Higglers !!

My Wife and I have been going to Negril for many years and We Love It.....
Maybe it's just me getting Older and Cranky ?? But the amount of Folks on the Beach that were constantly aggressive this Trip was unbelievable !!
Totally in your Face at all times on my Beach Walks and General time on the Beach. Even the Bartenders weren't too Happy....
You all know what goes on... With the Higglers..
Have you noticed a difference ??? They stressed me out Big Time...
BTW. Don't Smoke... But do like Rum !! hehe. Maybe now it's just time just to stay on the Cliffs ? I kinda know that's what you'll say ... Ha.Ha. Thanks Folks....

well i have considered bringing this up and after seeing ur post i will. have gone to Negril since 74 and have had a couple incidents in the past but it was in Red Ground with part of the family i stay with and love.
this last trip was the first real shouting match and could have seen it developing into a real problem.
i attended the Margaritaville friday night happy hour so had a good buzz so i will admit i was part of the problem. on the way back to the hotel a guy very aggressive handed me a bud which i know i should have held. after many i dont want it he walked away. in hindsight i should have dropped it in the sand. i did not open the baggie . the next day he recognized me at Rasta Ade. sd i owed him 20 . he got loud and aggressive and cursing at me and my wife. (the guy who owned Rasta Aid was there but did not offer any help). i sd i was going to walk back to the hotel (about a mile) and bring it back. he said he would not take it.. i brought it back and gave it to Juliet. we saw him again the next day and he came over and started to hassle us and the guard chased him away. i know i could give him the 20 and i know you should never take anything unless you intend to by it . i am guessing i will now have to deal with him if he continues to hang on the beach on our next visit. i do agree some of the people on the beach are more aggressive and much more Americanized. long for the old days but still love Negril.

I actually think it has been less this trip. Although I now walk with headphones on. Even with no music. Might make a difference.

i have thru the years tried no nabla ingles

I guess I will find out one way or the other in a couple of days!

We had a wonderful 10 day vacation on the beach and zero issues with higglers. Most of the regulars know we are frequent visitors who buy very few "souvenirs". With the others, they are handled with a firm but polite "NO, thanks" and just keep walking.

you will be fine. if someone tries to hand you something you dont want to buy whether it be ganga or a bracelet dont hold it .

I have just returned from a month on the beach and the only ones who kept coming were the fruit vendors. I just said "No thank you", and they moved on. Be polite but firm. If i can do it at 70 then yòu should have no trouble.

I feel like I had less hassle this trip than any other. Some of the guys on the road at night were annoying, but it certainly wasn't as bad as it had been in the past. In general, I felt that this past week was incredibly slow all around. I was able to spend more time in red ground this week, and spend a day and a half day away from the beach, but the time I was on the beach, no problems.

After my 26th year 6 week & my daily beach walks I've found the higgers not a big deal..some remember me year after year..dark sunglasses help a lot too..ie no eye contact...or the usual..i don't smoke or i got it all work very well & i just keep on trucking...but it makes living in the cliffs all that much better at the end of the day.

The harassment of people trying to simply walk the beach has changed over the past 30 years. It seems like there are way less 'higglers' than there was 15 years ago but the ones that are left are behaving more like pests and beggars.

I am not talking about the licensed vendors or dudes who have their regular beat, their regular customers, and know not to make a negative impression on the tourists. You know, the tourists, the people who bring all the damn money to the beach.

In my opinion, the new breed of overly aggressive pest-like vendors are just one bad situation away from harming the Negril tourist scene. Welcome to the new world where a bad trip-advisor or facebook post can cost a hotel a season. A firm "no thank you" was all that most of these cats needed to back off. Unfortunately , in the past 12 months I have witnessed some problematic encounters, screaming matches, and begging.

A group of us were walking the beach to breakfast early one morning and an attractive young lady jogged past us. One of these unlicensed vendors of nothing (but crappy dope) ran in front of her blocking her way past while reaching out for a hug. She was clearly not interested. She spun herself around and started back in the other direction. The dude runs after her and grabs her arm from behind nearly taking her to the ground. A bunch of people started yelling for the guy to backoff and he starts verbally abusing everyone.

Great morning, welcome to Negril. Clean this $hit up Negril or suffer the consequences of less and less tourists every year.

The new breed of beggars go something like this:

wanna buy some smoke? NO
come on look at my stuff man. NO
dont you like me mon? NO
how about some money for food mon? NO
what have you done for the Jamaican people, you voted for Bush!

i agree with the cold ass mofo post. for a while we saw a group patrolling the beach. i thought it was silly at the time but think they need to bring them back. i am guessing the new group are not local but come to Negril from Mo Bay or Kingston.

