Wistful Wanderlust

As I had mentioned previously, this past September of 2015, I visited Jamaica.

Despite what a wonderful country it is, it didn't score highly on lists of the most visited countries.
I'm actually stunned that more tourists are not visiting this beautiful, culturally rich, turquoise island.
Many people to know little to nothing about the Jamaican culture or history other than Bob Marley, Reggae, and dreadlocks. Little do they know, there's so much more to this small Caribbean island.
Here are some of my reasons why I recommend a vacation in Jamaica (particularly in Negril, but the rest of the places I visited were awesome too).

1. There's miles of  white sand beaches with turquoise water. Not only is it clear, but the water is warm. It's great for swimming since there's no high tides or strong waves. Sharks are not much of a nuisance if you're afraid of them like me. One of the last recorded shark attacks in Negril was in the 80's. Also, notice something strange or unusual(in the photos of the beaches below)? The beaches are practically uninhabited! Since I went during the off peak hurricane season, there was barely any tourists! My friend and I practically had the beach to ourselves. This is a great place to visit from the months of May-September if you want to avoid crowds or hoards of other tourists.

2. The culture. This would consist of everything from music to the delicious food. There are plenty of authentic places to eat in Negril. You can sit down for freshly cooked snapper fish, or some jerk chicken if you don't like sea food. You won't see frozen plantains here. This is the cuisine for you if you're an adventurous eater and like a spicy kick once in a while. Along the 7 mile Beach in Negril, you can find Bourbon Beach where people flock during the night to listen to live Reggae music and dance in the sand. Rick's Cafe is another great place to hang out and eat or simply have a drink at the bar if you want to stick around for live Reggae music on a Friday night. If you'd like to know more about the Rastafarian or Selassie culture, there's plenty of guided tours in Montego Bay that take you around the villages to learn about traditional Jamaican culture and history.

3. The locals. I can honestly say, I've never felt so welcome in a country other than my own. If locals approach you, don't be nervous. They love approaching tourists to see where they're from and if it's their first time visiting Jamaica. I can't count the amount of times I was asked, "Is this your first time in Jamaica", followed by "Welcome to Paradise!". By the end of the week, I was even called a "Jamerican" by one of our local guides who spent the day with us and drove us around to our destinations. The locals do their best to make you feel comfortable in their country and feel as though you're one of them. The Jungle nightclub is a great place to hang out with locals, drink some of their famous rum punch, and dance the night away until 3 or 4 AM. Not that there's anything wrong with tourists, but I'm so glad I went during an off peak season because it gave me the chance to get familiar with so many of the locals and try to experience what it's like in their daily lives.

4. Out door activities. As I already mentioned, the beaches are amazing. There's also plenty of other activities to do if you're a nature lover as well. There's Duns River Falls for those who like water falls and rock climbing. There's river tubing, zip lining, swimming with the dolphins, horse back riding on the sand, mineral spring waters, and so many other outdoor activities to do if you're a nature lover.

5. Reasonably priced. Flying to the Caribbean from the American continents is obviously cheaper than flying all the way to Europe, Asia, or Africa. You can five 3 to 5 star all inclusive resorts in Jamaica for the price you'll find a mediocre hotel room here in the states. Many of the hotels are affordable and a one minute walk from the beach. I stayed at the Negril Tree House Resort which was conveniently, right on the 7 mile beach. The hotels are safe and have plenty of security making sure the tourists are being taken care of, they also have on site taxis that are always ready to take guests whenever they're on the go.

Hopefully one, if not all of these reasons convinced you to put Jamaica on your bucket list. :)

Below are some pictures from my recent trip here along with some brief captions. 



This day was a bit overcast due to the hurricane season, but nevertheless, the beach is always beautiful regardless.

The Blue Hole near Ocho Rios - a hidden gem in the middle of nowhere that not many tourists seem to know about where there's multiple rope swings and cliff jumps.

On the glass bottom boat getting ready to snorkel!

Rick's Cafe mid dive. Rick's Cafe is one of the most famous restaurants in the world for its outdoor view of the sunset, the live Reggae music, and cliff diving open to the public. This was the actually the smaller jump, the high dive jump was much taller and is only recommended for experienced divers.

Duns River Falls (Ocho Rios)

Duns River Falls in Ocho Rios. One of the hottest tourist attractions in Jamaica. Unlike the ocean, this water was pretty cold, but it was worth the hike up all the rocks at the end.

Best of the West jerk restaurant(Negril). If you've never tried jerk chicken, pork, or oxtail, you ABSOLUTELY MUST. The best part was that the owner cooked the jerk fresh on his grill right in front of us.

Though many Jamaicans live in poverty, this was an area I came across with beach house mansions.

Our friendly and comical snorkel guide Marcus who took us out on his glass bottom boat.(Negril)

Sunny day at the beach in Ocho Rios near Duns River Falls. Isn' t the water beautiful?

Rick's Cafe in Negril. You can find just as many locals here as tourists. The locals are known for being extremely friendly and love to approach tourists.

Fun fact I took a picture of that was on the first page of the menu at Rick's Cafe

Rick's Cafe and some random Canadian tourist who decided he wanted to photobomb us :p

River tubing near Montego Bay! This was one of the most fun activities that included a rope swing at the end of the river.