Idle Awhile The Villas

The villa, beach, and food were all nice, and the staff were pretty good too. But why is there no conditioner? I’ve never stayed somewhere that provides soap and shampoo but not conditioner. Please provide it for guests like every other hotel, villa, or Airbnb does.

Our group of 13 friends from across the US had beautiful, clean, tropical villas at Idle Awhile last month. We were meant to arrive on the day the airspace shut down. The villa staff were excellent: the cleaning staff, butlers, and chefs were exquisite, and Chef Austin delivered on every meal. The experience with our team was 5/5, while the location and villas were 4.5/5. The only bad experience was with the front desk, who were very rude and showed no empathy about the shutdown. I asked what they could do for us if no one could enter the country, and one woman immediately said there would be no refunds, period. I hadn’t asked for a refund, just what our options were. They should respond to customers in a more approachable way. Maybe they were comfortable because I’m Jamaican and spoke patois with them, but as a former customer service leader, I know that’s not how to handle a situation when someone has spent $12,000 on villas. That’s why I’m giving 4/5 rather than 5/5.

Yesterday in Negril, a security guard at the beach end of this accommodation treated us in an embarrassing and demeaning way. We’re visiting Jamaica from the UK and wanted to check out 7 mile beach for our next trip. Walking along the beach, we saw the property and stopped to ask a few general questions. The guard rushed straight at us and said it was private property and we should leave. We turned around and walked away, but he followed us onto the public beach and told my 10-year-old nephew not to kick the sand. It was a horrible experience and practically ruined my day. We went on to book somewhere else not far away.

We stayed at Idle Awhile Villas with family for a family wedding. The villa was beautiful, but the staff are what make it five star. Aldean and Seymour were amazing hosts and gave top-notch service.