We arrived at Braco amidst the remnants of a cold front and four days rain. The Grand Prix ride from the airport was made under overcast skies and slowed only through necessity - several patches of flooded road along the way – or when a few inconsiderate drivers in front of us just would not match our breakneck speed. We couldn’t immediately over take these slow pokes because there was less than 5 feet of open road on the other side before we would meet up with the next vehicle headed towards us. Apparently at least 6 feet is required and then you’re good to go!! At 1:00 p.m. on December 22^nd, an hour after leaving the airport, we were greeted warmly on the front steps of Braco’s reception area. The infamous shuttle was over and we had made it in one piece. Check-in was a breeze, rum punches appeared instantly and within minutes of arriving we had key in hand and entered the first of our rooms at Braco. Our luggage arrived right behind us.

There would be no sun that first day but plenty of time to settle in and observe. Our beachfront room on the main side of the resort was located in Block 1 directly adjacent to Nanny’s Jerk Pit. The ocean view was decent and mostly unobstructed but we also looked down on the small section of the beach where the vendors’ set up everyday to sell their wares. We were on the upper level of two stories in one of the turret rooms. It was an odd little space, with one French door and three other small windows across the rounded front. The configuration of the angles impacted the view from inside the room. There was also a small window at the side of the room, looking down onto Nanny’s and two windows in the odd shaped bathroom. To ensure any kind of privacy at all the blinds, with the exception of the one on the French door, would need to be down most of the time. We learned the next day that despite the general dreariness of this room, it was in fact one that had recently been updated. The indicators are apparently the colour of the furniture and newer caulking on the shower tiles.

We unpacked and began to explore. The resort was soggy and swimming with puddles. Debris floated in the main pool. Under these conditions and at first glance, nothing seemed particularly appealing about Braco at that time but we forged on. After a quick walk along the main beach we arrived back at the pool and came across the basin area where you can rinse the sand from your feet. We looked down and saw an ordinary green garden hose attached to the faucet, lying haphazardly on the cement. At this point visions of past reviews we had read began dancing in our head. We recalled many of the negative comments we had read, comments that admittedly had us worrying about the condition of the resort prior to our arrival and yet at the same time confused us because almost without fail the reviews would end with sentiments of paradise found and promises to return to Braco just as soon as possible. We were determined to discover Braco’s elusive X factor.

We easily secured reservations for that evening at the Japanese restaurant, grill side, and for the following night at Piacere. From the time we arrived on Monday through to the following Friday, the resort was at approximately 45 to 50 percent capacity. The Japanese grill experience was a lot of fun and the meal was very good. The dining room at the French restaurant is grand, yet intimate, the service impeccable, and the food which was nicely presented was also very good. It was nice to have experienced both these restaurants but in our opinion the food at all the other eating places is so outstanding that not having an opportunity to visit either of these restaurants would certainly not equate to missing out on the chance to enjoy fabulous food.

The nightly a la carte at Victoria’s Market offered an ample selection of appetizers, soups, salads, entrées and dessert. We never had a meal there that wasn’t wonderful, the soups, as everything, are delicious and the presentation of the food, just what you would expect from any upscale dining establishment. The service was friendly, attentive and fast. We never waited more than a few seconds for a drink refill, many times when having wine with dinner the bottle was left for us on the table. Dinner courses were delivered just as soon as your previous course was finished. From Friday on, when the resort was at near capacity, we never experienced any significant decline in the exceptional service. The breakfast and lunch buffets at the Market are plentiful and prepared to the same high standards as all of the food offered at the resort. At lunch you could find delicious cuts of beef, melt in your mouth little rib-eye steaks, whole chicken pieces and pork tenderloin. All in all, we felt that the lunch buffet was better than most dinner buffets offered at other all inclusive resorts. Standard fare like pizza, fries, really good hamburgers, sandwiches and the famous lamp chops could be had 24 hours a day through room service or by wandering over to one of the clubhouses. Just place your order and it will be delivered to you, wherever you are – the beach, the pool, wherever. It’s really almost sinful. Not to be forgotten in the eating category is La Pasta, fantastic meal, the little bakery next door, always something delicious, and of course, the Friday night street buffet, awesome!! The lobster was flowing like wine.

X Factor Update: They say that the key to a man’s (or woman’s) heart is through their stomach. We think we’re falling in love!!

