I knew one day, I’d head to Jamaica given its proximity to Toronto and its renowned beaches and vibrant culture. And as parents of a young toddler desperate for an easy vacation, it was the perfect destination. I planned a 10-day stay and split our trip into two hotels to get some variety in scenery, beaches, pools, and food.

I was very intentional about our flight choices. We flew to Atlanta for an overnight layover on Friday and then flew directly to Montego Bay the next day. It was a good way to break up the long journey with Max, schedule some sleep on the plane, and give us a break. Max did well on his flights… but the layover disrupted his night sleep. I thought he’d sleep through the disembarking of the plane and journey to our airport hotel, but he was awake the entire time. Eventually, he fell back asleep once we settled into the hotel and got over the excitement of co-sleeping with me.

Quick first impressions

(Obviously, these are very narrow since I’ve only stayed at the resorts)

Jamaica is uncomfortably HOT and I was not used to this heat. Even at night, there was no breeze sitting by the ocean and I was sweating. This wasn’t ideal since it limited our time spent the outdoors —I just wanted to be inside my air-conditioned room or in the water.  Both hotels had limited air-conditioned indoor areas to enjoy as well, everything was outdoors such as restaurants or shows. 

Jamaica has some gorgeous natural scenery like its beaches, waterfalls, and mountains. While I only visited Dunn’s River Falls, there were plenty of other spots to see like Seven-mile Beach, YS Falls, and the Blue Hole.  

Compared to other all-inclusive destinations like Mexico, Cuba or Dominican Republic, Jamaica had pretty good food. Local favourites would definitely be beef patties and oxtail!

Hilton Rose Hall 

Our first hotel was the Hilton Rose Hall. It was a smaller 4-star beachfront hotel but had a fun lazy river and waterpark. I splurged on a ground-level oceanfront room but the room was pretty dated and the air conditioning was not cold enough. The food and beach were good but I liked the lazy river and waterpark the best. 

Our days consisted of eating breakfast, getting ready, hitting the beach or waterpark, cleaning up for lunch, eating lunch, and then putting Max down for a nap. One parent would be on “nap duty” while the other parent got solo free time. After his nap, we’d either swim again or let him wander until dinner time. But usually, since it was so hot, we tried to hit the water again.

Riu Ocho Rios

After 4 days at the Hilton, we switched to the Riu. Our plan to time Max’s nap during the 1.5 hour transfer worked perfectly. We met up with Linda, Mike and Madi and it was so fun to see Max and Madi together. We celebrated Mike’s 40th Birthday and enjoyed our closest friends’ company in Ocho Rios.

Riu’s hotel room was more modern with stronger air conditioning —thank goodness. However, only the buffet, restaurants and sports bar were air-conditioned. This meant the elevators were like saunas and there were no cool areas to hang out. Even the lobby and entertainment stage were fully outdoors.

There were a few resort pools and the beach had wonderful turquoise waters with fine sand. Overall, it was a good all-inclusive resort that I would recommend.

Riu’s kids area did not allow toddlers even with parental supervision. But Max wasn’t missing much since it was so hot in that outdoor space. We took him to kids’ waterpark and helped him go on the toddler water slides.

We tried all the different restaurants and the pools. Chi and I took turns watching the night entertainment. I got to go to “glow night” which was a pretty awesome evening dance party with some fun music. 

Dunns River Falls 

While there were many excursions I wanted to do, this was the most suitable for us and Max. It was only 10 minutes away from the resort, it had a beautiful beach and you can easily wander in/out of the waterfalls at different exit points. 

This was the trip’s highlight, and I wish we had more time to climb the entire falls. The waterfalls were beautiful and we took turns climbing a bit of it. The beach at the foot of the falls was also stunning and I could have stayed there all day. 

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Jamaica is home to white-sand beaches, diverse landscapes, luxurious all-inclusive resorts and majestic waterfalls. It is also home to a renowned vibrant culture with laid-back vibes, reggae and dancehall music and flavourful foods.

Without a doubt, we’ll be back to visit Negril and its famous seven-mile beach. There is still much to see in Jamacia.