Was there for five days at the beginning of this month and thought it wasn't too bad but I also didn't do much night time walking, which I've done a lot of in the past. I only had two annoying run ins. One dude just wouldn't take no for an answer. After telling him no four or five times progressively louder with his replies "listen" "listen LISTEN" "LISTEN LISTEN LISTEN" I stopped acknowledging him as he cursed me and finally stopped trying to walk with me.

The other was some guy that started following me down the beach and was basically just trying to beg a beer. I'll get a beer for my taxi guy if he wants to hang out for a bit or for some people i've become familiar with over the years, but I'm done buying beer for randoms for no reason. After telling him no a few times, he sucks his teeth and says "you just gonna bring all that Jamaican money back to America?" I told him not to worry about what i do with my money.

The best thing Jamaica did to curb the negative higglers was the Jamaica Tourist Board Security Police. Those people with the white uniforms and the white pit hat. That's what they did, was to stop aggressive and annoying higglers and beggars on the beach. They watched out for the tourists. If they came across an unlicensed seller or an aggressive higgle on the beach, they would ban that person for a period of time like a week or so. The higglers paid attention to these people because they want or need to higgle, so banning them was a big deal. Where are they now and what can we do to bring them back. Perhaps a work or two to the Negril Chamber of Commerce.

We did not see any of the Jamaica Tourist Board Security Police while on the beach in Negril for 9 days earlier this month. WTF ? ?

Negril needs to address this Chronic Problem !! I spoke with several of my Jamaican Friends and a Beach Hotel Owner I've known for years and they all agreed.. It's Really Bad !!
And it is not simply trying to sell Smoke... They just seem to want to harass the Tourist. I saw this all the time on the Beach they were relentless... Coming up to your Beach spot also trying to stop everyone that strolls down the Beach !! No one needs that... BTW.. Folks that want Smoke . Are going to Get it anyway !! No Problem with supply and demand . I have no issue with that... So why they need to Bother Everyone.... Aww ! well just venting ... Till the next Reach. Love Ja... P.S. Bring back the Beach Police !!!! Haha..

as i mentioned in an earlier post i at first thought the beach police was a silly idea. not anymore though. do not recall seeing them in a few years.

90% seem cool to me, the 10% you just need to handle, but it is a drag when folks get aggressive with women who are alone, not cool.

My experience has been the licensed vendors are pretty respectable..it is the non licensed husslers that are the pain the the buttocks...

We had a very fun but uneventful week for Easter week with no problems from the Higglers!!

We never had with the normal higglers in March. Always a polite no thank you and that was it. We did encounter something that we had never seen before in the 20 years we have been going to Negril. We were walking back on the beach after dinner when we were approached by two kids. The proceeded to beg big time, calling me boss and saying they could not go to school if we did not help by giving them money. They were insistent following us down the beach. Very uncomfortable. I did not want to encourage this behavior by giving money. We bring school supplies down and are very giving but this was too much.

Wasn't going to bring this up, but since you did jamaicabnd, I feel I need to. I actually felt there was less hustlers this past trip. Also, which was really good, less of the crazy bikes on the road. With that said, these younger boys ( average age 10 to 14 ) are getting worse. They get in your face, do not take no for an answer, use the line that obviously someone has taught them ...'' please for money to go to school ''..... I had one actually call me a bi.....ch.….my mouth just dropped as I was pretty stunned. Parents or someone are sending these boys out and instructing them. I fear how they are going to turn out being so aggressive at this young age.

Jojo. I did see quite a few of these kids. They are selling woven bracelets and you are correct, they can be persistent. I blame their parent/s for sending them out instead of having them in school. Yes I know it is not cheap to go to school there, but there is always a way.

There are certain areas on the beach that when walking as a woman alone or with another woman the hustlers stand in your way as you go by. Normally not an issue to just reply politely that what they are offering is not of interest. One guy kind of got to me, when he said "what's the matter, you don't like chocolate!" My mind drew a blank but I thought of a number of replies afterwards. Sometimes though, it's just not worthy of one.

the vendors selling their goods is part of what makes Negril different and in my opinion enjoyable. we look forward to seeing Norn, the patty man , the cigarette guy , the guys advertising the shows , the aloe guy . (may he rest in piece ) and many others.
as i mentioned earlier when a guy gets in your face screaming and cursing it makes you reconsider unless you are a long term visitor , whether Negril is a safe place to visit.

