Couples Tower Isle

Amazing satay at the CTI

I wrote a review for our stays in CSS and CSA back in October 2021. This time we've decided to spend the New Years Eve of 2022 and the next ten days in CTI. I must say that CTI never disappoints. The New Years party, food and drinks were amazing. There are some supply chain problems in Jamaica as far as the top shelf drinks (even in the duty free at the airport the choice is limited), so not everything is avaliable as it used to be. The service is impeccable especially at the piano bar. Big kudos to Fabian the bartender! The au naturel island never disappoints and the ala carte restaraunts are very good. The rooms at the resort are nothing special to write home about, but they are very clean and in a decent shape.

Did not meet expectations

Pros Food is excellent throughout the resort. COVID sanitation is excellent. Au Naturel Island is very unique and comfortable. (Most) staff are friendly and accommodating. The gym had good equipment. The grounds are beautiful. The spa villa room has nice lighting and a nice decor. The climate control in the spa villa works perfectly. Lots of towels available. Cons Dinner service can be slow sometimes. Some staff are grumpy and uninformed. The spa villa private plunge pool was too hot and not adjustable from the room. We were not informed that it can be adjusted until another guest who is a repeater informed us. The shower is not hot, low pressure, and positioned very low so most people will need to crouch. The pillows and mattress are not comfortable and gave us neck aches. The room mini fridge was not stocked regularly even though requested every day using the menu card and calling the front desk. Couples massage was not side by side. Body scrub was not a scrub at all and no exfoliation. Massages were cold and oil was not warmed when applying. New Year’s Eve gala at the main patio was not announced and not on the activity board. Staff did not know about NYE details when asked. They even took our dinner reservation for NYE even though the restaurants were closed. The entertainment board is not accurate as a few events never took place as listed. The same band performed every night, with different singers and under a different band name, lacking energy to make you want to dance. Didn’t see any guests dancing all week except for NYE where they brought in the New Year with a DJ. We looked forward to the Veggie bar, but the staff there are unhappy and out of most menu items and don’t give you veggies unless you ask. They give you chips and hummus. All in all was a nice stay, but for the money which we have spent on other stays, especially for the villas, was a little disappointing. And with better communication between staff and management and staff and guests, we feel this could have been so much better. Maybe a more detailed list in the room of how things work or from the guest check in, especially for the spa villas where we paid a premium, would help.

It was OK, but was it valuable? I don't know.

I visited there during Christmas season and stayed 5 days. This is my first time visited Jamaica and Couples resort"ALL INCLUSIVE". Pros 1. Food: When you see a lot of reviews, most people said food is delicious. I totally agree with those opinions. There were 4~6 restaurants there, I don't remember exactly how many restaurants were there. However, a quality of food was very tasty. I highly recommend having food there. You don't need to go outside to eat. 2. Service: Most Jamaican were very friendly except receptionists. Especially, house keeping "Jean" was fantastic. She was always smile, friendly and professional. Also, Verandah restaurant server "Shanknee" was also very nice. She always gave us what we needed to get and made us relax, friendly. 3. Activities: There are a lot of activities such as kayak, sailing, yoga and so on. We enjoyed some activities which was free. Cons 1. Distance: The hotel was far from Montego Bay airport. You have to take a shuttle 2hrs from the airport. This is a kind of hard for us. Because we took a long time flight and then take a shuttle 2 hrs?? You have to think about this. 2. Receptionist in the hotel: They don't know about the Covid test rules. We had to transfer in the USA to go Canada. They don't know we had to take two Covid tests, which were PCR for Canada and Antigen for the US. We confirmed from airlines and let them know, but they insisted we needed to take the only PCR which was taken 3 days departure. They must know regulation of US, Canada and another countries. 3. Condition: They marked websites 5 stars resort. However, this hotel is not definitely 5 stars. Because the room was old, limited food for mini bar, even all inclusive resort. Does it make a sense they don't have Pringles chips?? Also, hallway looked old too. You will definitely agree with my opinion, if you go there. I will say 4 stars resort. Conclusion I was there Christmas season which was very expensive. In my opinion, If I have a chance to go somewhere with same money, I will go another country in Carribean. The weather was the best in Jamaica, but compared to the whole things, I would like to say Cancun was the best I have ever visited in Carribean, I visited some countries (Aruba, Cuba, Mexico Cancun, Panama) before. However, as you know Jamaica is well-controlled Corona Virus, compared to the others I mentioned. So, this is you choice.