We stayed at Sandals Whitehouse from May 16 - May 23, 2008. This hotel is gorgeous and the grounds are stunning. Upon arrival, our room was upgraded to a concierge level and we really enjoyed the 24 hour room service. (Try the pizza at lunch, yummy!)

The only negative we experienced was with our wedding planner, Natasha. It felt like she didn't care if we got married there or not & it was almost as if we were bothering her with small requests. This was, after all, our wedding day. She could have at least faked enthusiasm.

Everyone else at the hotel was super friendly & always available to point you in the right direction. The food was beyond our expectations. I really had no idea what to expect since we've only ever had all inclusive experience in Mexico and the food there is terrible. We over ate at each meal in Jamaica and didn't worry about it one bit. :)

Ask for top shelf liquor if you want the best drinks and be sure to try a dirty banana & a jamaican smile. Both are delicious.

Our room was the best! 2201, first floor, walk-out to the beach & very private. The jacuzzi tub was great & the shower for two was even better. The room had a master suite so if someone was up early, the other could sleep in.

The spa was awesome as well. You are made to feel like you are the only worry they have & taking care of you is what matters most.

We have already booked our return anniversary trip. This time we're going to try Sandals Royal Bahamian. Hopefully it will live up to Whitehouse.

Stayed 4 nights (6-10 June) with my husband in a Grande Luxe Beachfront Concierge Suite. We had honeymooned at the Royal Bahamian Sandals resort so knew what sandals resorts were like.
It was a nice touch, sandals having their own 'lounge' outside the arrivals hall where you relax whilst waiting for your transfer. There were refreshments (soft drinks and beer), fruit, cakes and comfy chairs/sofas.
Unfortunately the standard of transfer that was provided was the same - a rickety old minibus. Be warned it is a good hour and a half bumpy transfer from the airport.

Upon arrival at the Whitehouse resort we were greeted with a (damp, cold) towel and asked to wait in reception. We were then taken to the concierge office (with a brief lowdown of the resort facilities) during the walk. At the concierge lounge, we were given a glass of ' champagne' (sparkling wine) and asked to provide a credit card for incidentals, then given a few more details about the resort before being escorted to our room.

Room 2409 (Dutch Village) was nice and clean. Thankfully not carpetted (only a couple of rugs). It wasn't as big as I expected, but adequate with a 6 foot bed, sofa, tv and drinks cabinet.
The bathroom had plenty of towels and a toiletry kit / bag.
* jacuzzi tub - this was a little dirty at the bottom, but I didn't bother to get it cleaned since I wasn't going to be using it
* double basin - a tap in one of the basins wasn't working at all, but again I didn't bother to get it fixed because there was always the other basin we could use
* shower cubicle - okay size, but the showerhead / spray wasn't very strong
* toilet was in the same 'cubicle' as the shower.

Turn down service was a nice touch in that they cleaned the bathroom floor again and replaced any used towels.
Housekeeping was good and to a high standard.

Food overall was very good and the service to a good standard, with the exception of Bluefields where the food was great but the staff on every visit (we went there 3 times) were very abrupt and had a bit of an attitude. The only places we didn't try were Cafe de Paris, Arizona Beach Club and Giuseppes.

The range of watersports facilities is great, altough we only tried snorkelling and sailing. The watersports staff were very helpful, in particular, Anthony who was very patient and took us out for a test run. However, Andre was not very helpful nor friendly.

Entertainment was a bit repetitive and we were only there for 4 nights.
Staff walking past more often than not greeted you with a hello / how are you.
I was a bit disappointed with the sea at the Whitehouse. I expected crystal clear waters, but the beach area is not that big and the sea front has large areas of sea grass and was quite rocky in some areas.
I would have thought sandals would have built in an area of jamaica with better beach areas / sea waters.

The return transfer to Sangster airport was even more unsatisfactory. Everything, passengers included, were crammed into a minibus that was bursting at the seams. Suitcases were stacked precariously together (up to the ceiling) at the back of the minibus. I felt sorry for the people sitting at the back because the only thing stopping them from falling down was their being packed up to the ceiling. They could easily have fallen over if the driver had to brake suddenly. After one particularly bad pothole when the luggage did move a little, the driver stopped the minibus, had a look at the suitcases and muttered something to those people sat a the back to let him know if they become dislodged!
The driver wasn't particularly friendly - he said nothing throughout the journey. He also turned the air conditioning down which made it even more unbearable when the minibus's engine had to work extra hard (there was heat rising from the minibus floor). Then when we arrived at the airport, he immediately hopped out of the driver's seat and stood outside the minibus door with his hand out!
How sandals can justify these rubbish transfers when they charge as much as they do is terrible.

