Thanks Rob for your well honed perspectives. We are all aware of Jamaica's reputation as a dangerous place to visit and we try to balance that misconception with the reality that Jamaicans in general are incredibly hospitable and that traveling in Jamaica is generally very safe.....but that you still have to follow some basic safety tips like locking up valuables and not wandering around at night off the beaten path (and I consider the beach a "beaten path" up until late night).

We are among the many who have been coming to Jamaica every year for many years with countless trips to Negril, many trips with our kids when they were young. We are careful but have never had any "incidents". The worst was my fault, driving....got confused and went into a rotary past Sav and came out the wrong way into a slow-mo head on. Fortunately, no one was hurt but I mashed up the Jamaican driver's car. Again, all my fault. The amazing thing us was how well we were treated by the driver, the police, and the neighbors who looked out for my wife for the 3 hours she sat by the roadside while we straightened things out, and I went up to the police station to file the accident report. When I got back to the site, some of the neighborhood women were out sitting with my wife and keeping things calm and cool.

We all know, or have heard, about thefts, pickpockets, sleight-of-hands but its important to keep it all in perspective.