Family Fun at Hope Zoo: What to Expect

My last trip to the zoo was at least a decade ago and I’ve had an inexplicable hankering to visit since last year. Hope Zoo welcomed its first visitors in 1961 but inadequate funding, deterioration and a dwindling animal population led to a decline in public interest. This paved the way for private ownership and in 2011, the Hope Zoo Preservation Foundation (HZPF) took reins. Devising a model from local and international environment and wildlife preservation bodies, the Hope Zoo was transformed to tell the Jamaican story by showcasing local fauna alongside African macrovertebrates and American jungle species since these regions have had the greatest impact on Jamaica.

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Rochelle | Adventuresfromelle17 Comments

Visiting Gut River: 2025 Admission Costs and Travel Tips

When you grow up learning in school that the parish of Manchester has no rivers or beaches, this one means a lot. Relatively unknown even to my friends born and raised in this parish, Gut River runs mostly underground then emerges for a short 200m journey to the Caribbean Sea. It is found along a narrow remote coastal road and is one of the many places in Jamaica where fresh water can be enjoyed alongside saltwater. Gut River is said to get its name from the German word ‘gut’, meaning good. This is one of at least five rivers found in Manchester Jamaica, but some are seasonal.

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Rochelle | Adventuresfromelle27 Comments

Kwame Falls, Saint Mary

Kwame Falls is a free river and waterfall in Jamaica near the rural district of Robin’s Bay in St. Mary. It is said that the falls are named for Kwame, one of the warriors who fought alongside Tacky in 1760. This was the most successful rebellion against enslavement in Jamaica before that of Samuel Sharpe 71 years later. It is significant that the fall named for Kwame is smaller and less powerful than Tacky Falls, also in St. Mary, as Tacky was a more courageous and fiercer leader than he. I haven’t found a written record of any general Kwame or Kwaamen, however, one source made mention of Kwaw as one of Tacky’s conspirators. With the distortion of oral history throughout the years, it’s very likely that Kwaw became “Kwame.” That aside, this was a memorable adventure with a 4-hour roundtrip hike involved. Here’s how it went:

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Rochelle | Adventuresfromelle19 Comments

Lime Tree Farm, Saint Andrew

Lime Tree Farm is an eco-friendly farm and lodging set in the delightful Blue Mountains 3,400 feet above sea level. Run by an affable couple Rodger and Tifony Bolton, visiting Lime Tree Farm is like visiting the home of friends where the air is cool and crisp, the views divine and the tranquility just what the doctor ordered. You’ll feel as if time moves a little slower here. Set in rural Saint Andrew, this is Coffee Country so you can bet that Blue Mountain coffee is the main crop. Read on to learn why this is one of the top Blue Mountain coffee tours in Jamaica.

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Rochelle | Adventuresfromelle8 Comments

Dunn’s River Falls, Saint Ann

Dunn’s River Falls and Park is a state-run tourist attraction featuring a natural waterfall, beach, park and hiking trail along Jamaica’s north coast. It has been minimally modified with cement to create footholds, making it safer and easier for tourists to climb but that’s about it. The waterfall is not man-made. If the tiers seem too perfect to believe that they are natural, that’s because Jamaica’s limestone richness and our abundant rivers create magic when they meet, carving out thousands of caves and dozens of perfectly tiered cascades throughout the whole island which are a sight to behold. They didn’t name Jamaica from the Arawakan word Xaymaca meaning ‘land of wood and water’ for nothing. April 2018 was my first visit to Dunn’s River Falls in Ocho Rios, Saint Ann, and now you can accomplish your own Dunn’s River trip with Get Your Guide.

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Rochelle | Adventuresfromelle13 Comments

Jamaica Blue Mountain Coffee Festival, Saint Andrew

Jamaica’s Tourism Linkages Network through the Ministry of Tourism is on to something big with this one. The inaugural Jamaica Blue Mountain Coffee Festival is a three-day weekend affair with the main event taking place on Saturday March 24 at the cool historic military training centre of Newcastle in the Blue & John Crow Mountains National Park (BJCMNP).

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Rochelle | Adventuresfromelle10 Comments

Cecil Charlton Park, Manchester

Mandeville is one of Jamaica’s more developed towns. The town is peaceful and laid-back compared to Montego Bay and Kingston, Jamaica’s two cities. I’m sure the residents like that a lot since Mandeville and by extension the cool cool parish of Manchester is a popular settlement for Jamaica’s returning residents. Named for former Mayor of Mandeville the late Cecil Charlton, the park’s transformation has been an ongoing initiative of the Manchester Parish Council since 2012. In these few years, the park has transformed from a mere refuge of the homeless to one which is worthy of civic and even national pride. Lying smack in the middle of the town square, this tiny attractive park brings a breath of fresh air and offers a great opportunity to learn more of Mandeville’s history. If you’re ever in this neck of the Jamaican woods, take a stroll here and even a seat for a few minutes.

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Rochelle | Adventuresfromelle11 Comments

Trench Town Culture Yard, Saint Andrew

Jamaica’s capital city of Kingston pulsates to the beat of reggae music and its raunchier cousin, dancehall music. Both genres originated here so opportunities to enjoy and learn about their origins in Kingston are endless. Bob Marley is indisputably the world’s most famous Rastafarian and reggae’s most celebrated son. Born in the rural district of Nine Miles, St. Ann, Kingston can’t take credit for his birthplace but it can for his rise to fame. Bob Marley and his immediate family relocated to Trench Town, Kingston at age 12 in search of a better life.

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Rochelle | Adventuresfromelle4 Comments

Bath Mineral Spring, Saint Thomas

The rural community of Bath in St. Thomas is teeming with history and beauty, home to Jamaica’s oldest botanical garden and a mineral spring by the same name. Legend has it that the bath was discovered in the 1600s by a runaway slave with leg ulcers. He stumbled across the spring, used it to wash his wounded limb then noticed the next day that his leg was rapidly healing. He shared the good news then stories of the fountain spread, soon attracting visitors from islandwide. 

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Rochelle | Adventuresfromelle27 Comments

Bath Botanical Gardens, Saint Thomas

Established in 1779, the rural community of Bath in Saint Thomas is home to the Caribbean’s oldest botanical garden after the botanical garden in Kingstown, St. Vincent and the Grenadines. Two and a half centuries later Bath Botanical Garden may not be as well-kept as it once was but it’s certainly a beautiful national treasure worth visiting. Many foreign plants which we have since made our own were first planted here. These include flowers like the croton, jacaranda and bougainvillea, and foodstuff like cinnamon, ackee, otaheite apples, jackfruit and breadfruit– the delicious Jamaican staple which I couldn’t imagine our cuisine without! Jamaica has four public botanical gardens. Last year I visited Hope Gardens’ newest addition of the Harmonious Enjoyment Garden and also explored Castleton Botanical Gardens, Jamaica’s second oldest botanical garden. Thus, Cinchona Botanical Gardens in the hills of St. Andrew is my only garden left to visit.

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Rochelle | Adventuresfromelle8 Comments