Catalyst Campus: Jamaica’s Premier Hub for Coworking & Innovation

In today’s rapidly evolving global economy, innovation and entrepreneurship are the engines driving growth, job creation and competitiveness. Recognizing this, the Novamed Consulting Group has added Catalyst Campus to their dynamic portfolio. Catalyst Campus is Kingston‘s premier coworking space and innovation hub. I had the pleasure of attending their soft launch last month, so read on to learn everything about this new innovative arena.

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Rochelle | Adventuresfromelle14 Comments

Highlights of Jamaica’s Inaugural Dragon Boat Festival

From May 31 to June 1, 2025, the Grand Excelsior Port Royal Hotel (formerly Morgan’s Harbour) played host to an exhilarating and historic event: Jamaica’s inaugural Dragon Boat Festival. Under a sky veiled by Saharan dust with heat shimmering off the Kingston Harbour, the world’s seventh largest natural harbour, locals and foreigners alike gathered in Port Royal to witness and celebrate the country’s entry into a centuries-old global tradition. It’s always exciting when new events are added to Jamaica’s cultural calendar, so I made the trip to Port Royal to catch a few hours on day 2 of the festival. Here are the history and highlights of this inaugural staging.

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Rochelle | Adventuresfromelle10 Comments

6 Jamaican Rivers You Can Visit Without Leaving Kingston & St. Andrew

Jamaica is renowned for its stunning beaches, vibrant culture and lush landscapes. While locals and visitors alike usually flock to the coast, the interior regions of Kingston & St. Andrew offer a treasure trove of natural wonders waiting to be discovered. Among these treasures are beautiful rivers, each with its own unique charm and allure. From cascading waterfalls to serene swimming spots, here are six rivers you can explore without a long drive, paying toll or leaving Kingston & St. Andrew.

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Rochelle | Adventuresfromelle13 Comments

Is Kingston, Jamaica Worth Visiting?

Kingston, the capital city of Jamaica, is a destination that captivates thousands of visitors each year with its rich vibrant culture and natural beauty. A city of paradoxes, Kingston is the heartbeat of Jamaica as most Jamaican art, music and trends originate here. After all, Kingston holds one-sixth of Jamaica’s population. Most visitors to Jamaica bypass its capital city because there are misconceptions that all of Kingston is dangerous, or just not that interesting or beautiful. By doing so, most tourists miss out on an authentic Jamaican experience. I’ve lived in Kingston for all but two of my twenty-something years so I’m more than qualified to share five reasons why Kingston, Jamaica is a must-visit destination.

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Rochelle | Adventuresfromelle25 Comments

Best Cafes for Coffee Lovers in Jamaica

Coffee culture is the collection of traditions and behaviours surrounding the consumption of coffee, which includes the social acceptance of caffeine as a stimulant. Many people cannot start the morning without a brew, and as such, cafes give these coffee lovers their fix of lattes, espressos, cappuccinos and the like. However, cafes offer more than just coffee. They offer spaces for work, meetings, socialization and even meals, as most serve light meals and pastries alongside coffee and tea. European and North American culture strongly influences trends in the Caribbean so it was just a matter of time before their café culture trickled down to us. Most Jamaicans start their morning with a hot beverage as inherited from our British colonizers. Thus, it isn’t surprising that coffee culture has caught on in Jamaica. We have the right audience for it.

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Rochelle | Adventuresfromelle25 Comments

19 Times My Parish (St. Andrew) Left Me Awestruck

I hail from Jamaica’s capital city of Kingston, born unda di clock as we say– a colloquial expression which means one was born not too far from this Victorian-style 33-foot tall clocktower built in 1913! This clock marks the very centre of the parish capital, a crossroad between four major streets in Half-Way-Tree which was once the location of a large cotton tree and how the town got its name.

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Rochelle | Adventuresfromelle7 Comments
Statue of a man and woman standing in a fountain

The Top 10 Free Things to Do in Kingston, Jamaica

Kingston is the largest English-speaking city south of the United States, the capital of Jamaica, and a city I’m proud to call home. Kingston is located on the island’s southeastern coast and is the heartbeat of Jamaica– the home of business, commerce, government and a spirit and culture which can’t be found anywhere else in the world. Reggae and dancehall music were born in the deep gritty slums of Kingston as a means by which the city’s most oppressed and impoverished could escape their struggles, and now the entire country, region and world pulsate to these riddims.

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Rochelle | Adventuresfromelle55 Comments

Elle’s 3 Day Itinerary for Kingston, Jamaica

Jamaica gets millions of tourists annually and I’m just so fortunate to . However, that doesn’t mean us locals take advantage of all the sights to see and things to do around our own island. Many Jamaicans (& visitors too) only associate the resort towns of Jamaica with adventure and enjoyment– Ocho Rios, Montego Bay and Negril– which usually means big bucks and a lot of travelling for the nearly 700,000 inhabitants of Kingston, the capital city on the eastern end of the island and far from these tourism centres. However, I’m about to show you how to enjoy the city that’s right under your noses. Set aside three days and let’s enjoy Kingston as I know it!

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Rochelle | Adventuresfromelle18 Comments

National Gallery of Jamaica, Kingston

The National Gallery of Jamaica (NGJ) is the oldest and largest public art museum in the English-speaking Caribbean, established in 1974. It was borne out of a need to showcase the excellent talent and beauty of the Jamaican art scene, sending a powerful message to the ex-colonial powers that we too are capable of creating technically sound masterpieces to depict the Jamaican story. This art gallery in Downtown Kingston, Jamaica bears a comprehensive collection of early, modern and contemporary local art alongside smaller Caribbean and international holdings. A significant number of its collections are on permanent display but there are also frequent temporary exhibitions.

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Rochelle | Adventuresfromelle12 Comments

Port Royal: From Pirate City to Sleepy Village

Let’s talk about the Wickedest City of the West during her glory days, shall we? Nowadays, Port Royal is a sleepy fishing village located fifteen minutes away from Kingston’s international airport. There are still tourists who believe that Port Royal is a fictional place even after watching Pirates of the Caribbean. This article covers the rise and fall of Port Royal, how to plan a visit to the present-day town, the Giddy House and Fort Charles Maritime Museum. If you’re staying in another end of the island besides Kingston, consider booking a tour through Get Your Guide (includes transport).

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Rochelle | Adventuresfromelle15 Comments