This was our very first trip to Jamaica (7/30-8/7/06) and it won't be our last. We had one MAJOR issue with our hotel but the trip itself was GREAT.
THE AIRPORT IN MONTEGO BAY: Sangster International is a fairly big airport that is very well organized. Upon landing, we had a long walk to immigration where we had to wait in line for about 25 minutes. The lines moved well due to a good number of agents (thank goodness since several planes landed at about the same time). After we picked up our bags, we had to go through customs. That was quick. No headaches whatsoever to report about the airport regarding our arrival and departure.
AIRPORT TRANSFER: I booked "Talk of the Town Tours" for our airport pick-up and drop-off for no other reason than ease. I chose them for our excursions and thought it would just be easier to book them for everything. The drive to and from Negril is about 1 hour 20 minutes. Final cost for the airport transfers for 2 adults: $110 (our son was free).
~~ WHERE WE STAYED ~~
I originally planned on splitting our stay between Montego Bay and Negril but after some research, I came to the conclusion that our place in Negril was IT (I couldn't find a hotel in Montego Bay that appealed to me as much as the one we picked in Negril).
HOTEL: It did NOT turn out to be IT :-( . We stayed at a boutique hotel called Idle Awhile. The whole concept of the hotel is a good one. Small, cute and intimate place nestled in gardens right on the gorgeous 7-mile beach. The hotel reminded us but fell short of one our favorite places in Mexico, the Hacienda Chichen Resort near the Chichen Itza ruins.
~ OUR ROOM: It is the only reason why it turned out not be IT. This is a really affordable hotel, so I had originally planned on booking a suite for the space. However, I noticed that several Trip Advisor reviewers complained that there was no AC in the living room area, so one couldn't really enjoy sitting there as it would get too hot/humid (there's AC in the bedroom and FANS in the living room). The fact that we were going in August meant that the living room area would probably be unbearable, therefore a true waste of money. So I went with a regular room, gardenview.
And let the rant begin. We ended up in room 101 which is on the first floor and next to the main walkway that goes from the entrance to the beach. What's wrong with that, you say? Well, you should see the windows in EVERY room of this hotel. There's a screen to keep the bugs out, and then wooden shutters. That's it. So guess what? Sound is NOT blocked off. You can hear EVERY person talking and walking down the path. At about 6pm, the tree frogs/cicadas/crickets/whatever would start singing and wouldn't stop till early morning. And they were LOUD (we did get used to them after a couple of days). My husband had an suggested I drink 2 rum punches at night to knock me out. Don't laugh. I tried it I was so desperate for sleep! I could only drink one and I kinda/sorta slept better :-)) .
To add to this, we ended up in Jamaica during a couple of national holidays and the equivalent of spring break. So on the weekends (just the weekends - we got there on a Sunday and were there the entire following weekend), there were parties further down the beach and the main road in Negril was packed with cars. On the whole, not a big deal to us except again at nights. We could hear the base from whatever party happening. Girls from rich Jamaican families would come stay those weekends at hotels in Negril (including ours) to go to those parties. Those girls couldn't have cared less about anyone else staying at the hotel, as they were LOUDLY coming in and out of their rooms at all hours of the night.
The bathroom was very unappealing...very basic and motel-like. There isn't an outlet in the bathroom, and there isn't a blowdryer.
To top it all off, on our first night, the power went out during the middle of the night so the generator kicked in. I swear that thing felt like it was right outside our window. This happened one more time during our stay.
I don't believe in telling people to stay away from a hotel because we all have different likes, dislikes and levels of tolerance. What can be my nightmare can be someone else's paradise, and vice-versa. We admittedly go to bed early (around 9pm/10pm). We weren't looking to party. We wake up early. Sleep is very important to us as we get little of it back home (due to work and other issues that I won't get into). So to go on vacation looking for relaxation and rest and not get the latter was unacceptable to us.
After our first night there, we tried to switch rooms but there were none available. I don't know that it would have made a difference because we talked to a family from California who was staying in an oceanview one-bedroom suite and they told us they also thought it was noisy and that on top of that, they could hear the kitchen activities first thing in the morning! Yikes! We seriously looked into staying at another hotel. At that point, we didn't care if we lost our money. We couldn't find any available rooms at any of the hotels we tried. Unfreakinbelievable. We ended up leaving Jamaica a day early so we could get two good nights of sleep instead of one before going back to work.
Despite the great staff and the great beach, we can't in good conscience recommend this hotel to anybody. But maybe our needs aren't like others. If that's the case, here's the rest of the hotel review and some advice.
