Jamaica / Island Tours

Most of the island’s wide range of Places of Interest can be visited on a tour from a hotel, but there is also a variety of day outings and activities such as hiking, nature, mountain biking and horse-riding trips that you can take part in. In addition there are jeep and ATV safari tours and of course trips along Jamaica’s exceptional rivers. If you are based in a hotel then many tours will be on offer. There may well be a tour desk in the foyer.

But there is also a good many styles of tours, ranging from the day junkets from the big resorts and cruise ships, with fifty people in a coach, to personalised and even tailor-made tours. Some may follow a particular theme (bird-watching, Bob Marley, hiking), but others are regular round-island tours that follow a standard itinerary. They can be half or whole day tours, but to see get a full impression of an island like Jamaica you need to go on a multi-day tour and these are on offer too. Another regular option, if you want to travel at your own pace, is to take a chauffeur-driven car (which might be particularly suitable if you are staying in a villa). Many JUTA members (otherwise taxi drivers) are trained guides, certified by the Jamaica Tourist Board.

Tours and tour companies include:

Blue Mountain Bicycle Tours, Ocho Rios - Starting at 5,600ft, the tour is almost all downhill, so there is very little pedalling. This is a fun way of seeing the Blue Mountains, the rainforest, coffee plantations and villages and it finishes with a dip at a waterfall. Tours are available from Ocho Rios and Kingston and include return transfers, equipment and lunch - plus brunch for Ocho Rios which sets out earlier to travel the greater distance. Minimum age seven years.

Cockpit Country Adventure Tours, Albert Town - A small eco-tourism company managed by the Southern Trelawny Environmental Agency (STEA) and currently offering three different guided walking tours into the wilds of the Cockpit Country, Also some cave exploration.

Chukka Caribbean Adventures - Award winning, locally owned company with operations in both Montego Bay/Negril and Ochio Rios offering a popular range of exciting tours and activities. Current tour packages include a rainforest canopy tour, horseback ride ‘n’ swim, ATV safari, various jeep safaris including a Bob Marley tour and one to Dunn’s River Falls, mountain to sea bike ride, river tubing and kayaking, the Jamaica Dogsled Encounter and Experience, the Chukka Buggy Adventure and the Zion Bus Line, Bob Marley tour.

Hooves Ltd, St Ann’s Bay  - They offer a variety of guided rides suitable for first time riders and novices, with private rides and lessons (flatwork and jumping) for experienced riders. Rides include a beach ride and swim, plus a visit to Seville Great House Museum, a bush doctor mountain ride, a rainforest river ride and swim which is suited for those with some riding experience and a honeymoon ride for two with a private guide which includes wine and nibbles.

Sun Venture Tours, Kingston - They offer a good range of tours from sightseeing, educational, hiking, adventure, special interest such as photographic tours, and a choice of overnight (five nights) Coast to Coast tours. Hiking tours include their Blue Mountain Sunrise and Sunset hikes which include an overnight stay and a day time Blue Mountain hike, all to the 7,402ft peak. Other hikes include a 4 hour hike to Cinchona Gardens, or a 7 hour hike that includes the gardens and the Grande Ridge of the Blue Mountains. Hikes through the Cockpit Country vary from three to four hours plus a boat trip on the Luminous Lagoon, to a full on 10 hour hike.

Contributors: Deana Bellamy