TripAdvisor Traveler Rating

We had a fantastic time. Ashara and Astina at the culinary desk were incredibly accommodating, and Astina went above and beyond to arrange a gluten-free Jamaican beef patty for me. She was also extremely helpful with all of my special gluten-free food and dessert requests — many thanks to Head Pastry Chef Kirk as well. Edger at Mariachi’s was equally attentive and came out to speak with us several times throughout our visit. Overall, it was a wonderful trip and a great experience.

We were there for a wedding. While the beach is beautiful and we had a fabulous time with friends, it felt like we traveled really far to go to a fake version of America. It was lacking Jamaican culture. The food is also very Americanized, cheap, and unhealthy. The poverty surrounding the area is jarring and I wonder how much this place actually benefits the Jamaican people. We will not be retuning to Sandals or Beaches again.

Let me start by saying that the beach is incredible. The clarity is magical. You can see the fish, star fish, stingrays, all right below you. The staff is exceptional! My heart hurt not being able to give them tips because these people work so hard and make sure that you are comfortable at every turn you take. Shout out to Ricardo at the bar. This man met me once and treated me like family. 3 days later, he recognized me and remembered by name. He was the sweetest. The room cleaning is hands down the best I’ve ever experienced while traveling. They’d clean my room- fix beds and give new towels every time I left the room. They’d clean few things that weren’t so great: buffet was mid- very bland and not many options for such a large hotel. If you want good food- be sure to reserve cause the restaurants were great, especially hibachi and Mexican. The water sports: I wish I didn’t have to share this, but I do. This was the most disappointing part. I have a 6 year old who loved snorkeling so much and we did it 3 times. I was offered by the water sport manager, “boss lady” to let him try Snuba. I asked if he was old enough and reiterated that he was only 6. She insisted he was old enough and says to me that he can snuba at 6. This of course is $100+ a person and is an up charge so I wanted to do more research. I scuba dive and know the dangers of a child going scuba diving and I’ve been patiently waiting for my kids to be able to dive so I felt concerned that she insisted he could do this. I went back to the room and looked it up. Quickly I learned that the beaches policy is 8+ without exception. I google and learn that someone at 6 cannot snuba due to dangers and lack of brain development to respond to emergencies if they occur under water. I was so upset that someone would risk putting my child at risk to gain commission on our purchase. We didn’t return, but she found me on the grounds and asked why I didn’t come back to sign him up. I explained to her what I learned and she tells me to trust her and that she’d only take him down 5 feet. I am so mad at this point that I inform her I’ve spoken to the resort manager and that caught her attention, she backed off and wished me a good day. This is a huge NO for me! I never want to feel like someone would put my children in danger to earn money. It’s unacceptable. My hope is that the management will enforce this rule to ensure no child is put in danger for someone else’s financial gain.

