I am welcome to Mouse to… Wow, my chat didn't come out. Anyway, welcome to Mouse Chat. I'm Lisa and joining me at that Caitlin and Steve. We've got a small group. Yeah, we're just the two of us. Hello. Hi friends. Everyone do you want to? Yeah. Yeah. We got the three amigo clips tonight. Yay! Yeah. Um… Back from Jamaica. So is Brenda out of town? Oh, I don't know. Brenda's… Yes, I think. Brenda's now… Sharpies under the weather. So they will be back on a future show.

Hopefully Sharpie gets feels better. Brenda will be back. Yep. So what we're going to do today is talk about sandals. Sandals and beaches. And it's a name that most people know when it comes to an all-inclusive resort. Sandals… They do a lot of advertising. And I remember this is so stupid. But when I would watch Sesame Street as a kid, they would have those sponsored by beaches resorts. And I never knew what that meant. And I'm always like, oh wow, that looks really cool.

Beaches resort. And now, I actually know what they are. And we're talking a long time ago. So… Wow, they've had a relationship that long. That's crazy. The partnership. Yeah. So we're going to be talking about specifically South Carolina South Carolina. And we're going to talk about something that's perfectly South Coast and Negril. As far as the sandals go. Those are both in Jamaica. And then also beaches Negril. Yeah. Because Steve got to go. Yeah.

So I figured we'd do just a quick show. Because we usually do mostly Disney. But you want to go to an all-inclusive, or you want to go to Jamaica. Sandals is for couples. So if you don't know, it could be any couple. But so no kids. And then… Or just a dull, you could be a friend group, right? Yeah. So you could have a girls weekend or whatever. And then beaches is for families. Yeah. Well, they do prefer like if you've got a bachelor at party or something like that,

that you go to beaches. It is more toward the couple. So it's not like you can go with your girlfriends and look to hook up with someone or, you know, to meet someone new. It is meant for people that are already paired up. But the occasional mother daughter or something like that, that's typically okay. Yeah. So… But just so you know, if you go as a single, you're not going to find many other singles. This is couples that are already established.

Yeah. So it's not… So yeah, only couples can go and then for beaches would be for families. So Jamaica overall, if you don't know. So most people's experience of Jamaica, and this was my experience of Jamaica, is on a cruise. And it's absolutely the worst experience of Jamaica. You could ever have. Well, most of those cruise ports are not authentic. Yeah. So… The control experiences. So when I first was talking to someone who was from Jamaica about going to the actual island,

I was like, it's like the worst place. It's like I have no desire to go. And then he's like, you went on a cruise, didn't you? And I was like, yeah. And he's like, to actually Jamaica and stay at the hotels and meet the people. And I was like, all right. So he talked me into it. And so once… And so the cruise experience is usually not great. So if you had that experience, you got to give it a try. So sandals has, I think it's either seven or eight resorts in Jamaica.

And then they have two beaches resorts. So that's their island that they have the most resorts at. So the other experience that most people have is they go to an all-inclusive or one of these nice resorts, which is kind of this kind of gated community experience, which is nice. But it's not a kind of true Jamaican experience. But so that's the other experience that most people have that I love. And you can also do excursions. And you get to see a little bit of Jamaica.

And then the other kind of version of Jamaica that people get to do is like, you go and you stay at a small boutique hotel and you actually go eat at the restaurants and you meet the locals and do that. So those are kind of the three different experiences. So I did go to South Coast and we've all been to South Coast. It used to be called sandals White House because that's the name of the Providence. But I think Lisa's been. Caitlin's been. Yep. Yes.

That's actually one of my, that your favorite. Probably my favorite. Yeah. Is definitely my favorite in Jamaica. Agree. It's an amazing property for sure. I do want to try that new Duns River. I have to go to, yeah, I still have not been to Duns River. And I've heard mixed. I've heard people. Yeah. So South Coast, the advantages of South Coast is it's huge. It's like over 100 acres. So it's a very large property. It's, it's kind of out in the middle of nowhere.

So you have this beach, this massive expansive beach with white sand on this beautiful. It goes on and on and on and on. And there's like nobody on that beach. So if that's your thing, there's no vendors. You know, all the beaches are public, but there's like nobody on that beach. So that's very nice. They have a Italian village, a Dutch village and a French village. And Caitlin and I were talking before the show. They've renamed them all. Mr. Keep you on your toes.

So, and I don't have the new names in front of me. But basically the Italian village is the one on the left. The Dutch village is right on the water, which has kind of the really nice rooms. And then the French village opens in about a week. And when we were there, it was almost done. They were doing the landscaping around it. And you could see the little soaking tubs on the balconies and pictures of the rooms. And it looks amazing. So that is, that was the village that was kind of like a need of a little TLC.

