We recently returned from a five-night stay at the Jamaica Inn and it was outstanding. To give you some context for this review I will start by letting you know that we are by no means "world travelers". We went on this trip because I had been wanting for some time to take a tropical paradise vacation. When I started planning our trip I was not sure where we would stay; all I knew was that I did not want to stay at a mega-resort. This trip was to be all about peace and relaxation so I was looking for a smaller, more private destination. I researched just about every hotel and resort in the Caribbean. When I saw the beautiful Jamaica Inn online and read the universally great reviews, I knew it was the place for us. Let me tell you that the Jamica Inn does not disappoint.

We landed in Jamaica late afternoon on a Satruday. Our plane had been delayed due to weather in the States, and by the time we got through immigration and customs (which took about 1 1/2 hours) we were much behind schedule. We had booked the private transfer and were not sure how we would find our driver, but our hosts at the Jamaica Inn had taken care of this. After we passed through customs we were stopped by a lady and gentleman who asked where we would be staying. When we told them the Jamaica Inn, they pulled out a letter from the Jamaica Inn with our names on it and told us that our driver would be Michael! Michael helped us with our bags and delivered us safe and sound. Although it was late, we were warmly greeted at the front desk and assisted to our room where we were offered drinks and had dinner. They took excellent care of us from the moment we arrived.

We stayed in a balcony room and we felt it was spectacular. Although we could not see the water when we went to sleep that first night because it was so late, we woke up to the most beautiful view of the beach which was just a stone's throw from our balcony. While other reviewers recommend the verandah suites right on the beach (which were also stunning), we very much appreciated the extra privacy that the balcony room offered and we would choose to stay there again. The room was beautiful and clean and very relaxing.

Our first day started out with breakfast, which was glorious. We then spent the day on the gorgeous beach. We loved the beach. It was everything I had imagined a beach in the Caribbean to be and more. Even my sweetheart, who is a constantly on the go person, loved it and was asleep in 20 minutes! Although there were other guests there we felt like we had the beach all to ourselves. There is a delightful little bar on the beach and anything you want to drink will be served to you right there. You don't even have to leave your chair, which we didn't!

That first afternoon I let the front desk know that we wanted to go on a couple of tours. The tours were arranged for us by the staff within 1/2 hour and the confirmation information was brought to us while we were on the beach. Superb. This was typical of the service at the Jamaica Inn.

I won't get too much into the tours we went on. I will just let you know a couple of things that might be helpful. If you are going to Dunn's River Falls on a cruise ship day, go at 8:30 am like we did so as to avoid the cruise ship crowds. When we went, the staff at the Jamaica Inn arranged for us to be driven by Brian, a very friendly and knowledgeable driver, who took us in and picked us up before the crowds arrived. If you are going to the Dolphin Swim, be advised that although the Dolphin experience is great, the Cove is crowded, noisy, chaotic, disorganized and nothing like the serenity of the Jamaica Inn. Just be prepared and focus on the dolphins.

Now, back to the Jamaica Inn. As to the food, we thought it was very good. We did not get the all-inclusive plan because we tend to eat less on vacation (I have no idea why but we are always less hungry) and we do not drink alcohol. We ended up spending less than we would have had we done the all-inclusive plan so for us it worked out. It is not a hassle since everything is billed to your room.

As to the mosquitos, if you are a person who gets bitten at home, bring some bug spray!! I tend to get eaten alive at home and I did not wear spray the first day which was a big mistake. I had numerous bites. Curiously, I did not feel myself being bitten but they ended up being very unsightly. Just take the time to protect yourself and you won't even notice any mosquitos.

As to the noise, we found the sounds of the Jamaica Inn delightful. At home we hear cars; at the Jamaica Inn we heard the watter lapping at the shore, tree frogs, and two birds chasing each other around the palm tree outside our balcony. The sounds were different than what we were used to, but in a good way.

As to the dinner dress code, like some folks we ordinarily do not dress for dinner, especially on vacation. We did the dress-dinner on two nights and then had dinner on our balcony the remaining nights which was outstanding. On the couple of nights we did go to dinner we did enjoy it. The ambience was marvelous, the food was quite good and the service was exquisite, though certainly formal. I will caution that it was a little cool at night. I wore short sleeve dresses and I was a little cool. If you go around March like we did and you are a person who gets chilly easily, you may want to make sure you bring a dress wrap.

