My wife and I are in our 60’s and we just enjoyed the month of April 2018 in the Bougainvillea house part of our time with two adult children and part of our time with friends. This 2 bedroom house slept 4 comfortably and is attached to a larger house on a large property lush with vegetation including a wide variety of fruit trees and vegetables. The grounds are meticulously kept by the gardener Nicholas the elderly caretaker living on the property who rakes, waters and cares for the yard daily. During our month long stay we got to know him well and enjoyed his company and his wisdom of Jamaica. The property is situated in a typical Jamaican neighbourhood a few hundred meters from the main West End road by its own private driveway lined with Bougainvillea bushes constantly in bloom. We also got to know the friendly neighbouring property owners and developed good friendships.
Property owner Saj is a wonderful person who was at the property for part of our stay. Saj checked with us daily and sorted out all our needs and requests instantly. He made every effort to ensure we had a pleasurable experience. When Saj was away, property manager Chuka checked in with us daily. Both these gentlemen as well as the caretaker not only ensured we had a good stay, they enhanced our stay.
The house has 2 bedrooms connected to a toilet/shower between them each with locking doors. The well equipped, large kitchen is separated from the medium size living room with a short wall. Out the kitchen door is a nice tiled patio that gets the morning sun, ideal for that early coffee. The living room exits to a covered porch to escape from the sun and rain yet to be outside. We moved the kitchen table to this outside porch for our stay to enjoy the lush vegetation right out our door. The cable TV had a wide selection of USA and Jamaica channels and has USB, VGA and HDMI ports to attach a PC or USB drive.
While there is no air conditioning, we found the fans provided to be ideal to create a cool breeze as well as white noise to drown out sounds. Night sounds include crickets and sometimes music in the distance, morning sounds were nearby roosters and barking dogs. Note that the home is in a Jamaican neighbourhood surrounded by pets and some farm animals. Over a few days we got accustomed to the neighbourhood sounds and slept solidly every night.
While we daily went for a swim or snorkel from the rocky shore across the street, we also watched the most amazing sunsets while sipping on good Jamaica beer or fine rum sometimes taking our patio chairs. One evening we saw dolphins racing ahead of a passing boat. The snorkeling in the waters from Xtabi to the Rockhouse across the street from our property is very good and all facilities let you use their property to get in/out of the water. On one excursion we entered the gentle sea across the street and snorkeled the coastline with no current travelling 0.50 kms exiting at Xtabi Bar/Restaurant and walking back to the house. We saw large and small rays, many smaller fish and lots of young coral heads.
There is a plethora of inexpensive local restaurants as well as casual and fine dining establishments all within walking distance. While the world famous Rick’s café is a further walk, we preferred a quieter and more casual restaurant/bar and swimming cove of Xtabi On The Cillfs which also has cliff diving. For those who prefer a more gentle way in to the water, there are steps down to the water’s edge. As a bonus, the waters are lit at night for a late night dip in the warm Caribbean Sea. The environment is casual and the staff easy going, we often went for a jump and swim at their property without purchasing any food or drinks. We often enjoyed an afternoon and sunset at this property with their cliff-side tables with the reasonable price drinks and food.
The waters of Negril are pristine and the warm. Mid-day we frequently went to the public beach park of Long Bay and paid the $150 JD entrance fee ($1US) as we liked access to the well kept grounds and facilities. We bought Jamaican patties in town for lunch, brought our own cold beer and had lunch on at their picnic tables on the sandy beach. We also went to other areas of 7-mile beach using lounge chairs and umbrellas provided by local bars/restaurants when you supported their menu with either beverages or food. We also travelled inland for a jump in to the Blue Hole and hike up Mayfield Falls.
While there is a small grocery store and vegetable vendor close by, we mostly shopped at the Hi-Lo Supermarket a few kilometres away in the center of Negril. A few times we drove 30 minutes to the bigger town of Savanna la Mar for a larger selection of goods at a 25% lower price. Several times we purchased fresh fish from the fishermen at the Negril fish market and grilled them in the rustic charcoal fire pit on the property.
The West End of Negril is safe and inviting; locals are friendly and support tourism. If you are looking for a 5-star resort with absolute silence, then you want the Rockhouse Hotel across the street at $500US per night. However if you are looking for a safe, enjoyable Jamaican experience, this property is ideal. But bring mosquito coils, anti itch cream, and/or repellant, it’s a jungle out there!