~ GARDENVIEW ROOM: It's just okay. We don't think there's anything really special about it. We had a king bed with a very firm mattress. Closet space with hangers and shelves (no doors to the closet). Tiled floor. Small safe (too small to put our son's portable DVD player in it so we ended up stashing it in our suitcase - no problem). Empty mini-fridge. Small TV with network and cable channels and the BBC, but NO ESPN to my husband's horror! :-) There's AC and a ceiling fan. By the way, those windows are a waste of energy when you have the AC on. The cold air goes right out the window! I HIGHLY recommend bringing bug spray for flying insects. Mosquitoes and others would get into our room EVERY day.
The bathroom was very unappealing...very basic and motel-like. There isn't an outlet in the bathroom, and there isn't a blowdryer.
The terrace is really nice, spacious, well shaded with a ceiling fan. Due to the shade, it takes a couple of days for clothes to dry. So bring 3 bathing suits if you can. Also, protect yourself from mosquitoes if they love you. My son and I got some serious bites while sitting outside.
~ STAFF: Very nice. Jamaicans really do say "Yea Mon". LOVE it! One of the plusses of staying in a boutique hotel is that the staff ends up knowing you and vice-versa. Usually that means great, personalized service. One example: We had left our stuff (towels, son's toys) at the beach to go eat lunch elsewhere. Meantime, it poured. So after lunch, we went straight to our room. The beach employee brought us back our stuff at the end of the day. How nice is that? You'd never get that in a big resort because they'd have no idea who the stuff belongs to.
EXCURSION #2: FALMOUTH + ROSE HALL GREAT HOUSE + MONTEGO BAY
Total cost: $270 (includes entrance fee to Rose Hall)
Pick-up time: 9am. Our guides on this day were Solomon and Sienna (married to each other - and David is Solomon's uncle). Let me say right away that this tour is not for everyone. It's more interesting and educational than 'fun'. It's only for people who enjoy a bit of history and want to explore what's under the surface to find out more about a country and its people.
FALMOUTH: This is an old Georgian town (built in the 1700s) located on the north coast of Jamaica. We parked the van in the town's center and proceeded to walk around to view some of the buildings.
St. Peter's Anglican Church built in 1795, 2nd oldest church on the island:
PELICAN BAR: After the dolphins, Captain Dennis took us to the Pelican Bar. I didn't have my watch but it felt like a 20 to 30-minute boat ride to the bar. ANOTHER WOW! What a COOL place!! We loved it! The bar looks rickety but it is definitely well built. The area all around it is shallow so we were able to hang out for about 1 hour 1/2. Our son LOVED it as well.
I think this was our FAVORITE tour. You can't go to Jamaica and not do this!
WEATHER: We sure were feelin' HOT HOT HOT! The sun is powerful so protect yourself well. There were several showers during our stay but they were usually in the afternoon after we had already put in some 5 hours on the beach (remember we get up early). So we didn't feel cheated at all. Also we lucked out during our excursions, the weather was GREAT on those days.
RENTAL CAR: I am SO GLAD we didn't rent a car. The driving in Jamaica is a little out there and the roads are not great.
GLASS BOTTOM BOAT TOUR: We did a glass bottom boat ride with "Mike Glass Bottom Boat" for about an hour or more. His boat is near Idle Awhile. It was $20/adult (no charge for our son). He took us by a reef near Booby Cay island (we didn't snorkel). We saw a sea turtle, lots of starfish and colorful fish. Looks like it'd be a good snorkeling experience for anyone.
GIFT SHOP: There's a lovely gift shop right across from the street from Idle Awhile called "Jamaica Jane Gift Shop". It is affiliated with the hotel. It sells a variety of beautiful items from art work to clothes. I bought a beautiful ceramic bowl and 2 paintings from a local artist. You must check it out if you're in the area.
MONEY: We didn't change any money upon arriving in Jamaica. We had no problems using the U.S. Dollar wherever we went. Sometimes we'd get change back in Jamaican dollars.
FINAL THOUGHTS: My husband and I basically came out of this trip astounded at the bad reputation Jamaica gets. The country is beautiful, the people are warm. There is poverty and we know there's crime but like any other major country, you just need to be careful about where you go and who you deal with. Watch any local newscasts here at home and you'd think the U.S. is all about robberies, rapes, murders and child sex offenders. Wouldn't you roll your eyes if someone told you they'd never come to the U.S. due to our crime probles? If you're not comfortable venturing out on your own, go with a tour company like we did. They know where to take you and not to take you. You'll be able to enjoy Jamaica like it should be enjoyed.
