Jamaica on the cheap
Discussion
I broke my ankle in Haiti and was hospitalised in St Annes, Jamaica the following day.
The wife was in a hotel in Ocho Rios on her own for 3 nights while I was in hospital before I joined her there. George, her taxi-driver, carried a handgun but we saw no trouble in our time there.
The people we met were wonderful but I'm under no illusions - there is a lot of crime partly because there is no benefit system so people who don't work don't eat.
I reckon if you are just a bit street-smart you should be OK. We're going back in a few weeks for a fortnight's holiday and will finally swim with the dolphins - 5 years (to the day) later than planned!
The wife was in a hotel in Ocho Rios on her own for 3 nights while I was in hospital before I joined her there. George, her taxi-driver, carried a handgun but we saw no trouble in our time there.
The people we met were wonderful but I'm under no illusions - there is a lot of crime partly because there is no benefit system so people who don't work don't eat.
I reckon if you are just a bit street-smart you should be OK. We're going back in a few weeks for a fortnight's holiday and will finally swim with the dolphins - 5 years (to the day) later than planned!
Edited by GoneAnon on Saturday 4th April 16:02
We're going a week tomorrow for a 17 days but just for lazy sun in a rented villa, so won't be moving around much.
It's a poor country with the associated problems, and most of the tourists they see will be either in expensive all inclusive resorts or on cruises. It gets a lot of bad reviews about leaving the resorts but that's going to be at least partly down to the types that tend to stay there and the types that will hang around near by trying to scam the tourists... I'm sure if you're used to travelling in poorer countries it won't be anything you've not seen before...
I'll let you know in a few weeks!
It's a poor country with the associated problems, and most of the tourists they see will be either in expensive all inclusive resorts or on cruises. It gets a lot of bad reviews about leaving the resorts but that's going to be at least partly down to the types that tend to stay there and the types that will hang around near by trying to scam the tourists... I'm sure if you're used to travelling in poorer countries it won't be anything you've not seen before...
I'll let you know in a few weeks!
jmsgld said:
I'll let you know in a few weeks!
Please do! Im pretty used to being by myself with backpack, so beggers dont bother me, but I do want to be able to explore without being stabbed!
Thanks for all the advice in the thread, will take what I can from it and see how we get on. Lack of hostels isnt a good sign though. Generally how you learn about places is in hostels from other people who have done it!
Condi said:
Im pretty used to being by myself with backpack, so beggers dont bother me, but I do want to be able to explore without being stabbed!
You'll be fine. I can be a tad argumentative at times and I didn't have any grief over there. In fact I'm sure my arguing my point at times made me fit in more. Back from Jamaica now... sad face.
Was great, bloody hot + pretty humid to boot so make sure you have A/C or are directly on the beach. We had no issues what so ever with the people, seemed pretty chilled out, obviously keen to try and see some of the tourist dollar but always polite, experienced zero aggression whatsoever, infinitely more relaxed than say Kenya. It was more developed than I expected, almost like a poor US state.
Food was a little disappointing, the jerk stuff is nice, but is basically BBQ so gets a little boring, otherwise found the food a little bland and lacking in effort, some good fish and Conch to be had.
We were pretty lazy so didn't explore too much, the beach at Negril is a typical Caribbean beach so beautiful, however massively overdeveloped, rammed full of all inclusive hotels, you have to pay to get on the beach as well and the food we had there was overpriced and poor.
All in all, great holiday and need not have worried about the negative reviews at all, I think they are only relevant if you stay in an all inclusive. Overall a little too touristy / AI hotelly for us so wouldn't rush to go back.
Flight was good with Thompson, had a full row there and back, worth paying for the extra leg room as those rows were 1/2 empty where as proper cattle class was completely full and they don't allow you to take the extra leg room seats if you haven't paid for them. Good leg room, decent entertainment... and an hour early arriving both there and back.
Driving standards are poor, no lane discipline, a lot of boy racers / chav type drivers, plenty of pot holes + exaggerated last minute swerves, lots of police + speed guns with speed limits of 50 or 80 kph fairly randomly and poorly signed, I bribed $2000 JMD ( a little over a tenner) for 75 in a 50, I thought it was an 80...
Was great, bloody hot + pretty humid to boot so make sure you have A/C or are directly on the beach. We had no issues what so ever with the people, seemed pretty chilled out, obviously keen to try and see some of the tourist dollar but always polite, experienced zero aggression whatsoever, infinitely more relaxed than say Kenya. It was more developed than I expected, almost like a poor US state.
