Everything Irie in Montego Bay, Jamaica

Montego Bay, Jamaica: Jamaica came to many of my conversations and thoughts last few years…like would it be a girls trip, sisters trip, or just a solo. Eventually it came down to being our first mother-daughters trip of 2025. And I am super happy that I was able to take my girls with me to this beautiful country.

The city, Montego Bay, has earned its title for being the “tourist capital of Jamaica”. It’s exactly how I pictured it would be and some more. When you put a beautiful city, delicious food, best music, and friendliest people in one place, you get Montego Bay. 

It is a major cruise ship port in the Caribbean. It can be a party city or a place with adventurous water activities or a city for travelers who like to enjoy all-inclusive resorts and sit by the beaches all day drinking or just simply enjoy the island’s culture. 

We felt pretty safe in and around Montego Bay during our trip. Jamaicans are some of the friendliest people on earth. I’ve visited 70 countries so far and they are probably number one for being nice, helpful, friendly, and overall, welcoming. They came up to us just to say hello or give a compliment or start a conversation. Some of them went above and beyond to help us or accomodate us or answer our questions in the places we visited. Random people on the streets spark up conversation like I knew them for ages. There were times, we were approached by a couple people for money or to buy weed. A simple and polite “no” worked perfectly.

For transportation, we mainly used taxis or our hotel’s personal rides to get around Montego Bay. Most of the tourist spots have taxis available. But you do need to establish a price before you get inside. Also, keep in mind, they only take cash. We saw different kinds of registration plates here. Only the red plates are official taxis and be sure to check the plates before starting the ride. 

We didn’t have to convert any of our USD to JMD. USD is readily accepted everywhere we went and most of the stores took credit cards without any issues. But it was 1USD=about 15K JMD. 

TIME OF TRAVEL: We flew to MoBay at the end of March in 2025 during kids’ spring break. Given Jamaica is a tropical country, the weather in March was fabulous, not too hot and humid and we got no rain either. But depending on the weather, it’s a good idea to bring mosquito repellant sprays and sunscreen to MoBay. 

OUR HOTEL: Our hotel was called “The Blue Orchid” which was more like a bed & breakfast with only a few rooms. There was a swimming pool in the venue and it was only a 10 minutes drive from Hip Strip & Dr. Cave beach and similar distance from the airport. We also dined at our hotel a couple times. The B&B was not only a beautifully decorated homely place with a big front veranda but also had some of the most helpful and friendliest attendants. We thoroughly enjoyed our stay here. 

EATING and SHOPPING: Jamaican cuisine is a combination of Caribbean flavors and local dishes. Rice and beans are more staple than anything else. But their national dish ackee and saltfish is a must-try. Ackee is a type of fruit and what I heard from the locals is that they have to be ripe perfectly, otherwise it’s actually poisonous. But this is a unique fruit and supposedly only found in Jamaica. I also saw people eating “bammy” – made from yuca, but I didn’t get a chance to try it. Other than those, Jamaican jerk chicken or jerk meat is very famous. While we weren’t really into the jerk spices, we absolutely loved Jamaican curry dishes. I even got myself a Jamaican curry spice bottle from one of the stores on Hip Strip. 

Our first dinner in MoBay was at Pelican Grill on the evening we landed. It’s a beautifully decorated restaurant towards the end of Hip Strip. The view of the ocean from the inside was an added bonus. There is a small, a bit shady kind of park in front of the restaurant where we took a little stroll after dinner. Pelican Grill’s saltfish fritters were good but more than that their shrimp and chicken curries were full of flavors and fresh. I really fell in love with the Jamaican shrimp curry after dining here. 

We got Domino’s pizza delivered to our hotel one of the nights…cheap, familiar food, and fast. Our B&B, “Blue Orchid” had some food options too where we had 2 meals…chicken wings and tuna sandwiches were great. But their best item on the menu was stuffed cucumber with chicken…we loved it so much that we had to reorder it. 

One of the coolest spots in MoBay is Peppa’s Cool Spot. We had our last dinner here. It has a beautiful outdoor sitting overlooking water from the top and afar. We went there slightly before the sunset and got to enjoy the view from our table in Peppe’s. We had curry shrimp with rice, creamy garlic conch, and calamari along with some drinks. This was recommended by our B&B and we were not disappointed. Hip Strip has some of the more famous chain restaurants like Margaritaville and Pier 1. There are also a lot of bars and lounges here.

For shopping, Jamaican coffee, spices, and art works are some things to bring back to your home. While Hip Strip is a place where you’ll find many gifts and trinkets, it’s also a tourist trap and many stores are selling the exact same items. Don’t forget to bargain to get a better deal. We mainly got our souvenirs from Hip Strip…Bob Marley t-shirts, magnets, Jamaican curry powder, decors, bracelets, coasters, and etc. 

PLACES I’VE VISITED: We had 3 full days to explore Montego Bay. While it’s not enough time, we still got to taste some of the best kept secrets of this city. 

1. Bob Marley Nine Mile Village Tour – I booked this guided tour online way ahead of our departing time. It was $135 per person with a small group of people. The whole trip took about 8-ish hours from hotel pick-up to drop-off. 

The ride for Nine Mile from Montego Bay was about 2 hours and a big portion of it was a very winding ride. We passed the famous Rose Hall. We stopped at a rest area on our way to Nine Mile with restrooms, souvenirs shops, and a fruit stand where they were selling all the local seasonal fruits. This journey up into the mountains gave us an opportunity to experience the countryside without any chaos. 