Some minor complaints: No iron/ironing board. The clock wasn't working properly, we had to constantly adjust the time. Same for the lamp. Phone died as we were trying to find another hotel (not kidding). The umbrella provided in the room was broken.
We did take a sneak peak at a one-bedroom suite and it looked really nice. We didn't see the bathroom so we don't know if it's like ours or not.
~ BEACH: We had NO idea Negril's beach was this BEAUTIFUL. Calm, clear water with soft sand. Shallow for quite awhile so perfect for little ones.
~ STAFF: Very nice. Jamaicans really do say "Yea Mon". LOVE it! One of the plusses of staying in a boutique hotel is that the staff ends up knowing you and vice-versa. Usually that means great, personalized service. One example: We had left our stuff (towels, son's toys) at the beach to go eat lunch elsewhere. Meantime, it poured. So after lunch, we went straight to our room. The beach employee brought us back our stuff at the end of the day. How nice is that? You'd never get that in a big resort because they'd have no idea who the stuff belongs to.
~ RESTAURANT/FOOD: There's only one restaurant and it's called "Chill Awhile". It's outdoor, very casual, small with maybe 9 tables and a bar. Very cute and laid back with great, relaxing views of the beach. We ate breakfast and most of our lunches at the hotel and we thought those meals were good. We had dinner there one night and were not impressed with our grilled chicken breast served in Jamaican sauce.
~ THE 'DREADED' BEACH VENDORS: They were just fine. A firm, polite 'no thank you' did the trick. My husband did get offered marijuana several times. Again, a polite 'no thank you' worked fine. The hotel security guy also made sure they were not persistent. We truly did not think they were an issue.
~ BEST OF THE WEST: This little place is right across from Idle Awhile. The guy cooks lobster, chicken, etc... on 2 grills right outside. You tell him what you want and he'll get if off the grill and wrap it in tin foil for you to go. We had the jerk chicken and it was DELICIOUS!
~ THE 'DREADED' BEACH VENDORS: They were just fine. A firm, polite 'no thank you' did the trick. My husband did get offered marijuana several times. Again, a polite 'no thank you' worked fine. The hotel security guy also made sure they were not persistent. We truly did not think they were an issue.
~ OUR ADVICE: If you do decide to stay at Idle Awhile, request a room on the 2nd floor and away from the walkway. Those rooms have got to be somewhat better in terms of the noise. I read a lot of reviews about this hotel before booking it and I did not see one mention about the windows/noise. I really don't get it.
~~ RESTAURANTS ~~
We actually did not go to a lot of them. We found that our 2 best meals were at VERY CASUAL Jamaican places compared to the more upscale international restaurants.
~ THE PORK PIT: We stopped for lunch at this Jamaican place during our visit of Montego Bay. It's sort of a fast-food place near Walter Fletcher Beach. We ate the BEST jerk pork ever!
~ KUYABA ON THE BEACH: This casual place is located at the Hotel Kuyaba in Negril. It's on a wooden deck with a huge palapa for a roof right on 7-mile beach with views of the sea (the beach in that area is very narrow by the way). We had lunch there and sat on the most uncomfortable chairs I've ever sat on. I had a cheeseburger with fries. I did NOT like it. Whatever they use to marinate the meat is not good. My husband had the grilled chicken breast filet burger with fries and said it was adequate. For 2 cheeseburgers + 1 chicken burger + 2 cokes + 1 fruit punch, lunch came to $38.82 (tip not included).
~ NORMA'S: This International/Jamaican restaurant is located at the Sea Splash Resort in Negril. It's also on a wooden deck right on 7-mile beach with views of the sea. I had the jerk chicken with rice which was just okay and a bit on the dry side. My husband had the grilled filet of red snapper with potatoes. He said it was very good. For dessert, we had chocolate cake. Very rich! With 1 white wine and 1 coke, the total cost of dinner came to $56.93 (tip not included). We had taken a taxi to this place but decided to walk back via the beach after dinner. It was really nice.
By the way, we had considered moving to this resort when we were trying to get out of Idle Awhile. I'm so glad we didn't, the beach there is also narrow. On the surface, the hotel does not look as appealing as Idle Awhile and there was this unattractive small house right next to it.
