Jamaica is one of the countries in the Caribbean and is often referred as West Indies. It is a beautiful country with turquoise water beaches, friendly people, Reggae music and plenty of water activities. This country has something for everyone. Like any beach destination, Jamaica offers myriad all-inclusive resorts but I am not an enthusiast for resort vacations. I like to escape on my own & experience the culture and local food. It’s like solving a puzzle to explore a new place.

I have an Indian passport and have to apply for a visa to visit most of the countries (some of you may understand the pain of applying for visas). I wanted to visit the Caribbean & found Jamaica where I didn’t need any visa to visit. That’s it! Booked my tickets & landed in Montego Bay International airport. We were a group of 6, stayed 4 nights in Ocho Rios & one night in Montego Bay.

Tip: No visa and no entry fees for Indian passport holders.

Where to Stay

I always make a list of all the places I want to visit and use Google maps to get an idea of the distance between the places. An estimate of travel time helps to choose the accommodation wisely. You can choose hotels, hostels or Airbnb for your stay. We choose Ocho Rios as our base and booked a beautiful Airbnb. It was a perfect location and had our own chef. Highly recommend this place.

Deal: If you have never used Airbnb you can use my referral link and get $40 off on your first booking. As a full disclosure, when you book using my link I get $20 reward from Airbnb.

Airport Transportation

Prebooked a JUTA taxi with 25$ per person from Montego airport to Ocho Rios. We landed at 11:00 pm at Montego Bay airport so have to prebook. There are route taxis and other options available if you are reaching daytime. Route taxis are the local taxis used by Jamaicans. It can be a car or van with a red plate. They are the budget transportation available in Jamaica. No fixed fare and you can test your bargaining skills. They charge by per person and take CASH only. Check out the airport website for various transportation options.

Day 1 – Travel Day

It was a 6-hour flight from Philadelphia to Montego Bay with a layover in Miami. We landed at 11:30 pm and Immigration was quick with no hassle. We also did currency exchange at the airport. I would suggest doing the exchange in the US to get better rates. Ocho Rios is a 90-minute drive from Montego Bay and our JUTA taxi was waiting when we arrived.

Tip: Use travel credit cards to avoid any transaction fees and enjoy supreme exchange rate. I use my Bank of America travel card for all international transactions with no additional charges.

Day 2 – Dunn’s Waterfall & Beach (FUN! FUN! FUN! )

This place is one of the top attractions in Jamaica. Dunn’s waterfall is an easy and fun hike. You can spend the whole day hiking the waterfall and relaxing at the beach. We stayed in Ocho Rios and it was 10 – 15 minutes drive to Dunn’s falls. When we reached the falls, we bought entry tickets ($20 per person). We also rented lockers ($10) to keep all camera gear and clothing. There were many groups in front of us singing, dancing, holding hands & hiking the waterfall. Many guided tours are available to hike the waterfall if you need one. Visiting Dunn’s waterfall is a MUST if you are in Jamaica. I have listed the things to carry for your visit.

• Water Shoes- Anything which you don’t mind getting wet. You can buy them for $10. People were hiking without any shoes as well.
• Water resistant Phone case to take pictures. Avoid heavy camera gear.
• Sunscreen
• Swimwear & Towel

Tip: The place can be very crowded if a cruise ship is docked in Ocho Rios. Try to visit the place when there are no ships.

Day 3: Blue Lagoon & Somerset Falls

Blue Lagoon is 2-3 hours drive from Ocho Rios. We hired a private taxi and visited Blue Lagoon & Somerset falls. The drive from Ocho Rios to Port Antonio is beautiful with blue water running on one side. We passed small towns, banana plantations and stopped for fresh coconut water at a roadside shop. Local shops & vendors take cash, so make sure you have some.We reached Blue lagoon and decided to do Bamboo rafting. It’s a popular activity where the guide will be rowing the raft and you can enjoy the beautiful scenery. The raft doesn’t have any shade, so I would be careful to do bamboo rafting on a hot day. We planned to do the rafting only for an hour and negotiated our price with local vendors. Luckily we had an awesome negotiator in our group and she managed to get a deal for 5000 JMD per raft which accommodates 3 people (GREAT PRICE, YAY!). No online booking is required. Blue Lagoon has a vibrant blue color and the color appears to be in different shades of blue. The water is still in the lagoon and people were enjoying snorkeling as well. Highly recommend visiting if you are in the area.

After the rafting, we had our lunch at Anna Banana and then headed towards Somerset Falls. We had two hours to spend at Somerset Falls. We quickly bought our entry tickets ($20 per person) and went to the falls. The falls are only accessed by boat and we waited for 45 – 60 minutes for our turn. There were only two boats and each boat accommodates 6 – 8 people. Boats will drop you near the falls and you can enjoy the cold water. The area under the falls is confined and can only hold 15 – 20 people at one time. Also, the water is coming with a tremendous force so do not stand under the falls. If you have a day to spend, you can take the boat ride as many times you want with your entry ticket. The place is fun but you can skip the Somerset falls if your time is limited.

Tip:  Check for local car rental for transportation. Near our Airbnb place, I checked local rental car price and it was 5000JMD (approx. 50USD) for one day and 50,000JMD (500USD) as a security deposit. If you are interested in driving, it will be an inexpensive option. Check the local area as you will not find them on the internet.

Day 4 – Snorkeling in Ocho Rios

Ocho Rios has many places for snorkeling and scuba diving. We booked snorkeling with Garfield diving for $25 per person. The snorkeling spot was 15 minutes drive from our Airbnb and the diving tours provide complimentary pickup & drop if you are nearby.They provided the snorkeling gear and rental GOPRO was also available for $20.  This was my first snorkeling and I was excited. A small motorboat took us to the snorkeling site and we couldn’t wait to jump in the water. The first thing I saw was the bottom and I knew that the water was not deep. Then we started seeing all the colorful fishes and reefs. The boat driver also jumped with us in the water and he was taking pictures with GORPO. We did the snorkeling for about an hour and then back to the beach. The beach had bath stations, you can take a bath if you like.

Day 5 – Explore Montego

We booked our return flight from Montego Bay airport so we planned to stay one night in Montego. We booked our hotel near the airport from booking.com. It was a leisure day and we spent time on Montego Bay’s Gloucester Avenue called  Hip Strip. It is known for its restaurants, bars, proximity to famous Jamaica’s beaches like Doctors’ Cave and variety of luxurious, all-inclusive accommodations. Hip street has sidewalks and it’s easily accessible by foot. Taxis are also available if you like to go downtown or any other places. The taxi fare is not fixed and would suggest bargaining your fare before taking the ride. We spend a couple of hours exploring the hip street and had food at Cafe Mocha. After having dinner we booked a taxi back to our hotel.  I was not impressed by the hip street. It was okay to visit and see what was so hip about the hip street. You can decide for yourself if you like the hip street when you visit.

Click here to read Austin’s blog about Jamaica and its various attractions.