Food was a little disappointing, the jerk stuff is nice, but is basically BBQ so gets a little boring, otherwise found the food a little bland and lacking in effort, some good fish and Conch to be had.
We were pretty lazy so didn't explore too much, the beach at Negril is a typical Caribbean beach so beautiful, however massively overdeveloped, rammed full of all inclusive hotels, you have to pay to get on the beach as well and the food we had there was overpriced and poor.
All in all, great holiday and need not have worried about the negative reviews at all, I think they are only relevant if you stay in an all inclusive. Overall a little too touristy / AI hotelly for us so wouldn't rush to go back.
Flight was good with Thompson, had a full row there and back, worth paying for the extra leg room as those rows were 1/2 empty where as proper cattle class was completely full and they don't allow you to take the extra leg room seats if you haven't paid for them. Good leg room, decent entertainment... and an hour early arriving both there and back.
Driving standards are poor, no lane discipline, a lot of boy racers / chav type drivers, plenty of pot holes + exaggerated last minute swerves, lots of police + speed guns with speed limits of 50 or 80 kph fairly randomly and poorly signed, I bribed $2000 JMD ( a little over a tenner) for 75 in a 50, I thought it was an 80...
Timely reminder, and nice review....
Tbh Im massively unsure about it. I dont normally do beach holidays, and especially not by myself. Had I someone else to go with, or had I found a few hostels to stay in I would have been happy, but being in a new country, by myself with nothing 'to do' per say is un-nerving. Buying a house last year with heaps of work which needs doing is a very nice excuse not to go and spend money which could be spent on something more useful!
Tbh Im massively unsure about it. I dont normally do beach holidays, and especially not by myself. Had I someone else to go with, or had I found a few hostels to stay in I would have been happy, but being in a new country, by myself with nothing 'to do' per say is un-nerving. Buying a house last year with heaps of work which needs doing is a very nice excuse not to go and spend money which could be spent on something more useful!
Condi,just do it - its a lovely place but go there with your eyes open. WIDE open.
it can be rough as f
k but myself and mrs P met some of the nicest people we've met on holiday whilst there in october.
avoid Kingston (even during the day) unless you are with a recommended local guide. get over to YS falls (no locals there at all on our trip) and head up into the mountains to the Appleton distillery - the workers there like to party hard!
the island is far bigger than i realised, there are plenty of stunning beaches to visit - though i'd head to Negril and the golden mile. all along the road, inbetween the AI hotels, you can get to the beaches they "own" a few dollars to their security guard will give you access. notably, at the sensatori, noone wears any kind of band to prove their AI status...
one of the Hedonism resorts is along that beach too - always worth a slow swim past.
as mentioned, its a dangerous country, theres a reason its got the reputation it has. the locals massively resent the "rich" whites going over, staying in the hotel complexes and not spending money outside. this issue is perpetuated by the tour companies telling people not to go outside so the cycle of poverty and ill feeling carries on.
get yourself a guide and enjoy.
it can be rough as f
k but myself and mrs P met some of the nicest people we've met on holiday whilst there in october.avoid Kingston (even during the day) unless you are with a recommended local guide. get over to YS falls (no locals there at all on our trip) and head up into the mountains to the Appleton distillery - the workers there like to party hard!
the island is far bigger than i realised, there are plenty of stunning beaches to visit - though i'd head to Negril and the golden mile. all along the road, inbetween the AI hotels, you can get to the beaches they "own" a few dollars to their security guard will give you access. notably, at the sensatori, noone wears any kind of band to prove their AI status...
one of the Hedonism resorts is along that beach too - always worth a slow swim past.
as mentioned, its a dangerous country, theres a reason its got the reputation it has. the locals massively resent the "rich" whites going over, staying in the hotel complexes and not spending money outside. this issue is perpetuated by the tour companies telling people not to go outside so the cycle of poverty and ill feeling carries on.
get yourself a guide and enjoy.
Okay, well I have decided to somewhat man up and go for it.
Itinerary is to fly into MoBay then route taxi to Ocho Rios, 1 night there and then 2 nights in Port Antonio. Turn around, 1 night in Boscobel (next to Ocho) and then 2 nights in Negril, before a final stop in MoBay before flight home. Should give me a bit of a flavour of the island, though typing it out makes me think im being too ambitious and are going to spend more time traveling than sat on a beach. But better than being bored I guess.
