Editor Pick
Island Village on the Beach
- May 21, 2007
- Rated 4 of 5 by
jenivive from Plainfield, Illinois
Island Village on the Beach is an open-air shopping market that is within five minutes walking distance of the port.
You can find arts and crafts in Island Village, but the main ware seems to be silver and gemstone jewelry. There is also a “Rum, Roasts, and Royals” store that sells liquor and high-end Jamaican coffee. To get an idea of price, JaBlum coffee sells for $8USD for a four-ounce package there.
Island Village caters to the tourists and presents a safe-feeling shopping atmosphere. Unlike some other open-air markets in Ocho Rios (like the market at the exit of Dunns Falls), no one will pull on your clothing to get you to enter their shops. The trade-off is that the prices are a lot higher at Island Village because there is no bargaining on prices.
In the center of Island Village is a large statue of Bob Marley. This presents a great photo opportunity.
I definitely recommend visiting Island Village if you are interested in shopping. The prices are fair considering the quality of goods you can find there.
Also, there are a couple places to dine within Island Village, including Jimmy Buffet’s Margaritaville. Margaritaville has reasonable prices (about $14-$16 for an entrée) and the food is consistently good. Also, this location has a waterslide that customers may use.
Just outside the gates of the market is a coconut and sugar cane vendor. They let you try samples of sugar cane for free. They will cut open a coconut for you to drink the milk for $2USD. If you finish drinking the milk while you are waiting there, they will take the coconut back and split it for you to eat the flesh of the coconut. The coconut is a lot moister than the coconut you find in the grocery stores in the U.S.
Overall, I enjoyed visiting Island Village; The best part about it is that it is so close to the port that you can spend as much time as possible in the open-air of Jamaica and rush back to your ship just in time!
From journal Carnival Triumph - May 12, 2007