Yes !! Those Kids were something else.... Money for School ? Right !!

ok let me share a story. many years ago in my red ground days say late 70's . we had a group staying in the yard where i stayed. there was a band and some friends.all Jamaicans one of the guys had a nickname it was dummy. i had asked about the nickname but did not get anywhere. one day one the beach i saw dummy coming with a sign. please help i can not speak or hear . seemed like he was doing pretty well i did nort give it away.

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Originally Posted by original spanky

ok let me share a story. many years ago in my red ground days say late 70's . we had a group staying in the yard where i stayed. there was a band and some friends.all Jamaicans one of the guys had a nickname it was dummy. i had asked about the nickname but did not get anywhere. one day one the beach i saw dummy coming with a sign. please help i can not speak or hear . seemed like he was doing pretty well i did nort give it away.

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I hope there is a special place reserved in hell for people who pretend to be disabled.

I find it very interesting how so many of us are having such different experiences. We have only been going for 10 years but one of the things we really look forward to is getting out on the beach to find our boys. We have met some fun guys out there and we always take time to talk with them and ask how this year is going. Most of them remember us and they are way less likely to bug you on the beach when you have already visited them. This year was an oddity for us though. We like to walk the beach around 9 or 10 at night and see what music is going on and have a couple drinks after it cools down a bit. In the past sometimes we can walk for awhile before some dark shadows emerge. Depending on the vibe we usually couldn't walk too long without ducking into a bar, then we would decide beach or cab to go home. This year however no matter what night or how long we walked we were not approached by one single salesman. It was peaceful and quiet. We were however amazed.

To address the hassles some of our visitors are having on the beach, there are now two Police ATVs operating on our Seven Mile Beach. I am trying to get a photo of them, but they are cruising by a bit too fast to catch a picture so far - soon come!

thanks for the heads up Rob!

Irine. Nice !! You were Lucky..

Yes !! Rob.. Keep us all posted if that security tour Helps ..

In the past, I have been one of the people who complain about the higglers on the beach. Have had trips in years past where it seemed like every time we started to walk, it was an almost non-stop barrage of people trying to get our attention, sometimes even standing in our way, not taking "no thank you" for an answer, and getting aggressive when we tried to move on... so much so that I had a group of guys ask me if I was scared - and when I said no, they said "you should be" and continued to follow me until I stopped at a bar. At times it was so bad, it would make my wife so upset she would stay at the hotel and not want to leave the hotel grounds, and then not want to return - it's the main reason we hadn't been back in 3 years.

This trip, the first day or two we got a lot of attention from the higglers, and for the most part a "no, thank you" was enough to move on... one or two talked **** as we walked away, but that was it. The "Remember me" guy (who I had not met and didn't remember) didn't react kindly to me telling him that no, we hadn't met... but after the first day, we were able to walk just about anywhere on the beach and while we were approached multiple times, it was no hassle to just say no thanks and keep moving. It was much improved over years past. I even had a couple interesting conversations, and ended up spending a good bit of time with Dokta Kush talking about the state of Ganja in JA and the USA. I didn't buy anything, and wasn't pressured to. (I did check out his wares and was somewhat impressed - but I'm not gonna pay $10 US a gram in JA, no way).

I didn't see any police presence to cause this, but our trip was a lot more relaxing than the last one. Already looking to return later this year - hopefully there's been a change and it wasn't a fluke!

I have just got back to a wet and cold England this morning after spending what has to have been one of the best weeks of my life but more of that to follow. This was our third trip to Negril, our first trip we had a run in with a local who was begging money for food who got obnoxious when I went to the food seller and told him to give the man whatever he wanted to eat and I would pay for it.
Our second visit passed smoothly.
I did say that I would post when we got back so here goes.
We arrived late last Tuesday so I didn't get on the beach till Wednesday morning, I had the beach to myself until a guy turned up offering me weed or a boat trip, I explained to him that I didn't need weed or a boat trip, he accepted a hand rolled cigarette and we chatted for a few minutes before he left to go about his business and I went back to enjoying the solitude.
My next encounter was when a guy called me down to the waterline which upset my wife a little that I made the effort to walk down to him, we exchanged greetings and he said that he recognised me from a previous trip so I apologised that without my glasses I was pretty much useless at recognising faces however if we had met before then I would certainly remember his name, he told me his name to which again I apologised that we had never met. He then asked me if I wanted to buy some ganja to which I said No thanks Mon, I have plenty and with that we went our seperate ways.
We were on the beach every day for a week and not once did we ever feel hassled by anyone.