Nine Mile is famous for being legendary reggae singer Bob Marley’s birth and burial place. Mt. Zion, where he used to meditate, is located in this complex as well. We got to see the bed he used to sleep in and his burial site. 

There is a small museum dedicated to him displaying artifacts, his awards, and his music journey. Lots of murals of Bob Marley are scattered all throughout the complex. We also got to see a local band singing Bob Marley’s famous songs. 

There’s not a lot of walking on this tour. But it is a smoking and drinking tour. We stopped at a weed seller’s booth right before entering Nine Mile gated complex who was selling all sorts of CBD brownies, smokes, and etc. And once we were inside the compound, people were free to smoke freely and drink from the bar. You can get your famous Bob Marley drink here too. 

Lunch was not included in this package, there was not even a time slot for that. But since we all got hungry, our drive stopped at an oceanside restaurant, called Father Bull. The restaurant gave a total island vibe…sitting by the water and eating fresh seafood with our group. We had some fried chicken and shrimp curry with rice. For drinks, we had to try the famous green, yellow, red striped – Bob Marley drink. 

2. Dr. Cave Beach – On our 2nd day in MoBay, we went straight to the beach in the morning. Dr. Cave Beach is right on Hip Strip and is only a 5 minutes drive from our hotel. It’s not only a popular beach in MoBay but also in whole Jamaica. There is a $7 per person entry fee to enter the beach. And we paid an additional $17 for an umbrella and 3 chairs. Taxis are readily available on the front or anywhere on Hip Strip actually. 

Dr. Cave beach is famous among cruisers and tourists for a reason. Its turquoise blue water and white sandy powdery shoreline are stunningly incredible. Mountain on one side and crystal clear water in the front…it’s what I imagined Montego Bay would be like. We got there before noon and it was not crowded at all. There was also a life-guard on duty. I just sat on the beach chair and enjoyed its serene atmosphere to the fullest while my girls were in the water swimming. We spent a good few hours here in the afternoon. 

We ordered our lunch and pina coladas right from our beach chairs from Pier 1-On The Beach while sitting by the water. The service was fast and friendly. People usually come to Dr. Cave Beach for sunset as well. There were some booths selling water activities, if anyone is interested. 

3. Hip Strip – As we exited Dr. Cave Beach, we were on Hip Strip on Gloucester Avenue. It’s lined with some of the well-known restaurants, hotels, and packed with many souvenir shops. Keep walking to the right side and explore all the stores. Make sure to bargain for all the items, even if there is a price tag. Usually if you buy more items from the same store…you can ask for a discount. 

Hip Strip is best to explore on foot. It’s not a whole lot of walking but you get to enjoy the street lined with hotels, shops, lounges, and bars on both sides of the street. We spent about a couple hours…getting some gifts for friends, enjoying some boba tea at Boba Bang, and enjoying the late afternoon. Pretty much all the stores have the same souvenir items more or less…though price may vary. 

We were approached by some men and women to buy weed on the street…we just said no one time and they didn’t bother us again. 

4. Bamboo Rafting – This was the most fun part of our trip and a must do activity when in Montego Bay. I also booked it online ahead of time. It’s a relaxed half a day trip. We were picked up at 9am and drove about 30 minutes to get to the river. Make sure to bring enough cash for tips. Also, waterproof flip flops are recommended and make sure you are able to roll your pants up to your knees for the massages. 

Once we walked down to the boat station, it’s a beautiful river path with trees on both sides. All the boats were decorated with colorful flags, flowers, live plants, and ornaments. It’s peaceful and serene where you forget all the responsibilities of life. 

The rafting package came with a limestone foot massage from our “captain”. Limestone is a natural mineral from these rivers which is supposedly good for your skin. They even gave us some free limestone chunks as souvenirs. You can also get a full body massage, for which, I was told, the price should not exceed $60 per person. 

We also had some fresh cut pineapples, sugar canes, and coconut water. When in Jamaica, you have got to try their tropical fruits…they are sweeter and juicier than the ones we get in The States. It was the first time my kids had an actual fresh piece of sugar cane. Also, after drinking your coconut water from a coconut, ask your captain to open it up for the inside part…which is a soft, jelly-like substance and very refreshing to eat. 

You can also get alcoholic beverages, lobster, jerk chicken, and other smaller plates from the nearby huts by the water. Do keep in mind that maximum 2 people can sit on one raft and there is a weight limit per boat. The whole thing was about an hour and a half long and the bamboo rafting itself only lasted probably less than 15 minutes. They throw in the massages and fruits somewhere in between. The captains of our rafts were playing some Bob Marley and I felt like I was truly being spoiled with the foot massage and my coconut water. 

I wish we had more time to visit some of the other places on this island. Downtown Montego Bay is somewhere tourists can get to experience the “real” Jamaica. As I heard, it can be sketchy and caution should be used, especially at night. There are many local beaches to visit in MoBay and relax under a palm tree and take in the scenery, like Cornwall beach, Sunset beach, Tropicana Bliss beach or One Man beach. Negril would be one place I’d have loved to check out. It’s a couple hours of drive from Montego Bay but the beaches and towns of Negril are stunning as I heard. A very popular guided tour package is “Dunn’s River Falls”. We skipped it since none of us are really into any challenging water related activities. 

Overall, I will remember Montego Bay for its people and their generosity. I have never met such lovely people anywhere else. Next would be their dishes and fruits. I make my own Jamaican curries now at home and my kids love it. Thank you Montego Bay for giving me and my girls a perfect vacation that we’ll remember for the rest of our lives.