Negril Intro and Tips

Negril is on the southwest coast of Jamaica. There is basically one road that runs north-south - Norman Manley Blvd. It runs along the entire beach and so is often referred to as the "beach road". The beach road has the beach on one side and the Negril Morass (morass basically means "wetlands") on the other with mountains behind the morass. The Morass is not developed and there are no roads into it from the beach road.

South of the beach is the town of Negril. There is a roundabout that connects the beach road to the road to Savannah la Mar (which is inland from Negril to the east) and the cliff road (aka the west end road or lighthouse road) which continues south along the water as the beach turns to cliffs. Off the west end just past town there is a road up to the area known as Red Ground, where many locals live and hotels are few. Off the west end road further up there are a couple of "lanes" - short roads that dead end in the hills, some with restaurants or hotels on them (those of you staying at Villa la Cage are on such a lane). The west end road has many hotels and restaurants and shops both on the water side and the land side. The Negril lighthouse on the cliff road is the westernmost point in Jamaica.

Jamaica is in the eastern time zone but does not do daylight savings time.

Money

Jamaica's official currency is the Jamaican dollar which is currently trading at about JA$$85 to US$1. It is not uncommon for places to accept US$, especially places that are geared to tourists. Places that are geared to tourists generally cost more than places that are geared to locals. Be aware that if you choose to use US$, the exchange rate you get is up to the shop/restaurant/bar and probably won't be as good as the rate you'd get if you changed to JA$ at a cambio or bank. Using US$ can raise the prices of things too. For all of these reasons, I suggest you plan to use JA$ during the trip, though US$ will get you by for as long as necessary.

DO bring small US bills - no one has change - not taxis, craft stalls, even bars and restaurants often have trouble changing larger bills. Go to the bank and get at least 50 US$1 bills and some $5's too. You'll be glad you did.

You can change your money or traveler's checks at the airport (worst rate of all), at a bank (good rate but long lines), at a hotel (not good rate) or at a cambio (bank rate and usually no line). Cambios are located along the beach road, in town (there's one at the Hi-Lo supermarket), and along the west end (cliff) road. Often they are just small board buildings with a person behind glass. Save your receipt, if you need to change your money back you'll need it. You may get an offer to change money on the street. Don't, scams are common.

Finally, for peace of mind, bring most of your $ in the form of traveler's checks. If lost or stolen, they will be replaced quickly. If you have AAA you can get them free, some banks offer that to their customers also. A close second choice is your ATM card. Best thng to do is to bring both, I believe.

There are ATMs in town, usually they work but don't count on that always being the case. They offer amounts in $JA and usually dispense $JA only and there is a fee. However, the exchange rate is very good. Call your bank before you go, some automatically block non-US transactions unless you call.

Credit cards may be used at many tourist hotels and restaurants but the good cheap places rarely accept them. Small craft stalls and jerk chicken huts almost never do. If you plan on using a credit card for meals and such, you'll almost certainly pay more and be limited to the larger hotel-based restaurants. If you've never used your card out of the country before, call your issuer and let them know you plan to - in some cases the card has to be "unlocked" for use out of the US. It's possible to get a cash advance on a credit card but you have to go to the bank and that can take awhile. In an emergency, Western Union is the fastest way to get money.

There's a really nifty cheat sheet you can print out that lists the rates on a nice card that you can cut and carry in your wallet. Don't forget to get the reverse one also so you can convert back and forth. http://www.oanda.com/convert/cheatsheet - "cash rate" is the one you want, select US as your "home" currency and Jamaican dollar as your "destination" currency.

You can find today's rate for the cambio at the Hi-Lo supermarket in Negril here: http://www.gracekennedy.com/grace/FXTraderRate.htm

How much to bring?

This is a common question and one that really depends on your lifestyle and plans. Rather than give you an amount, let me tell you what some things cost so you can plan accordingly.

Some places on the beach and cliffs offer red stripe beer for $100-150J. Some places, notably the live music spots, charge up to $250J. Frozen drinks are $300-400J or more. Beers other than red stripe, including red stripe light, are often more than red stripe - be warned. Often there are drink specials and 2-for-1 deals, look around for those. In addition to Red Stripe, it's easy to find Heineken, Guinness, Dragon Stout, Red Stripe Light and a couple of American beers.