So that one is going to be done. And here are just a couple more days. So I think that wraps that resort up nicely. So it'll be all fresh and clean. So what makes this resort stand out to you? Is it that the beaches so empty or? The beach is nice. It's an older crowd. So I was like, you know, I'm always looking around. So it's like a 50 plus crowd. Although I've been there other times where it's a slightly younger crowd. But it's definitely older crowd.

But there were some honeymoon couples there. Well, honeymoon can mean anything. Yeah. Latitudes is cool. So it's an over the water bar with hammocks all the way around. It's like a circular bar. And it's out on the water. And it's lit up. So at night, you know, you see the fish swimming around. And then you can get in these hammocks all the way around if you want. So that's awesome. They have an over the water wedding pavilion or chapel. So we've toured that and it has those glass bottom floors.

You can see the fish and stuff during the ceremony. So that's cool. They have a lot of peacocks. I don't want a cat. Yes. Lots of cats. Lots of kitties and lots of peacocks all over the property. I did try the Asian restaurant, which was good. So I had two entrees. Salmon was always good. And they have a beef burgundy, which is their special. And then they also have some kind of noodles. Like Asian noodles with seafood. And you can split those two entrees and get half and half.

But that was really, really good and really great service. So sometimes the service is slow. Like at any of these like Caribbean island time resorts. But lately, the ones I've been to, the service has been really good. Just pace just right. The food is really good. Like sometimes it all includes as you're like, oh, the food's kind of okay. It's not, you know, it's like better than cruise line, but it's kind of, you know, some of it's kind of average, but the food here was like phenomenal.

Really? Yeah. Okay. So I thought that was good. The downside is the resort's kind of quiet. So if you're looking for like activities and things, they did have a steel drum band one night. That was good. And that was good. And then they had like a kind of Cirque du Soleil show after that that was outside. And that was kind of good. But as soon as that's over. Yeah. Then there's kind of karaoke in the martini bar. Until 2 a.m. So that is going on. But that's the only thing kind of going on.

Yeah. There are different vibes at different resorts. So don't. Don't make the mistake that all sandals resorts are going to feel the same. But just at a different location or a different building structure. They're all quite different. And they appeal to different people for different reasons. Yeah. Now the swim up bar, the main pool, the bartenders, they're phenomenal. Like because we had a group and the bartenders, they were doing dance contests for us.

And they were doing like singing contests. And then they would do different cheers and toes. Oh, and then we had everybody tell us their best joke. And they had all these Jamaican jokes that made no sense. And we had all these American jokes that made no sense. The them. So. So we did that. So that was fun because they actually got into it. So if you get a bunch of good bartenders at one of those swim up bars, it's a lot of fun. So that was good. You know, but then about six o'clock it kind of dies down there.

And everybody's getting ready for dinner. So yeah, sometimes things do die down early. Yeah. So that's the only thing with that resort. The two things is that it's quiet. And it's a plus if you like that or a negative if you don't. And there's not a lot of activities out in that area. So if you want to do like excursions and things like that, there's not a lot in that South Coast area. Versus a Negro or Oterios is kind of where all that stuff is. But if you just want to be at the resort and enjoy the resort

and go snorkeling or scuba diving or go on the glass bottom boat or just relax with the pool. And then we had to go to the pool. And hang out, you do have pickle ball. They have tennis. So it's a good resort for that. And the beach, if I recall is private. So. Yeah, there's like, yeah, there's nobody on there locally. And there's no other resource. Yeah, it's hard to get to because it's kind of a cove. Yeah, because there are some. All inclusive resorts where the beach, like the shore.

Yeah. Is public. But then there's, you know, as soon as you get to the lounge chairs of the beach chairs, it becomes private. So you really need your room key or sometimes you'll get a. Yeah. That shows that yes, you are able to use the resort and manatees. Yeah. So. The nice thing. South Coast is like. No one can come up in the next one. Yeah, so you think some things like that. Yeah. So that's, yeah, that is definitely nice in there. The other thing is the ride over there is not phenomenal.

So. When you fly into Montego Bay, there are two sandals resorts that are very close to the airport. So sandals Montego Bay is literally 10 minutes from the airport, which is positive and a negative because you can watch the planes take off from the beach all day long at the resort. Yeah. Yeah. We had a room that overlooked the runway. Yeah. So you could, you could literally watch the plane's take off. So that's the disadvantage, but it's very close.

So the transfer time and transfers are included. And then sandals Royal Caribbean, which is maybe. Another 15 minutes from that resort. So they both are very close. All the other resorts are like an hour and a half. drive. And they include that. So you're not paying for that. And you do get a rest stop in the middle of that. Maybe. They did not rest stop on ours. Ever. Oh, no. And ours either. Really. Yeah. So it just depends. They used to. And I've heard sometimes they do it sometimes they don't.