~ LE VENDOME: This Jamaican/French restaurant is located at the Charela Inn hotel in Negril (right next to Idle Awhile). You can eat indoor or outdoor with views of the beach/sea. Indoor still feels like outdoor because of the big open arches. We sat on the terrace outside. Our food was good but not great. I had the filet mignon ($35). The gravy was really tasty but the meat itself was just okay. My husband had the pork chops caribbean style ($16). He said it was good, not great. For dessert, I had the banana flambe which was yummy! ($3.80) and my husband had the chocolate mousse which was good ($4.50). With 1 bowl of white rice (for the difficult eater aka 4-year-old child) + 1 red wine + 1 fruit punch + 1 pepsi, total for dinner came to $78.64 (tip not included).
The following was the HIGHLIGHT of our trip.
We put aside 3 days to see parts of the island. Whenever we travel, we usually rent a car to sightsee. I planned to do that until I saw a Fodor's post where everyone was advising a person to go with a driver because the Jamaican drivers were aggressive, the roads were bad and had no signs, etc... So I booked our tours via e-mail with a recommended company: Talk of the Town Tours. Before our trip, I had a back-and-forth e-mail conversation with Sienna who was just lovely as can be while helping us plan our excursions.
This company does NOT take credit cards so you have to wire them the deposit, which is $50 for each excursion day and $50 for the airport pick-up/drop-off. Sienna will let you know which online company they use and it's all a very easy process. At the end of each excursion, you have to pay the remaining balance for that particular excursion in cash or in traveler's checks. We left the money in our room safe and would go get it when they'd drop us off. The cost of the excursions may seem a bit high (they did to us at first), but they really aren't when you realize what you're getting (vehicle, guide and no worries for an ENTIRE day). You can tell them that you're willing to share the excursion with other people. I assume the price would then go down. We chose not to share so we'd have the flexibility to make slight changes or cut things short if needed (better to do that when you have a 4-year-old in tow).
The excursions with Talk of the Town Tours MADE our trip. We had a FANTASTIC time with David, Solomon and Sienna. We have nothing but GREAT things to say about them and would HIGHLY recommend them to anyone and everyone.
EXCURSION #1: BLACK RIVER SAFARI AND YS FALLS
Total cost: $280 (includes entrance fees to Black River and YS Falls)
Our driver/guide on this trip was David. After picking us up at 9am, he asked us if we'd mind if he brought along his two teenaged kids (12 & 14). We didn't mind at all. Turned out they were the most well-behaved, lovely teens we'd ever met with an obviously great relationship with their father. The boy was a bit shy but the girl was a little more outgoing and took to our son right away. It was very cute to see.
We enjoyed the drive to the southern coast with David pointing out things of interest. We went though the fishing villages of Bluefields and Belmont and the town of Whitehouse, passed sugarcane and papaya fields.
BLACK RIVER SAFARI/BOAT TOUR: What a GREAT 45-minute tour this is. We got on a boat to tour the Black River, saw several crocodiles (they all have names) and the beautiful Mangrove Avenue. Talk of the Town Tours uses a boat captain named Cornell who is simply FANTASTIC. He is so informative and entertaining at the same time.
~ NORMA'S: This International/Jamaican restaurant is located at the Sea Splash Resort in Negril. It's also on a wooden deck right on 7-mile beach with views of the sea. I had the jerk chicken with rice which was just okay and a bit on the dry side. My husband had the grilled filet of red snapper with potatoes. He said it was very good. For dessert, we had chocolate cake. Very rich! With 1 white wine and 1 coke, the total cost of dinner came to $56.93 (tip not included). We had taken a taxi to this place but decided to walk back via the beach after dinner. It was really nice.
By the way, we had considered moving to this resort when we were trying to get out of Idle Awhile. I'm so glad we didn't, the beach there is also narrow. On the surface, the hotel does not look as appealing as Idle Awhile and there was this unattractive small house right next to it.
~ LE VENDOME: This Jamaican/French restaurant is located at the Charela Inn hotel in Negril (right next to Idle Awhile). You can eat indoor or outdoor with views of the beach/sea. Indoor still feels like outdoor because of the big open arches. We sat on the terrace outside. Our food was good but not great. I had the filet mignon ($35). The gravy was really tasty but the meat itself was just okay. My husband had the pork chops caribbean style ($16). He said it was good, not great. For dessert, I had the banana flambe which was yummy! ($3.80) and my husband had the chocolate mousse which was good ($4.50). With 1 bowl of white rice (for the difficult eater aka 4-year-old child) + 1 red wine + 1 fruit punch + 1 pepsi, total for dinner came to $78.64 (tip not included).