You can buy beer and rum at the store and keep it in your room, that's the cheapest way to do it. The Hi-Lo and Valumaster supermarkets sell these.

A sit-down breakfast or lunch, lots of food, will run you anywhere from $3-10US. As a rule restaurants in town or ACROSS from the beach or cliffs cost less than the places on the water or on sand. Where you see locals eating, food is less expensive (and often better...).

Patties (flaky pastry with meat or veggies inside) run about $80J apiece. One with some fruit makes a nice cheap lunch.

Dinner prices really vary, just like at home. You can get 1/4 jerk chicken with coco bread for around $350J on the street or you can get a full lobster dinner with appetizers and all for $1500J - or more. Cheaper meals are usually veggies/rice/beans, fish and chicken, with lobster and shrimp or steak costing the most. Most restaurants post their menu and prices outside so you can check prices before you go in. If not, just ask for a menu or what is being served that day.

Vegans and vegetarians can eat well in Jamaica, look for "Ital" restaurants, sort of vegetarian-kosher meals that many rastafarians eat. Lots of fresh fruit, vegetables, rice, beans around and of course tons of fresh fish if you eat it.

What's expensive in Negril are motorized watersports. Parasailing will run you at least $40US for a trip up and down the bay, jetskiing is about $40US per half hour. You can rent a scooter for about $25-30US per day. Motorcycles cost more depending on the size of their engines with a 550 being the most $, about $50 US a day. If you plan to rent for a week you can knock those prices down a little.

There are a couple of supermarkets in Negril, the Hi-Lo and ValuMaster in town. There are a couple of smaller markets on the cliff road and beach road as well. Some things are MUCH more expensive in Jamaica - brand-name processed snacks like Pringles, some meats, imported canned goods, nuts. If you need peanut butter and jelly, brand-name snacks, stuff like that, bring them with you.

On the other hand, local fruits and juices are much cheaper than home, especially if you purchase them from stalls on the street.

A snorkeling trip on a glass bottom boat for an hour or two should run about $20 per person depending on how many go. Entry to YS Falls or Mayfield Falls is about $15 per person. Getting there with a guide who waits for you and brings you back can run about $15-20 an hour, or a flat $60US, or maybe $80 for a van...or more...the more people you have the cheaper things like that can be.

Don't forget tips. Your maid(s), the bus driver to/from the airport, taxi drivers who are kind, waiters, bartenders - all rely on tips as part of their income. Restaurants sometimes add a service charge, check your bill and tip accordingly.

Salespeople

Lots of salespeople in Negril, everything from patties on the beach from a bicycle to drugs to aloe massages to glass bottom boat rides to anything else some enterprising entrepreneur thinks a tourist might want. I rather like the service offered by some beach salespeople - coconuts, fruit, lobsters...sometimes you can skip going to the store, so much comes to you!

Many hotel employees, taxi drivers, guys you pass on the beach etc., will offer to get you ANYTHING or try to sell you everything. Some can be very persistent and occasionally their tactics can be hard to handle which can make people feel kind of uncomfortable. If you are not interested just say no firmly- a smile doesn't hurt either. Don't get angry or defensive -- they are just trying to make a living and this is how they do it. Deal with them respectfully and they will USUALLY do the same with you. "Catch me tomorrow", "I don't have money on me" are not good ploys, you will more often than not be remembered - you just made a promise so be ready to keep it the next day! Occasionally you get a jerk, "why are you walking by? are you racist?" stuff like that, in that case, walk and ignore. Sometimes they will attempt to walk with you to show you this or that, put a bracelet on you "as a gift", rub aloe on you "as a gift" - then expect payment. Nip this in the bud if you don't want these things by being firm from the start.

If you are interested, pretty much everything is negotiable. The price you are given by a craft vendor or seller of other goods should be considered a starting point. Everyone bargains there, it's a cultural thing. Love it or hate it....if you don't feel like bargaining just pay what they ask.

Download the complete map of Negril's beach, town and cliffs - includes the 2008 beach and west end maps, Negril overview and list of local schools. The map is in PDF format and requires the free Adobe Acrobat Reader (version 5 or above) to view or print.

A screenshot of the beach and cliff maps (click either one to download the entire map):