ugh, which couples is for us?

[whammer33024]

first post...i'm sure this is asked a lot, lol.

my wife and i are planning to take our honeymoon together sometime in early 2013(january to april sometime) and i'm having trouble picking which resort to stay at. i was set on CSS but the beach doesn't sound as great as CSA or CN. i will list some things we want and who we are and maybe you guys can help me out!

-solid beach. not necessarily HUGE, but we like to take walks together. i've heard CSS has some paths you can walk, but i think a beach walk would be nice too?

-good sized pool with swim up bar

-would prefer not to be haggled by people on the beach selling things but can deal with it if its not that bad

-i'm not too picky on room but would like a good balcony with a decent view of whatever it may be(don't want to look at a wall)

-good restaurants. i'm not a high class eater by any means, but i'm picky about my food meaning i don't like to try many different things. honestly, give me a burger and i'm happy. buffets are great too

-i assume all are romantic, but this is our honeymoon so the more romantic the better

-i plan to lay on the beach or around the pool for the most part, but some fun excursions would be great too. i'd like to snorkel, maybe a dolphin swim or something, and a catamaran ride.

-some sort of night life with music

-won't necessarily play volleyball on the beach, but it'd be a nice option

i'm sure i will have more but that's a solid start. we get one shot at a honeymoon and i want to do it right. thanks!

shane

[Ladydia41]

I would suggest Couples Negril, because it seems that the pool/swim up bar and beach being perfect is at the top of your list, followed by CSA. The vendors on the beach are not a problem, they have to walk the water line and can only approach you if you've asked them to. Security keeps a sharp eye on them. The restaurants at CN are great, always lots of choices or a burger at the grill is good. There is no direct beach view at CN, but all rooms have a nice view of the gardens/and or partial beach view. You've made an great choice in selecting Couples and actually can't go wrong with any of them. Have fun!!!!

[Wally]

CN

[softail19]

Csa is our favorite. Trip #5 booked. We have also been to CSS and visited cnegril on the trading places day pass. CSA or cnegril would both fit your criteria but for us, we won't go anywhere else now. We were married there in 04 and have been spoiled ever since. If you would like a few pics, email me at clemonssara40@gmail.com
welcome to the Couples family and you will have a great time wherever you end up.

[baddog65]

Every thing Ladydia41 is true. I have to say Negril as well. I think it has all you are looking for. The beach doesnt have the traffic that Sweptaway has because there are less hotels on Bloody Bay, therefore less traffic. Catarmaran sunset cruise, with a stop at the cave. Be sure to jump in and explore the horseshoe shaped cave.The vendors on the beach are not a problem, the food, staff, guests and the vibe there are great. The beach is amazing. about 2 miles long. Clear water. We're going back for 10 days at the end of February. Choosing Couples is a great start regardless of where you decide to go. Best wishes !!

[Janicek]

CN meets every one of your criteria. We are headed back for our third trip there in less than two months.

[softail19]

One of the perks of staying at CSA is you have the freedom to walk Long Bay and go shopping and bar hopping. You have to take a cab from cnegril or do the Trading Places, I'm just sayin.

[Ladydia41]

These videos are awesome, if you haven't already seen them. A blend of all 4 resorts, there's no bad choice


http://vimeo.com/couplesresorts

[BrendaandBruce.PA]

CN will be perfect for what you are looking for. We have stayed there 3x, 8x at Couples. We have only done the trading places day at CSA but it was too large and busy for us. CN is smaller and more intimate and you won't have the amount of vendors that are at CSA. The rooms with their ocean views are nicer at CSA but how much time do you spend in the room. The rooms at CN are nice with either garden views are partial ocean views. We usually stay in the Beachfront rooms and have decent views of the ocean. We do also love CSS, which is our favorite. But the beach is very small. But you can't beat the overall resort for beauty and ocean views. You can't take long walks on the beach but there are so many areas to walk on the property you won't believe it. It is the smallest and most romantic of the Couples resorts. We go back and forth between CN and CSS. Best wishes to you both.

[Surfhary20]

Personally I would side with Softail19... We have been to CSA 5 times (in 11 days) and while it is well known that ANY Couples resort is outstanding we love CSA! We went with some friends when I proposed, went back for our honeymoon and have gone with other friends for their honeymoon’s and NONE have been anything more than completely satisfied!!