So that's the past. And we all said we're good or something like that. No, they didn't. Yeah. And ours it was like they didn't even ask. Yeah. But sorry. So it's an hour and a half from Montego Bay to Sandal South Coast. And it's over a mountain and over this little hilly up and down and around. So it's. Can they drive on the opposite side? Yeah. And there's goats and chickens. Yeah. So it's. Yeah. If you haven't been to a place like that, it's definitely an experience.

Yeah. So if you haven't been to a place like that, it's definitely an experience. But once you get there, it's worth it. Yes, it is. It is definitely worth it. You have to know what to expect on that drive. Yeah. So that's it. And then I went over to Negril Sandals. Negril. So Sandals and beaches are both over there, both resorts. They're on the famous seven mile beach. Which I assume is seven miles long. It would hope. One would have some. There you go.

So. So now this beach is nice, but I don't think it's as nice as South Coast, even though they talk and rave about it. It's a lot narrower. I mean, like you come out of your room and you're literally on the beach and then the water's literally like right there. So it's. It's not as wide or as expansive to get down to the water. It's nice and calm. Both of those, you know, they're not wavy. Like if you want. You have kids or you just want to swim out.

It's not like you're going to get tossed around. It was super calm. Water at both of those and you know, it's nice entry kind of shallow. And you've got that beautiful blue water. So. The only thing. So in Negril, they have a ton of different room types. So I saw all the super fancy rooms at Negril. They have a new building there that has like on the second and third floor. They have swimming pools off of the balcony. With that are like. that are like glass.

And so you can swim. So you come out on your balcony and you have your own little swimming pool and you're like like just like looking over the edge. And then they have a staircase that goes up to the roof. On those rooms and then up on the roof. It's like a giant day bed. Where you can lounge out and table and chairs and this little kind of look look out point where you can look way out and see everything from up there. So they were amazing. They're pricey.

But they were also they were also out and I got to get into one like 30 minutes before they couple checked in. So they're like, OK, quick. They're also doubt that must be. Oh, they're super popular. Yeah. All that stuff is super popular. So. So that's the thing. They have some really nice room categories at both of those resorts. Now the grill has some entry level categories still. The advantage of the entry level categories is their cheaper. The disadvantage of the entry level categories is that they might be older.

So you have to understand what you're buying. So if you see these beautiful swim out like resorts with rooms with all this stuff. Don't expect to get that for like $200 a night. So you have to know like what you're booking because because there are amazing rooms. And then there's kind of average rooms as well. Well, and that's where you can call us. Yeah. Help you, you know, through the whole process. Yeah, and we'll help you. So Caitlin's been to the resorts.

Lisa's been. Brenda's been. Sharpie knows about them as well. And so there's no, there's no cost. There's no charge to go ahead and book. And we will help you out. I don't book, but we will get you over to. Caitlin or Brenda or Sharpie and they will. Take care of you. I heard the D in her name. Caitlin. Caitlin. So yeah. So yeah. So yeah. So there's no, there's no extra cost. There's no charge to go ahead and book with us. And it's and we will make sure you get the best price.

And give you all the tips and tricks and what's going on. And we and like I actually have the cards for the general managers. I Matt was a is the general manager over at. Sandals. And the grill. He used to be the general manager 10 years ago for its south coast. And I was like, Oh my gosh. We haven't seen each other since. Because I haven't seen him in forever. Was it a little reunion? Yes. And I was like, remember the because he took us to a castle in the woods.

And in South coast. And we found when we climbed in this old abandoned castle that was. Like yeah. And it was like. And there was no. There was no path. To this thing. Like it was like. Just trekking through the thick jungle and getting into the. And I was like, oh my gosh. They were like the size. Like it was like just trekking through the thick jungle. And getting eaten alive and bats. And. And the beehives were massive. Oh my gosh. They were like the size.

They were like. It was like a thing out of Winnie the Pooh. Those big black. It was like three feet. It was. They were huge. And they were everywhere. And he's like. If you hear them. It's too late. I was like. It was like. Great. Well, because the property is across the street from South coast. Yeah. Sandals owns. Yeah, they own all this. All of it on both sides of the street. And they were looking to expand. And then they're like digging out some of the brush.

And they found. These two castles. And like the 1700s. Yeah. You can see where the houses used to be. Because you can see where the. Where the foundation still are. And all the graves. Just stones. All the graves are there. And the gravestones. It was. It was like a true adventure. And then some of the graves are broken open. They're like. You can see because they have like a slab on top of them. And then it's like cracked open. Yeah. You can barely read some of it because it's a weathered.

