TRIP REPORT GRAND LIDO SANS SOUCI
My husband and I entered into the Lido Lottery hoping that we would end up at the Grand Lido Sans Souci. To our delight Sans Souci ended up being our honeymoon destination. We arrived in Jamaica at the beginning of August and it was HOT! Upon arriving at the airport we were directed to the Sunquest Vacations booth and arrangements were made for our luggage. One word of advice, bring American money!
The bus ride is two and half-hours, with a stop off at a small bar. Here you can purchase Jamaica’s tasty but potent Rum punch or have their famous beer "Redstripe" and order up a "real" Jamaican beef patty. Once back on the bus you can sip your beverages and take in all the information the driver has to offer, including brushing up on the Jamaican way of speaking.
After the lengthy bus ride we arrive to paradise. Welcome to GL Sans Souci. The lobby is open with many ceiling fans and is quite breathtaking. Upon entering the guests are taken to the Games Room where you are briefed on the resort (a complete orientation is available later on), you are asked to look over your reservations and make sure all the information they have is correct. A friendly waiter walks in and serves up a yummy fruit punch and warm fresh face towels are handed out to refresh you from the long trip.
The only downside to arriving early as we did around noon is that the rooms are not ready until after 3:00 p.m., which makes no sense in why they have very early morning flights. Lunch was arranged and we followed Wade, one of the many Social Directors to the Palezzina where breakfast and lunch are served daily, then turning into an Italian restaurant at night. Lunch was quite a site, with tons of fresh fruit, amazing vegetables and heavenly food. After lunch we still had about two hours to kill before our room was ready and we were hot! We opted to sit in the lobby and chat with the other new guests that arrived with us that day. Growing impatient as all we wanted to do was get into our room, unpack and hit the beach my husband along with a few other guests finally asked that we be taken to our rooms. This was done so immediately.
A small van picks you up and takes you to the section of the resort where you are staying. We were in "D" block called Dahlia. Our room was on the first floor quite close to the lobby and the Palezzina. The room was quite nice with a king size bed, two sinks in the bathroom, a Jacuzzi, and a separate sitting area. My only complaint with our room was that it needed to be upgraded. It was fairly old with respect to the lamps; the curtain in the bathroom was very dirty and had a burn hole in it. The bathroom cabinets are quite old as well. The floors were not very clean, which made me purchase slippers, after our first day of walking bare foot around the room, our feet were black.
We unpacked and made our way to the beach, the water is simply gorgeous and clear. Shades of green and blue. The beach is quite lovely although if you plan to walk the beach each morning, think again, it is not a long stretch of beach. There are many beach chairs and palm umbrellas to sit under to keep out of the sun. Various trees also provide plenty of shade.
You must make reservations for two of the three restaurants, the Italian and Casanova. Casanova is French cuisine and by far the best one going. Men, be sure to pack a pair of pants and jacket is you have one, plus no opened toe shoes are to be worn by the men. If you do not have a jacket one can be provided for you. Once you have been seated you can place the jacket on the back of your chair. Ladies bring plenty of dressy clothes, the entire two weeks we were there I did not see one woman dressed in shorts and a T-shirt at dinner, except at the Bella Vista where you are seated on the beach and may dine on real Jamaican food. The Bella Vista was my least favorite, but husband enjoyed all three restaurants. The Italian is amazing, not quite up to Casanova’s standards, but very good. This is casual dress, but again most women were dressed up. Reservations can be made via the telephone in your room; it is wise to book the day before. Room service is also available 24 hours and is outstanding. Room service usually takes 30 minutes depending on what you order. Our first few nights we were greeted with fruit, crackers cheese and bottles of champagne for being on our honeymoon. My husband and I were completely blown away at the service, the friendliness of the people and the incredible taste of the food.
The weather was perfect for the two weeks were there. And if it does rain the sun is bound to come out around 2:00 p.m. The games room offers much to do with chess, checkers, billards and plenty of board games. A library of books is available to you in case you need something to read. Each night show time brings you wonderful music, a fashion show, a play and dancing to a guest singer with the resident band.
This all takes place at the Balloon Bar near the lobby adjacent to Casanova.
Tuesday’s and Friday’s the restaurants close down. Jamaican night is Tuesday with a fabulous feast on the beach served buffet style. Lobster, tons of fish, jerk pork and jerk chicken along with many dishes of pasta salad, tossed green salad and many more. You are seated with other guests, which gives you a chance to meet new people. A show is put on after dinner.
Friday is Gala night. This is beautiful, the main lawn area is made into white silk open tents with white lights, and it is simply gorgeous. This is nouvelle cuisine with everything from Sushi, to stir fry, pasta and prime rib, ham and once again fish. The desserts are simply to die for. Every lunch and dinner you can enjoy a wonderful selection of desserts that are quite light on the stomach.
Sans Souci is not a party place, it’s a very romantic, secluded and quiet resort which is exactly what my husband and I were looking for. You can party if that’s what you want but you won’t find the resort to be loud. The service at this resort will blow your mind, for two weeks my husband and I did not lift a finger to do anything. The staff is always smiling and friendly and willing to do anything to make your stay the best. The beach staff are also very friendly and are willing to show you how to use any of the watersports and will even take you out if you are uncomfortable using any of the kayaks, bikes, hobies etc on your own.
My husband and I would definitely recommend the Grand Lido Sans Souci to anyone. It was simply put "Heaven on Earth". I have never had the kind of service at any other resort I have been too and it will be very hard to beat the GL Sans Souci. In fact my husband and I are already discussing going back next summer for another wonderful stay.
Everyone’s opinion’s are different, we’ve heard that the Braco and Negril are both very nice, however we did hear that it rains everyday in Negril from 2:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. and that the Braco is more of a party resort. If you are planning on a trip to Jamaica and the Lido Sans Souci is your destination we hope that you enjoy your stay as much we did!
Pat and Tracie Carito