We awoke the first morning of our stay to the first sunshine Braco had seen in five days. Although it was short lived and lasted until just past noon, we had plenty of time to soak it in that morning on the Au Natural beach. Yes, the A/N beach is nicer, much less crowded, and more secluded for obvious reasons. To us it just had a nicer feel (probably the seclusion, which we like). There is a wonderful rocked in swimming area that breaks the waves. Yes, the pool on the A/N side is also nicer, bigger, somehow seemed better maintained, although the pool on the main side of the resort is perfectly nice and fine as well. I think maybe what really makes the A/N pool seem better is that the setting around it is just more visually appealing. The grounds in that area seem more lush and beautiful and there is a fantastic view of the mountains in the distance. Both pools have the same comfy lounge chairs around them and the pool on the main side of the resort is by no means small. A portion of the beach on the clothing side does have the resort’s boats anchored near the shore but if you wander further down the beach to the far end by the clubhouse, you’ll find a comparable swimming area to that of the A/N beach and greater seclusion as well. Bar and food service is available on both beaches and although we never laid out on the clothing side, guests’ sunning on the main beach were no doubt offered the same cooling, "water misting," by the wandering beach staff as we were.

Our first full day at Braco was also the day we upgraded to one of the Au Natural suites. By 1:00 p.m. we were in our new room and our bags arrived just minutes after we did. I should say that before moving to the A/N side we did look at another room on the main side of the resort and it was much nicer than our previous turret room. It had also been updated as the other one had, but it seemed much nicer, fresher somehow. The view was also very good, more expansive than our first one. This was in Block 4 and I would recommend this building. We upgraded to the other side because it was just much more convenient, knowing that we would spend all our time at that beach and pool. Oh, almost forgot to mention that this was also the day that the power went out for 12 hours (8 hours on the main side). We also had to have someone in to unplug our toilet which actually we had to have done twice during our stay. Both plumbing crises were rectified straight away and took only as long as it takes to use a plunger a couple of times.

X Factor Update: Our mission to discover Braco’s X factor was largely inspired by reviews that had detailed among others, both power outages and plumbing problems. "Why do you want to keep going back?" we would literally yell at the computer screen, but more on that a little later.

By our third day, the weather had completely cleared and from then on it was sunshine and temperatures in the high 80’s. We sunned or floated on these great resort floats at either the pool or in the ocean. We were beginning to feel very lazy. It seemed impossible to be stressed by anything at Braco. Besides bending over backwards to accommodate you, make you happy and comfortable, at Braco you just feel so darn indulged!! I’m sure one of their mottos must be, "we aim to please," and so they do!! I remember being so relaxed on the beach one day that I could hardly lift my head to sip on the drink that had just been delivered to me. The thought popped into my head, "flexible straws." "That’s what Braco lacks, flexible straws," like the ones you get when you’re sick and in the hospital.

X Factor Update: We’re beginning to put it all together.

Tours. On most holidays we are literally running every day from one sightseeing excursion or tour to the next. I’ve never really been one before to just laze around the pool or the beach. We left Braco for a total of four hours on the Friday to go into Ocho Rios. It was fun but we were also very glad to get back to the resort. Staffed by such friendly, laid back and indulgent people prepared to attend to your every wish, wonderful food and drink and fun little things going on at the pool daily – I never really envisioned myself playing bingo poolside while on vacation and actually enjoying it – Braco is a place where it’s easy to forego the running around and just stay put.

The remaining days of our vacation passed. Time seemed slow but satisfying. Sun, surf and sand (or pool) during the day, much time spent lounging on our very large balcony with 2 muskoka chairs and table, 2^nd floor of three, a 20 foot width of grass below us and then the beach and the ocean with a fabulous, unobstructed and expansive view of the water, even from anywhere inside the room. Nights spent strolling into town, check out the menu at Victoria’s, there was a band that played there every night during dinner, music suitable for slow dancing or just relaxing, free flowing wine or whatever your fancy, fun, silly, couple’s games played in the market after dinner, karaoke, casino games – the resort gave you the chips to play with – just a very nice relaxing atmosphere, subdued but not boring, upscale but never stuffy. Bailey’s to go from the hermetically sealed main bar, so good with coffee before bed and the Wednesday night beach party entertainment was really a lot of fun. The steel drum player was absolutely amazing!!

