Hello, first time to Negril, good for you , you will love it. You will find a place, but you have to get on your phone...call the hotels directly, don't mess around with e mail...blah blah, call
each hotel and ask them, you never know when a cancellation just comes up .

You want a place to relax on the beach, and be able to walk around, maybe a nice bar and restaurant.....

CoCo La palm.... Will more than likely be filled, but try it anyway...

Treehouse...not as quaint and intimate as a CoCo or Charella..but still a great resort.

Yellowbird.

Fun holiday.

Going down further on the beach you have 2 very nice places ...Bar B barn ( 876-957-4755 ) and Moms place.. great places that have great restaurants, staff, food, and bars, but the downside,
close to music venues, so may hear music certain nights. others that come to mind that are directly on the beach....Rondells, Nirvana, and Rooms.
Althought the cliff area is nice, especially for a beautiful dinner, say at Ivans, at Catcha Falling Star resort, I strongly suggest you first experience to Negril to be on the beach ........so get on the phone and lock something down, if you can't find anything. post and i'll give you some more suggestions for across the street from the beach....Good luck !!!