Vacation Rentals on Jamaica
World > Caribbean > Jamaica
Travel destination Jamaica.
You can choose from 45 vacation rentals and holiday rentals.
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Overview over Jamaica
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| Size |
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10,991 sq km (4244 sq mi) |
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| Population |
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2,597,600 |
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| Language |
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English and Jamaican patois. |
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| Time Zone |
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5 hours behind Greenwich Mean Time (-5 GMT). |
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| Electricity |
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110 volts AC, 60Hz, single phase. American two-pin plugs are standard. |
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| Clothing |
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Lightweight tropical clothing is preferable, with a
sweater or light jacket for cool evenings. Beach wear is appropriate
only at the beach. Be sure to wear a cover-up when strolling in town
(men, too). Even the most casual restaurants expect shoes and a shirt. |
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| Religion |
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80% Christian, including revivalist cults such as Pocomania and Rastafarianism. |
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| Currency |
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Jamaican Dollar
Currency Converter |
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Location of Jamaica
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Jamaica is the third largest island in the West Indies lying 145 km (90 mi) south of Cuba.
The island is crossed by a range of mountains reaching 2250 m (7402 ft) at the Blue Mountain Peak
in the east and descending towards the west with a series of spurs and forested gullies running
north and south. Most of the best beaches are on the north and west coasts. Jamaica’s luxuriant
tropical and subtropical vegetation is probably unsurpassed anywhere in the Caribbean.
The island is rimmed by a narrow coastal plain pitted with bays everywhere but in the south
where broad flatlands cover extensive areas and there are long ruler-straight stretches.
Most of the resorts huddle along the north coast, where the vegetation is lush and the
beaches are white and sandy. |
Climate in Jamaica
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The temperature is fairly stable year-round, so you can visit Jamaica any time.
The island's tropical maritime climate is at its most appealing during the peak mid-December
to mid-April tourist season, when rainfall is lowest and the heat is tempered by
cooling trade winds. Things get noticeably hotter during the summer, and particularly
in September and October the humidity can become oppressive. September is also the
most threatening month of the annual hurricane season, which runs officially from
June 1 to October 31, however on average, the big blows only hit about once a decade.
Winter temperatures are between 23-32°C (70s-80s°F). June-September is usually in
the 30-35°C (80s-90s°F). Nights and temperatures in the mountains tend to be 3-5°C
(5-10°F) degrees cooler. Most rain falls between May and October, but even then,
it generally comes in brief showers and seldom ruins anyone's vacation. |
Best Time to Travel to Jamaica
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The peak tourist season runs from mid-December to mid-April, with Christmas
and Easter the busiest weeks. During this period the resort areas of the island
are flooded with foreign tourists and hotel prices are highest. You can save
wads of money (30% or more at some hotels) by visiting during the less-crowded
low season which lasts from May to November. |
Events in Jamaica
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Jamaica hosts a full calendar of musical, artistic, cultural and sporting events.
Reggae Sunsplash held near Ocho Rios and Reggae Sumfest in Montego Bay
are the biggest festivals on the island that take place about a one week apart in July-August.
Both are frenetic beachy music festivals, with A-rated fun and X-rated dancing.
The week after Easter Carnival takes place on the university campus in Kingston
and at various other places around Jamaica. It's a big blow-out, mainly for Jamaicans,
with reggae, calypso and dancehall soca the main booty-shakers, but it's also a tourist
attraction in its own right.
There are a number of yacht races on the calendar:
the Pineapple Cup Yacht Race, held each February, starts in Miami and finishes in Montego Bay,
a distance of 1288+ km (800+ mi). Cricket matches are held from laneway to lawn
throughout the year. In April, the West Indies team takes on an international challenger
in the Cable & Wireless Test Match in Kingston. Revelers parade through the streets
dressed in masquerade around Christmas - Jonkanoo. Tha traditional celebration
has its origins among West African secret societies and was once the major event
on the slave calendar. |
Society in Jamaica
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Handshaking is the customary form of greeting. Normal codes of practice should be observed
when visiting someone’s home. It may be common to see signs on the island referring to
‘Jah lives’, Jah being the name given to God by the Rastafarians. As tourism is a major
industry in Jamaica, the visitor is well catered for, and hotel and restaurant staff
are generally friendly and efficient. Outside Kingston, the pace of life is relaxed
and people are welcoming and hospitable.
During daytime casual wear is suitable
but shorts and swimsuits must be confined to beaches and poolsides. Evening dress
varies from very casual in Negril to quite formal during the season in other resorts,
where some hotels and restaurants require men to wear jackets and ties at dinner.
Possession of marijuana may lead to imprisonment and deportation.
Tipping: Most Jamaican hotels and restaurants add a service charge of 10% otherwise
10-15% is expected. Chambermaids, waiters, hotel bellboys and airport porters all expect tips.
Taxi drivers receive 10% of the fare. |
Food in Jamaica
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From fiery jerk meat to inventive seafood dishes and ubiquitous rice and peas,
the Jamaican diet is surprisingly varied, and the Rasta preference for natural cooking
means you can get good vegetarian food fairly easily. Snacking is good, too, with beef,
vegetable or chicken patties the staple fare, and there is a vast selection of fresh fruit
and vegetables. Outside Kingston and the north-coast resorts, international eating options are
limited.
The classic Jamaican breakfast is ackee and saltfish. The soft yellow
flesh of the otherwise bland ackee fruit is fried with onions, sweet and hot peppers,
fresh tomatoes and boiled, flaked salted cod. It's usually served with the delicious
spinach-like callaloo, boiled green bananas and fried or boiled dumplings.
Jerking is the island's most distinctive cooking style. Meat - usually chicken or pork,
but occasionally fish - is seasoned in a mixture of island-grown spices, including pimento,
hot peppers, cinnamon and nutmeg, and then grilled slowly, often for hours, over a fire
of pimento wood and under a cover of wooden slats or corrugated zinc sheets in a
customized oil drum. Rice and peas (rice cooked with coconut, spices and red kidney beans)
is the accompaniment to most meals, though you'll sometimes get bammy
(a substantial bread made from cassava flour), festival (a light, sweet, fried dumpling),
sweet or regular potatoes, yam, dasheen (like a yam, but chewier), Johnny cakes or fried
or boiled dumplings.
Jamaica's water is safe to drink, and locally bottled
spring water is widely available. Soft drinks include coconuts, Jamaica's own Ting
(a refreshing sparkling grapefruit drink), Malta (a fortifying malt drink), throat-tingling
ginger beers and fresh limeade. Fresh fruit juices - tamarind, June plum, guava, soursop,
strawberry and cucumber - are always delicious.
Jamaican rum is world famous, especially
Gold Label and Appleton Rumona is a delicious rum cordial. Red Stripe
beer is excellent, as is Tia Maria (a Blue Mountain coffee and chocolate liqueur). |
Visa for Jamaica
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US and Canadian citizens do not need passports for visits up to six months. All
other visitors must arrive with a passport, but most western travelers do not need a visa. |
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