JOURNAL: Jamaica Me Crazy!

JAMAICA
Jamaica is known for its unparalleled beauty, from the beautiful blue mountains to the turquoise waters there is an immense amount of places and things to explore here. Tourists flock to Montego Bay by air and sea to have a fun and relaxing getaway. That was the order on this trip. Upon arrival the weather was gorgeous at 82 degrees with a warm breeze. You could just feel the clean fresh air from the ocean as we got closer to our hotel- The Holiday Inn Resort, Montego Bay.

HOTEL
As we got out of our ride to the hotel we were greeted by some staff that took our bags and helped us check in. While checking in we were given complimentary cocktails, cucumber water and a warm towel with the sounds of calypso and reggae intertwined in the background. After check in we were escorted to the concierge so we could plan out our dinner reservations and excursions. We headed to our room and checked out the view and we were placed with a poolside view/ocean view. Not bad at all to wake up to every morning. We got cleaned up and headed downstairs for our first dinner reservation.

FOOD
Our first night in Jamaica, we settled for the buffet as we wanted to sample a little bit of everything before hitting the fine dining options. From jerk chicken, curry goat to shepherds pie, they definitely provided authentic Jamaican cuisine mixed in with some American and European flair. Throughout the remaining days, each and every meal was absolutely delicious at all the onsite dining options included in the all inclusive package. From authentic Jamaica, American, Indian, Creole, Asian Fusion and European dishes, we didn’t get bored with the meals here at all!

ENTERTAINMENT
Probably the most famous site in Jamaica is the Dunn’s River Falls and we chose to visit through a tour suggested by the hotel. We spent quite some time at the falls, which can be quite slippery, and some of the water pools were rocky so if visiting wear proper rubber shoes for your climb. If you don’t want to take the climb up the rocks to the falls, there is also a stairs walk up. After climbing the falls, we headed back down to the small, uncrowded beach to take a dip in the warm ocean.  Upon leaving we also hit up the market that was at the end of the falls visiting area for some souvenirs.

During the remainder of the stay we attended live nightly themed shows, visited Negril and spent the day at the beach for Margaritaville. We also went to the legendary Rick’s Cafe, watched the cliff diving, grabbed some drinks and watched the beautiful sunset.  Visited the Croydon Plantation grounds where pineapples and a wide variety of citrus fruits are harvested daily. The vast majority of our time outside of touring was spent basking in the warm ocean/breeze, relaxing, drinking fresh cocktails and eating on the beach as the hotel staff would come by and take our orders and delivered our food right on the beach, which was divine.

Montego Bay houses a large number of all-inclusive hotels to chose from, so if you are looking to visit, there are plenty of other options than the Holiday Inn. Hotels can be slightly inland or right on some of Jamaica’s pristine beaches, the selection is vast and varied. Whatever you choose, I am sure you will definitely have an enjoyable stay in this paradise. I know we did!