We aim to please

How far in advance do you prepare for a vacation? We have some guests who reserve their vacation and begin planning the specifics a year in advance of their trip. We have others who want to schedule a trip about two weeks to a month out. However, most of our guests fall somewhere in the middle.

We recently had a family of four here for ten days. All vacation planning was left up to Dad. Dad is a successful, type A personality kind of guy. He begins planning his vacation for the upcoming year shortly after returning home from the current year’s vacation. So for Spring Break, he catches up at the office and then begins the quest to find the next spot he deems perfect for his family. He does a lot of research about that spot and then he lets the information simmer for a while. After it simmers for about a month or so, he fills in any missing information and goes over all of the information, at a summary level, with his wife. If she buys into the plan then he makes his reservation for the following year.

So needless to say, when I got the following email in my in box earlier this week, I was delighted as I know we had some big shoes to fill.

We had a wonderful time at Tranquilo Bay. Our stay exceeded expectations… and you know, they were pretty high. Most importantly, I want to thank Jim, Jay, Stephanie, Sabrina, Enrique, Mario, Leo, Yohani, the Hidden Chef and all the other staff for being such great hosts.

Renee, you, especially, are a saint for putting up with all my questions and quirky desires.

I am still digesting the entire trip and will be sending out a package this week. Hopefully, it will be in Texas for Jay's visit.

There are so many great memories/experiences, lobster, Zapo Beach, the dock, dolphins, tarpon, bonefish, views, water, indians, etc.... Of course my biggest disappointment was the food. Too good, too much - I am huge and almost was charged 70 cents a pound for my return weight.

Collecting my thoughts, I am, believe it or not, at a loss for words - but the main point is we had a great time, there are a lot of great places - the trick is to find both great places with great people - we found that at Tranquilo Bay....and that will be a very hard combo to replicate - and I may just want to stay with a good thing.