~~ EXCURSIONS ~~
The following was the HIGHLIGHT of our trip.
We put aside 3 days to see parts of the island. Whenever we travel, we usually rent a car to sightsee. I planned to do that until I saw a Fodor's post where everyone was advising a person to go with a driver because the Jamaican drivers were aggressive, the roads were bad and had no signs, etc... So I booked our tours via e-mail with a recommended company: Talk of the Town Tours. Before our trip, I had a back-and-forth e-mail conversation with Sienna who was just lovely as can be while helping us plan our excursions.
This company does NOT take credit cards so you have to wire them the deposit, which is $50 for each excursion day and $50 for the airport pick-up/drop-off. Sienna will let you know which online company they use and it's all a very easy process. At the end of each excursion, you have to pay the remaining balance for that particular excursion in cash or in traveler's checks. We left the money in our room safe and would go get it when they'd drop us off. The cost of the excursions may seem a bit high (they did to us at first), but they really aren't when you realize what you're getting (vehicle, guide and no worries for an ENTIRE day). You can tell them that you're willing to share the excursion with other people. I assume the price would then go down. We chose not to share so we'd have the flexibility to make slight changes or cut things short if needed (better to do that when you have a 4-year-old in tow).
The excursions with Talk of the Town Tours MADE our trip. We had a FANTASTIC time with David, Solomon and Sienna. We have nothing but GREAT things to say about them and would HIGHLY recommend them to anyone and everyone.
EXCURSION #1: BLACK RIVER SAFARI AND YS FALLS
Total cost: $280 (includes entrance fees to Black River and YS Falls)
Our driver/guide on this trip was David. After picking us up at 9am, he asked us if we'd mind if he brought along his two teenaged kids (12 & 14). We didn't mind at all. Turned out they were the most well-behaved, lovely teens we'd ever met with an obviously great relationship with their father. The boy was a bit shy but the girl was a little more outgoing and took to our son right away. It was very cute to see.
We enjoyed the drive to the southern coast with David pointing out things of interest. We went though the fishing villages of Bluefields and Belmont and the town of Whitehouse, passed sugarcane and papaya fields.
BLACK RIVER SAFARI/BOAT TOUR: What a GREAT 45-minute tour this is. We got on a boat to tour the Black River, saw several crocodiles (they all have names) and the beautiful Mangrove Avenue. Talk of the Town Tours uses a boat captain named Cornell who is simply FANTASTIC. He is so informative and entertaining at the same time.
After Black River, we stopped for lunch at a nearby place called the Bridge House Inn. We had some really good chicken, beef stew, yams and rice and beans. YUMMY!
YS FALLS: They are located in a beautiful area of Jamaica: very green/lush, mountains, horses, etc... You can't drive straight to the falls. You park your car at the entrance and then you get on a tractor ride that will take you to them. This was lots of fun and the falls... WOW... they are BEAUTIFUL. There's a pool there too which the kids can enjoy if the falls are a bit too much for them. Both my husband and I did the rope swing thing. That was FUN! But the water there is COOOLD!! Bring water shoes for this one and a life jacket for little ones.
BAMBOO AVENUE: On the way back, David drove through the famous Bamboo Avenue. It was not as beautiful as I've seen in pictures. David did tell us the trees suffered from the last hurricane, and that last year there were huge protests over rising gas prices and people marched along that road destroying some of those trees. Too bad.
EXCURSION #2: FALMOUTH + ROSE HALL GREAT HOUSE + MONTEGO BAY
Total cost: $270 (includes entrance fee to Rose Hall)
Pick-up time: 9am. Our guides on this day were Solomon and Sienna (married to each other - and David is Solomon's uncle). Let me say right away that this tour is not for everyone. It's more interesting and educational than 'fun'. It's only for people who enjoy a bit of history and want to explore what's under the surface to find out more about a country and its people.
FALMOUTH: This is an old Georgian town (built in the 1700s) located on the north coast of Jamaica. We parked the van in the town's center and proceeded to walk around to view some of the buildings.
St. Peter's Anglican Church built in 1795, 2nd oldest church on the island:
Falmouth Courthouse, dated 1815 but a fire destroyed it in 1926. This is a reconstruction:
ROSE HALL GREAT HOUSE: This is about a 45-minute tour. Its history is interesting and creepy to say the least. One of the most sobering moments for us was when we were shown one of the traps that could be found around the slave quarters to catch any slave trying to escape.