Yeah. There was like some graves where the. Yeah. Then there's the trench that goes between the two castles. Yeah. So we got into the trench. And then we. We snuck into the one castle through the trend. That was the one with the bats. Yeah. So yeah. So that was. That was scary. So that was our. So that was our. So I was like, yeah, we did the. So he's like, he said, yeah, they're still there. They're still on the jungle. So anyway. It was neat. It was really neat.

And it was cool because Steve happened to have his drone. Oh, yeah. So we've got aerial footage. Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. Of the castle. They're hard to see because they're just so overgrown. Yeah. They're overgrown. The long last. So there's like. There's like. Exactly. One of them has a tree growing in the middle of it. Because it doesn't have a roof on it anymore. But we have these things dated back to. I want to say it was like the 1700s.

Yeah. One of the graves. It was like a sale. It was like a captain of a ship that was on there. But yes. So we have like the general managers and the food and beverage managers and the front desk people. So if if there are questions or you have things with allergies. Or you have a problem. God forbid while you're there. We have the context to make things right. Yeah. And we personally know them at pretty much all these resorts. So I want to speak to a couple of things that you've said.

First you said we're going to get them the best price. It's very interesting because. With sandals sandals is one of our vendors. That does not allow us. To have pricing different from theirs. Like we might put out that we've got. A Royal Caribbean rate that beats their own rate by five or five dollars per cabin. There's no such thing with sandals. And they make it a level playing field. So that. I mean to make it fair across the board. So that agents.

Can say yeah we have the same pricing. You're going to have the same pricing. You know we technically we're not we're not allowed to entice you either. We can't say if you book with us we're going to give you this. But you're going to get the service. You're going to get the support. You're going to get the know how. So I. Other vendors are a little more flexible. But they want things fair. They value their relationship with the travel industry. And they keep it fair.

Another thing I wanted to mention. Is. Oh gosh what was the other thing. I don't know. That went by really quickly went in and out of my head. I don't know. You were talking about that's price and relationship with. Oh so Steve also mentioned thank you Caitlin. He also mentioned relationships and. To say oh yeah we know the manager we know the sales manager the resort manager. Well we do. You know we follow them on social media. We meet them in person.

We talk to them in person when we're there. And they literally say when you've got a guest on property let us know. We'll be sure to take care of. Take care of them and make sure there are no issues. And. If you hear that from. Just other vendors other suppliers. You think oh yeah. They don't mean it. But then when you have. Two hundred rooms on the property. Which. equates to four hundred people. They're. They do mean it because they do have the time to take special care.

And like I said they they have this relationship with travel agents that they've had since the very beginning when butch started all this. I think it was in the seventies. He. He knew that he needed help and and he reached out and he's been partnered with travel agents ever since. So I think that's wonderful. But. They they do know us like you get to know these people you follow them from resort to resort. And it's kind of cool. You can actually message our.

Is this development manager for sandals today and Steve. Actually answering the question first. But. I that's. Yeah we have we have WhatsApp groups with all of the people in them too. And a question and. But Steve helped me out but still. I mean they're good resource. Yeah. Yeah. Because we were talking about. See weed because I was looking at the seaweed on the beach. I got up early every morning like before sunrise to take photos or to get to go out

and walk around. And they would just be starting to work on the beach. And the beaches looked already amazing. But then they rake them. And they have machinery or whatever. So they're like perfect. And then I was like making the first footsteps. I felt so bad. Cause they look like like perfectly raked. And then you're like walking and you're like, uh, just messed up this guy's. Oh, good job, Steve. But then last night we were at dinner with a bunch of agents.

And some of them just came back from Mexico. And the amount of seaweed. And the amount of seaweed. And those photos. I don't know where they were in Mexico. Well, it was crazy. Yeah. And I was like, so much seaweed compared in the compared to I was in Exuma in the Bahamas. No, and it was windy. And normally you would be getting like a ton of seaweed blown up. And it looks really nice. It was very well done. And then I was in a couple beaches, three different beaches in Jamaica.

And all of them were fine. Yeah. They do rape them every morning. Yeah. You see rake lines. Yeah. But even then it wasn't like the amount of seaweed that you see. And in some of these Mexico photos. Well, I remember. So. Aruba. Not Aruba. Barbados. Barbados. Had. Crazy seaweed. It was that red seaweed or something. I'll be there in a week. We can have. Well, I think it's a seasonal thing. Oh, what you know? They didn't. You couldn't go in in the beach.

You couldn't go in the water. I'll tell you. Was that at the in-old resort? Yeah. Barbados. All right. I'll be there in like a little. Yeah. Let us know what you know. This was years ago. I think it was like it was something that was going through the water. It was like the red something. Oh, the red tide. Maybe. Well, red tide is what it makes you cough and it kills the fish. Yeah. Yeah. It's horrible. Versus the other seaweed. But yes, red tide is.

