Elle and Rob’s Cocktails International, July 31 – August 1 2010, Hedo 2 Mini-Trip Report

After nine days at Hedo3 with Cocktails International, Elle and I, along with Graham and VA, transferred over to Hedo 2 to check it out. A one day trip does not give a full impression of the resort, but it did give us a chance to check things out a little. We are planning a full week recon trip in February and I will write up a full report after that trip.

The Short Version:
I have been reading H2 trip reports and comparisons for years. We got there feeling like we already knew the place, but there were a few surprises. The net impression is that neither H2 or H3 are really better or worse than each other. They are different in so many ways, and yet similar in so many ways, that a judgment call like that is impossible. I can see how we will enjoy being at H2, and at the same time, we will dearly miss many aspects of H3.


The Trip:
We transferred through the normal SuperClubs airport transfer busses. This allowed us to see what the trip from the airport was really like. It took longer to ride from the airport to H2 than it takes to ride to H3. The trip was very pleasant though, and reminds us of how it used to feel to ride to H3 before the highway. We enjoyed going though the smaller towns and seeing more of the island. After they put in the highway to H3 the trip got too sterile, with much less to see.

The Resort:
We were spending Saturday night July 31st, 2010 at H2. This was during the Emancipation Day celebrations in Negril. Needless to say, this does impact the resort. The front lobby was VERY busy, but we were able to check in relatively quickly. We were issued wrist bands that had to be worn to identify us as guests with rooms due to all the people visiting.

When we got to our room, we just had to laugh. This is why everyone stresses that you don’t spend much time in your room. Yep, they are small. Bathrooms are very small – make sure you plan your entry carefully if you hope to close the door, you may have to do some maneuvering. Elle described it best by stating that the rooms at H3 are what you would expect at a cheap resort, the rooms at H2 are what you would expect at a cheap hotel. Net: Rooms are adequate.

We had an appointment to meet with Kevin Levee later in the afternoon, so we took the opportunity to get a little to eat and then tour the resort. The buffet had a nice spread. Very similar to what we used to get at H3 on a good year. With the H3 food going downhill due to it’s imminent closure we could not really compare the previous week’s H3 food to the H2 food.

The grounds were beautiful. Very nice tropical area, and quaint little trails though the dense foliage. We found the squash/tennis/BBall courts and were very impressed. There was a great selection of activities available. Almost a shame since these are not things we ever seem to get around to doing at Hedo.

We ended up at the pool and decided to cool down. The pool and hot tub layout are very nice and in good condition. We like the larger hot tub, and the additional seating in the pool. We did definitely miss the view of the ocean though. There was at least a narrow view to the ocean, so it was better than what I had read and expected. We love, love, love, that there is no volleyball in the nude pool. It is so fun and relaxing – just how we like our vacations to be. There is volleyball in the main pool for people who must have volleyball.

We went down to the beach and into the water. I should state right now – We are not beach people. We hate the sand, and don’t really care for the saltwater, or the things floating in the water. I can see how people who like beaches love it here. We have been to nicer beaches elsewhere in the world, but this one is close. It was nice that the beach was large, and there is a lot of shade and loungers. Now if only we could have a beach without sand – that would be awesome. Net: Nice beach, but if you come looking for us, we will be in the nude pool.

We got dressed and went to meet with Kevin. While we were waiting we ran into Michelle. For those who do not know Michelle, she is the Hedo Web Mistress – tall beautiful, and one of the most fun people to hang out with. She joined us for our meeting with Kevin. We had some great discussions about Hedo 2 and some ideas for how we can make Cocktials International 2011 at Hedo 2 a blazing success. Kevin is an incredible asset to the resort and we have every confidence that he will help us have a great group trip each time we come back to Hedo 2.

Michelle then took us on a private guided tour of the resort while we checked out everything that we had not seen yet. A few notes:

The Spa:
Wow, this is a REAL spa. For those of you who like that sort of thing, you will LOVE the spa at H2. H3 did not really have a spa. They tried to, but the Spa at H2 is everything you would expect from a real spa. I am not happy about this at all … I have a feeling this is going to cost me a lot more on future trips.

The Gym:
You have heard it a hundred times, the gym at H2 is much better than H3. I will go a step further. The gym at H2 is on par with many health clubs. This is not a hotel gym, this is a real gym that is nothing you would expect at a hotel or resort. This is one area that we will really take advantage of. Yes, we workout at Hedo, it flushes the toxins from our system so we can drink all night again.

The Piano Bar:
Much bigger than the H3 piano bar, and we liked the layout. We also liked that there was some seating outside. When we went to the piano bar later in the evening it was karaoke night and the place was relatively busy, but there was still lots of room to mill around and talk to people. The crowd was pretty subdued, but there were not many regular Hedo visitors at the resort this night.

The Disco:
Definitely smaller than the H3 disco, so it is going to get crowded. We did like the layout though. There were more places to step away from the dance floor for a break, and the dance pole setup was great … Can’t wait to see Elle up there.

Food:
We had lunch at the buffet and enjoyed the food and the variety. I did not like that there are no self serve soda/water machines at the buffet. We really liked the way the buffet was laid out.
We had dinner at Martino’s. The restaurant was very nice inside, a little “higher end” than the H3 Martino’s (Pastafari). The food was good – again, about like we used to get on a good year at H3.
We did not eat at Munasan – but reminder: it is open air as part of the main dinning room.

General:
It was nice to walk the beach, but we really miss the boardwalk.
At night, we enjoy the quiet, dark, ocean view of H3. At H2, there is much more light pollution from Negril. I guess that is the price you pay for being near enough to go enjoy Negril during the day.
We have always enjoyed our late night private time on the nude pier at H3. There really is no equivalent location at H2 that we found yet.
The layout of the winding paths and lush vegetation is nice, and the buildings fit into it nicely. We do miss the colorful buildings at H3.
The main pool looks like a nice place for volleyball, and as an alternative hangout.
The prude pool is a miniscule thing that might be fun to go hang out in to get away once in a while.
We really liked all the hot tubs scattered around for some more private hot tub time.
The walking distance was not a problem at all. To this day I still can’t figure out why people complain about that.
The hills could be difficult in high heels, but there are routes that you can take that have stairs instead.
We got to meet Fred and Patti, who were there for their recon trip. It was great to meet you guys in person!
We ran into Nick from H3 who was there with some friends for the festivities in Negril. There were also a few other familiar H3 people there that day. Made it *almost* feel like home.

Rob and Elle
Cocktails International
www.cocktailsintl.com