The Ritz Carlton in Jamaica

A luxury resort hotel in the Caribbean with an amazing golf course.

Jan 29, 2007

The Ritz is one of the two best luxury resorts in Montego Bay, Jamaica. The views and challenging game at its White Witch golf course make this a top golf vacation.

The Ritz Carton Golf & Spa Resort in Montego Bay, Jamaica, looks like it should provide for one of the best luxury vacations in the Caribbean. It's a Ritz, after all. The grounds are beautiful and well maintained, and the hotel rooms and suites are updated, clean, and lovely. Honeymoons are popular here, and it's a family travel destination as well. However, it is as popular with the leisure travel class as any other chain of luxury resorts in the Caribbean. As such, it can get pretty crowded, especially around the holidays and other peak travel seasons.

The beach at the Ritz Carlton in Jamaica is manmade, rocky, and substantially smaller than you'd expect from a beachside resort. The romantic, private feeling is therefore less than you'd expect as well. The Ritz Carlton gets crowded around the holidays and Spring Break - and the pool is smaller than you usually see at romantic or child-friendly luxury resorts - so you really feel the crowds. I think that because the beach is small, with a rocky bottom, more of the young children and older kids end up playing in the pool. This, as you can imagine, can get pretty loud. The children did seem to be having a great time in the pool, though!

The Ritz-Carlton in Jamaica has notably slower service than the Half Moon next door, but this is likely because the Half Moon is the Caribbean anomaly: Most top luxury resorts and 5-star hotels in Jamaica tend to operate on "island time." If you're on a romantic getaway, what's your hurry? However, if you have a reservation at the day spa or golf course, best to plan ahead and fit the slower service at the Ritz into your schedule.

Ritz Kids camps are offered at most, if not all, Ritz-Carlton hotels and resorts; it's a camp whose reputation precedes it. My kids had a great time at Ritz Kids camps before: The activities are constant and fun, but also voluntary (a child who does not want to swim will not be made to do so). Four nights a week there is also "Kids Night Out" for younger children. These can fill up fast, so I'd recommend that you sign up for them as you plan your vacation.

This is an area that could really use improvement. The Ritz-Carton in Montego Bay has plenty of daytime activities such as golf, tennis, water sports, etc. - but, once the sun sets, you're on your own. Now, couples on their honeymoon and other romantic vacations usually find something to do on their own. And a family that travels with young children may opt to plug them into a video at night, or sign them up for Kids Night Out. But teenagers can get bored at this Ritz, and this is not a luxury hotel for singles. When it rains, same thing: Nothing much to do.

The best thing about the Ritz Carlton in Jamaica has got to be the golf course. The White Witch golf course is challenging, with dramatic elevation changes and the best ocean views in the area. The restaurant at the White Witch has the best food in the resort. The White Witch golf course is around a 10 minute ride from the resort hotel. Non-hotel guests may play here, for only 20 dollars more per person than Ritz hotel guests. This is good, because the Half Moon's golf course next door isn't nearly as challenging.

The best resort restaurants here, I believe, are Horizons and Jasmin. Horizons (best breakfast) is tops for for family meals with young kids, while Jasmin is not child-friendly (no kids allowed!), but caters well to romantic dinners. A private dinner at the Gazebo is right on the beach. It's so romantic and lovely, it can feel like you're on your honeymoon - even if you're not. Remember, the White White Country Club (adjacent to the golf course) is off the resort grounds but in my view, has the best menu and the best golf course and ocean views around.

The gym and spa are fine here. The best treatment is probably the romantic couples' massage, but beyond that, the treatments are basic and not creative or cutting-edge. For example, most day spas offer something along the lines of the Ritz-Carlton Spa Sugarcane Body Scrub. It's nice to take a peaceful respite in the hotel day spa, since there is no adults-only pool by which to grab some peace and quiet. If you're looking for a new day spa with a plethora of creative treatments, the Fern Tree is next door at the Half Moon.

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