Where to start! Here is my review of our amazing week at Beaches Negril, at the end of April 2026. To start off, we have been to Beaches Turks and Caicos 5 times, and several Sandals resorts, so as Diamond members we think we know the Beaches & Sandals brand well. While we have enjoyed our Turks and Caicos trips, we have been more and more disappointed in our vacations at Beaches Turks and Caicos, and were considering taking our family trips elsewhere, away from Beaches. But, we thought we would give Negril a shot, and wow, the staff at Beaches Negril truly understand the word hospitality. From groundskeepers, to bartenders, lifeguards, waitresses, and butlers, all the staff at Beaches Negril go above and beyond to make you have a wonderful vacation. We will never return to Turks after experiencing the warmth and energy of Jamaica. In no particular order, here are some of the things I remember from our trip…. The grounds beautiful, no sign a giant hurricane had just gone through. We stayed in the newer Eventide building, but I found the whole resort to be in tip top shape, nothing dated here. Our room in the Eventide building was spectacular, and the daily housekeepers kept it looking great, even with 14 of us going in and our with sandy feet and wet bathing suits. Our room had games, a giant bottle of free Sun Bum sunscreen (50SPF) which they restocked, fullybsticled fridge, snacks. The beach was en par with Grace Bay in Turks, if not having some advantages. The water is warmer, the entry much more gradual. The snorkeling right at the beach is ok, but the reefs where the good snorkeling is at is just off shore, a 5 minute boat ride. Having said that we saw numerous (harmless) sting rays right at the beach, giant starfish, little Sgt Majors, crabs all right at the beach. The sand is powder. There are many people walking the beach, offering necklaces, excursions, but a quick no thanks and they move on. It is not an issue. A+ for the beach. We spent more time at the beach then any previous vacation. And there isn’t really any tides so you don’t have to worry about beach chairs of sand toys getting swept away. If you want even better snorkeling take one of the many daily guided snorkeling trips. Unlike in Turks where they drop anchor and tell you to get off the boat until they whistle, in Negril the captain dives in with you, dives under the water, brings up sea cucumbers, starfish, urchins, and lets you hold them, and points out different fish. Made the snorkeling so much more fun and interesting. The pools at the resort are smaller than Turks, but still lots of fun, one has a volleyball net, they all have swim up bars, and the bartenders in Negril don’t see you and make you wait. They actually look at you and ask you what they can make you. And they can make so many fun drinks for kids and adults. There are just so many little perks, some subtle but well thought out. At the miniputt course in the back of the resort, there is a worker there ready to make snow cones. Have I mentioned how friendly the staff is, it really needs to be said that while Beaches Turks and Caicos give a good customer experience overall, Beaches Negril truly make you feel they are happy you have come to visit. The entertainment, while not Broadway level is still well done. I would say the best shows we have seen any any Sandals or Beaches. The Magic show, and the Water show are two of our highlights. A big shout out to Jelly, a high octane member of the entertainment staff. There are so very many talented singers and dancers in Negril. Food was great, loved the pasta, steak, shrimp, lamb…..mmmmm one critique are the desserts, I have never found at Beaches or Sandals the deserts are great (except for the lava cake at the French Chateau restaurant at BTC). BUT Negril has Froyo, an all you can eat ice cream/frozen yogurt bar with different flavors and toppings. My kids (and me) must have went 6 or 7 times a day….6…7……The water park is smaller, but still fun, fast and curvy waterslides, great little lazy river. Another highlight is the water sports area. They have so much more to do. The addition of the banana boat rides and the ability to water ski or go kneeboarding is amazing. The staff, shout out to Lawrenzo, at the water sports are friendly, patient and are genuinely excited when they see you come back wanting to try new things. There is a great TV area with couches at the main bar, and again the bar staff more than willing to accommodate requests to change the channel and find that hockey game we wanted to watch every night (we are Canadians and it is the playoffs…), for those that enjoy running, there is a great sidewalk on the main road outside the resort that is wide and safe, its about 4.5 kms down into Negril. But bring water, even at 6 am it is hot and humid. Well I could go own, but I must say before we went I had a negative opinion of Jamaica from previous cruise ship stops, but the warmth and true hospitality of the staff at Beaches Negril have made me change my opinion 180 degrees. Got to give some love to our butlers Anthony Olivier, easily the best butlers we have had in all our Beaches and Sandals trips. Over the top with the attention they gave our entire group. I highly recommend requesting them both, except for the week we go back because we want them back, they became family! And the best, Negril’s pricing, very good compared to BTC. I could list off so many other things that made our week special (chocolate buffett, kittens, beach volleyball, local artisans, Kimonos, tie dye shirts….), but I want to leave you something to be a surprise. Trust me, Beaches Negril is Amazing, ya man! Respect!

Amazing trip. The beaches were pristine and the people are warm and friendly. This is our second Beaches trip (prior one was Turks & Caicos). While Negril is a bit further from the airport, I preferred our trip here. The staff were amazing. The resort is a bit smaller so it's easier to navigate, and the water sports felt more accessible. Some of the highlights of the resort. First were the people, I can't say enough about how friendly and warm everyone was. Many of the staff knew us by name by time we left. The Beach is simply amazing. The pools were great, and they are close to the beach so you can set up in one place and easily go from beach to pool all day long. There entire layout of the resort is easy to navigate, and you are never too far from anything. Our kids (10, 8 and 5) had a blast on the water slides, lazy river, and even the splash pad area, which I thought they would have outgrown. The proximity of everything helped us be very comfortable letting the kids go play, since they were never that far. They did the banana boat too many times to count, and we all went snorkeling twice. I didn't know what to expect snorkeling with our 5 year old, but he did great. The water was calm, and he wore a life jacket around his waist - it worked out perfectly. The guide showed us all kinds of things, conch, starfish, sea cucumbers, and even a manta ray. The food was good, some of our favorites were the Jerk Chicken shack on the beach, the Sushi, and the food trucks. We did have dinner one night at the Italian restaurant which was fine - but the humidity does seem give the pasta a different texture or consistency. The drinks at the bar were good, and it was never much of a wait to get what you needed. The kids loved being able to walk over to the food trucks and get what they wanted (chicken fingers or pizza) whenever, and they loved ordering different frozen drinks at the bar. The entertainment is ongoing, and fun. There were pool games, beach olympics, music, and shows. The highlight was the fire show. Final tip: We used Club Mobay to fast track through customs and we had a private shuttle - which I highly recommend to save time on the final leg of the travel when everyone just wants to get their feet in the sand.