Jamaica Healing Itinerary

This trip was for “healing” because I was getting over the death of my grandmother who had passed just a month earlier.

With Julie’s Mom and My Mom taking turns watching over our daughter, Julie and I did this badly needed trip, which turned out to be the first international trip for the entire year!

In this trip, we covered most of the island Nation, from the western and southwestern coastline by Black River stretching all the way around the north side towards the east coast near Manchioneal.

Here’s a brief summary of the trip highlights and logistics from this trip…

Trip Map

Trip Highlights

Mahoe Falls – This was the closest waterfall that we visited to the Ocho Rios area (even closer than Dunn’s River Falls), where we got nice panoramas over the city as well as the experience of checking out the karstic waterfall in a garden-like setting without the crazy crowds you get from the more well-known attractions.

Dunn’s River Falls – This was by far the most famous attraction in Jamaica (largely because cruise ships go here), but aside from the crowds and the kitschy climbing-up-the-waterfall-holding-hands, there’s a real beauty to this place as exemplified by this photo, where you can clearly see that the waterfall spills into the Caribbean Sea!

Tacky Falls – When it comes to this waterfall, you’re really going off the tourist radar because it seems like only locals and waterfallers-in-the-know are aware of this place. There’s also a steeper lower drop though we were only able to view that one from its brink. The catch? In order to access this falls, you’ll definitely need a guide or a local to show you the way as it’s not well advertised. Then, there’s a bit of a scary hike involving ledges and grabbing onto roots and branches. Plus, it’s very slippery around the falls, and you definitely don’t want to slip and fall over the brink of that lower waterfall!

Somerset Falls – The treat with this waterfall was the hidden cave and waterfall behind the main drop, which was easily seen at the end of the trail through the property. From there, we had to take a short boat ride that went around a bend then faced a cave with a waterfall going over (and through) it. I managed to do a run-and-jump through the falls and into the plunge pool at the foot, which gives you an idea of how much fun it can be.

Boston Bay – The blue waters and white-sand beaches of this east-coast town was the perfect backdrop for enjoying some Jamaican Jerk Chicken, which this town was also known for. While Scotchies gets the lion’s share of the traffic due to its location in both Montego Bay and Ocho Rios (both cruise ship hangouts), we had a much quieter and tasty experience going out to this part of Jamaica.

Reach Falls – This waterfall was about as far from Ocho Rios that we had gone to, but it featured an attractive drop and plenty of space for a swim to cool off. However, we also did a rewarding climb and hike and swim further upstream to a smaller cascade with a hidden cave (which I think is called the Mandingo Cave) where you go in through the top and come out from the bottom of the waterfall. Definitely bring a Go Pro (which I didn’t have at the time) for this one!

Rick’s Cafe – Being on the west coast of Jamaica by Negril, it seemed to be THE place to watch the sunset as well as watching cliff divers while you wait for the sunset. There’s a happening and buzzing vibe here as it seems like everyone wants to party from dusk to dawn!

Beaches – It seemed that the further west you go, the better the beaches, and that was certainly the case in Negril. In our case, we just had to take a short walk from the Sandals Resort there and get right to the white-sand beach with shallow blue lagoon waters. Very relaxing and photogenic!

Black River Cruise – We actually did this excursion as part of a day trip out from Negril to YS Falls (which I’ll get to later). But the pleasant thing about this place was its back-to-nature feel as we were cruising through the backwaters of a bayou that featured caimans and American crocodiles. Plus, there was lots of birds life and just the kind of look-but-don’t-touch chill scenery that contrasts with the more party-ish and developed pleasures on the northern side of the island.

YS Falls – This was the scenic alternative to the famous Dunn’s River Falls as it featured swimming holes, rope swings, ziplining, and of course, the multi-tiered waterfall itself! It certainly doesn’t have the cruise ship crush found further north, which made this place that much more enjoyable. The only catch was that it took a bit of a drive to even get this far to the southwest of Jamaica so you definitely need time to plan for it.

Trip Advice

This trip took place during the holiday season so I wouldn’t have to take more days off than needed. Of course, this week also happened to be the most expensive time of the year seemingly no matter where we went, and Jamaica was no different.

