sam_goh

@kwcinnc - I don't think it will be a problem. They recently added more language that to me, helps clarify the kid situation. We will be there 4/1-4/9, 3rd visit but 1st since they renovated. Expect it was just a freshening with the pool areas retiled.

LordHamster

I just returned from here. As a Diamond I got NO room upgrade here... not even after they had to move us to a new room after the shower ceiling collapsed on my 6 year old.

Speaking of 6 year old they DID levy a $75 / day surcharge for him.

sam_goh

@LordHamster - are you on a revenue rate? Seems like the new norm (and from reviews on TA) is that children get charged on revenue rates. Points only seem safe (and we had 1 room checkout today that did not get charged).

Did not receive a room upgrade originally either. Arrived at about 1 pm on Saturday, and from prior experience knew check-in was going to be a zoo. Waited till after the 4 pm rush from everyone trying to get room assignments, but at 5:15-5:30 our room still wasn't ready. Got upgraded to a partial ocean view, but because it's on a low floor, it's not really a view.

The property has seen some freshening up and a couple of new things. Bit less crowded than last year. Like it enough to keep coming back. But overnight availability for April 2018 in a standard room got yanked. Revenue management games again.

Still enjoying our stay here and will be here till Sunday.

LordHamster

Yes, this was a revenue booking.

kthomas9

Question for folks on tipping at the resort, according to the website gratuities are included, at least for dining. I assume everyone does some tipping, what was your experience?

"Select from our delightful array of savory restaurants, bars and grills. As an all-inclusive resort, we ensure everything is taken care of before you arrive – from meals and beverages to gratuities. Offering exceptional cuisine led by an award-winning culinary team, new chef, Stephen Sowa, and gracious service, the Hilton Rose Hall Resort & Spa makes every meal an occasion to savor and remember."

sam_goh

@kthomas9 I think it depends on your personal preference. Tipping seems to be the exception rather than the norm in the casual places, e.g. the buffet, pizza place, poolside place. At the nicer restaurants like 3 Palms or Luna it is a lot more common.

We are a family of 4, and have been leaving $3-5 a day for the maid. Buffet lunch about $4, buffet dinner $5-6 if the server got drinks from the bar. We've tipped between $15-$20 for dinners at Luna, 3 Palms, and the Seaside Grill where you have a lot more interaction with servers. Cabana staff who really took care of us all day we did $25-$40. The only time that we didn't tip was at the dinner for returning guests at 3 Palms. We didn't see our server again and were instead walked out by a manager level employee. It didn't seem appropriate to tip him and before we knew it we were at the shuttle area - maybe should have ran back in but wasn't sure of the decorum in that case.

kthomas9

Thanks for the reply, that is helpful. Looking forward to my stay at the end of May!

RachelDKT

I'm about to book a points stay here. Reading over the thread and the updated language on the website, if I book an all points stay and indicate 2 adults, 2 kids on the reservation, I shouldn't be charged the resort fee for the kids since they are on the original booking? I'm booking 2 rooms with an adult and kid each, and will list them on the booking. Thank you!

kwcinnc

We are here now and checked in on 4/7. See my previous posts about kids and being charged here, but wanted to update that when we checked in, yes, they did try to charge us! Because of all the back and forth with the hotel via email, I booked through the Diamond Desk and verified through them there is no charge here for kids on a points stay. The Diamond Desk agent noted it on the reservation and it was in writing. I kindly said please look at our reservation, and the front desk couldn't argue with us. May want to book yours that way to avoid the hassle. Kids are having a great time! I will post a full review once we get back home.

RachelDKT

Oy. I am not a diamond yet, so can't book that way, but will print out the updated website language that states that fees are not incurred for points stays, and confirm that with the diamond desk once I make diamond later this year.

Glad to hear the stay is going really well otherwise! Can't wait to see the review. We are going in January.

kwcinnc

Overall, we really enjoyed our stay. The hotel was very clean, staff was extremely friendly, and we felt very safe here. We were on an all points stay and had booked a resort view, and were upgraded to a partial ocean view. We thought the view was good. It overlooked the golf course and the ocean. If you don't like noise or want to get to bed early, make sure to ask to not be near the pool area where all the night activities happen. It was very loud and might be a problem for some.

