Off the Resort

Jamaica Jamaica! I smile every time I think about the island. So many good memories! And to think if I listened to others about it, I would have never experienced the culture that I was so fortunate to be enriched by.  Most people that I talked to previous to my trip stayed on the resort and told me that was the safe thing to do. People said it was nicer and much safer than compared to the rest of the country.  I’m sure they did have great experiences but you can’t say you’ve truly experienced the Jamaican culture if you’ve never stepped foot off of the resort.

I went to Jamaica for my friends birthday. I didn’t have that much lead time for this trip but hey it was my “year of yes” and I’m so glad I went! We flew in and out of Montego Bay because that’s where our Airbnb was located.  The flight was on Southwest and cost about $560. Definitely not what you should pay to fly to Jamaica, but this was a random trip and I bought it less than a month before we were scheduled to leave. We chose to stay in an Airbnb in Montego Bay and explore other cities in Jamaica through day trips. The Airbnb owner offered additional services like a driver and many restaurant and night life recommendations. 

There is so much to do in Jamaica so I’ll give you the highlights in each place that we went! We explored 3 cities: Montego Bay, Ochos Rios, and Negril over 4 days.

Montego Bay

Montego Bay was home base for us. And as you probably have realized by now, we love Airbnb’s. It just connects you more with the actual culture of the place you visited.  This was no different and I wouldn’t have had it any other way. Here’s a link to where we stayed.  It was 4 of us and we paid $160 a piece for our 4 night stay at the Airbnb.  The host was awesome and she helped us find good places to eat, the ones locals frequent. That’s where the good authentic Jamaican food is. I’m literally salivating thinking about the oxtails, goat, jerk chicken….ok let me stop before I book another flight. The Airbnb was in an apartment complex and had a pool on the roof of the complex with an amazing view of the sunset. I will say A/C is a luxury there so it’s one of those places where you can’t just keep it running. You need to turn everything off as you come and go.  The Airbnb was in an ideal location not far from one of the most popular streets in Montego called Hip Strip where pretty much everything was so we were able to walk to most places. The only time we got a ride somewhere in Montego was at night because we were a group of women and it was much safer to just get someone to take us.

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Hip Strip

Immediately when we got to Montego we had to hit the beach! There was a beach walking distance on the Hip Strip called Doctors Cave Beach. The host recommended it because it wasn’t considered a public beach as you had to pay a fee to get in and would be less crowded and well kept. Boy was she right! For a small fee, we got in and saw an amazing beach that wasn’t overly crowded and had great facilities.  They also had this huge trampoline you could swim out to that was so fun! The water was clear and blue and felt amazing as we were in Jamaica during the summer and it was very hot. After spending a few hours there we walked back to the house to freshen up and explore the neighborhood.

We decided to go back to the Hip Strip to see what we could stumble onto. There were a bunch of places to eat where you could get authentic Jamaican food (a must on my list) and a bunch of markets that we wanted to come back to and buy some souvenirs. Beware, they play the kids card heavily and use them to sell their stuff. I have to say those kids faces got me a few times but I was happy to support the people how I could. Because we were really were excited about seeing the nightlife, we went back to the Hip Strip that night. A big part of our excitement was because of the music. We were there celebrating my friend’s 30th birthday so we definitely wanted to get out and have a good time!  We were told by our Airbnb host Margaritaville was the place to be that night. And although I wasn’t thrilled because I thought it would be touristy, we had a great time dancing the night away! Apparently the locals are drawn to this place because of the tourists so it was a nice mix of people. Dancing is a key element of the culture so I was worn out after. So much fun though! We ended up going to a boat party and some bars throughout the week as well. There is plenty to do if you’re looking for something to do at night!

Ochos Rios

Ochos Rios is on the Northern coast of Jamaica about a hour and a half drive from Montego Bay. We wanted to check out Dunn’s River Falls which is located in Ochos Rios.  As I mentioned previously, the host offered up a driver to take us to destinations outside of Montego so we just gave her our schedule and she arranged for the driver to take us. Our driver was considered a Rastafarian or Rasta so we got to learn so much about that aspect of the culture on the drive. Contrary to popular belief, Rasta’s aren’t just people with dreads that smoke weed, its a way of life that Rasta’s dedicate themselves to. It plays out in how they live, what they believe spiritually, their diet, and other practices. And yes…they have dreads and smoke weed. We just learned so much about the culture from him. The Rasta’s are shown so much respect and we saw that everywhere we went. He also was essential in providing authentic recommendations for us throughout our trip. Very clutch!

Dunn’s River Falls

Dunn’s River Falls is such a unique place. One of the top attractions there because of its beauty.  At the entrance they will provide water shoes and lockers for you. The fee to get in is $20.  Trust me you need the water shoes. As you’re exploring and walking across the waterfalls, there are many slippery rocks and the water shoes help with your grip (I still fell with the water shoes and ended up with a gash on my knee smh).  There is a 180 ft climb to the top of the falls and it takes roughly about 45 mins. The views are spectacular and you should just take them all in as you go up. The guides are experts in photo taking and make sure they capture you in the best light and at prime locations during the hike up. One less thing to worry about right?

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Blue Hole

You would think that would be enough for one day but we also wanted to go to Blue Hole.  It is a natural limestone sinkhole near Ochos Rios so we stopped there on the way back. It gets its name from the rich blue waters in the sinkhole.  The entrance fee was $15 to get in and you get a guide to direct you and help you get safely to the hole.  There are waterfalls, cliff diving, and a rope swing to enjoy the waters when you finally hike up. The water felt so good I never wanted to leave.

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Negril

We also had the driver take us from Montego Bay to Negril. The drive was similar to Ochos Rios, about a hour and a half in the other direction. We took the tourist route in Negril which made this the least favorite stop for me. We went to a popular beach there, Seven Mile beach.  While the beach was so pretty and the water was so clear, it was very crowded and people were trying to sell you things at every turn. Needless to say we didn’t end up staying there long.  

Rick’s Cafe

Before we went back to Montego we had to stop by the famous Rick’s Cafe and do the cliff dive.  I chickened out because of the rocks but a few of my friends ended up doing the dive (after practically being pushed off the cliff lol).  By the way, for those of you who don’t know…you don’t go to Rick’s Cafe to eat, just to watch people dive off of the cliff and watch the sunset. After having so much authentic Jamaican food, the food at the cafe tasted awful. We asked the driver for another local recommendation on our way back to Montego.

Overall I had an amazing time in Jamaica. I would happily go back as we met so many amazing people and had so much good food! I’m salivating thinking about the food! I just want to reiterate to not let people’s fears and misconceptions stop you from visiting another place. As a tourist you should always be cautious but no different than how you should be in your place of residence. At no point in time did I not feel safe. People were so welcoming and friendly to us and we learned so much about the culture from them!

Remember, get off the resort and immerse yourself in the culture!!

Have you been to Jamaica? What places did you visit? Would you go back?? Let us know in the comments below!