Winnifred Beach, Portland

Winnifred Beach in Portland, Jamaica is a success story of what can happen when a community works together and fights for a worthy cause. Majority of Jamaica’s best coastline is in the hands of private owners, auctioned off and sold by the Jamaican government to large hotels and investors who rather keep the beaches of their beachfront hotels and resorts exclusive for paying guests. This practice prevents citizens from enjoying most of the country’s best beaches. It’s a prevailing notion in Jamaica that only tourists get to see and enjoy Jamaica’s finest attractions since the prices charged for us to visit these places, even with cheaper rates for locals, still make them inaccessible to many. This wasn’t something I thought much of until I visited another Caribbean island last December and realized that none of their beaches had an admission fee.

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Rochelle | Adventuresfromelle38 Comments

Bob Marley Beach, Saint Andrew

When one thinks of going to the beach in Jamaica, St. Andrew is perhaps the last parish that comes to mind. Some go as far as to ask if this parish even has a beach to begin with, and I’m always happy to educate and say yes, SEVERAL! 🙂 All 14 of Jamaica’s parishes are washed by the Caribbean Sea so it’s a little weird that people assume St. Andrew doesn’t have any beaches just because it’s a largely urban parish and commercial centre. Three years ago I took a trip to the Carib and Wickie Wackie beaches which I wrote about here, and now I’m back with another lesser-known St. Andrew beach.

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Rochelle | Adventuresfromelle35 Comments

Blue Lagoon & Monkey Island Tour, Portland

Blue Lagoon is located in Port Antonio, a quaint picturesque town in Portland which hasn’t been hit with mass-tourism like our other resort towns. Portland is my favourite parish in Jamaica because literally around every curve is a beautiful beach, cay, river or waterfall waiting to be discovered. Does Blue Lagoon look or sound familiar? Well, there may be a reason for that. Brook Shields’ movie by the same name Blue Lagoon wasn’t filmed in Jamaica, but it’s a popular spot used in filming Tom Cruise’s Cocktail (1988) and numerous Jamaican music videos. This coastal lagoon shrouded by thick lush greenery is rumoured to be bottomless in Jamaican folklore but is actually 65m (210ft.) deep at its deepest point, and its colour ranges from a deep mesmerizing royal blue to shimmering turquoise depending on the way the light hits its surface throughout the day.

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Rochelle | Adventuresfromelle29 Comments

7 Unique Activities to Try in Kingston, Jamaica

Kingston is Jamaica’s capital city, a bustling centre of business, commerce and culture with a wealth of activities to enjoy. There are free activities, half a dozen rivers and waterfalls, dozens of local and specialty restaurants, charming cafes and coffeehouses, as well as a growing list of niche activities to check out. Here are seven fun & unique things to try in Kingston, Jamaica– updated for 2025 and beyond. Check out part 2 here.

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Rochelle | Adventuresfromelle25 Comments

Ackee & Saltfish: Cooking with Jamaica’s Most Controversial Fruit

‘Rona has forced me re-evaluate the purpose of Adventures from Elle, the kind of content I want to produce and how I want to engage with my small but vibrant community going forward. I started this blog in December 2016 to inspire and show others, mainly locals, how to explore my beautiful island home of Jamaica on a budget. Traveling off-the-beaten-path in Jamaica and writing about those experiences has grown my love and appreciation of Jamaica and our culture, introduced me to a loving positive community of local, regional and international bloggers, given me some memorable experiences I wouldn’t have had otherwise, grown my confidence, nurtured my creativity and developed into a hobby I thoroughly enjoy. I’ve also become an unofficial Jamaican ambassador of sorts!

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Rochelle | Adventuresfromelle45 Comments

Eating My Way Through Mandeville, Jamaica

‘Rona has turned many travel blogs into food and lifestyle blogs, and Adventures from Elle is no different. I’m actually fine with that though. It’s been fun exploring other topics on my blog and sharing a bit more about myself, plus I like to think that the Earth is rejuvenating herself during our time indoors. With that said here’s a follow up to last week’s Eating My Way Through Kingston. If you missed that post, please go back and read it. 🙂

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Rochelle | Adventuresfromelle25 Comments

Eating My Way Through Kingston, Jamaica

Kingston is home to Jamaica’s finest dining scene, and you can get food from many of the world’s most distinct cuisines— Indian, Mexican, Chinese, Japanese, Middle Eastern, West African, Greek, French and of course, Jamaican cuisine. I try to eat in much more than I dine out because it’s cheaper, healthier and I like knowing what ingredients went into my food. I also enjoy cooking even if I don’t get the time to do so as often as I’d like. That being said, once in a while I love dining out! Something about having food made for me by someone who makes a living from cooking and in a different ambiance from my humble abode gets me excited. I often find myself going back to old favourites– those places which have never let me down– but trying new places can be fun too. Here’s a list of my favourite restaurants in Kingston. Pressed for time? Check out this tour instead.

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Rochelle | Adventuresfromelle22 Comments

From My Quarantine Kitchen to Yours

My social media has been blowing up with pictures of delicious dishes, pastries and ‘quarantinis’ which everyone has been whipping up in the kitchen since being forced into self-quarantine as many countries have been encouraging or even forcing upon their citizens in a bid to stem the spread of the novel coronavirus. There are many reasons for this I’ve theorized. Our favourite restaurants are closed, and those which are still open are only taking orders for takeout or delivery with restricted opening hours. People often cite lack of time as an excuse for why we dine out or purchase fast food, and well– many of us now have lots of extra time on our hands.

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Rochelle | Adventuresfromelle25 Comments

How to Travel During A Pandemic

Now, now, you didn’t really think an essential worker who’s preaching “flatten the curve” would come here posting about how to travel during a pandemic, did you? Of course not. That would be wholly irresponsible of me, but I’m glad I have your attention. It’s business as usual for me everyday as I already spoke about in my previous post from the #covidchronicles. However, I’m aware that’s not the same for many of you who are staying safe at home everyday. Staying home has infected a lot of people with a serious case of wanderlust as I keep seeing a tonne of throwbacks and people lamenting having to cancel their travel plans on my social media feeds. In response, several corporate entities have made their content free as an incentive to provide home entertainment and encourage people to remain indoors.

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Rochelle | Adventuresfromelle19 Comments

CoVid Chronicles: An Essential Worker’s Perspective

Here’s part 2 of my Covid-19 chronicles. Catch part 1 here.

I completed medical school last June so I’ve been a doctor in a Jamaican public hospital for 9 months now and counting. During that time I’ve seen a lot and gained a world of experience. When this current strain of coronavirus emerged, it sounded surreal BUT we all knew it was a matter of time before our country and region would be affected too given how highly virulent this pathogen is and how closely connected our world has become through the 21st century’s ease of travel. Subsequently, Jamaica recorded its first case on March 10. Every day since, or rather every hour, there’s something new. One minute it’s a public attraction closing its doors, the next it’s a restaurant, a factory, the schools, offices, then finally the country’s airports on March 21. At the time of publishing this post, the number of confirmed cases is at 26 and our nation has recorded 1 death.

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Rochelle | Adventuresfromelle23 Comments