Jamaica might look small but in fact that are so many locations on the island that you shouldn’t miss. So, if you are not sure which airport to land in, and how to plan you trip from there, this blog is for you.
If you are like me, you will enjoy planning and preparing your trip by the following tips, comment below if you find them helpful.
In order to plan carefully you will need to decided what type of experience your looking for, so to begin with I section certain areas in Jamaica based on the activities, attractions and vibe of the area.
So to start with, its important to explain that the island itself is occupied mainly around the border of the island and less settlement exist in the middle of the island, that Is because of the unique geographic structure of the island with plenty of high mountains and deep valleys, with lots of rocky roads. So the recommendation that you will se below are mainly on the border of the island.
Montego Bay & North Coast | Touristic and luxuries
Some people choose to stay in Montego Bay because of the airport in the city for convenient purpose, but the truth is that Montego Bay and the north cost have a lot to offer, especially if you in luxury and all-inclusive hotels.
What’s important to know about the area that its usually full with tourist and groups of travelers. The Attraction In the area are mainly tourist friendly and also a bit more costly. The Hip street is a perfect place to get you souvenir, and spend a day at the Doctor’s Cave Beach drinking refreshing smoothie. Nature lovers will enjoy the Glistening Waters & Martha Brae River and other hidden gems in the area.
If you really want to add more history and culture to your stay, you can always visit the Sam Sharpe square and the National museum in Montego Bay, The great house in the area (Rose Hall, Greenwood Great House), The historic slave hospital at the Orange Valley estate or an active walking tour of Historical Falmouth.
Some of the great attraction in the area are the Chukka Good Hope that offers verity of extreme and outdoor activities, the Hampden Estate for the rum lovers, and the golf players would love Montego Bay the real golf empire of Jamaica.
For accommodations Montego Bay offers great verity of All inclusive hotels that some are designated only for adults with great up scale customer service. So if you looking to get pampered, be around tourist and have access to activities on the island, Montego Bay can be perfect for you.
Kingston, Blue Mountains & Portland | Culture & Chill
Kingston and Portland are not far from each other, and if you are landing in Kingston, Portland should be your next destination. Both places are very different form each other but together complete a whole experience of getting to know the local culture and relaxing.
If you want to know the Jamaican culture you can’t skip visiting Kingston, the heartbeat of Jamaica culture, Music and entertainment. The city that doesn’t sleep with dancehall night life culture that before COVID19 was active from night to morning with party around the city starting from street parties, reggae session and club parties.
There is also a lot of places sight see during the day in Kingston like the Downtown, Trench Town, Life Yard, Bob Marley Museum National Gallery, in the center of the city you will find a lot of shopping plaza and plenty of food options like Eleni’s, Uncorked, Devon House, The porch and much much more.
For music lovers Kingston is the place to stay, as the industry is active in Kingston you could find so many studios, live session, Vinyl record shops and over all a great vibe. Some other spots that are close to Kingston and are a must to visit are Port Royal, Lime Cay, Hillshire Beach, Cayamans Bay River.
After getting the city vibe you will probably need some brake of the hustle and bustle so you can visit the Blue Mountains. Enjoy the breathtaking scenery and crisp mountain air from hiking trails in Blue Mountains-John Crow National Park. Hiking to the pick is the main activity here, the hike start in the early-morning hours and last for about 3-4 hours with a tour guide.
If you’re not a hike lover that fine, you can also just stay at any of the accommodation in the mountains, visit Hope Well Park and enjoy Caribbean’s most prized coffee rises beans and the spectacular views of the fuggy mountains.
If you choose this route you probably would enjoy better if you will rent a car and drive it around, the drive form the mountain to Portland is AMZAING and capture so much nature and culture.
Portland parish holds so many different water source like beaches rivers and waterfalls, also a lot of historical locations and beautiful sites, and the real magic is that this parish during the years stay pretty natural and authentic to the culture.
In Portland you will also have the opportunity to learn about the Maroon community and tour in Moore Town with Kromanti Experience to Nanny Falls, a must hike that you should defiantly not skip! Also visit at The Living Day Light it’s the coolest jungle bar you will find on the island !
The magic in Portland can be felt by even walking in the streets of Port Antonio, that is fast developing the past years and offers so many local activities, restaurant and the best Jerk spot in the island. But of course the water source like : Reach Falls, Winford Beach, Boston Beach, Blue Lagoon are the main attraction that bring so many tourist every year.
To me Portalnd parish is location where you can stay for at least a week because of the amount of things to see and do, trust me I never met anyone who didn’t like Porti.
