5 Days in Jamaica

We paid J$2500, which is around $40 for a two single-bed room. We joined the two beds and then it was big enough for us three guys to sleep well. The room we had was spacious and quite good for the price. The linens were clean and there was a private bathroom. But don't expect hot water in the shower for this price. It seems to have a lot of rooms; some of them overlook Church Street, some don't. There was some noise during the night, music coming from outside, but not much to complain about: for our first night, falling asleep listening to reggae music was nice. And if you go down the street, and then on the right, there's a place where you can buy beers during the night (J$90 for a cold Red Stripe). Then come back and lie on the chairs in the outside corridor overlooking the street.

This place is really worth checking out. There are good chances that you will be the only guests staying here, which means that it will be quiet, and you will get a lot of opportunities to talk with the 73-year-old man who owns the place. This man drinks full glasses of pure white rum as soon as he wakes up until he goes to bed, and has nice and fun stories to tell (you just have to understand what he says, but he'll tell you 5 times the same story). There is also a young Rasta who does all the housekeeping and can cook meals if you want. You can get a J$200 breakfast of ackee and saltfish with a coffee, which he deliciously cooked. Maybe he'll ask you if you want some for the next morning, but if he doesn't, ask him the day before so he has time to buy the ingredients.

There are three buses in which the owner has made small and big rooms. In the big room, there are two single beds, restrooms, and a shower. We paid J$1500 (approx $25) for one night for the big room. We saw a woman when we paid, and she seemed surprised that we didn't discuss the price. But this is still a good price, as the room was clean and also unusual! Two of us slept in the same bed, but it was a little bit small for two people. If you have enough money, take one bed for each one of you.

This place is directly located on the beach, which is deserted, no tourists: we only saw young children playing on the beach, a local family who came to swim, and a bird photographer. Of course, the sand is not as white as in Negril for example, and the water is not clear, but still nice to be directly on the beach. Moreover, you can enjoy really nice sunsets lying on a chair, talking with the owner. The bar at the guesthouse doesn't seem to be open anymore, but there is one just next on the road. If you walk on the road in the direction of downtown, you can find Cloggy's on the beach, which is a bar - restaurant. If you walk a bit longer, 1 or 2 miles from the guesthouse, you can be in downtown Black River rather quickly. To sum up, this guesthouse is highly recommended: quiet, cheap, clean, exotic and nice people.

Even though the main business of this place is stripping, you can find cheap rooms here. We didn't sleep here because there was no more room for three, but this is the first place where our Jamaican guide brought us, so I guess it's okay.

J$700 for small individual rooms after 7pm (see my other post on cheap guesthouses in Kingston and their second business, so you won't be surprised by a condom package in the trash can). This may be the cheapest gesthouse in Kingston. For this price, don't expect much, but the rooms are clean enough, bed sheets seem clean, and there are bathrooms with cold shower. You cannot see that is is a guesthouse from the road. You can only see the number 7 printed at the right of the gate. Just drive through the gate or honk if it is closed. Someone will open it for you.

Quite expensive for some things (J$165 for a Red Stripe, when I use to pay J$70 to J$100 for one anywhere else), but if you choose carefully, the prices are affordable (J$190 for a chicken soup). They have some nice cocktails, so it's worth going there on Monday evenings when they are half-price (2 cocktails for the price of one, but ask which ones apply, because some don't, and it's not written on the menu of the drinks). The setting is nice, the place is quiet, and they play some European party music. This is not the place to meet Jamaicans, but it may be a good idea if you have a date or drink cocktails with friends.

Our guide brought us here, because he said we should not leave Jamaica without seeing a strip club before. So depending on if you like strip club or not, you might want to go there. In fact, half of the Jamaican guys inside came with their girlfriends. Check my other post on Palais Royale, because you can also sleep here for cheap (alone or not, it is up to you to decide). Phone: (876) 929-1113