Yeah. It was. You get the tickle on your throat. And it's like it. I think it was red. Depribes the fish of oxygen. And then. Yeah. But it was something that was passing along. Or I just happened to be there when it was a bad time. Right. So anyway. Yes. The weather conditions have brought it. Yeah. Yeah. So. So real quick. So the grill sandals. The other thing is. So just make sure you understand what you're booking. And if you're booking an entry level room.

They call them luxury rooms. Just make sure you have sometimes the pictures look phenomenal. Because photos look phenomenal no matter what. Yeah. The rooms look okay. But and you also have to understand like where you are. So you're in Jamaica, which is. I would assume as a classified is probably a third world country. So. So sometimes like, although this didn't happen to me this trip, but I've been on other trips. We're like, maybe the power goes up for a little while.

And then it comes back on. Or maybe the internet doesn't work perfectly the whole time. Right. There's it's not. Although this trip, I didn't have any of those issues. So. So. So the other thing. Yeah. The only things. The downside of Nicarilla. So I give you guys the. The pluses and the minuses. So the only thing I personally don't like about. the world. The world where you're going is there's. The resort is almost all outside. So almost every restaurant, which is romantic.

And amazing. It's like on the beach. And it's a pavilion. And you're eating like. Five feet or four feet from the water, right. Or you're having breakfast on a patio outside on the water. Or in a covered area. But very few things are actually enclosed with air conditioning. So. So. So. If you're so. If that's not your thing, there is not a lot of. There's no places. Minus your room. And maybe a few little spots. There's not a cricketer. And. The grill.

Okay. Unfortunately, there is no. Cricketer pub. And there is no jerk check. But they do do jerk chicken on the buffet now. So they've redone. They have some new food trucks that are really good. They have a chicken and food truck. They have another food truck as well. That's like healthy like greens and bowls and shakes. And then they have like a chicken tender truck. It's got like grilled. Ride buffalo. Rise whatever. So they have all these food trucks as well that are kind of permanent installations.

That are new over in the grill. They also have one of those. I yogurt ice cream place. That you love. You know, like. Yeah. So you get all you get like eight or 10 different yogurt machines and all the toppings. And that's all included. Yep. And they have a. I can't pronounce it. Where you take vanilla ice cream and espresso. Oh. And it's a fancy name. It's an Italian name. I remember someone introduced you to that. Yeah. It's a it's really good. They have that.

Which I forget how to pronounce. But anyways, but they have a lot of good ice cream over there. So the. Yeah. So the one thing is there's a lack of air conditioning. And the beach is a little narrow. It's nice. But it's a long resort. Yeah. It's very. Yeah. It's like one building wide. Long. Along the beach for a long ways. So you're walking up and down versus South Coast, which is deep. And a really big property. This as you walk from one end to the other.

So it's just the way it's set up. The other thing is it's also an hour and a half from the airport. And you need to take a potty break before you get it on the bus. You go back. Oh my God. But I was going to die. Because I had the blue mountain coffee. Because I was like waiting and I was like, I have another one. And then I had a smooth. They made like a fresh fruit smoothie. Then I was like, it's toasty warm. And I probably should be hydrated. So I drank all this water.

Oh my God. And then you got on the bus. Then I got on a bus. And it's usually an hour and a half. And it was like over two hours. Because we got stuck in traffic. I thought there were many times where I almost just ran off of that bus. And it was like, I'm just going to go over here by the side of the road. Because. And so we finally got to the airport after over two hours. And I gave the guy $20. And I was like, because they park way out. And I'm like, you know where the restaurant is?

And he goes, oh, it's way over. And I'm like, oh my God. I'm like, here's $20. Whatever bag is left is mine. Just come find me. And then I ran in. And then I ran back out. And he was already coming and walking up with my bag. Those people are like the nicest people ever. Yeah. They've customers. There were so nice. So yeah, that bus ride is not great. And everybody on that bus was like, oh my God, let's get off. Let's get off. So that's the thing.

Right. It is. The bus rides a little daunting. So. And then beaches. The girls is great as well. It's on the seven mile beach for families. It was sold out. Like when I was there, I was there for three hours. All the rooms were sold out. So I didn't see a single room. Yeah. Usually when we go on these training trips, we see. As many room categories. Cause they don't have to be. And then we go on the same. And then we go on the same. As many room categories.

Cause sandals does have all end beaches. They have a lot of room categories. Yeah. And. We spend 90 to you know 90 minutes to two hours. Just looking at rooms. Taking pictures, learning about the differences. And, and so that's a lot of your time. And your photos and your experience. Yeah. But they had none available. Nothing you could see. But beaches. Very popular. It's not, you could walk there from one resort to another, but it's a ways. So you're not really going between resorts. So you're going to one or the other, either as a family or whatever.