Bring on the sunshine...
Itinerary is to fly into MoBay then route taxi to Ocho Rios, 1 night there and then 2 nights in Port Antonio. Turn around, 1 night in Boscobel (next to Ocho) and then 2 nights in Negril, before a final stop in MoBay before flight home. Should give me a bit of a flavour of the island, though typing it out makes me think im being too ambitious and are going to spend more time traveling than sat on a beach. But better than being bored I guess.
Bring on the sunshine...
Right, Im back, and importantly, alive!
And my god what a place. I landed in Motago Bay (Mobay) which is where most flights land, immigration was a bit slow to say the least but its always like that apparently. From there I went to Port Antonio (Porto), then headed back across the island to Ocho Rios (Ochi) and finally to Negril.
Jamaican public transport takes a bit of getting used to, there are route taxis (cars which do a set route, you just hop on, hop off) and mini-buses which do basically the same thing with more people on. The driver's have one aim, which is to get you to your destination as quickly as possible, without worrying too much about other traffic, animals, curves in the road or anything that insignificant - the only things they do slow down for is to drop/pick someone up, or potholes. At either time the brakes are slammed on, and then the accelerator is rammed into the floor to get going again. Most towns have a transport centre, which has maybe 100 or so route taxis and busses all going in different directions. Navigating through that can be a challenge, but all the taxi drivers were great to me, and pointed me in the right direction.
So, first stop Porto. Used to be a major export port back in the 1850's through to 1930's. Ian Flemming wrote James Bond just round the coast, but in recent years the tourist money has gone West, leaving Porto fairly untouched by the tourists. The area around the town is one of the most beautiful and unspoilt landscapes Ive ever seen - glistening white sand beaches, waterfalls through tropical rainforrest, fantastic local fruit from the trees. The people are nice, in some places I got a double take as white people dont often go there, aside from a few who berth at the marina.
Moving back across the island, Ochi is a tourist town, which relys on the cruise ships to bring tourists in, and then the hustlers, souvenir shops, and very commercial (and very poor) attractions to fleece them for as much money as possible. The hustlers are good, and quite persistent in places, and I ended up buying, by accident, a tour round the market, a bag of jerk spice, and a few buds of ganga - paying far too much in the process! However, by night the hustlers disappear and the locals come out, in typical Jamaican style. Food carts appear everywhere, sound systems are wheeled out, and the locals come down to relax after a day at work. A totally different vibe and not what I was expecting after the day of being jostled, hustled and treated like a money pit.
Finally I hit Negril, famous for its 4 miles of golden sand. Its known as the party capital on the island, certainly so for tourists. Again, a bit commerical, but not like Ochi as you dont get cruise ships in Negril, so people are likely to be around for a few days. Some good clubs and bars, include Ricks Cafe, regulary rated as 1 of the top 100 bars in the world. The sunsets from here are legendary, and I would recommend you check it out. Here I ended up at a concert which went on til 4am, and then somehow ended up being the only white guy in Negril's strip club til 5! The town itself is a bit rough and ready, and there are more hustlers here than anywhere else. You soon learn to deal with them though, and after a while they dont bother you.
I must admit, I totally fell in love with the island. Its incredibly poor, and all the hustlers or street vendors are trying to do is earn enough to eat that day. Dont blame them for what they do, and dont think its only tourists who are offered things to buy. Locals have people coming up to them every day offering 'juice and water, juice and water' or 'nuts, nuts, nuts'. These people have nothing, and selling a few bottles of water at 60p a piece does mean a lot to them. Once you get past the rough edges, the people are generally fantastic. No taxi driver ripped me off, and everyone I asked for information was helpful and kind. There are areas of towns where you wouldnt want to go, but as a tourist you wont want to go there anyway, and the rest of the island is pretty safe as long as your sensible - get an official taxi, dont walk away from the main streets at night, dont flash your mobile phone, etc etc.
The lasting impression I want to give, is a summed up by a conversation I had with a taxi driver. I told him about the mixed reviews I had read (in this thread and elsewhere), and he said the media had written unfair headlines, and he wished more people would give it a try, and see beyond the Daily Mail-esq stories. Its a bit like judging the UK by the reputation of Moss-Side in Manchester, hardly representative of the North York Moors, is it?! The cruise ships also dont help, as people only see the bad sides to the island, and dont get to stay long enough to see past this to what lies beyond. For those who are brave enough, and willing enough to look around, you will find a beautiful tropical island, with fantastic people, and lovely cheap food. Yes, its rough around the edges, but that conceals a heart of gold, beating to a tune of Reggae music and Dancehall beats.