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Originally Posted by Rob

To address the hassles some of our visitors are having on the beach, there are now two Police ATVs operating on our Seven Mile Beach. I am trying to get a photo of them, but they are cruising by a bit too fast to catch a picture so far - soon come!

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All right...the Kawasaki Police are back!

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We saw several police cruisers on the beach last week. Lots of vendors, all pleasant. Few higglers, just the bracelet ankle guys. The lobster guy was still out trying to sell lobster on the beach, he really didn't like it when I said it was out of season and illegal. Probably the least hassled trip in 10 years.

Great Beach Patrol ! Never saw that.. Hope it Help's .

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Originally Posted by harrison

I have just got back to a wet and cold England this morning after spending what has to have been one of the best weeks of my life but more of that to follow. This was our third trip to Negril, our first trip we had a run in with a local who was begging money for food who got obnoxious when I went to the food seller and told him to give the man whatever he wanted to eat and I would pay for it.
Our second visit passed smoothly.
I did say that I would post when we got back so here goes.
We arrived late last Tuesday so I didn't get on the beach till Wednesday morning, I had the beach to myself until a guy turned up offering me weed or a boat trip, I explained to him that I didn't need weed or a boat trip, he accepted a hand rolled cigarette and we chatted for a few minutes before he left to go about his business and I went back to enjoying the solitude.
My next encounter was when a guy called me down to the waterline which upset my wife a little that I made the effort to walk down to him, we exchanged greetings and he said that he recognised me from a previous trip so I apologised that without my glasses I was pretty much useless at recognising faces however if we had met before then I would certainly remember his name, he told me his name to which again I apologised that we had never met. He then asked me if I wanted to buy some ganja to which I said No thanks Mon, I have plenty and with that we went our seperate ways.
We were on the beach every day for a week and not once did we ever feel hassled by anyone.

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That's actually pretty funny about the "I know you" scam. We live part time at the Point Village and a few years back, prior to catching on to what the foot in the door scam was all about from the higgler's, we would always be asked, where do you stay, the higgler's would always respond, OH!!! the Point Village, I used to be a life guard there. Well, back in the hay day, Point Village must have had 30 life guards working at one time or another because everyone we ran into was a pool boy there. It wasn't until after we caught on that we discovered the first rule about Negril, is never, never say where you stay.

I'm not trying to be critical but just giving some friendly advice. Harrison, I think you might be your own worst enemy. Buying food for the beggar is the last thing you should do just to get rid of him. First, he will remember that for ever and never leave you alone again, and secondly, it makes it hard for all that come by after you. The message is....just bug people enough and you get what you want. I have yet to see a thin emaciated Jamaican beggar that really really needed the food. Secondly, if they wave you over or stand in front to talk to you, you should never never walk over to engage in conversation. Once you have stopped and say the first word, the hook is in. They may not be able to reel you in but it puts you on the defensive. No..I don't want to buy ganja, no...I don't want to go on a tour, no...I don't want to go parasailing, that kind of defensive. Just a friendly wave, maybe a no thank you, maybe a look on your face like you don't speak English, anything, but don't engage in conversation unless YOU want to. If the higgler's start walking beside you, just stop short and when they are one step in front of you, make a turn to walk behind them and walk to the closest bar. My wife and I have found many a good bar with a good vibe by doing just that.

I've been going for 20 years and Negril has always been a hassle in that regard.

Everyone claims to have a magic formula for dealing with it, but they're lying. If you're a long-time visitor, the long-time hasslers will recognize you and not hassle you. But there are always some annoying newly-minted hustlers to deal with. Nothing works against the really aggressive ones. Once I got into a fist-fight with one before the hotel security guard broke it up. Another time I made it back to my rental car after being really aggressively followed/hassled/threatened, then came really close to running the guy down (he had to dive into the bushes to get out of my way). I was really mad, obviously. That was satisfying but not a good idea really. Winding up in prison would not have been a good way to spend my vacation.

These days I always stay in Airbnb's outside of Negril (e.g. Lucea, Sav) & just go into Negril when I want to be hassled, kidding!, really I just go to Negril when I want to partake of its beaches or restaurants or clubs. Then I go back to the regular Jamaica. The hassling only exists in the tourist towns. In regular Jamaican towns like Sav or Lucea I can just walk around calmly like a regular person, same as I would in any US city.

Richard