If I got to see some of the Sesame Street characters, I got to see the kids area. I got to talk to them about, you know, I don't know. They do have an autism program. So if your kids are autistic, they're certified in that. So they do a great job over there. And it was kind of obvious when the whole place is completely sold out. And then the other thing, the one other thing is you can book excursions. They have a desk called Island Roots. And we can book these for you as well.

And normally I was like, I'll just book them on site. So I went and booked one on site. And now I'm like, you need to book these with us. Because after booking one on site, it's not, it wasn't bad. It was just that when you go to Disney a lot and you see how efficient things are done. And then you go to a desk in the Caribbean in Jamaica. That's run by one poor person who is trying to manage like a ton of things. And you're like, this is going to take a long time.

And you're just watch. And then they have to fill out all this paper. So we booked a catamaran. So they have a huge catamaran and we had like 15 people. We're like, what's all that book this catamaran. And so we all it was 125 a person, which was worth it. It was amazing. So anyways. So, but the process of going up to the desk one by one and booking it and her getting your own number and writing it all down. And then writing it all by hand on a piece of paper.

And then you having to take the piece of paper to the front desk to pay for it. And then bring the piece of paper back to the other. I was like, this guy would be a better way. Cause it was so. So if you book it with. Kaitlyn or Sharpie or Brenda beforehand, then you're already done. And you don't have to go through that. And you just go. And you also already have a spot. So you don't have to worry about it being sold out or whatever. Um, it wasn't bad.

It was just like, I was like, this could be a lot more efficient. And she was super nice. But they have a ton of excursions like an exuma Lisa did the swimming with the pigs. Oh my gosh. Yeah. The pigs are cute. Well, and it's kind of cool because you don't just do a swimming with the pigs thing. You do this like a guana island thing where you've got grapes and you feed the iguanas. Oh my gosh. They're so cute. Yeah. One is eight grapes. Yes. I did not know that.

Mm hmm. And you fan them with palm leaves. Yeah. Like that too. Oh my gosh. That was. So I mean, I would do that again every time I'm in exuma. And then the, uh, the catamaran was a four hour catamaran. It had a DJ on there. It had drinks on there. They were amazingly nice. We went all the way to Rick's cafe. And then you. It's like a cliff. It's this huge cliff diving. Cafe restaurant place. And they take that catamaran right up to the cliffs with the waves crashing on it.

And then they go, okay, everybody jump off. That was like. And like the catamaran is maybe like 20 feet from these cliffs. And you're like, oh, my God. And then there's a, so you're like, and then the other catamaran's that came, they don't let anybody off. So you, the island roots one is the only I was like, this is the one because, and there's a, or you can take the stairs. If you don't want to jump off, there's stairs that they lower into the water from the front.

And they're like normal stairs. Like you would walk to go upstairs. You know, they're like staggered. And you walk down them like you would like a normal staircase. And it has a railing as well. And then you kind of push yourself off into the water. And then you swim to the cliffs. And then there's a ladder to get to the cafe that you climb up. And I thought this is not look safe at all. But once you got in the water, I was like, oh, this isn't as bad as I thought.

So yeah, so it's the only catamaran I saw that let people actually go to where cafe. The other ones just look, they just hang out. They just, they just stay out there and then they leave. So I was like, oh, you guys want you to get off. And then they have cliff diving or jumping. So I went ahead and I went ahead and jumped off. That was not my norm. Well, and he didn't hold his nose. Oh my gosh, so much salt water went up my nose. It was amazing. Like I didn't realize that that much salt water could go up your nose.

Ever. Yeah. Like an hour later, you bend over. Yeah. I told her I was like, about 30 minutes later, I bent over. And like all this water was like raining out of my nose. Like it was like there was so much water in my nose. I was like, oh my gosh, how do we get all this water out of my nose? So yeah. So I don't think I would do it. I don't think I would never do it. And so I was like, and the other thing is like, there's three different little spots.

I didn't do the super high one. There's no way. And then there's one that the guy jumps off of that no one else has allowed to jump off of. That's like on a telephone pole. That's like way up ahead. It's like a piece of wood that he climbs up. But the one you have to like jump out to because it's there's like rocks below. And you got to jump out a little bit to miss. Yeah. So I'm like, that's not fun. Those little too close for comfort for me. But yeah.