As to the absence of night life, we were well aware of this before we booked our stay, having read all of the other reviews. However, I would urge you not to allow this to dissuade you from staying at the Jamaica Inn even if you are a person who feels like you need a night life. You do not even notice the time passing because everything is so wonderful at the Jamaica Inn. Remember, you are going there to relax so do it!

Finally, as to security, by the time we left the Jamaica Inn I was finding it a pain in the neck and completely unnecessary to even lock our door. If you have a concern about valuables there is a safe in your room. Personally, we could not have felt safer.

My wife and I were looking for a relaxing, low-adventure getaway on short notice and after careful research I selected Jamaica and the Jamaica Inn and we weren't disappointed. The resort met or exceeded every expectation I had in terms of beauty, service, and food.

The property is gorgeous and well maintained. It has one of the best and most private beaches I've ever seen, in fact I think it is the best beach I've ever seen. The views from the high dining/bar areas are amazing.

We booked a deluxe veranda and were upgraded to a premier veranda on the beach at no charge. An outdoor living room that you can step from right onto the sand was perfect for us and I won't go crazy describing it because it's been done to death in other reviews. I will say that the deluxe verandas on the garden looked very nice and although they weren't directly on the beach there were less people walking directly by those verandas and more privacy. I would stay in any room on the property.

We had access to Eric the owner at least twice a day and he made himself available to all guests. We met and because friends with the manager Mary and she helped make our stay special by hanging out all night at the bar with us and then taking us to a polo match the next day (Thank you Mary it was great meeting you and we look forward to seeing you in New York).

Every one of our meals was taken on the resort, usually taking breakfast on our veranda and lunch and dinner in the common areas. The food was world class and among the best and most consistent we have eaten in the Caribbean, I especially loved the fresh fish. We did not opt for all inclusive and we never do, it's just too much food and drink for us knowing we're exposing bellies on the beach the next day. We ate great on two courses and a few drinks a night.

We did do the falls climb in the boat "Little Children" and Marvin (I hope I have the name right) surprised us by leading us directly up the falls on a more aggressive route and passing the throngs of hand holders. That was fun and challenging, after which he brought us snorkeling. The rest of the staff was very friendly and helpful and all seem to love working at the inn.

My wife and I have been to many islands in the Caribbean and usually live high and although we have enjoyed many of our stays I have to say that it is likely that Jamaica Inn will be the first place we return to.

My husband and I spent the second half of our honeymoon here, the first half we spent on the cliffs in Negril. We stayed in Cottage 3 which is absolutely incredible. The Cottage is completely open to the outside, but the glass doors can also be closed to keep insects out and to run air conditioning. The views are stunning, and the cottage has its own private plunge pool. It is beautifully furnished, spacious, and extremely luxurious. Dining at the eating area under the stars every night was also a special experience and very romantic. The food was very good. Breakfast can be served on your verandah which is also very nice. My husband said he liked Negril better because it is more laid back. Jamaica Inn is more strict when it comes to certain things like dress code for dinner, but it is a very refined and elegant resort. It retains an air of old hollywood glamor, which is something you don't see much anymore. The only negative thing I noticed was the plethora of insects around our cottage, but this is part of traveling to any tropical location, so I don't fault Jamaica Inn, just be sure to bring plenty of bug spray!

Just got back from a 3 night 4 day stay. Beautiful rooms, great staff, wonderful place. We had some issues but the staff always did their best to make up for any problems. Perfect place to relax for a few days. Only minor complaints are that the food is a little hit or miss (fish was sometimes good sometimes not), the pool is a bit small and nothing special and there is no hot tub/jacuzzi except for the private villas. However, the gorgeous rooms with spacious verandas, courteous stafff, nightly entertainment, mellow beach and wonderful croquet court make up for any shortcomings. The staff is fantastic, truly going out of their way to make your stay special. Overall there is a charm here that explains why people come back year after year for 50 years. Certainly a place worth checking out for a relaxing vacation.