Beach – CSA by far has the longest beach which is a part of 7 mile beach that you can walk all day everyday if you so choose!! You will encounter more vendors once you leave Couples property but a simple “No thanks is typically sufficient.” Keep in mind that Jamaica’s economy relies on tourism as its main source of income and most of the vendors are only trying to support their families so please be polite. But from CSA you can walk to Margaritaville and various shopping areas.

Pool – CSA has 3 pools, the main pool by the Palms, the Fitness pool (full size and usually VERY quiet) and the swim up bar with the everlasting pool feeding into it. From what I know CSA has some of the smaller pools of all the resorts but we never have a problem using them however we are there for the beach and ocean mostly.

Vendors – On the actual resort, CSA security only allows about 3 vendors to walk the water line. Elvis, he is a great guy and handles the parasailing, jet skiing type activities. A 2 or 3 man band that plays acoustic Reggae and are very good! Lastly there is the Cigarette/Cigar man who obviously is selling cigarettes and cigars, you can hear him coming with his trademark “HOT HOT HOT” chant. All of them are very nice and not pushy at all!! CSA does allow outside vendors to set up on the property certain days, they are all fine as well, no pressure sales, etc.

Restaurants – CSA has the Palms (buffet style breakfast with made to order omelets), Lemongrass (Thai food), Seagrapes (healthy light snacks), the Cabana Grill (24 hour food service with anything from Jerk chicken to burgers), Patios Patio (great food!!! Menu ordering with a variety of options!) and lastly Feathers (fine dining with amazing options!!).

Romantic - As you said ALL Couples are top of the line in the romance department!! We do prefer the secluded, laidback, rustic style that CSA has to it. We stay in the older section Atrium Suites. They are perfect for us!! Very large balconies with hammocks, NO TV, mini bar, with its best feature being that your room does NOT share a wall with another (small garden areas separate the rooms in the 4-plex units). We rarely see and never hear our neighbors if there are any! They are also located in the gardens so your view is never of a wall of another unit!!

Excursions – They offer all the normal excursions of the other resorts, snorkeling, glass bottom boat tour, catamaran cruise, etc. Try not to over schedule yourself at first, make sure to leave beach and relaxation time, you can always schedule more!!

Nightlife – There are some nightly activities, shows at the Palms, Live music played on the beach during a bonfire, etc. The real sources of the nightlife are the piano bar and the Aura lounge. The piano bar is a great atmosphere for a relaxing evening option and the Aura lounge is more of a dance club type environment that will stay open as long as you are there!!!

Volleyball – A staff member will typically try to organize a game or 2 each day but it is always up if you so desire! They also have horseshoe pits, bocce ball, tennis, racquetball, Croquet, etc.

To reiterate the other comments you can’t go wrong with any couples resort and each MB poster will have their own opinions so weigh your priorities and make a choice. I saw a great comment on a similar post “Flip a coin and while it’s in the air you will know which one you are rooting for!” I would say being 1st timers that registering for the Rewards program is a great idea so that you can then visit the neighboring resort and have that info for your next trip (which once you arrive you are sure to be thinking of)!! Best of luck on your decision and welcome to the devoted Couple family!!

[csaandcountingdown]

You know, this question has been asked a thousand times and your always going to get different answers from everyone. There are those who like CN, CSS, CTI, or our favorite CSA, all Couples stays are the best.

We started our venture with Couples in 2000 at CTI and almost every year since then we've stayed at CSA. CTI was very nice and we really enjoyed our stay there, but we really like CSA. Two years ago, while staying at CSA we took a day pass and went over to CN, and it also was o.k. but no CSA.

We now have our 8th trip planned for November at CSA and can't wait until we get there, 62 days 9 hours, 53 min, 28 sec. The thing we like the most, besides the people, staff, food, swim up bars, snorkeling, scuba diving, oh I could just go on forever, as my friends will tell you. We like to take a walk every night after dinner and even though it's the same walk we seem to see something different every night.
So as you can see we LOVE CSA, but that doesn't mean that you will. It has everything on your list and then some and the beach is great.

The saying is "ONCE YOU GO YOU KNOW" is what the everyone says.

[chippiesue]

I think honeymoon CSS is a definite. So romantic with all the winding paths huge trees, greens , fllowers and candles. The spa has the best views and I believe it was voted #1 last year.
My second is cn for a little more activity and beach scene. You will enjoy which ever one you pick. Have fun