I just, the other thing is, you know, I'm just going to jump out of the way. But yeah. But yeah. I just, the only way I did it was I was like, I just have to do it really quick. Because if I don't do it really quick, I won't do it. So I just got up and jumped like, like instantly. Or else I would have never done. So yeah. So yeah. So. And I, that's the last. The only one time I will jump off of a cliff. Would you do it Lisa? Oh yeah. I would. There were people that it was funny because in our group,

some people were like over and over. And then other people I was like, look, I jumped and they still want to jump. never like, okay. Like I, they would not complete chicken. They would not do it. So the worst part is is it would you jump? No. I, I was completely impressed because this is not a. Oh, I hate that. That's the worst. That's like the thing I would never do. I can't believe he did it. So no one was like, no one knows that I never do it because I just did it.

I didn't like put any like, I just got up and went. So it looked like I just do it all the time. But no, there's nothing. The longer you wait. Oh, yeah. The worst. Yeah, you can do it for sure because you, you psych yourself out. You just have to jump. The worst part is is like you hit the water and then you go way down and your eyes are closed because it's salt water. And then you're just like swimming and swimming and you're like, how far until I get to the service and I can breathe again.

That's the only part. That's not fun. So. But yeah, but it was great. And then you go to Margaritaville after that. And they have lunch for you or dinner. And that's all part of it. And we had a survivor competition that we had to do where we had to build a, we had to build a hut with teams. They broke us up in the teams and then we did tug of war. And then there was a dance off contest. Luckily that was for the ladies. I was going to say you. Oh, yeah.

Yeah. That would have happened. Good. So yeah. And then we came back and it's like sunset right when you're coming back. So it was definitely worth the money. And it was so much fun. So. Yeah. Trying to do an excursion as well. That sounds like an awesome excursion. Yeah. So. Go to Jamaica. Customs is good too now. They have a. Those automated kiosks now. How does that work? So it's super easy now. You scan your passport passport. It takes your photo.

Then you walk up to a gate. That has a camera. And then the little glass doors. Open and you go through. And you have to do a. Before you go to Jamaica now. Just recently you have to do a C5 form, which is like a. In a creation form. It's basically the paper form you used to fill out. Remember when you would get on the airplane. Yeah. So now you have to do it before you arrive. You do it online. And then they send you an email that says, OK, you're good.

If you don't do it before you arrive. They have computers there. And they will walk you over to one to fill. it all out. But I had it all filled out. So I breezed right through. As it was all done. And then I hate. Did you ever hear the story of Steve. Jamaica and the passport. We've told the story. No, you've told it, Steve. But I don't think Caitlin's heard it. Everybody's heard it. I think everyone on the show has already heard it. We'll tell it.

I've got new listeners. You know, when I got. You've heard it when I got. You've heard it when I got. You've heard it when I got. You've heard it when I got. Tell me the short version. The short version when I got pulled off the airplane. No, I never. Tell it again. Oh, my God. All right. So if everyone has already heard this, if you want to go to Jamaica and book a trip, get with us. Go to pixievacations.com. Pick the form. Then pick Caitlin. It's it's Lynn not land.

But anyway, or Sharpie or Brenda. And then pick all inclusive. And then fill out the form. And then fill out the form. And we will help you out. Or just put in the comments, put mouse chat. And then we will. And there's again, there's no charge. There's nothing extra. So if you're going to go. We're happy to help you. And then you can stop listening if you've already heard the story. Yeah, but it's funny. All right. And if you haven't heard the story.

You're it. So. Years ago, I got invited to. This is the quick version. Years ago, I got invited to Jamaica because they were having. Like some gang violence issue. And the tourism board. And then we're going to go. And then we're going to go. And then you can stop listening. If you've already heard the story. Yeah, but it's funny. Tourism board wanted people to come. And experienced Jamaica. And we had a podcast. And we were doing a radio show, a travel radio show.

And we would do videos and social media. So they had me come for like a week or two weeks. So Jamaica. To do all these different things. It was promotional. Yeah. So I got like they, I had a driver and I had a tourism board representative and my own driver. And they took me to all these things that they had planned. took me to all these things that they had planned. Like I went with the Rustafari and the Jungle, and they showed me, like, you know,

like walking over little handmade bamboo bridges and like planting marijuana and like eating lunch out of banana leaves and making chocolate tea by mashing it with a stick and a little like hollowed out log. And anyways. And then I, yes, and then I did zip lining and they had the holes ziplining course for me. And it was closed. And it was just me and I hate heights. So I was like, I was like, oh, this is that a good choice. Like it was you and like five.

It was me and just the guides and that was it. And they closed the whole course. And they closed the whole course for me. And I was like, I guess I gotta do it now. So he's like, oh, just jump off. And I'm like, I think I'm just gonna kind of scoop off the edge. It's like do whatever you gotta do. So and then I did rumb tasting. So anyways, we did all these things. So I'm in the back of this Delta flight. I'm landing in Montego bag. I'm liking the very back, the plane lands.