So, Peace, One Love, Respect - Jamaica, you were fantastic.
And my god what a place. I landed in Motago Bay (Mobay) which is where most flights land, immigration was a bit slow to say the least but its always like that apparently. From there I went to Port Antonio (Porto), then headed back across the island to Ocho Rios (Ochi) and finally to Negril.
Jamaican public transport takes a bit of getting used to, there are route taxis (cars which do a set route, you just hop on, hop off) and mini-buses which do basically the same thing with more people on. The driver's have one aim, which is to get you to your destination as quickly as possible, without worrying too much about other traffic, animals, curves in the road or anything that insignificant - the only things they do slow down for is to drop/pick someone up, or potholes. At either time the brakes are slammed on, and then the accelerator is rammed into the floor to get going again. Most towns have a transport centre, which has maybe 100 or so route taxis and busses all going in different directions. Navigating through that can be a challenge, but all the taxi drivers were great to me, and pointed me in the right direction.
So, first stop Porto. Used to be a major export port back in the 1850's through to 1930's. Ian Flemming wrote James Bond just round the coast, but in recent years the tourist money has gone West, leaving Porto fairly untouched by the tourists. The area around the town is one of the most beautiful and unspoilt landscapes Ive ever seen - glistening white sand beaches, waterfalls through tropical rainforrest, fantastic local fruit from the trees. The people are nice, in some places I got a double take as white people dont often go there, aside from a few who berth at the marina.
Moving back across the island, Ochi is a tourist town, which relys on the cruise ships to bring tourists in, and then the hustlers, souvenir shops, and very commercial (and very poor) attractions to fleece them for as much money as possible. The hustlers are good, and quite persistent in places, and I ended up buying, by accident, a tour round the market, a bag of jerk spice, and a few buds of ganga - paying far too much in the process! However, by night the hustlers disappear and the locals come out, in typical Jamaican style. Food carts appear everywhere, sound systems are wheeled out, and the locals come down to relax after a day at work. A totally different vibe and not what I was expecting after the day of being jostled, hustled and treated like a money pit.
Finally I hit Negril, famous for its 4 miles of golden sand. Its known as the party capital on the island, certainly so for tourists. Again, a bit commerical, but not like Ochi as you dont get cruise ships in Negril, so people are likely to be around for a few days. Some good clubs and bars, include Ricks Cafe, regulary rated as 1 of the top 100 bars in the world. The sunsets from here are legendary, and I would recommend you check it out. Here I ended up at a concert which went on til 4am, and then somehow ended up being the only white guy in Negril's strip club til 5! The town itself is a bit rough and ready, and there are more hustlers here than anywhere else. You soon learn to deal with them though, and after a while they dont bother you.
I must admit, I totally fell in love with the island. Its incredibly poor, and all the hustlers or street vendors are trying to do is earn enough to eat that day. Dont blame them for what they do, and dont think its only tourists who are offered things to buy. Locals have people coming up to them every day offering 'juice and water, juice and water' or 'nuts, nuts, nuts'. These people have nothing, and selling a few bottles of water at 60p a piece does mean a lot to them. Once you get past the rough edges, the people are generally fantastic. No taxi driver ripped me off, and everyone I asked for information was helpful and kind. There are areas of towns where you wouldnt want to go, but as a tourist you wont want to go there anyway, and the rest of the island is pretty safe as long as your sensible - get an official taxi, dont walk away from the main streets at night, dont flash your mobile phone, etc etc.
The lasting impression I want to give, is a summed up by a conversation I had with a taxi driver. I told him about the mixed reviews I had read (in this thread and elsewhere), and he said the media had written unfair headlines, and he wished more people would give it a try, and see beyond the Daily Mail-esq stories. Its a bit like judging the UK by the reputation of Moss-Side in Manchester, hardly representative of the North York Moors, is it?! The cruise ships also dont help, as people only see the bad sides to the island, and dont get to stay long enough to see past this to what lies beyond. For those who are brave enough, and willing enough to look around, you will find a beautiful tropical island, with fantastic people, and lovely cheap food. Yes, its rough around the edges, but that conceals a heart of gold, beating to a tune of Reggae music and Dancehall beats.
So, Peace, One Love, Respect - Jamaica, you were fantastic.
Gassing Station | Holidays & Travel | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff