Sandals Resorts Jamaica

Food is everywhere in Jamaica, with wooden roadside stalls selling everything from coconuts, jackfruit, and mangoes to spicy meat-filled patties and jerk chicken in tin foil, hot off the smoldering coals. As an aside, it’s safe to eat at them as street food and drink vendors have to be certified. The big resorts and hotels do, of course, run the full gamut of international food, if that’s your thing.

For some of Jamaica’s best-known fusion food, head to The Houseboat Grill moored in Montego Bay Marine Park, a two-floor boat with gorgeous views of the sea and coast. Miss T’s Kitchen in Ocho Rios is a colorful, traditional spot for Jamaican favorites such as jerk shrimp saltfish, and ackee. At the same time, local superstar Usain Bolt’s Tracks & Records has outposts in Montego Bay and Kingston, serving jerk chicken, burgers, and a wide selection of rum. There’s more jerk — of every variety, plus rum ribs and grilled catch of the day — at Scotchies, also in Montego Bay and Ocho Rios.

For an authentic plate of curried goat and roti, seek out Moby Dick on an unassuming street in Kingston. And for beautiful sunset views — and of thrill-seekers hurling themselves from

Hire a private (certified) taxi and spend the day exploring the Blue Mountains. The mist-snagged peaks and lush valleys are swathed in tropical jungle, where the flowers are the size of trumpets and every turn reveals a ridiculously photogenic waterfall.

The interior is dotted with small farms growing bananas, sugar cane, yams, and coffee — stop off at the Old Tavern Estate to buy beans, and at EITS Café for seasonal, farm-to-fork food and epic views from the veranda. You can visit Greenwood Great House, the home of the poet Elizabeth Barrett-Browning, or Rose Hall, which is notorious for its former owner,

Annie Palmer, who murdered her three husbands and today is said to haunt the 18th-century mansion. For a full day of outdoorsy adventures — river rubbing, canopy ziplining, or dune-buggy rides — opt for River Bumpkin Farm or the Good Hope Estate, centered on a Georgian mansion dating back to the 1700s.

Hire a private (certified) taxi and spend the day exploring the Blue Mountains. The mist-snagged peaks and lush valleys are swathed in tropical jungle, where the flowers are the size of trumpets and every turn reveals a ridiculously photogenic waterfall.

The interior is dotted with small farms growing bananas, sugar cane, yams, and coffee — stop off at the Old Tavern Estate to buy beans, and at EITS Café for seasonal, farm-to-fork food and epic views from the veranda. You can visit Greenwood Great House, the home of the poet Elizabeth Barrett-Browning, or Rose Hall, which is notorious for its former owner,

Annie Palmer, who murdered her three husbands and today is said to haunt the 18th-century mansion. For a full day of outdoorsy adventures — river rubbing, canopy ziplining, or dune-buggy rides — opt for River Bumpkin Farm or the Good Hope Estate, centered on a Georgian mansion dating back to the 1700s.

Best Sandals Resorts in Jamaica for Couples

Most visitors make a beeline for the resorts of Negril, Montego Bay, and Ocho Rios. Negril, with its clifftop bars, beautiful Seven Mile Beach, and laid-back nightlife, is the most relaxed, while Ocho Rios is at the other end of the spectrum, known for its all-inclusive and cruise ships.

Here, the historic Jamaica Inn has long been a favorite of Hollywood stars (Marilyn Monroe and Arthur Miller honeymooned here), while a little further east is GoldenEye. This stylish collection of cottages, villas, and beach huts, owned by Chris Blackwell, founder of Island Records and Bob Marley’s producer, includes Ian Fleming’s former villa.

Montego Bay

Mango Bay has the main airport (there’s another in the capital, Kingston), plus long, white-sand beaches, manicured golf courses and a big choice of restaurants, hotels and bars. Here, the best-known hotels include Round Hill, an elegant beachside hotel with rooms styled by Ralph Lauren. Half Moon is the smartest of the all-inclusives.

GeeJam, near Port Antonio, has pretty bungalows hidden in the rainforest, with a hip bar and its recording studio that has hosted Amy Winehouse, Snoop Dogg, Rihanna, and Katy Perry among others. Strawberry Hill is up in the Blue Mountains, with its posh, whitewashed plantation-style cottages and views over Kingston.

While it’s tempting to stake your spot on the beach and spend your entire holiday moving between sand, sea, and rum cocktails, you’d be missing the whole point of Jamaica. This is a thriving island, with a fascinating culture and a ravishingly gorgeous coast as well as an interior that merits at least a few days’ exploring.

The big-name resorts are along the west and north coast, from Negril, via Montego Bay (or Mo Bay), to Ocho Rios, all with white-sand beaches and a huge choice of hotels, bars, and restaurants. The northeast has a very different vibe, centered on sleepy Port Antonio and its jungle-clad hills — and Frenchman’s Cove, one of the loveliest beaches on the island. A little further east is the Blue Lagoon (known locally as the Blue Hole), open to the sea, but fed by freshwater springs that give the water its hypnotic jade hues.

River rafting on the Rio Grande, also in the northeast, is a dreamy way to spend half a day. You can raft on the Martha Brae and the Great River, near Montego Bay.

Popular Places

Back at Ocho Rios, Dunn’s River Falls are hugely popular, where visitors can climb up the rock pools and watch the waterfall right into the sea, while Mystic Mountain is a chair-lift ride that takes you up through the rainforest, with the option of a zipline or bobsleigh to barrel you 1,000m back to sea level. Head to Luminous Lagoon, also known as Glistening Waters, after dark for a boat tour of its spookily bioluminescent waters.

The best beaches include Doctor’s Cave Beach Club in Montego Bay, named for the water’s apparent healing qualities, and James Bond Beach, near Ocho Rios, where Sean Connery watched Ursula Andress emerge from the water in Doctor No. Perhaps the most photogenic, though, is the white-sand stretch of Seven Mile Beach in Negril.

Make time for a drive around the spectacular Blue Mountains, and for a taste of authentic Jamaican culture spend a few hours in Kingston, for a plate of curry goat and a guided tour of the Bob Marley Museum, where he recorded many of his albums — and yes, you may well find yourself taking part in a group rendition of One Love.