Everybody stands up. You know how they stand up. They're getting their luggage. And then over the speaker they go, Steve Griswold. Steve Griswold, you must have planned before anybody else. Everybody else needs to return their seats. I'm like, oh, this is either really good or horrible. Like this is gonna be really awesome or really bad. So I actually get my bag and I have to walk past everybody as I'm in the back. I walk past everybody in the plane and everyone's looking at me.

And then I get to the front of the plane. Where's this guy? I know. So I get to the front of the plane. And there's two people, there's two guards with machine guns and a lady with a pistol at the front of the plane. And they ask for my passport. They take my passport. And then I get escorted by these two guys with machine guns in this lady with a handgun to this little room. And it's like the room in those movies, right? Like it's exactly like that room in the movies.

It's got that dirty metal steel door. And it's got a bunk bed. There's bunk beds in there with no cots. They're just metal. It's like a metal frame that are what's left of a bunk bed. And then there's a wooden table and two metal chairs and a desk lamp and a giant log book that's on the table. And then there's like, and then it's just cement walls and one light. So the guy comes, so they've leave me, they've put me in this room. And I'm like, for a moment, I'm like, I should record this.

And then I'm like, that's probably not a good idea because I'm probably that, even if I'm not in any trouble, it's probably not a good idea. So I'm like, okay, I'm not going to record this. So then the door, one metal door opens and this guy comes in and he's like, he's going through my passport. And he's like, oh, so on your records in Delta, it shows that you're traveling, that someone's traveling on a stolen passport, but then your passport is correct.

So Delta has the wrong passport number in their system. So he's like, so he writes something in the log book and then he gives me back his passport, my passport. And then he opens the metal door that's behind him that like just opens out to the outside. He's like, welcome to Jamaica.

So then I'm just outside and I get my luggage. So I passed everybody, like everybody else was still going through customs. And I was like way ahead of everybody else. But yeah, so that was my experience where I was like, oh, this is going to be awesome or horrible. And then I was like, oh, I guess it's the horrible, but it worked out. Oh my gosh, but that was like, welcome to Jamaica. I was like, this is not great. Cause that room was, that room was sketchy.

That room was really bad. Like, it's seen some bad times. Like I can't imagine like being locked in that room and sleeping on that metal thing with no nothing. It's just like awful. Yeah. And then going to the Jamaican jail from there would be even worse. So yeah. They sort of, so good thing they figured it out. It wouldn't thought that like for some reason, it was like, it was you. I was like, you could have. Yeah. I was like, it would have been in a pickle.

Like who's breaking into Jamaica? Nobody's breaking into Jamaica. Everyone's breaking out of Jamaica. So anyway, so yeah, that was my, and then I got to go on these amazing trips with the tourism board for a couple of weeks all around Jamaica. What a trip. So that was awesome. But it started out a little rough. That is hysterical. The Caitlin needed to hear that. No, yeah. There you go. I can just picture you walking down the aisle and everyone's looking at you like.

Oh, yeah. And then I got on the bus and they were like, you were that guy who got pulled off the plane. No, it was like, yeah. So it was fun. I think that wrapped in tea. I know. It was a story. There's always a fun. Well, and then I'm thinking of the other time that you had mistaken identity, but that's not appropriate for the show, but it is fun. I don't know. Oh, I got to tell everybody. I met two mouse chatters in Jamaica. A lot of that. And then a lady and her husband

come walking up and they go, are you Steve? And I was like, yes. Maybe. And so, and they know Lisa, like she goes, oh, we met Lisa once before. She was helping everyone clear off the salad plates. And I was like, oh, yeah, that's Lisa, who's that place? Because like, if there's something to be done that she can help with, that's Lisa, and we'll be like, oh, let me organize this over where. Let me help you with this. So, yeah, and I don't remember their names,

which is not great. So next time I have to remember people's names, but they were super nice. And they've listened like since the very beginning. Cause they were like, oh, we love the show on the Xuma. And I was like, oh, did you just listen to that one? And they're like, no, we've been listening to every show since the very beginning. I was like, oh, that's amazing. That was cool. Yeah. But I probably told them that. So not listening to the show because they probably already heard that story.

So they probably stopped listening to the show. So they're nothin' now. So, yeah, so it was cool. No one's gonna stop listening and not listen to your story. They probably heard it. So if you did stop listening, go ahead and write in. Let me know. Yeah, there you go. All right, so that wraps up our quick show. Yeah, that was not quick. How long was that? It was too long. All right. So we're gonna do it in a next show that's gonna be actually Disney.

All right. Well, let's wrap up this show. I'd like to thank Pixy Vacations for sponsoring the podcast. If you have any comments or questions for us, you can write to us at comments at moustache.net. We thank you so much, please join us again next time on Moustache.