My family of five had their first international va...

My family of five had their first international vacation at Beaches Ocho Rios last week. Absolutely every part of our stay was fantastic .. beyond fantastic actually! We traveled as husband and wife with our three children ages 10, 11 and 11.

The accommodations: We stayed in a very comfortable suite with a sofa bed, roll-away and two double beds. The balcony was perfectly sized and there were great ocean views from our balcony as well! The bathroom was very nicely updated and we slept comfortably every night.
It was nicely cleaned every day and was a very cozy place to lay our heads each day.

The Food: The food at this resort is phenomenal and always available! We enjoyed absolutely any dish we could have imagined and our children had the opportunity to try new dishes which was such an amazing experience! Every meal, the children were presented with the daily specialty beverage, and our kids loved to fill up on specialty children's cocktails.

The Resort/Location: Perfect. At first, we were a bit concerned with the layout as the beach is smaller than some other beaches, but it was private and absolutely perfect. The moment you are on property you feel like you are in a whole new world - all to yourself. The placement of each activity was perfect and we felt right at home during our stay.

The Activities/Entertainment: These are available GALORE. There was so much to do every single day that I wish we could have stayed longer to do it all over and over again! The Carnival show was fantastic and a highlight of our evening entertainment. Again, the staff just makes everything wonderful and our kids thought Tom Cruise was just the best!

The Staff: This is where I could write a novel. The staff is INCREDIBLE: every. single. one. of. them. Our children made friends with many staff members. We were a bit conservative in regard to leaving our kids to play at the kids' club, water park and Xbox lounge but once we took the leap we realized there was nothing to be worried about! My husband and I had an incredible couples massage while our children played with the staff and made new friends from all over the world. The incredible service, entertainment, love and care that the staff at this property gives is superb. Our children wish the staff could have adopted them!

Outside Excursions: Plan to check with the excursion desk on-site for any additional island activities you may want to do! We hoped to catch a Sea Turtle Watching excursion (this only happens certain times through the year), but weren't able to fit it in our schedule. Instead, we chose to do the Reading Road Trip which is an incredible experience. We visited a local school where we played with school children and read books, practiced math and colored. It was so terrific. We also brought a backpack of school supplies which they were very thankful for!

Thank you Beaches Ocho Rios for giving our family the vacation of a lifetime. I'm sure we will see you very soon, as our children refuse to go anywhere else but back home!