I stayed at SSB only those two times--April and August 2005, before the opening of the water park. User reviews in Trip Advisor continue to be fairly evenly split between visitors who said they had the most enjoyable vacation of their lives and those who complained about anything and everything. One recent poster wrote that he had previously stayed at Half Moon and that comparing Half Moon and SSB is like comparing filet mignon and baloney (or something like that). Well, duh! Half Moon costs about three times more than SSB, too. An ediat would understand that one can't expect the same amenities for a third of the cost. I had a great time both times I stayed at SSB, and no complaints about anything. Even so, with the water park as a main attraction, SSB now probably appeals most to families with young children, so if you're taking a vacation to get away from the kids, it may not be the right choice for you. Read the Trip Advisor reviews, and you'll be able to glean the legitimate complaints from the whinings of those who'll never ever be satisfied and decide whether you might want to give it a try or go somewhere else.

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I'm getting ready to stay at the RIU Ochi in April, and I hope I love it too!

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Teach has stayed there, she can tell you stuff about it.

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Teach - if u read this thread, let me know about your stay there.

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It seems the main complaints at this time are the construction and the inoperable elevators in the towers...and that the cats that roam the resort have fleas. I never saw a cat either time I was there, so they must be fairly recent homesteaders at SSB. I was in the towers during both of my stays (top floor each time) and luved it, but I can understand how elevator problems might strain one's patience--especially if you're on the upper floors. You might want to request a lower floor if you're in the towers or a room in the Inn (I think the cottages are called).

Don't rely on management's "promises" that renovations will be completed by a specified date. More than likely they won't be. They had promised prospective guests that the water park would be open for a year or longer before work on that was finally completed. Something like this might spoil some people's vacations (and you're paying a lot for your vacation, so you should receive what you've paid for), but my attitude is not to sweat the small stuff, to roll with the punches, and I always enjoy my vacations wherever I go.

1stP I wanna be near your family in Lucea too

Wahoo, that's a good post.....

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Well, thank you for the compliment, sweetie! Remember I mentioned a while back about maybe attending a conference in Vancouver in May? Well, looks like it's still on, but now I don't really want to go. I thought I'd be the only one from my department going to this thing and was looking forward to enjoying Vancouver's nightlife, but now it looks like my supervisor is planning to go, and possibly the editor of our journal, too. I wouldn't mind going with our editor, 'cause she's cool (and might even make the trip more interesting), but going with my supervisor will be like going with my ex! She'll be wanting me to accompany her everywhere, day and night (like she did at our conference in Anaheim in 2001). I can hear her now, saying, "You're allowed one beer," like we're married or something! Oh Gawd, why me???

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Sorry, I don't know about the differences in rooms, since I was unable to romance myself into any other rooms than my own, but the link (http://www.orbitz.com/App/ViewSpecif...xt.mc_kw=51084#) might help. I liked the top floor of the towers (when the elevators worked) because of the commanding view of Mobay (and also because I like being high ), but people who've stayed in the low-rise wing (2 floors) have expressed their preference for those rooms. I guess this goes to say, it's all good.