All in all a very nice all-inclusive resort. I wouldn't pay their brochure prices, but there aren't that many adults-only resorts around that offer such a good inclusive range of facilities.

We just returned from a 5-day, 4-night stay at Whitehouse in celebration of our 10th wedding anniversary. I had been reading this forum (and others) prior to our trip and the posts were so valuable that I feel compelled to post my review. So, here we go............

Getting to Jamaica: We flew on Air Jamaica direct from Philadelphia. Flight was on time (7:30 AM) and we actually arrived in Mo Bay 15 minutes ahead of schedule (9:30 AM Jamaica time). First stop was immigration. To our surprise, no lines. We zipped through immigration in about 5 minutes. Next stop was baggage claim. Our bags were already unloaded so again no waiting. Be grabbed our bags and headed to customs. There was only one party ahead of us in line so we cleared customs quickly. Final stop was Sandals reception center. We were greeted promptly and they asked for our name and resort destination. They tagged our bags and invited us to wait for the bus in the Sandals lounge. In the lounge, beverages are free (soda, water, coffee, and of course Red Stripe on tap). Lounge was spacious and comfortable. Within 15 minutes we were escorted to the bus. Bus was air conditioned but seats were kind of close together. Luckily we didn't have a full bus so we could spread out a little. Our bus driver, Bobby Jones, was terrific. He doubled as our tour guide pointing out points of interest along the way. The bus ride wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. Yes, they drive on the opposite side of the road and yes the road is bumpy, narrow and curvy but I took a Dramamine ahead of time and had no problem with motion sickness. About half way Bobby offered us the ption of stopping for a short break but everyone was so excited about getting to Whitehouse that we declined and continued on. Total trip time was 90 minutes. Some of the scenery around the mountains was beautiful but some of the areas we drove through were very impoverished and that made me feel very sad.

Arrival at Whitehouse: When we pulled into the resort I was in awe. The grounds were absolutely breathtaking, a real tropical paradise. When we got off the bus we were greeted with cold towels to freshen up and escorted into the lobby. Once inside we were offered champagne. As we relaxed in the comfortable lobby, sipping our champagne, we were asked our names. Since my husband and I checked in on-line prior to our arrival we were checked-in first ahead of everyone else. We had just booked a very standard patio room but were surprised when they told us that we were upgraded to a premium room in honor of our anniversay. I really don't think there was a big difference between the room we booked and the upgrade except that we ended up on the 2nd floor of the French Village with a balcony vs a patio room.

Our Room: 2nd floor in the French Village. From our balcony we had a great beach view (to our left) and a view of the pool (from our right). The room was more spacious than anticipated. Bed was a king-sized four posted bed. There was a sitting area with a loveseat and table. There was a desk and chair (with internet service available). There was a large armoir that housed the TV/DVD, drawer space for unpacking, a coffee maker and stocked refrigerator (bottled water, sodas and juices).

Standard size bath with tub/shower combination. The dressing area is actually in front of the bathroom and featured sink, hair dryer and lighted make-up mirror. Across from this is the closet that provided an ironing board & iron, safe, and umbrella. They also provide each room with a Spa ammenity kit featuring shampoo, conditioner, body lotion and aloe vera gel. (These products were great). We were satisfied with our room but would have liked to have had 2 sinks in the dressing area as it was a little tight when both of us were trying to get ready at the same time. Maid service was 2x a day. In the morning they would come in and make up the room, replenish the towels and restock the frig. In the evening they would come by and provide turn down service and leave the itinerary for the following day. The room was always clean and we had no problems with a "musty" smell that I read about in other reviews.

Beaches: We were very impressed with how clean the beaches were. We could watch the beach crew each morning from our balcony cleaning up. We tried out all of the beaches...Main Piazza Beach was the most crowded as this is where the water activities take place. We never had a problem getting an available lounge chair, umbrella or towels. Dutch Beach seemed the quietest but still had a pretty fair amount of people. Again, plenty of available lounge chairs, etc. This beach was the best for viewing the sunsets. French Beach was the most secluded. We spent most of our time here since it was closest to our room. Nicholas, who is the lifeguard on the French Beach, was awesome. On the morning of our anniversary, he set up two lounge chairs under an umbrella for us. The towels were folded into swans and fresh hibiscus flowers were placed around the area. Oh, did I mention we also had Mimosas?

