My husband and I are first time visiters to Jamaica. We will be staying at the new Sandals resort in Whitehouse. Can anyone help me with arranging transportation from Sandals to TB for a day trip? I checked out Vikings site which seemed to have a lot to offer in the ways of rental equipment. I think my biggest delimma will be the transportation part. Also, how far is Treasure Beach from Whitehouse? And by the way...Treasure Beach seems like the ideal place to be. Mellow and low key. I am really starting to regret making reservations at an AI after reading so many wonderful things about TB. I should have done my homework.
Any info would be much appreciated-
Marcia

Marcia,
You'll never be able to compare an AI to a TB vacation unless you stay at a Sandals first. Don't worry, you can always choose TB for a vacation next year. With an AI one can park their brain at the door, the non AI trip is a more interactive one. Different strokes for different folks. That said, I'm glad your visiting TB. They will be a number of cab drivers parked nearby or perhaps even in the complex waiting to take you wherever you want to go. You pay by the trip not by the person so you might want to find some companions to come along. Your front desk will assist you and more importantly tell you the going rate. When you ask the prices, the driver will probably want to know how long you'll be gone and if you want him to wait or tag along. Only you can answer those questions. I toured Sandals before it was complete plus we've spent a number of hours in Whitehouse. A little too far for a comfortable walk, Whitehouse is a friendly community also but night and day difference from Treasure Beach. I think you'll have a good time on your trip.

Sandals is far from experiencing the "Real Jamaica" and a trip "outside" the compound to Treasure Beach would be well worth the effort.

Talk to Rebecca Wiersma at Treasure Tours for driver/expert guide assistance and an inside track on virtually everything. treasuretours@cwjamaica.com or 1.876.965.0126

P.S. DON'T go through Sandals front desk -- they've inflated the price of everything, including driver services, and their drivers will not generally know much about St.Elizabeth, let alone Treasure Beach, even tho it's only about a 40 min.drive away.

Marcia,
MilwaukeeMike is right. I won our first trip to Jamiaica so we HAD to stay at a Sandals (in Ochi). Although I wouldn't stay at an AI again, I'm glad we did once. It WAS fun. Especually if you like to drink a lot :-) It's NOT Jamaica, though. You'll get a good taste of [the real] Jamaica on your day trips. You'll be SO glad you visited Treasure Beach. After staying at Sandals, you'll really see and feel (and smell and taste) the difference. Next year, you'll be staying in a Villa - I can almost gaurentee it...
Have fun!!

This website is so great! I too will be making my first trip to Jamaica this year (in November), in fact, my first trip ever! I'll be 52 this year and decided it was time to travel, especially after finding out about TB. I'll be staying at Viking's for 10 days and Stephanie has set me up with lodging, food, and some fun activities for a very reasonable rate (perfect for me, since my budget is low). Also, I've been very pleased to read all of the positive comments about the safety of the area since I'll most likely be traveling alone. November can't come soon enough this year; however, this awesome website will keep the excitement alive while I'm waiting!

not2old2play:

Glad you enjoy the site and thanks for being a good inspiration to the rest of us to take on new adventures.

And thanks to all the visitors here who are keeping the threads going with insight and opinion. Its a good vibe.

Enjoy!
-TBNet

Sandals Whitehouse is beautiful -- full of marble, air conditioning, and other things that do not feel like a beach holiday. It looks so manicured that it resembles a fashion show at a Ritz Carlton. Nothing is casual; you must wear shoes all over the property, even near the pool. Men must dress in a collared shirt and long pants for meals. It looks like a wonderful place for a several-day business conference, but it is certainly not the "real" Jamaica. Cuisine is not Jamaican; it's international -- and includes pizza, Asian, and French food. Guests are "protected" from exposure to what's outside the gates; day trips are carefully supervised. There is not much Jamaican about the place; in fact, if you don't venture outside, you could imagine yourself on almost any island because you really can't tell where you are.

Thankyou so much for all of the many responses!
And to PattyWatt- I think you are absolutly right. My husband and I are already planning a trip with our kids to TB in 2006! I am really kicking myself for going with an all inclusive without doing my research. We would much rather be spending 7-10 days in one of the villa's there in Treasure beach. Stephanie from Viking House has contacted me and left me with a few options on things we could do while there. She has been very helpful. Thankyou to everyone on this board. You all seem to be the nicest people.
Marcia

I going to Treasure Beach next week, is it possible to take a boat from Black River to TB?

if so, any details.

Thank You

I would have to agree with the other posters. My husband and I stayed at Sandals-Negril our first time in Jamaica. It was an awsome experience, but it definately wasn't a Jamaican experience. The next time we went, we stayed at Whistling Bird a small resort at the other end of the Negril beach. We were able get much more of the Jamaican culture. We are leaving for T.B. the first week in May. I can't wait!

Marcia,

Cancel the trip to Sandals and re-book at Jakes! if you want to see the True Jamaica, you'll avoid an AI. Why travel so far to listen to piped in American music and eat hot-dogs and baked beans?!

http://treasurebeach.net/cgi-bin/discus/show.pl?tpc=1584&post=11132#POST11132
BigCat...
I know that Neal Clark has a boat and takes people from TB to Black River on a tour so it's possible that he may be able to pick you up from there...but you can arrange a cab in black river which maybe a whole lot easier if you have luggage. If you contact Rebecca from Treasure Tours she could arrange it...she is really terrific to deal with and very reasonable prices! See her ad under transport here...she is very prompt in emailing.
Tia

Marcia
I think you will have a nice time at Sandals-you will have a fun time- and as you said next trip try TB
My husband & I first went to Jamaica and stayed at Sandles Dunns River 10 years ago, then we went with our kids to Beaches Negril. Both were fun experiences but now over the last two years we have tried non AI vacations - which I will say we have enjoyed more (they have been in Mexico)
We are headed back to Jamaica next year with our kids to TB for a real Jamaican experience. We can not wait- it sounds great!
With that all said you will enjoy your trip to Sandals- have a great time!

Big Cat --- There are boats going out of Parrottee Point area as well as the small hotel there to Pelican Bar; you can probably easily pay one to go further to TB and then get a driver back to Black River.

uncadeez,
I would love to cancel my trip to Sandals and stay in TB but it is so close to our departure date that we would end up losing money. We are not dirt poor, but far from rich {my husbands a self employed carpenter, I'm a stay at home mom with 6 kids}. Every penny in our house counts. We are the type of people that have to put our vacations in "lay-away". I wish I would have found this web site about 2 months ago. Then I could have canceled and gotten a full refund. But you can bet that next year we will be spending our whole vacation time in TB. Probably while we are there for our day trip I will be checking out diff. places to stay. I want to add that I think this is a great website! I appreciate all of the responses to my original post. I just wish I would have found you guys sooner...
Marcia

I wonder why fishermen in Whitehouse haven't started doing Black River tours by boat like Dennis Abrahams and others do from TB. It seems like a similar distance.

Marcia, do take the opportunity to check out a few villas or guesthouses in TB....it'll make planning for next year much easier. Our first trip to TB was too short, only 2 or 3 nights, but it gave us a taste of what we wanted for a longer stay the next time. Unfortunately Hurricane Ivan changed our plans (when your villa falls into the sea, that's a problem, we had to switch to the NE coast) but next time it's a for sure deal.

I'm especially looking forward to my children experiencing it...we came to TB from Negril for a morning last year, to meet Dennis and his boat for a trip to Black River, and they really wanted to stay longer.

Liz/there's a whole clutch of boatmen opposite Charlie Swaby's Safari Queen operation going after the same tourist business, mainly pontoon boats chasing crocs -- you can hire to go up river -- but none as experienced and "ungravilicious" at TB's boatmen.

Probably the reason that the fisherman in Whitehouse don't do the tour to the Black River is because Sandals is not known for encouraging their guests to step out of their walls to experience something as wonderful as this. Other than a few guests houses, Sandals is the biggest market down there and this is not something they would encourage. Their loss

Just got back from TB this week. I spent a week there with my two kids. We stayed at Sunset Resort Villas and had a great time. It was a perfect set up so that I got a vacation too. TB was a great choice with kids.

I met some people at Jake's who had come in for the day from Sandals. They had been to every Sandals that exists. They were very impressed with TB and said they plan to come there on their next trip. They were having a nice time at Sandals. I think the drive would be about 1/2 hour.

I agree with the advice of not booking it through Sandals. Have fun.

Because, I hear you, but have been around a couple of Sandals b boards lately and quite a few people are otping out of the Sandals tours and using local drivers (arranged in advance online)...and at least one Sandals WH guest arranged a fishing trip from WH with a local fisherman.

If I were in the WH area (I can dream, yes?) I might see what I could do to promote that sort of tour, as it has been one of our very favorite trips when done from TB. So much so that we drove our kids to TB specifically to do it again when we were staying in Negril last year