After Rose Hall, we stopped for lunch at the Pork Pit which I mentioned under my restaurant reviews. In case I didn't say this already, the BEST jerk pork ever!
MONTEGO BAY: We originally wanted to walk around downtown MoBay to get a feel of it but we were tired and it was HOT. So we asked Solomon and Sienna to just drive through it and we'd take a few pictures here and there. Traffic was HORRENDOUS, as bad if not worse than NYC! But I'm a people watcher so I didn't care and enjoyed watching a slice of Jamaican life unfolding before my eyes.
MONTEGO BAY: We originally wanted to walk around downtown MoBay to get a feel of it but we were tired and it was HOT. So we asked Solomon and Sienna to just drive through it and we'd take a few pictures here and there. Traffic was HORRENDOUS, as bad if not worse than NYC! But I'm a people watcher so I didn't care and enjoyed watching a slice of Jamaican life unfolding before my eyes.
EXCURSION #3: DOLPHIN SEARCH + PELICAN BAR
Total cost: $285 (includes boat captain's fee).
Pick-up time: 8am. Solomon and Sienna were our guides again. Bring water shoes and a life jacket for littles ones for this tour. The drive to Treasure Beach to catch Captain Dennis' boat took about 2 hours. We saw Jake's, which looked like a pretty interesting/funky place to stay at. The area of Treasure Beach is very unique. If you want to get away from it all, this would be a good place to be. We liked it.
Total cost: $285 (includes boat captain's fee).
Pick-up time: 8am. Solomon and Sienna were our guides again. Bring water shoes and a life jacket for littles ones for this tour. The drive to Treasure Beach to catch Captain Dennis' boat took about 2 hours. We saw Jake's, which looked like a pretty interesting/funky place to stay at. The area of Treasure Beach is very unique. If you want to get away from it all, this would be a good place to be. We liked it.
DOLPHIN SEARCH: Captain Dennis was waiting for us. There were about 12 other people on the boat with us, and off we went to find dolphins. It was not a long search. We saw several of them fairly quickly. WOW! There is nothing better than seeing animals in their natural environment, let me tell you.
PELICAN BAR: After the dolphins, Captain Dennis took us to the Pelican Bar. I didn't have my watch but it felt like a 20 to 30-minute boat ride to the bar. ANOTHER WOW! What a COOL place!! We loved it! The bar looks rickety but it is definitely well built. The area all around it is shallow so we were able to hang out for about 1 hour 1/2. Our son LOVED it as well.
I think this was our FAVORITE tour. You can't go to Jamaica and not do this!
~~ OTHER STUFF ~~
WEATHER: We sure were feelin' HOT HOT HOT! The sun is powerful so protect yourself well. There were several showers during our stay but they were usually in the afternoon after we had already put in some 5 hours on the beach (remember we get up early). So we didn't feel cheated at all. Also we lucked out during our excursions, the weather was GREAT on those days.
RENTAL CAR: I am SO GLAD we didn't rent a car. The driving in Jamaica is a little out there and the roads are not great.
GLASS BOTTOM BOAT TOUR: We did a glass bottom boat ride with "Mike Glass Bottom Boat" for about an hour or more. His boat is near Idle Awhile. It was $20/adult (no charge for our son). He took us by a reef near Booby Cay island (we didn't snorkel). We saw a sea turtle, lots of starfish and colorful fish. Looks like it'd be a good snorkeling experience for anyone.
GIFT SHOP: There's a lovely gift shop right across from the street from Idle Awhile called "Jamaica Jane Gift Shop". It is affiliated with the hotel. It sells a variety of beautiful items from art work to clothes. I bought a beautiful ceramic bowl and 2 paintings from a local artist. You must check it out if you're in the area.
MONEY: We didn't change any money upon arriving in Jamaica. We had no problems using the U.S. Dollar wherever we went. Sometimes we'd get change back in Jamaican dollars.
FINAL THOUGHTS: My husband and I basically came out of this trip astounded at the bad reputation Jamaica gets. The country is beautiful, the people are warm. There is poverty and we know there's crime but like any other major country, you just need to be careful about where you go and who you deal with. Watch any local newscasts here at home and you'd think the U.S. is all about robberies, rapes, murders and child sex offenders. Wouldn't you roll your eyes if someone told you they'd never come to the U.S. due to our crime probles? If you're not comfortable venturing out on your own, go with a tour company like we did. They know where to take you and not to take you. You'll be able to enjoy Jamaica like it should be enjoyed.