We had the concierge book our dinner reservations via email when he contacted us. We were glad we did because the resort was busy and there were people on wait lists for dinner. We liked Three Palms, liked Luna di Mare a lot, and ended up canceling Seaside because we made plans to go offsite. We had Moonstone for dinner and didn't like it much. Seaside for lunch was really good. The jerk chicken hut was good, as was the juice bar. Fresh is great, many choices and the different theme nights were good. Many choices and our kids are adventurous eaters and got to try lots of new stuff but many old traditional things too. Favorite night was BBQ night outside. We weren't sure about how to dress for dinner but the sign on the door said nice shorts, no flip flops, etc. People seemed to follow the dress code pretty well. The nightly entertainment was mostly a band with a singer, but one night was circus night with fire eaters, acrobats, and lots of fun stuff that the kids really enjoyed. Resort activities/games are plenty and lots for everyone. Kids (14 & 11) did at least a few a day, things like beach Olympics, crab races, hula hoop toss, ball toss, etc. There are people selling trinkets each day at the resort and there was an evening with several vendors selling stuff.

We used the free cabana for Diamond members and paid the $30 extra for the upgrade from the pool side to the beach. We enjoyed it. We also did a second cabana at the lazy river, which we ended up enjoying more than the beach. We never had a problem getting a tube at the lazy river or a chair, but people were out early and put towels or books out on chairs to reserve a spot. We did the snorkeling through the resort and went on the 8:30 excursion and only had two others go with us at that time. It was excellent! We tried to book another day but it was too windy both days so no boats went out. Catamarans were fun and kids enjoyed kayaks. Beach was clean and they worked really hard to keep seaweed out.

We tipped staff for everything. They worked really hard and treated us very well. Room was always cleaned well and there was nightly turn down service. We received a note for a dinner for Hilton Honors members on Wednesday night with the hotel manager but we checked out that day and couldn't go. A nice touch. We took the resort shuttle to the shopping area (can't remember what it's called) and it was a quick trip for us. We used the cab service outside the resort to go to Rose Hall Great House for a Ghost Tour and really enjoyed it. He charged us $6 each round trip. We all really enjoyed the tour and it's not scary.

We used Island Transfers and Tours to and from the airport and had no problems. We also used our Priority Pass and went through the fast lane at the airport and waited in the lounge which had nice drinks, sushi, and was pretty relaxing.

Lengthy response but I hope it helps anyone who is planning! Any questions feel free to ask.

az2323

I am a new Hilton Diamond member. How do I book a reservation through the diamond desk for the Hilton Rose Hall Jamaica so I can have 4 adults in one room for 70k points per night?

Artemk

I don't think the Diamond Desk makes any difference - the reservation is about the same as through the site

Congrats on making Diamond

indual

I have an Award reservation in October for my Family of 4 including my 8 and 10 year old. Just talked with the Diamond reservation desk to confirm the $75 would not be charged per child (was going to ask them to note on my reservation that the children should not be charged on an award night) and they indicated that I would be charged per child (he said he had to check with his supervisor and he confirmed)

Terms when you book still state "...Hilton Honors redemptions will incur the same charges for any extra person not included in the original reservation...."
The confirmation e-mail does not have this wording.

I wondered if anyone had any more recent history than May on whether they were charged for children on award reservations.

----Editing after our stay regarding our experience in regards to the $75 / day per child fee.

I called the diamond desk several times about this prior to our visit. 3 out of 4 times I was told that I would have to pay for children. The one time they did say the children would not incur the fee, they couldn't update the reservation with it. I was even told that with 4 adults in the room booked as adults I would have to pay for the second 2 adults, they indicated the certificate is only good for 2 adults even though the points go up for 4, they indicated the increase only covers the room. In the end I changed my reservation from 2 adults and 2 children to 4 adults (cost me about 45K more points for the reservation). I did also get a reply from the concierge prior to our visit that I would not have to pay extra for the children. When we checked in and out there was no mention of the any fee and I did not inquire about it. I am guessing that if I would have left them as children on the reservation I would not have to pay the fee.

Cruban

How was your stay? Were the renovations finished?