So here’s a quick break down of what we learned about holiday travel in Rasta Land…

Self Driving versus Driver Hire: Even though Jamaica is technically a developing country, when it came to hiring guides and/or drivers (Julie didn’t want me driving here), we easily paid over $40-160 USD in cash per excursion! I wasn’t sure if we were getting ripped off or if this was the going rate. But whatever the case was, the price was decided on the spot. I don’t think there was ever any pre-negotiation.

US Dollars preferred: I didn’t recall ever needing to exchange money whilst in the country. Even though we were staying at the all-inclusive Sandals Resorts, we still wanted to try authentic Jamaican jerk chicken and go on our own excursions. So that meant we had to pay out-of-pocket (including tips), and that was when we realized that people wanted US dollars, and they didn’t even bother to ask or use local currency units! It was assumed we’d be paying in USD since it was obvious that we were Americans.

Waterfalls in Jamaica are primarily “play” waterfalls: Indeed, if you’ve been to Dunns River Falls, you know what I mean. But did you know that there were other waterfalls you could climb over or swim beneath or even zipline around. Such waterfalls include the YS Falls as well as Mayfield Falls and Reach Falls. So make sure to come prepared with swimming gear. I actually hiked in my underwear at Mayfield Falls because I didn’t come prepared!

Travel Itinerary

Days 1-2: Fly from LAX to Montego Bay then transport to Ocho Rios

Overnight: Sandals Ochi Beach Resort (Ocho Rios, Jamaica)

This was basically a travel day, where we caught a red-eye flight to Miami, then a connecting flight to Montego Bay. By the time we arrived at our accommodation, it was afternoon. That was when we used the rest of the daylight hours to be driven to Mahoe Falls.

Day 3: Day Trip to Waterfalls

Overnight: Sandals Ochi Beach Resort (Ocho Rios, Jamaica)

We hired a driver and guide, who then took us to Dunn’s River Falls, where we spent the better part of the morning. We were then taken to the east to visit Tacky Falls before making a late lunch stop at Scotchies Too for Jamaica Jerk Chicken and other goodies.

Day 4: Day Trip to Eastern Jamaica and back

Overnight: Sandals Ochi Beach Resort (Ocho Rios, Jamaica)

On this day, our hired driver and guide took us to the east side of the island. Along the way, we visited Somerset Falls, Boston Bay (more Jamaican Jerk Chicken), and then we spent a good deal of time at Reach Falls. Finally, on the return, we briefly stopped for the Blue Lagoon, which was more greenish because the lagoon was under shadow late in the afternoon.

Days 5: Transport from Ocho Rios to Negril

Overnight: Sandals Negril Beach Resort (Negril, Jamaica)

This was primarily a travel day, but we did have time to enjoy the beach at Negril as well as exploring the Sandals property.

Day 6: Day Trip to Black River and back

Overnight: Sandals Negril Beach Resort (Negril, Jamaica)

This was a busy day of touring as we immediately were taken all the way to Black River for the Black River Tour to see American crocodiles. We then went to YS Falls, and we made a stop to check out the Sandals Whitehouse Resort.

Day 7: Transport from Negril to Montego Bay, then fly Home

We actually had some time to kill because our flight home wasn’t until later in the afternoon. As long as we gave ourselves enough time to be transported from Negril to Mo’ Bay, then we’d be fine in terms of making our flight home.

So we used that time to go to Mayfield Falls before going back to the Sandals Negril to get cleaned up.

What to Bring

In addition to the equipment that we bring on all of our trips, we’ve also found the following items were especially useful for this particular trip.

Keens:

Generally in tropical environments, I tend to bring these because they’re light, they have toe protection, and they’re flexible in that I can use them on hikes (especially if there’s water so I don’t have to ruin hiking boots) and when out and about in the cities or the beaches.

They also worked for use on the plane so I wouldn’t need to bring more shoes (and hence more bulk) than just this pair. Of course, whilst on the plane, I did pack wool socks since it does tend to get pretty cold when we’re over 30,000 ft at cruising altitude on a plane.

Indeed, I’ve found these shoes to be versatile because I can also use it to both swim and climb up waterfalls (both activites are quite prevalent in Jamaica).

Go Pro:

I actually didn’t have this when we went on this trip. However, when I climbed into the Mandingo Cave, I really wished I had this so I can show what it was like to go into the cave that was waist deep in water. But in order to get out of the cave, I had to dunk myself under a low-hanging opening and emerge through a waterfall.

That alone would have been reason enough for me to bring the Go Pro had we owned one at the time. Oh well, you live and learn.