Here's my review of Dunn's River - LOVED IT!!!
Highs (your favorite parts): I have been to two other Sandals resorts and one Beaches resort so far, and as far as the resort goes this was my favorite! The room, buildings, restaurants, pools, beach were all beautiful! The food – both GF and non-GF – was amazing! The people were wonderful and we really enjoyed them as they help make this stay even more enjoyable. This resort is on the smaller side (especially since Beaches Turks and Caicos was my last one and it is HUGE), but was also large enough that you were not on top of everyone. It was the perfect size as you did not have to walk too far to get to anything and it was well laid out so you did not get lost. There were areas you could go if you wanted to be alone and quiet, or seek out more lively areas when wanted. The entertainment at this resort was by far my favorite with a couple of nights of Jamaican or international dance, illusionist, acrobatics and fire show, multiple bands, and our favorite night was the beach party! They had the best set up on the beach with every food you could possibly imagine, a fun set up with a steel drum band followed bya reggae band, and then fire dancers on the beach, and even fireworks! There was a pool party 1 day and the entertainment staff made sure everyone was having fun, they were always very entertaining! I participated in tie dying 1 day which was also fun. I would go back in a heartbeat!
I know many people ask about chairs. We didn't have problems finding chairs with umbrellas at the beach in the morning, and we'd generally head to the pool around 3 and would find open chairs there also.
Lows (your not-so-favorite parts): We absolutely loved the resort, but the beach was not quite what we are used to. Don't get me wrong, it was absolutely gorgeous! However, being on the north side of the island it was a bit rougher than some of the other beaches we have been to so the water was not as clear. There were a few days that I actually felt a little "seasick" just standing in the ocean getting jostled around! There was 1 red flag day and 1 green flag day while the rest were yellow. It certainly did not stop us from having fun in the ocean, but the snorkeling was not as good so we did not take advantage of this as we usually do. I also was disappointed that there were only a couple of gluten-free options at Blum and they were the same every day.
Shoutout any favorite staff here: There were so many staff that made our stay wonderful, everyone is so hardworking and friendly! Donovan at the swim-up bar made the best drinks. Mario, the bartender at Lapidus, also made some good drinks and was quite entertaining. Shian at Blum helped us figure out which coffee would be our favorites and she was right on! Dwain from the grounds crew took time out of his day to explain some of the foliage to us -you will see a picture of the coolest tree ever! Some of the guys on the beach and at the pool (Ricardo, Denardo) were so friendly and helpful, always helping with getting chairs or with the umbrellas, especially when it got really windy and they would blow over! Naomi at the gift shop and tie-dying was the best – I kept running into her and it even got to the point that she remembered our room #!! Janessa at the Island Insider's was super nice and every time we ran into her, which was frequent, she was sure to check in and make sure we were having a great time. Raynado from the water sports took us on our one snorkeling excursion and was fun to interact with. Gabrille at the Rum Club was so much fun!! The DJ at the Rum Club and during the day! Playmakers - Kai, Tiana, Omanda, Hennessy, Conrad, Rebecca Jean!! Cassandra our waitress at Cascata was so sweet and kind, making sure that I had a gluten-free dessert even though there was not one on the menu. Sherifa at Hanami was also very sweet and very knowledgeable about which rules could be made gluten-free, the gluten-free dessert, etc. Mahesh, Christina, and King at Banyu where the most thorough, kind team making sure that I had everything I could possibly want that was gluten-free from the restaurant and ensuring that it was safe. It was a great experience!
I have celiac disease and below is my assessment of gf. I give them a 4.9/5!!
As with the other Sandals resorts, there is a culinary concierge who can assist with those of us who are celiac or who have other food allergies. Some of the people I spoke to were more helpful than others and I would often get different answers depending on who was working. I found Jody Anne to be the most reliable. Depending on where I was at, I talked to the chef, I spoke with the culinary concierge ahead of time, used labels at the buffet, and also used common sense! For breakfast, we mostly went to the buffet and everything was spread out nicely and the risk of cross-contamination was not too high. They did have a special gluten-free muffin every morning and the fruit was separate. I would get a custom made omelette almost every morning which was delicious and safe as none of the ingredients included gluten. I also requested gf French toast to be made so I could eat it at the buffet one morning, and I made this request through the culinary concierge. I ordered a few meals ahead of time, which was especially important at Cascata where I wanted calamari. They can also make GF fettucini alfredo if they know ahead of time. Other times the culinary concierge said we could just go and speak with the chef and they would guide me through what I could have. Especially at Banyu did I find this to be so nice - Mahesh made me all sorts of food and made sure everything was safe. It was so comforting! All the food was so good, we did not want for anything! If we went to a restaurant that did not have a GF dessert on the menu, they would go find one for me. We went to Zuka (amazing surf and turf with possibly the biggest lobster tail I have ever eaten in my life!), Edessa for breakfast and dinner (breakfast service was very slow), Cascata, Banyu, Hanami x 2 (the GF dessert chocolate namelaka is SOOOOO good I had to go back the next night for more!), Galene for their beef birria taco quesadilla multiple times, Saltaire for breakfast, and Blum for snacks and boozy coffee. I was a little disappointed that they only seemed to have the same 3 GF desserts every time we went, would have liked a little more variety. We did not go to L'Amande, Isola Pizzeria, the Jerk Shack, or the Rum Club for snacks, but would have if we were there longer - there just isn't enough time in the day to eat everything! They make being GF easy!!
