Oceanfront Luxury Villa: Private Beach & Staff, Solar powered

To be clear, this is not a 5 star resort, but does provide a 5 star experience, and great value for your spend. To summarize:Connections - flawless. You call the driver by cell (or text) when you clear customs, and he's there almost immediately to pick you up. Think twice if you plan to rent a vehicle; the roads in many locations are terrible. It's about a 2 1/2 drive from the airport to Villa.Accommodations - the Villa itself is a little tired. Reminded us of a well used rental cottage. But overall everything one needs. The deep pool was great , and we were in every day. The wonderful large covered deck is where we spent the vast majority of our time. Beware though that there is quite a steep path and steep steps to access the villa, and not great for the mobility challenged.Staff - pool cleaning and housekeeping were OK. The chef/manager was outstanding. We had many long conversations about the Jamaican culture, and he was great in preparing the meals. The owner was really easy to converse with, and answered all our questions upfront.Safety - the Villa has sliding latches to secure the doors overnight, as well as key code locks to secure the premises. We found the Jamaican people to be extremely friendly, and we felt totally safe at all times, both in the Villa and our trips outside.Value - excellent. This may not work for everyone, but it worked for us!

This is a great vacation spot if you want to relax!! It’s a perfect setting to get away. Special thank you to Shane for making it a memorable experience. He prepared world class dinners with local flavors. He was extremely knowledgeable and helpful in planning day trips to black river by boat with a few stops to include pelican bar and a local crab shack on the river. He recommended YS falls for a day trip, beautiful! We did leave the villa to grab lunch at Jack sparrows and spend some time with the locals at treasure beach. The home is dated but has all the amenities. Mark the owner was also very responsive before the trip to finalize any questions. The housekeeper and gardener were there every morning working efficiently and gave great conversation . Thank you for a wonderful Jamaican experience

An absolute escape from reality. Property was great it was a hidden gem views where amazing Shane the property manager is excellent use him he is very knowledgeable of the area. And is awesome chef cooked breakfast everyday it was excellent “tip him well” only issue was beach and road leading too property Gve it strong 8/10 SHANE is why it’s so high

The Great Escape is a lovely place for a vacation. Far off the beaten (touristic) path, quiet, peaceful, with a large Pool and a lovely seaside terrace. Shane is a great cook, we enjoyed those meals so much.

The house was a great place to wake up every morning. The views, the private beach and the pool were all great. We spent our nights on the beach side veranda looking directly at a perfect sunset. The house was clean, area is safe and would stay again. The owner was responsive and easy to coordinate with. Shane the property manager is a good guy, easy to work with, great cook and very help full. Thanks for the make the stay with my dad and friend memorable trip.

and the beach house across the street is icing on the cake. You couldn’t ask for better sunsets, Red Stripe in hand! Mark was super easy to communicate with at all times. Shane was a great cook and conversationalist. He can seriously arrange anything you’d like to eat or do. He was kind and flexible with our early check in and grocery trips. Pansy left the house clean and smelling good each morning and Neville even took us on a tour of the yard with fruit trees and explained some of their uses. The kayaks were extremely fun and we spent hours hanging out on the small beach and snorkeling just offshore. The pool is huge and was always cool for midday swimming. The AC works perfectly in the bedrooms and each one has a TV. I worked a bit in the evening and didn’t have any trouble connecting nor any Wi-Fi speed issues. Shane arranged a boat ride to the Pelican Bar where we had fresh snapper with rice and peas that was heavenly. It’s definitely worth a trip with Captain Ted. Treasure Beach proper is a short ride away with shopping and more great food. Recommend Smurf’s for b’fast and Diner Delight for lunch. Calabash was our favorite of the idyllic beaches and Callaloo had nice souvenirs. Our last day we stopped by the Christmas Eve Market and caught a lovely rainbow over the yard after a short afternoon shower as we said goodbye to a wonderful trip.

From pick up at the airport to seeing the smiling faces of the staff which are fantastic! It's just an overall amazing experience. Nothing more relaxing then sipping a rum punch on your own beach waiting for the boat to pull up and take you down the Black River for lunch at Sister Lou's for crab and a cold Red Stripe. Quick stop at the Pelican Bar and you'll realize your in paradise. The pool is perfect for afternoon cool downs and the property is very well maintained. Mark is always quick with responding to questions and makes things easier then you can imagine. Highly recommend if you are looking for your own little piece of heaven for a week or two.

This was our 1st vacation rental & while it wasn't perfect, we would definitely do it again! Mark (the host) is very responsive & answered my numerous questions quickly. The staff - Shane (property mgr/cook), Pansy (housekeeper), Neville (grounds keeper) are all wonderful, friendly people. Mark & Shane were accommodating for our late arrival (7pm) and late departure (2pm). Shane is a good cook & didn't even let on when I asked for something unfamiliar. He also went grocery some for us every 3 days or so. There aren't any keys, but locked gates with keypads to access both the house & the beach side club house. You're in the country, surrounded by nature, so there are bugs and other wildlife. The bug spray we brought didn't help lol. The house is close to the road. Even with the shutters closed and the a/c on, you can hear the trucks & motorcycles. The pool isn’t heated & needs to be repainted but it’s lovely to have a large pool to yourself. The deck/patio area is huge & we dined outside for all of our meals. Even though there’s a breeze, we should have taken a fan outside to divert the mosquitos. Pros - It's a large space all to yourself. It's your own private resort! All bedrooms have a/c that works very well & their own bathroom (not ensuite, but not a big deal IMHO). The property is wired for sound! We used the wireless speakers by the pool and the beach. The beach club house is very cool!!! With a bedroom (that has a/c & tv), bathroom & bar! There’s even a portable speaker if you want to take it down to the water. This makes the property unique and ideal for a group of friends or a few couples. Sunsets from the club house are beautiful and it’s fun to watch the birds fishing! Cons - The beds were hard for us. I would have liked to have gotten more sun & spent more time on the beach. At the time we were visiting (Jan), the sun wouldn’t reach the pool loungers until 12 pm & beach side, there was a tree partially shading the sun. The tides were high during our visit, so there was no beach to enjoy. The tide would eventually recede, exposing some wet sand. Mark had advised the beach varied in size. Can’t blame Mother Nature and we made the best of our stay by the pool. If you’re looking for the Ritz or Sandals, this isn’t it. If you can look past the tiny flaws, it’s simply amazing! It was the perfect first experience for us. Thank you Mark for hosting us and thank you Shane, Pansy & Neville for taking care of us!

We stayed at Great escape from 9/12/22-9/19/22 for our honeymoon. The property is well kept and the staff is amazing. We spent our days lounging at the private beech or on the pool deck. Mark our driver was timely in airport transfers and taking us to excursions. The house staff was kind and Shane was absolutely wonderful. He arranged excursions for us as well as cooked the most fabulous meals. We felt like we made wonderful friends. We cant wait to go back in 2023 for our anniversary. Mark ( the owner) was also easy to communicate with!

The property and staff are absolutely amazing! From the beautiful and secluded grounds, wonderful food, authentic hospitality, and cultural adventures....we had a true Jamaican experience! We travel quite frequently and this is one trip that we will never forget. We are looking forward to our return!