Have been a long-time visitor to Negril and am thinking to check out a different part of the island. For anyone who has been to both: how does Ocho Rios compare to Negril? I've been to Port Antonio and Treasure Beach, in case those are useful points of reference.
Thanks,
Bill
I was in Ochi for a couple days in December just to check it out. Different feel than Negril. If you wander around the tourist part of town e.g. where the cruise ships come in, there are many fine-dining and upscale shopping places, more so than Negril. If you wander over to the Jamaican parts of Ochi you'll find bustling open-air markets like a smaller version of Kingston's Coronation Market. And of course Dunn's River Falls is a short distance from Ochi - I rode my bicycle to the falls (very scenic). Unlike Negril which is basically just tourists and Jamaicans working in the tourist industry. Ochi has a significant local population and a local economy besides tourism. It was sort of refreshing being able to wander around without being asked every 5 minutes by some stranger what I'm "looking for". I kind of liked it but I suspect that true Negril-aholics would be disappointed.
Went for 5 days a few years ago and wished I was in Negril the whole time.
I love both places. Each has something to offer that is special.
Our 1st ever trip to JA was a stay in Ocho Rios, the beach at the hotel we stayed at sucked, it was mostly coral with little sand and each hotel had a fence that extended into the ocean so you could NOT walk off the property along the beach. We have gone to Negril every trip since that one.
Ochi was our first visit to Jamaica in 2005. We stayed at birdcage villas up on the hill overlooking the cruise port and city. It was a beautiful view and we had a great time but the beach just doesn't compare to Negril. I do remember having great meals at Evita's and The Ruins.
In 2000, I booked 7 days at Comfort Suites in Ochi. After 3 days, I was extremely bored with the shuttle to the beach, the lame, tiny beach, and the need to take a taxi to get to places. I checked out of the hotel early, caught a van to the airport ($20), then another to Negril ($20). I've been back to Negril every year since 2000. That includes the year I had a stroke (2014) and triple-bypass heart surgery (2016). To me, there's no comparison to the food and entertainment that's available in Negril.
This is a tough one. So many people have so many different experiences at the same place. My wife and I went there for our very first trip to Jamaica in 2009. Being new to international travel we errantly booked at Sandals. Sandals was fine, but it didn't feel as though we left the US. We were glued to the window on the entire bus ride there, but were advised strongly not to leave the resort due to drug related crime. In retrospect I'm sure now that the staff if well versed on keeping customers on the property and not wanting the responsibility of having something go wrong with a guest who left the property. So we stayed onsite. At night the perimeter was patrolled by armed guards, and when we went on day trips we were accosted by sales people and really couldn't get away as we were there with a trip bus so it was awkward. Part way through the week we started to ask local employees where we could go to be with the locals, eat local food, meet and learn about the island. Every person we spoke to suggested Negril. We have been to Negril 10 times since that trip and have never regretted it. So much more freedom, a nicer area with a world class beach. We've met so many wonderful people that we get to visit every year when we come back. We can nicely tell salesmen we aren't interested and continue on our way and have never had an issue with them. The food is out of this world and maybe we could have eventually had this experience in Ocho but based on the beach and local food alone I can't see us ever returning to Ocho. Also if you book on seven mile there is almost no need to take a taxi anywhere if you don't want to, we walk almost everywhere we want to go. Just my humble opinion, but Negril is better suited to a wider variety of travelers expectations.
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Armed guards? Don't leave resort because of violent crime? Where was this Sandals, in Mogadishu Somalia?
Seriously, I wander all over Jamaica & have met nice people everywhere. Apart from one incident in downtown Kingston where I was being stupid and was "relieved" of my expensive cellphone by a guy on motorbike (learning experience!), I've never run into any trouble.
The AIs in Jamaica seem to over-hype the "danger of leaving the resort", and guard em like prisons. why? cause they want you and your money to stay at the AI. Plenty of add on charges to be had by most AIs from tours to beach umbrellas. One of my friends' will never get outside a gated AI in Jamaica because his wife has been brainwahsed into thinking its a war zone.Originally Posted by rtitle
As for Ocho v Negril - forget about Ocho. Total tourist trap.
