a great place to holiday in Mexico. The resort was amazing!!!! The Palladium Vallarta is a very beautiful place with lots to do. Weather was great and everything was top notch. We got to do our ceremony on Thursday afternoon. We did it on our own with some new friends we made at the resort, it was perfect!!!! Thank you again, we had a wonderful week.
Mike & Eileen
- Mike & Eileen
Our honeymoon was off the charts incredible. I am so glad we hooked up as I don't know if I would have found that place on my own. Cabo is incredible and I would never go anywhere else in Mexico. The resort was perfect for what we were looking for. Good food, good drinks and a huge suite.
Thanks again Marlene!
Mike & Sheila W.
- Mike & Sheila W
Just wanted to share with you what happened last week. I got a call from a lady very upset and wanting to book something last minute.
Her and her husband had booked a trip to Costa Rica via Sell-Off Vacations a couple of weeks ago. It was their first time booking anything online and they were encouraged to do so by co-workers. The Sell-Off papers they printed off explained their passports had to be valid for one week after returning to Canada. When they arrived at YYZ, they were denied boarding and were told their passports had to be valid for 30 days post-return.
Calls to Sell-Off were unreturned and online they were told to submit their complaint and expect a response in 6 to 8 weeks.
Anyway, they were so upset as they had been looking forward to going away. Not wanting to unpack their suitcases, they found my business card and called. I was able to book them to a 4 1/2 star to Punta Cana on Sabre Vacations for $2400.00 total. They were ecstatic and vowed never to book online again. I think delivering their documents to their door the next morning (I could have emailed them) reinforced the personal touch and dedication.
I hope they are able to recover their money from Sell-Off as their information was incorrect regarding passport validity.
Add this to your list of reasons to not book online!
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My name is Randy and I work as a management consultant in Toronto. I was introduced to Marlene by a friend over 5 years ago.
I have since travelled to Europe several times as well as South America and Asia. Marlene has been a godsend. She is fast, dedicated and has always managed to find me a flight that is cheaper and more convenient than the best ticket I've found independently.
I got married in Aug of 2008 and asked Marlene to help my wife and I with our honeymoon to Jordan and Turkey. Marlene was able to find us the perfect flight which included a half day layover in Paris; the one thing my wife wanted almost more than the trip itself. The amazing thing is that she did it for a price that was still less than the best alternative I could find
online without the Paris layover. We had the most incredible time and are so grateful to Marlene for her support.
- Randy
