Jamaica Activities

There’s no reason for the kids to be bored on a Jamaican holiday,  or to be limited by what is typically offered to youngsters at resorts, such as water sports, games and crafts. To add variety to the usual fare, many educational or unique activities can be arranged for youngsters in Jamaica, largely depending on where you stay.

Reggae Dancing Classes
Reggae music is a major factor in drawing a huge number of visitors to Jamaica, and learning to dance to reggae music can be one of the fun ways to involve your children on a holiday to the island. Some of the all-inclusive resorts provide reggae dancing classes for the young ones, but you can also have lessons arranged at smaller establishments, which can be a bit more of a personal experience for them. Kids love the reggae beat and the dance moves they learn – which they can then pass on to their parents.

Cultural School Exchange
School-aged children can have the opportunity to experience real Jamaican culture through a one day visit to a local school. They get to see what life is like for kids in Jamaica, what their schools are like and what they learn. Contact the staff at your accommodation for more information, as some hotels and resorts will arrange this cultural exchange at nearby schools.

Animal Adventure/Nature Walk
Regardless of where you are staying in Jamaica, you’re probably not too far from a farm. Many farms are pleased to welcome visitors and can arrange for a tour. Nature is a large part of Jamaican life, and learning about the island’s animals and plants can be a really fun, and educational, experience for kids. An alternative is a visit to ‘Animal Farm,’ an animal sanctuary and nature retreat. Phone +1 876 815 4104; website: www.attractions-jamaica.com/farms.htm.

Swimming With Dolphins
Jamaica is one of the few holiday destinations where you can actually swim with dolphins and ‘Diving with Dolphins’ is one of the island’s most popular attractions. All the kids need for this activity is their swimming gear and a sense of adventure. Phone: +1 876 974 5335; website: www.dolphincovejamaica.com.

Language Lessons
Learning the Jamaican patois is a fun way to encourage youngsters to explore the culture and get to know some of their local peers. There are a couple of ways you can arrange this. Some hotels offer fun activities that mix in learning patois with singing and dancing. Some of the smaller establishments may actually allow the staff to have their children around, providing a really good opportunity for interaction and some patois-learning for your children.

Water sports are the main activity at Jamaica’s hotels and resorts, with most having their own pools, beaches and equipment. The best beaches for swimming and sunbathing are situated along the northern coast. Surfing is also best in this area, specifically east of Port Antonio, at Boston Bay. Many hotels and resorts also have small sailing craft and windsurfing boards for hire. Larger boats can be chartered by contacting the Royal Jamaica Yacht Club in Kingston. Phone: +1 876 924 8685.
 

Divers will find many attractions off Jamaica’s coasts, including wrecks located close to shore, coral reefs, forests of sponges and underwater caves. Visibility is often exceptional, sometimes up to 100 feet. Near Negril, there is a popular dive site called the ‘throne room’, where you can see corals, sponges, cubera snapper and nurse sharks. ‘Ricky’s reef’ is also in this area, boasting brilliantly-coloured fish, as well as the wreck of the Kathryn. Many professional dive companies operate in Jamaica and the Tourist Board can provide a list of approved operators (tel: +1 876 929 9200). Shops around the island also rent snorkelling equipment and offer guided scuba or snorkel trips.

A large number visitors come to Jamaica for both fresh-water and deep-sea fishing. Drummer, hognose mullet, mountain mullet and small snook are found in the island’s rivers. Deep-sea charters can be arranged through most hotels and resorts. Spear-fishing is permitted along the reefs and no licence is required. There are a number of fishing tournaments, such as the Blue Marlin Tournament held in Port Antonio in September and October.

If golf is your interest, some of the most beautiful and challenging courses in the Caribbean can be found in Jamaica. Montego Bay has the best choices and you can play on hotel courses without being a guest at the hotel. The Caymanas Golf Course hosts the Jamaica Open and Pro-Am every November.

For visitors who are interested in hiking or mountain climbing, the Blue Mountains (which reach heights over 7000 feet), offer a wonderful opportunity to enjoy unspoilt scenery and varied flora and fauna. Hiking or climbing with a guide is recommended and your hotel or resort will be able to help you organise this. 

Jamaica’s cuisine is derived from the culinary traditions of Africa, England and America and modified locally with the island's produce and spices. The food is delicious, but it is also quite spicy, which dates back to earlier times, when foods had to be dried and salted or pickled for shipping and spices were added to disguise the taste. 

There are a few local specialties that you might want to try. Jamaican soups, such as pepperpot - made of kallaloo, okra and coconut milk (kallaloo is a bit like spinach) and the creamy pumpkin soup are both delicious. A popular local fish special is called stamp and go, which is really a dish of fried fishcakes. Patties, meat-filled pastries, are a staple and can be found everywhere. Solomon Gundy can be an acquired taste: it’s a well-seasoned, pickled herring concoction. Jerk pork is a specialty of the east coast, a very old recipe of the Maroons. Originally, wild boar meat was smoked over pimento wood to create a jerk flavour; today pork is used instead.

Fruits and vegetables are plentiful and there are some exotic varieties. Sweet potatoes are on most menus and are a perfect accompaniment to curry. Green bananas are often boiled as vegetables, while plantains are sliced and then fried. Rice 'n peas (red beans actually) accompany most meals. A prickly fruit, called chocho, is a local favourite and oranges, mangoes and papayas are commonplace. For the more adventurous eaters, the sweetsop and soursop are both rough-skinned fruit that can be eaten raw, but are typically used in making milky drinks. Sugarcane is prized for its sweet interior – it’s peeled and the stringy interior is chewed.

Locally-made crafts include hand-loomed fabrics, silk screened goods, embroidery, woven straw items and woodcarvings. These, along with custom-made rugs, pewter and china, can be purchased at local craft workshops. In the mountains, Quakers run a workshop specialising in wicker and wooden furniture, floor mats and other tropical furnishings. Jamaican rum, pepper jellies, jams and spices are available everywhere and can be bought as small gifts, or to take home for your own use.

If you would like to visit a market while in Jamaica, Coronation Market in Kingston is the most famous of the produce markets. Other markets around the island include: Linstead Market, in St Catherine; Brownstown Market, in St Anne; the Savanna-la-mar Market, in Westmoreland; and the Albert George Market, in Falmouth. Shops offering ‘in-bond’ shopping are scattered around the island, allowing visitors to purchase a variety of international goods duty-free and at very competitive prices. The purchases are sealed (‘in-bond’) and are to be opened only when you have left the country. These purchases must be paid for in Jamaican currency.

Shopping hours are typically 08:00 to 16:00, Monday through Friday and 08:00 until 13:00, Saturday. Some shops will close for a half-day on Wednesday in Kingston and a half-day on Thursday elsewhere on the island.