If you’re arriving in “Mobay” for 3 days you can get some good R&R on the beaches, have an adventure in an exotic Jamaican swamp and even fit in some historical and cultural sites.
Day 1 – Montego Bay, Doctor’s Cave Beach
Spend your first day enjoying Montego Bay itself, firstly there is the city to explore starting with the Craft Market and great shopping opportunities. Then it’s time to hit the beach and the beautiful sea where you can try snorkeling, bamboo rafting, water sports or just soak up the rays. For one of the area’s finest and more famous beaches try Doctor’s Cave Beach (which requires a fee). The water is crystal clear and the beach clean. There are beach facilities like restaurants, changing rooms and a beach bar as well as the fresh mineral spring water which flows out onto the beach. In the early evening take a boat tour on the Calico.
Day 2 – Great Morass, Negril, Blue Hole
It takes just 90 minutes to drive to Negril as you drive west from Montego Bay past a number of exclusive resorts, Reading, Hopewell (only stop here if you happen to be on a Saturday and can attend the market), make a brief stop at Sandy Bay. Sandy Bay was once a village for emancipated slaves and the church dating back to 1848 may interest you. Now you will be nearing the Mangrove area as you approach Miskito Cove and go on to Lucea. Drive through Lucea’s Alexander Bustamante Square, take a peek at the beautiful harbor and if you’re there on a Saturday check out the market. The Great Morass Nature Reserve is home to over 300 animal species, 114 plant species and is spread over 11km of the coastal flood plain. You can enter at The Royal Palm Reserve and take the 1.5km loop of boardwalks above the rich wetlands to see crocodiles, butterflies, birds and vibrant plant life.
When you leave the reserve drive on to Negril to enjoy lunch and spend the rest of the day on the beach. The most famous beach in the area is Seven Mile Beach, if you’re into nudist beaches then you’ll find those here too and generally Negril has a come-as-you-are, casual feel. If you have time (or are willing to skip the beach) continue on another 20 minutes down the coast towards the Blue Hole near the community of Little Bay. Here a hole in the rocks offers a sheer drop of 6.7 meters into a mineral spring pool of turquoise water. The brave can take a flying jump into the water below and others can carefully walk down.
Day 3 – Rose Hall Great House, Falmouth, Bob Marley Center, Rio Bueno
Take a drive east along the coast towards Rose Hall Great House on the former Rose Hall Plantation where the grand Georgian mansion dating back to the 1770s stands