X Factor Update: This feeling of well being, restfulness, a general calm, ease and happiness can’t be exclusive to guests staying on the A/N side. In keeping with their obvious desire to please us, I believe the resort must pump it into the air, like oxygen in a casino.

THE AU NATURAL SIDE OF THE RESORT. No, I didn’t see any clothes police, although there is security as there is on all of the resort. You can easily walk over from the main side of the resort to check it out, just follow the road "out of town," past La Pasta and you will arrive at the walkway behind the first villa. Just beyond is the pool area, which you have to walk through to get to the second villa. I don’t believe that anyone will chase you away, in fact, it’s completely normal to see guests of the A/N side in clothes here as they wander to and from their rooms between the two sides of the resort. If you plan on staying a while you will of course have to disrobe, at least somewhat. Funny as it seems to say, because we have never been to a clothing optional resort before let alone an A/N, but if you are over on that side for any length of time with your clothes on, you’re the one who will very soon begin to feel out of place!! It’s really very odd. So if you are at all curious or just can’t resist the lure of the bigger pool with nicer surrounding scenery and more seclusion, you can very easily ease into things until your comfort level kicks it. It really is amazing how fast that happens!! Some things to consider which might help to lessen your initial anxiety. We did see a few women at both the beach and the pool with their bathing suit bottoms on. Nobody appeared to bother them or be bothered by them and it certainly didn’t bother us. I would say that at least ¼ of the guests’, maybe a bit more, would cover up with a towel, men and women both or some other sort of cover-up, as they wandered the pool area or made their way to the bar, clubhouse, washrooms’ or beach. When you first lay out and maybe feel a little uncomfortable, cover up somewhat with a towel if you like, no-one will know that you’re "hiding" because after all it’s not uncommon for those who have been naked all week to have sunburned areas that they need to protect or they just might be chilled later in the day as can easily happen when you get too much sun. The bottom line is, if you fear that you will be hassled because you might need some time to ease into things, we didn’t see anything at all that would indicate that would be likely to happen, nothing at all, not a thing. Given a chance, you’re likely to be surprised at how truly easy it is to be on the A/N side and then maybe even more surprised at how soon it becomes completely comfortable and natural feeling. As they say in Jamaica, No pressure, No problem. The A/N side also has a huge hot tub, as big as some in ground pools. We grabbed a chilled bottle of champagne from the clubhouse Christmas Eve, beautiful crystal champagne glasses were supplied too, and spent a few hours there – the water temperature was perfect for being able to stay in a long time. If you want more champagne or anything else at all, just pick up the phone which is right there, you do have to step out of the tub first however. One other bonus about staying on the A/N side that I wouldn’t even have thought of beforehand is that you don’t have to hide in the bathroom to get dressed or close the blinds while you change for dinner. In the unlikely event that someone does see you it obviously doesn’t matter and you won’t have offended anyone. It’s really just a nice convenience.

Our X Factor Conclusion: Grand Lido Braco is appealing on so many different levels. Beyond the food being incredible, you feel that it must have been prepared especially for you. The way in which it is presented and the manner in which it’s served is all for your pleasure. The Friday night street buffet, as mentioned, is awesome, but it also must be one heck of a lot of work for the staff. Why do they do it when they have a perfectly fine restaurant just steps away, all set up and ready to go? It can only be for one reason I would imagine, the pleasure of their guests’. Fabulous staff, top shelf liquor, 24 hour service, and the ability to have what you want, where and when you want it, is all offered to make us very, very happy. It’s darn hard to be annoyed when you are feeling so good and it’s even harder to complain about insignificant things when this resort so obviously goes above and beyond to make every little thing as pleasing and pleasant for us as they possibly can. We can’t say enough about the Braco staff. From the waiters and waitresses, bartenders and front desk, it was our pleasure to have met every one of them that we did.

Every day that we were at Braco the alarm clock that we had brought from home would lose time. Over night it would lose two hours and we came to recognize 4:30 a.m. as 6:30 a.m. We initially thought that the resort was experiencing frequent and small power outages but the clock didn’t flash like they will if that were actually the case (the day the power really was off, the clock flashed). Throughout the week we reset the clock numerous times and thought about just tossing it in the garbage before we left but I didn’t. I plugged the clock in shortly after we arrived home a week ago and it hasn’t lost a minute since! Maybe that’s the real secret of Braco. They’ve found a way to slow time beyond all reality.

Only 352 days and counting!!