The sunny welcome you will receive is extraordinary the enthusiasm for life infectious. Here, moreso than on any other Caribbean island, hospitality is truly a national obsession. Built by fisherman Floyd Forbes in 2001, after he envisaged it in a dream, this watering hole made from driftwood and palms stands on stilts in the Caribbean Sea just off Jamaica’s south coast, with pelicans perching nearby.īut the best thing about Jamaica – the highlight eternally at its core – is the people: their spirit, strength and warmth.
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To ensure full holiday bragging rights, order a potent punch at Floyd’s Pelican Bar (001 8 open 10.30am-sunset).
Or have escovitch – fish cooked with vinegar and allspice – at Miss T’s Kitchen ( ), an Ocho Rios institution where everything is served on rainbow coloured tables to a soundtrack of (what else?) reggae.Īnd wherever you go, expect rum. Try it with plantain at Boston Bay’s jerk shacks (about 10 miles east of Port Antonio). National favourites such as jerk chicken, spicy patties, ackee and saltfish, rice and peas abound at restaurants and roadside stalls (all vendors have to be certified, so street food is perfectly safe).īut if you only eat one meal, make it jerk – a style of barbecuing native to Jamaica, in which meat is dry-rubbed or wet marinated with a hot spice mix. Imbibe the reggae spirit even further at Tuff Gong (£16.30 ) – the legendary Kingston studio where Marley cut tracks such as Buffalo Soldier and Redemption Song.Īnd then, of course, there is the food – a vital part of Jamaican life and culture delicious and joyful. Then make a pilgrimage to the nearby Peter Tosh Museum (£16.30 ) which tells the story of the reggae icon, equal rights activist and proponent of Rastafari who was murdered in 1987, through memorabilia such as his unicycle and gun-shaped guitar. Rooms remain untouched and filled with artefacts, including Marley’s clothing and gold and platinum records. Start with a guided tour of the Bob Marley Museum (£20.40 ) at 56 Hope Road – a colonial-era wooden house where Jamaica’s first son lived until his death in 1981. The capital has reinvented itself as a vibrant melting pot, full of charisma, colour and culture. And in the sleepy, Eden-like eastern parish of Portland, there is thrilling bamboo rafting on the Rio Grande river (from £53.20 per raft 001 8) where you can sail past former banana plantations.īut it’s not just nature – the cities are special, too, and Kingston particularly so.
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On the south coast, there is YS Falls (£16.30 ) – a series of cascades set amid acres of lush vegetation and limestone cliffs that are every bit as beautiful as the more famous (and crowded) Dunn’s River Falls in Ocho Rios (£20.40 ). It is one of only a few places in the world where this phenomenon occurs and it is truly magical – the hyperbole is justified. Among the spectacular natural attractions is the Luminous Lagoon (from £10.20 ), east of Falmouth, where the water glows as a result of bioluminescence (microscopic organisms that emit light when disturbed). There are other magnificent natural wonders, too: rivers, waterfalls and the almost unnervingly tranquil Blue Mountains range (where some of the best coffee beans in the world are grown). So yes, plenty of beaches – but don’t make the mistake of writing off Jamaica as nothing but pretty stretches of sand. Don’t fancy either of those? On the east coast, you will find Frenchman’s Cove ( ), where a £10 beach pass gives you access to a small strip of postcard-perfect white sand ringed by miniature forested headlands and flanked by an azure lagoon. Or enjoy a gentle stroll while admiring the shifting colour of the sea at bohemian Treasure Beach – this time on darker sand, and likely without seeing another soul if you go before breakfast. At Negril’s Seven Mile Beach (actually only four miles long), you can walk the entire length of white sand before joining the crowds at the always busy Rick’s Cafe (001 8) to watch plucky locals dive from the rocks into the warm turquoise waters below as the setting sun fades from deep red to pink.