Negril, South coast | Endless sunny beach
If your coming from a cold country and you need to get some good mice tan color, please don’t skip Negril, the place where the beach don’t end and the sun is always out. Negril as a city is pretty small and offers a lot of tourist options for activities and restaurants. You can visit the Ricks Café and jump from high cliffs, or go more local and visit Little Bay Blue Hole (yes, another one).
Around the area you can find beautiful falls like the Mayfield Falls, and if you like adventure you can drive to Black River where crocodile tours. On the way to treasure beach you could stop at the YS Falls or Appleton Rum Estate, you won’t be able to do both on the same day.
If you’re looking to isolate and for some quite, Treasure beach will be the perfect spot for you, there you can find one of the planet’s coolest watering holes, the Pelican Bar, perched on stilts on a sandbar 1km out to sea.
You can also make a romantic stop on the way at Lovers’ Leap for an astonishing view of the coastland. From there you can continue and stop at the fishing village of Alligator Pond for lunch. Far from packaged tourism, here you can enjoy traditional village life and unspoiled scenery at its best. You’ll also enjoy a seafood feast at a truly extraordinary beachside restaurant, Little Ochie.
Ocho Rios, Center coast | Endless sunny beach
Even due a lot of tourist only visit Ocho Rios for a few hours when they stop with the cruise ships, Ocho Rios offers a lot of activities and attractions but also natural site that you should visit, with stunning waterfalls and caves to explore, charming beaches and exclusive villas.
The town of Ocho Rios is busy and full with action, you can visits the local markets, souvenir shops, or visit the famous Dunn’s River Falls located before entering the town and climbing these amazing water falls.
Don’t forget to stop for a rafting at the white river, or the amazing Blue Hole, Ocho rios have 8 rivers that most of them are available to visit by travelers nad really recommended.
Drive along the coast towards Oracabessa to see sights associated with James Bond author Ian Fleming, where you can find the luxuries Goldeneye hotel and other sites like the lighthouse at Galina Point.
To learn about the area history you should stop at the St Ann’s Bay to see the Columbus and Marcus Garvey monuments, and the Seville Great House. If you a nature lover you should also visit Green Grotto Caves before continuing on to Discovery Bay.
Cockpit country | Hike & Bush life
The real natural treasure of the country is the cockpit country, this tour suits for person that love to hike and travel and its recommended to do it with a car rather then a taxi. You can also start route by heading to Good Hope Estate to enjoyer the fun activities at Chukka Caribbean Adventures.
From there you will be able to explore one of the biggest caves in Jamaica, the Windsor cave. This can be done only with a tour guide. You can also stay at accommodation in the area called ‘Last Resort’ and choose to either do the hike with Franklyn of alternatively or go birding with the resident biologist at Windsor Great House Dr Connelly.
If you choose this route be prepared for some challenging but rewarding hiking. You can choose to do a half-day hike with a certified tour guide from Kinloss to Spring Garden, or a full-day hike through Cockpit Country, from Troy to Windsor, with a guide from Sherwood Content.
At Rock Spring, near Spring Garden, you can stop to explore the watery Painted Circuit Cave with a local guide, or to continue to the Maroon community of Accompong town, where you can meet Jamaica’s remaining Maroons and learn about their historical heroic story.
After providing a brief idea of the activity and character of each route you can easily choose you preference and what you find interesting and with to experience yourself. Now you can start planning you trip in which the first decision is to ….
Choose Airport to land in
It is a crucial point obviously to choose where you’re going to land and you have two main option The Norman Manley Air Port in Kingston or The Sangster Airport in Montego Bay. Based on this you can always try to arrange the roue close the airport landing area.
It is important to remember that the number of days that you can dedicate form your vacation here is also a key factor for planning, because if you are here for about a month its more than likely that you will get the opportunity to travel almost everywhere around the island and you don’t need to compromise of certain areas, but if you here for a week you will have to decided what places are you priority.
Another super impotent thing to do after you choose the airport of landing and how long your trip will be, don’t skip …
Booking your accommodation for first days
Yes, even if you have been here for many times before, I would always recommend to close you accommodation & transportation from the airport a head! this will make you landing so much easier and you wont have to bargain for a price for the drive, or waist your time looking for accommodation.
Rent a car !
Another things that can help you to travel freely is renting a car for your stay, even due taxi goes to almost anywhere in Jamaica having a car will help you to reach anywhere you want to go and truly explore the island. I would recommend to rent a high car that will make the travel more safe, stable and less damaging to the car.
So if you reached this far and you still need help to plan your trip you always contact me here and feel to comment below if you had visited nay of these locations before....
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