Royal Decameron Cornwall Beach

OUR experience was very good. As with every resort there were a few glitches but we are low maintenance people. [Details]

The people make the difference!
The staff is well trained and readily available to assist.
The beach (thanks swiper), Pool (thanks Fabian) and coffee bar (thanks Antoinette) all made the trip extra special. [Details]

We travelled to Montego Bay in July with our 2yr old son. It was our first family vacation, so we were a little worried going to a resort that wasn't centred around kids. However everyone at the resort made sure that we had everything we needed from start to finish. It is a little bit of a older resort, however it is well maintained. Rooms are clean and well stocked with drinks and towels. The pool was always clean. And the beach is well maintained. Because of our son, we ate mostly at the buffet. Buffet had a great assortment of food. Every night there was live entertainment that was enjoyable by all ages. Travis was one of the main entertainers at the resort, and he always went out of his way to ensure we were taken care of and were enjoying ourselves. He also he helped to ensure our son was entertained as well, and even brought him on stage during one of the performances! Janice and Dwayne at the front desk were also very accommodating and helped to ensure that we had everything we needed as new parents taking care of a young one. They ensured a crib was available, and that we a room available suitable for our son's nap time etc. Great customer service. Would highly recommend. [Details]

*Airport and ride to hotel: Very efficient and after a very short drive we were at our hotel within 30 minutes of landing.
*Check-in: we arrived at the hotel around 11am, so as expected, the rooms were not ready. They took our luggage to a safe place and we were able to enjoy the resort right away. At 2:30pm we were able to go to our rooms.
*Rooms: we loved our room, the view is amazing. The beds are very comfortable (firm). Nice big shower with good pressure and plenty of hot water. The size of the room was just fine. A few negative notes are : lacks a little storage in the room, no where to put shampoo bottles in the shower (our friends didn't even have a soap dish in the shower), bathroom door is a glass barn style sliding door with openings all over, not so great for sounds and smells staying in the bathroom.(I heard that one room does not even have a door for the bathroom) Bring Kleenex there are none in the rooms. The water is drinkable everywhere so no worries about brushing your teeth or showering.
*Cleanness: no complaints, the rooms were kept clean. A few days during the week we did not receive any facecloths, when we asked about it, we were told that there was none left. The rest of the resort was clean and well kept.
* Pool: The pool is small, but never crowded. My biggest complaint is that the pool was never opened before 10:30, because they start cleaning it at 8:30am and we were not allowed in until he finished. One day it did not open until 11am. The pool water was always little cloudy.
*Beach: The beach is beautiful the water is wonderful. For those who have sensitive feet bring water shoes, for there are rocks and broken sea shells. We had waves on the first day, but all the other days the water was calm, perfect for snorkeling. The snorkeling can be done from the beach, please note not to ever touch or stand in the corral areas of the beach. My only complaint is the stupid reserving of chairs. You had to be out there reserving a chair by 6am. I hate this part of all inclusive resorts. The people from the sister resort are not allowed to use the beach chairs, but some did just the same leaving those from Cornwall Beach without. Some were told to leave, but not all. Everything is close to the beach, bar, water, pool and bathrooms. No salesmen bothering you while on the beach.
*Smoke: I am usually bothered by this in all inclusive resorts, but not this time. Yes, you smell weed every now and then , but I kinda like that smell compared to cigars and cigarettes.
*Bars and Drinks: Never had to wait very long for a drink. They were open to making any drink you wanted. My only disappointment was their Margaritas (not good at all). The only frozen drinks they had were Pina colada and strawberry daiquiri. The only have one kind of beer (Red Stripe) it was good, but we like trying different kinds. The wine was ok not as bad as I had read in other reviews.
*Food: The buffet was great; it had an amazing variety and new things every day to try. Some of the food was a little cold at times, but hey, that is buffet eating. We went to Souk at the sister resort and we were not impressed, we did not like the food at all and the service was not great, we left halfway through our meal and went to the buffet. We laughed when we noticed that other people from the restaurant also went to the buffet. We ate at the Olivia twice and really enjoyed our meals. The steak is really good. We did have an evening treat at the grill at 11:30 pm once and it was good.
*Staff and entertainment: overall the staff is great. Of course, you always have those few that are rude and wouldn't crack a smile if their life depended on it. The entertainment team are very fun and friendly and really work hard to get people involved. We noticed that the people that come to this hotel are older (we are in our 50s and felt like the young ones at times).There was hardly any children and very little partying. It seemed to be a much younger crowd at the sister hotel. As for evening entertainment, there was music in the lobby until 11pm and then everything was quiet. Please note that Jamaicans are very laid back people and have their own pace, so if you are a fast pace person, you may need to relax and say “ya mon, relax ” and remember that you are on vacation.
Wifi: free every where. It was very good in the rooms, lobby and buffet area but on and off at the beach. [Details]

Overall an amazing vacation! This is not a resort for people who like to party in the evening (as things shut down pretty early). [Details]

If you would like to daydream, read, swim, volleyball, listen to music your day away go to the Royal Decameron, Cornwall Beach for a tranquil/ action (if you want it) vacation. We were so impressed with our stay in December that we decided to return this June and were again impressed. The staff actually welcomed us "back" ,like family and that was the tone for the entire two weeks. The pool is humongous, the beach is gorgeous, and the accomadation is modern and roomy. This resort is great value for your dollar and if I wasn't writing this review, I would keep it a secret so that I alone would know about this Jamaican gem! [Details]

The hotel was overall great. However, a few important things were really lacking.

Areas of strength:
- rooms are immaculate and all have a gorgeous view
- Pool is large and clean in front of the ocean
- Hotel staff were kind and friendly

Lacking:
- Food was horrible and physically made us sick. They need to step up their game for a 4 star resort in Jamaica. More Jamaican dishes would be nice and a jerk hut.
-Drinks were pretty bad as well. Even though they had Smirnoff vodka you had to ask for it over and over again or they would have give you the cheap version of everything.
-Please for the love of god have more entertainment and fun activities for adults going on. Even the sister resort shows were mostly boring. I have stayed at the sister resort 4 times and every year the entertainment gets worse and worse. step up your game and go back to make this resort the fun resort it use to be. [Details]

Very friendly staff, good food, clean rooms. Beach and pool area very well kept. Lots to do everyday or just sit on the beach and relax. [Details]