CTI Review for March 27-April 3
We just returned from our trip to CTI, and I have to admit that I am going through a serious case of withdrawal right now.
CTI was wonderful!! We went there with a few worries about how it would measure up to CSS, but quickly found out that CTI has it's own magic. It is very different from CSS, but just as wonderful.
We felt that the staff at CTI was incredible. From the bellhop who showed us to our room, to Karon at the veggie bar, to the maid who made up our room each day...every single person was cheerful and made us feel like family. The entertainment staff is fun, and plan many great activities.
The food was absolutely fantastic. We especially liked the marlin dip and sweet potato chips at the veggie bar, the jerk chicken and pork, the snapper sandwich at the pool grill, and the awesome variety of desserts for lunch and dinner each night. Our favorite restaurant was 8 Rivers...the Beef Wellington was to die for, as were the crab cakes. Our least favorite was Bayside...the food was very good, but it was the only restaurant that didn't go the extra mile to accomodate my husband's allergies. He had to simply go without a soup or salad that night, which we were disappointed in. We both felt that since we had given them a heads-up about his allergies, that they might have gotten him some soup and salad from the buffet, instead of making him go without. That being said, the rest of the meal was excellent. The Verandah was also excellent..in fact we ate there twice in order to try everything.
The watersports are a lot of fun, and the staff there are very helpful. We loved the hobie cats, especially when Gary took us out and seranaded us the entire time. We even saw a school of flying fish!! Incredible! The water trikes are also fun, as was snorkeling off the beach at the island. We met the friendliest little fish who seemed to guide us around to all of the "good' spots. The catamaran cruise was a good time, and we especially enjoyed swimming in the blue, blue water.
Our room was very nice, and we enjoyed sitting on the balcony every morning and evening. It was a nice surprise to get champagne, cheese, fruit and crackers on both our first night at the resort and our last night.
We also enjoyed the spa area. We had a 1 hour aromatherapy massage which I actually enjoyed, even though I am not a massage type person. We really liked the hot tubs at night in the spa area, and usually had them to ourselves while everyone else was at the shows. It was so relaxing to sit there with the tree frogs singing.
I know that many people have been worried about the beach due to erosion, but believe me, there is plenty of room for sitting out. The erosion is worst by the watersport area, which is not where anybody sits out anyway. We had only one red flag day during our entire stay, so we were really able to enjoy the beach.
We are not big pool people, but did jump in both pools for a while. They are very nice, and not crowded at all.
CTI was definitely beyond what I expected, and has made our decision about where to go for our 30th anniversary very difficult. Perhaps we'll have to try a split stay between CSS and CTI to get the best of all worlds.
