Negril Vs Montego Bay ??
 

Hi,

Me and my wife never took a honeymoon when we got married back in march. We are both 24 and plan on taking vacation in September and wanted to visit Jamaica. its kind of a late honeymoon but we wanna do more than just romantic stuff. We have never gone before. We plan on enjoying some time relaxing and being romantic, but we also like to be adventurous and party lol. Which place we you guy recommend the most for both. We initial thought about AI resorts, but i saw some ppl say cost of food isnt much. We just thought it be less of a hassle, but we're open to either option. We plan on staying for about 6 nights. Thanks in advance for any advice and recommendations!

I've not been to Montego Bay but have been to Negril and thoroughly enjoyed it. You can party in Negril and the beach is beautiful. However September might not be a great month to go, peak hurricane season and there could be plenty of rain.

I've stayed in many AI resorts, this year alone at 3 & not just in the Caribbean. It's convenient and great for places where eating out is expensive or difficult. In Negril, there is no reason for AI. If you go AI in Negril, you'll miss out on the many local restaurants and the local feel of the place.

We love AI resorts and have stayed at many including Negril and Ocho Rios. Most of the AI resorts in Negril are located on Bloody Bay due to the fact that there is really nothing around there in terms of dining options or bars. If you don't want to do AI look at the 7 Mile Beach area and the Cliffs area in Negril.

Montego Bay is more crowded and congested. The better AI resorts like the Iberostars and Secrets resorts are located in Montego Bay.

Try this website for more info:

http://www.negrilonestop.com/

I highly recommend Negril! You can easily get there by any of many transfer companies from the Montego Bay airport. It's about 90 mins. and by shared shuttle $30pp. It's very beautiful. I would not stay All-Inclusive. Definitely look at the negrilonestop website as recommended by KVR. In Negril you can stay on the 7-mile beach, or on "the Cliffs". Both are fabulous.

Thanks for the info. So if we stay in Negril anybody know any nice hotels to stay at? Its gonna be our first trip together so I want something nice, that's the only reason I was leaning towards am AI. But we want to relax a little and exlore the area in soak in some culture. Any nice hotels that are by the beach with a nice suite? Trying to keep it around 2500 on hotel and airfare. And then some extra cash to enjoy out there.

Negril is very casual. so I'm not sure if it will be "nice" enough for what you want. Look at the Onestop website to get an idea what it's like there. Negril is more "beachy" and laid-back not really a fancy place.

I love Negril, but would not go to Jamaica in September b/c it is hurricane season and could be very rainy. IF that's the only time you can go to the Caribbean, look at southern islands where hurricanes can still happen but are less likely ( Aruba, Bonaire, Curacao).

Also make sure that you take out trip insurance.

If there's any way to postpone until later in the fall, you can still get good deals on many hotels until December 20th.

As Suze pointed out above, Negril hotels are pretty casual. If you are looking for true luxury,you might not be happy and will probably have to spend more on your budget.

You can also look at places in Mexico or the Dominican Republic, where AI's are more plentiful and affordable.

Good point about September.

Mexico is an excellent suggestion, the Mayan Riviera (the Caribbean coastline south from Cancun) has loads of All-Inclusives to choose from in all price ranges. But September is the worst month weather-wise there also.

Totally agree with you, Suze. Should have said so in my post. I would not willingly go to any part of the Caribbean in Mexico. Not worth the risk and possible bad weather even without a hurricane.

Geez, I should have previewed my post. That SHOULD READ, "would not go to any part of the Caribbean in September".

I understood what you meant, no worries. Myself, I totally missed the "September" part in the original post.

I agree. We stopped traveling to the Caribbean/Mexico in a August/September because the weather was just too iffy. We barely missed a Hurricane when we went to the Bahamas. We got out just in time. Several times, we just missed a hurricane that hit Mexico. When we got there most everything was damaged and closed for repairs. With that said, we have gone to Aruba in September and had perfect weather. So you never know. Though there are no absolute weather guarantees. If you have to travel in September, I would go with Aruba, Curacao, Barbados, St. Lucia or Grenada. You will have a better chance.

I agree also that based on your comments the lax resorts located in Negril probably are not what you are looking for. However, with that low budget, you're probably are not going to find much lux except with an AI resort in Mexico. It also depends where you are flying from. We have stayed as some decent mediocore AI and Non AI hotels in the Caribbean for around $3,000 with air. We keep returning to Mexico because you get so much more for your money.

Can you wait until the first 2 weeks of November or December? You will find much better prices as well as weather.