Having two kids at home, my husband and I are always looking for an "adult vacation" to relax. After a recommendation from another couple, who also traveled with us, we decided to stay at the Le Blanc. The reviews were excellent and appeared to be exactly what we were looking for - and thankfully it lived up to all of our expectations and more.
Upon arrival, there was security requesting our names before allowing our shuttle onto the property. We were greeted with a glass of coconut milk and refreshing wash clothes and escorted to personal check-in desks. Although our room was not ready, we were given a buzzer that would like up when our room was ready.
We were then whisked over to the desk to discuss the credit available per room based on the nights of stay. We had $1500 credit that could be used for excursions, spa, room upgrade, wine upgrade and romantic dinner on the beach. We decided on a spa treatment and romantic dinner - we did not use all of the credits. You can earn more credits if you attend a session regarding the Palace Resort Program, but we declined and were not asked again.
We stayed in the Ocean Front Honeymoon Suite with jacuzzi. The room had a great view of the main pool and beach. The only downside with the room was that the door did not provide much of a sound bearer and you could hear everyone and everything that went down the corridor. The corridor floor is tile and beautiful, but only magnified the sounds. The bed was extremely comfortable and they offered a variety of pillows. There is a butler assigned to each floor. The butler will assist you with anything you need - packing and unpacking, preparing the jacuzzi, getting chocolate covered strawberries, etc.
There are 3 pools - the sun pool, which is the main pool on the ocean side, the terrace pool, which is also ocean side and the moon pool. The sun goes over the building around 3pm and the sun pool and terrace pool both lose the sun. The moon pool has both the morning and afternoon sun. All of the pools are heated and comfortable. The outdoor hot tub/jacuzzi is heated but not too hot. The pool attendants and servers are friendly and accommodating. They will bring you a bucket with ice and bottles of water, or whatever your choice of beverage. Although most people did not tip, we found that the servers and attendants were more attentive to those who did tip. The music around the pool areas was spa music - it was relaxing. Originally I thought that it may be too boring, but I did not feel the need to listen to my ipod.
There were daily activities - cooking, tasting, water aerobics, water volley ball, beach volley ball, kite flying, yoga, pilates, spin classes, etc - there was something for everyone. The entertainment personnel were also friendly and cheerful. There were evening activities as well - blackjack, karaoke, dance, DJ, pool table, darts. This is definitely not a party atmosphere, but a good place to relax and have some drinks.
Food and dress attire. We ordered room service for breakfast one morning. The food was good and warm. The breakfast buffet was delicious. There was a good selection of fresh fruit, cereal, yogurt, bread/muffins, fresh juices, hot selections and made to order eggs, pancakes, and waffles. The lunch buffet was also delicious. There was a variety of lettuce, dressing and other salad toppings, bread/muffins, hot selections and made to order shrimp, calamari, fresh fish, hamburgers, hot dogs, steaks, flank steak, chicken and steak fajitas. We made it to the buffet for both breakfast and dinner because of the freshness of the made to order food. That being said, sometimes were was a line while you waited for your food to be cooked. Again, the taste of the food was so good that we did not mind the waiting time. The other plus to the buffet is that it is indoors - so it is cool and there are no bugs/insects flying around. There is a snack bar at each pool that you can order from your lounge chair poolside. The chips and guacamole were good. There are several restaurants to choose from for dinner. We made it to Blancorient - the food was good, Blancintl - the food was okay and the Blancitalia - the food was good. There was also a fire show with buffet dinner pool side. The buffet was good as was the show. The dinner on the beach was good - at some point in your life you need to have dinner on the beach. Unfortunately we did not have a chance to make it to the Lumiere, but heard it was good. They say there is a dress code for the evening, but most ladies wore dress or skirts - nothing too formal and gentlemen wore khakis or jeans with a collar shirt (camp shirt/golf shirt). There was also no need for reservations during our stay.
Although we enjoy traveling and trying new places and resorts, we will definitely return to Le Blanc. It exceed our expectations. The entire staff at Le Blanc was friendly and courteous. If you are looking for a place to relax, but have a good time, this is the place to be. If you are looking for a party or rowdy crowd, this is not for you.
Publié par Get8way de Washington, DC, le 7 févr. 2012