Pools: Main pool is crowded. Always some type of activity/game going on. Swim-up bar was really cool.

Dutch pool is kind of small and does not have a swim-up bar. When we were there is was not very crowded. French pool is big (but not as big as the main pool) and it also has a swim-up bar. This was the "FUN SPOT". Pool volleyball takes place here and the beach volleyball is just outside the pool area. This pool was pretty crowded but there was still no problem getting a chair. Bluefield's Beach Club is right behind the French pool. Our personal favorite was the French Pool.

Activities: Wide variety of water and land activities. We enjoyed water skiing, sailing, kayaking and the water trikes. We wanted to go snorkeling but never did get around to it. They also had wind surfing, scuba diving and a glass bottom boat ride. Land activities included tennis, beach volleyball, squash, pool, game arcade, fitness center. We never got around to most of these as we spent most of our time in the water.

Restaurants: We ate at each place at least once. Every meal we had was delicious. Guiseppe's has great pizza for lunch and for dinner the chicken parm and the pork medallions were great. Jasmine's is Asian cuisine. The coconut shrimp is awesome. Eleanor's is basically international cuisine with a Jamaican flair. We ate there for breakfast and the omelets were delicious We attempted to have dinner there one night but the wait was 2 hours so we didn't stay. Bayside is open for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Breakfast and lunch are buffet style and the variety of food is incredible and very good. Dinner is a la carte. Try the chicken cordon bleu and the shrimp and linguine....
awesome. Arizona's is very casual outdoor dining featuring a Tex-Mex menu. The chips and salsa were great and so were the burgers. Bluefield's is on the French Beach and is also a casual outoor setting featuring Jamaican food. Jerk chicken and pork were great.

Cafe de Paris was our nightly stop for dessert and coffee. Pastries were undescribeably delicious, they also have crepes made to order with any type of filling you want and ice cream. They will wrap up whatever you want so you can take it back to your room. Casablanca Martini Bar has the best chocolate martinis I've ever tasted. The atmosphere is really nice with the piano bar. All in all, we ate a variety of different foods and everything was good. Just for the record, we did not think the portions were small. All of the a la carte menus feature 5 courses..appetizers, soup, salad, entree and dessert. We did see that some people were ordering more than one order of the various meal courses and the restaurants had no problem at all with this.

One thing I did want to mention because I read about this in several other reviews... YES, there are sand fleas and sand flies so bring bug repellant with you. The only bad times seemed to be in the early morning and after dark.

OK, this review is getting to be way too long. We had a wonderful time and are already planning our next trip back to Whitehouse for next spring.

If anyone has any other questions or concerns that I didn't cover please let me know and I will respond.

I've stayed at 3 other Sandals resorts in Jamaica, as well as the one in Nassau, and just loved Sandals Whitehouse. I was considering trying another all inclusive in Cancun, and my travel agent insisted that we had to go to Whitehouse, it was the best Sandals resort. I couldn't say no, knowing how great my other Sandals experiences have been.
The resort is gorgeous, secluded, with tons of white beach front as well as mountain views behind you. 7 restaurants to suit every taste, casual to fine dining. WONDERFUL Italian restaurant, as well as every other kind you can think of. Even a café and bakery. The service in Jamaica is wonderful. The people and staff are so friendly.
There are 3 pools, some quieter if you prefer to just relax, and others with plenty of games and action if you’re looking for fun.
Great evening entertainment. Shows as well as outside music entertainment in the Piazza. Even a martini bar dim and secluded upstairs.
I love the water sports and took advantage of the free scuba diving. Great diving instructors, great dive sites. The instructor made it a point to take us to new places every morning. My boyfriend paid to take the resort certification, which is a great savings if you want to try diving. Even though he decided it wasn't for him, he didn't mind. He walked the beaches and relaxed by the pool while I dove.
Whether you want the adventure, or just want to relax by the pool, this place has everything. Even the snorkeling was awesome.
The other thing I noticed with this Sandals versus the others is the mix of people. Wide age range as well as people dating, vacationing, celebrating anniversaries, and of course honeymooning.
No matter what you’re looking for in a vacation, this place has it all and you’re guaranteed to have a good time. I can’t wait to go back!
Highly recommended!!