The Blue Lagoon, Port Antonio, Jamaica

I've been to the Blue Lagoon before. The first time was 2001. Back then, the Jamaica Tourist Board took a more active role in marketing Port Antonio. We flew into the small airport just outside of town. We stayed at a hotel that is not currently operating called Dragon Bay. {If you saw the movie Cocktail with Tom Cruise, you know the beach and the famous beach bar.} But that was then. In the years since, I've been lucky enough to spend about 5 Easters in Port Antonio and I make it a point with each visit, to return to the Blue Lagoon.

And this is why...

It is simply MAGICAL...

I'll visit any way I can... usually by rising early to walk down the long and winding hill from our home-away-from-home at Goblin Hill Villas. This year, we succumbed to the offers to take a bamboo raft into the lagoon and swim.

 

The ride was relaxing to the point I almost dozed off - that was, until my husband decided to add a little adventure to the trip and jump in the shallow flats in front of the lagoon and capture a sea creature for our son:

Success and oh so spiny....

Fascination with hands on nature is.... better than any classroom...

The Blue Lagoon is adjacent to some of the prized real estate in the Caribbean. These waterfront villas sell for millions but rent for pretty reasonable rates - ask me about renting one for your next villa vacation.

Then we finally reached the lagoon and took a swim in the cool water. The lagoon is reportedly 186 feet deep. I figure that must be 15-16 stories - right? That's DEEP and the reason behind the water's amazing hue - not quite blue, not quite green - truly the closest thing to turquoise I've even seen...

After an hour swimming, our raft guides returned to pick us up... 

Priceless...

a trip to remember

Cheers,

Meet Kanopi House...

Kanopi House. Jamaica's newest eco-friendly hotel located on my favorite corner of the island, Port Antonio. Equal parts rustic & charm...

Give a bundle of local wood to Jamaica's talented local artists and this is what you will get...

Kanopi House has just enough jungle to remind you of exactly how precious every little living thing is... Follow me...But its not all jungle... oh no, fear not. This little wonderland is only a stone's throw from the Blue Lagoon... a 250+ foot abyss of blended salt and spring water. I could stare all day at this lagoon and never tire... entertained by the constantly changing colors.
Need a closer look?

After long days of rum shop tours, river rafting, fishing, birding, or mountain biking... Kanopi House waits to welcome you... with plenty of fine cuisine crafted from fresh local ingredients, paired with the perfect vintage from the owner's cellar... and plenty of luxe lounging...

If this is starting to sound a little too civilized for what you're looking for... pause for a moment and remember... Kanopi House is comprised of tree houses... far, far away from the ordinary.

And if you dig deep into this little blog, you will come to learn that Port Antonio is one of my favorite places on earth. I've swam at midnight in the Blue Lagoon... watched from a distance a famous wife tend her mares... I've read the books and sang the songs... all about this, this perfect PARADISE. And once you visit... you too will want to find a cozy chair, put pen to paper, and draft your memories for fear there might come a day when your own experiences in Port Antonio fail to conjure up a soul warming smile...

The End.

Port Antonio, Jamaica

Welcome to Paradise... and one of my favorite places on the planet... only 3.5 hours drive from Kingston, Jamaica...

and a little isle called "Monkey Island"... we swam here from the beach in the photo below. Sunburned to a crisp and tired to the core, but well worth it...

There are cool rivers to swim in... a REAL lazy river... this is Frenchmen's Cove... a splendid little unknown gem.
A swing for swinging and the best seat for people watching... a real tree swing... wood worn smooth by the years....

And a rope swing... enjoy at your own risk...His nickname was Gilligan... because we found our own little private beach on the other side of the river and made camp. He was so happy... the river is perfect for toddlers... no waves to worry about... plenty of shade to protect delicate skin...

Frenchman's Cove has a beach too...one of the most photographed on the island...
The sunsets in this town are what sunsets are all about... picture perfect and soul warming...

If you're hungry, take a short drive down the winding hill to Boston Bay and the most famous jerk of all...Lush is an understatement... what tops lush in terms of perfectness of a word, I don't know... but LUSH just won't do.

The homes are designed in true beach house style... white washed to reflect the sun...

Another view...

We left under grey skies... threatening the only rainfall we would have seen... the only rain we heard fell at night... and lulled us in to a deeper sleep.

Clearly the meteorologist was spot on...

More on Port Antonio accommodations coming soon...

A few towns over, on the drive back to Kingston to catch our plane home, I spotted this church and was taken... said a prayer and was thankful.

GeeJam = Style

About 3.5 hours drive from Kingston, Jamaica... is a little known paradise...

...called Port Antonio. It hasn't always been such a secret. Why this is where many famous novels were penned and celestials of the Hollywood set used to come and play... back when the banana boats first let passengers stow away... in style, of course... (this is where we spend every Easter...)
In this lovely little place you will find GeeJam... a boutique hotel to rival any other...
The accommodations are the type that fill pages of magazines... And the backdrops of fashion shoots...
With bathrooms that leave guests aiming to recreate once they arrive home...The food... island style sushi... of course...
If all this style is too much for you... a quick drive down the hill and you will find all the funky beach vibes Jamaica is famous for...

mmmm.... paradise....

If you are of the musical sort... there is a first class studio... with ocean views... and used by some of the a-listers of the tune world.... I've been sworn to secrecy...
But this I can tell... see the painting on the villa wall? It's a Banksy. He's real cool. And well, he visited and left his mark - in the form of little rats painted in a few non-conspicuous places. And then, the maids, being thorough beyond expectation, painted over a few of these little rats. *sigh* Priceless.

Sound like your kind of place? Let me hear...

Port Antonio, Jamaica

I spent last weekend in Port Antonio, Jamaica with my family and have gobs of information to share with you! I will spread it over a few postings... We flew into Kingston and because of the large number of people in our party, opted for ground transportation for the 2.5 hour drive. Had we been traveling with just our family, we would have opted for a whirly bird or small plane transport. We stayed at Goblin Hill Villas - a townhouse community with fantastic views at every turn. We dined each night on fresh Jamaican fare prepared by Miss Elaine, our cook. We spent lazy days on San San Beach and by Goblin's pool. Some of us went river rafting on the Rio Grande. We ate lunch at local establishments with the hands down best meal coming from Boston Bay - the home of the JERK cooking style. Meats, sausages, and seafood are cooked on low grills with deep seasonings and then chopped and sold by the pound. Delish! (I included some pics of our Boston Bay stop in my slide show below.) We drove down to the Blue Lagoon and trespassed to get a close view as it is currently landlocked by a construction project. I was invited for lunch at GeeJam - the awesome studio complex where No Dought recorded their last album before Gwen Stefani went solo. (More on GJ later!) Port Antonio is a lazy harbour town on the far NE coast of Jamaica. It's allure is the old Hollywood feel from the glamour days gone by when Errol Flynn, Ian Flemming, and Noel Coward all called its shores home and hosted hundreds of parties attended by the world's jet-setters... the stories of that time are very intriguing. PA has pretty much been forgotten since then but is due for a rebirth. My beach read this trip? The Pirate's Daughter by Margaret Cezair-Thompson a novel set in Port Antonio - PERFECT! Enjoy my pictures!