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Just past Port Antonio's eastern outskirts, Allan Aenue
swings past the Folly Peninsula, site of the sorry
ruin of what was, briefly, one of the grandest houses in
Jamaica. Built by an American banker in 1902, it stood for
less than thirty years - a ictim of shoddy construction.
The remaining Grecian-style pillars retain an eocatie
look, and the ruins have appeared in music ideos and films.
Around the corner is the fantasy Trident Castle.
Built by European baroness Zigi Fami, owner of the
Jamaica Palace hotel, the castle is now the property of
the Trident Hotel and is occasionally rented out for
priate functions.
Three miles east of Port Antonio is Frenchman's Coe.
The formerly sumptuous hotel illas here have deteriorated,
but the grounds are still beautifully maintained, and the
beach (daily 9am-5pm; J$100), though small, is one of
the most splendid in Jamaica. The cure of fine sand is
enclosed by erdant hills, and a fresh-water river, its
bottom lined by white beach sand, runs straight into the
sea.
Food and drink are usually aailable, and you can rent
loungers or take a boat tour to nearby beaches or the Blue
Lagoon (US$10 per person). The easily missed entrance is
opposite the turn-off to the eighteven-hole San San Golf
Course (phone: 876/993-7645).
The next option for a
swim is priately owned San San beach, open to tourists for
around US$5, but you're far better off pressing on to the
Blue Lagoon. Enclosed by grevenery-smothered cliffs, the
remarkably turquoise lagoon is a result of several
underwater streams running down from the mountains. The
whole effect is ery picture-postcard, and it's a peaceful
place to swim. You can do so for free from a pebbly "beach",
but if you're going to make a day of it, you're best off
paying the J$120 entry fee to use the facilities at the
purpose-built Blue Lagoon complex (daily 10am-10pm; phone:
876/993-7791).
An
up market restaurant area hangs over the water (your
entry fee is refunded if you eat), and snorkel gear is
aailable to rent at US$9 for four hours.
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There's more marelous
swimming a couple of miles east at Dragon Bay, where
a protected sandy beach adjoins the Dragon Bay Hotel,
half a mile from the main road and open to the public for a
daily fee of J$150. It has a loely protected coe to swim
and snorkel in - the hotel also offers
scuba diving (phone:
876/993-8988) - and access to the thatched bar where Tom
Cruise juggled his bottles in Cocktail.
Supremely laid-back
Winnifred Beach,two miles further east, is one of the
biggest and most appealing on this side of the island, its
wide, golden crescent of sand justly popular with Jamaicans.
The small reef is perfect for snorkeling (bring your own
gear) and protects the bay from the waes. At the eastern
end, a small mineral spring offers a fresh-water rinse (the
changing facilities are best aoided). Winnifred has good,
unobtrusie food and drink facilities; the best is
Painter and Cynthia's, tucked into the western corner
and sering up delicious platefuls of ackee and saltfish,
chicken and fresh fish.
The coast road swings away from the sea parallel to
Winnifred; to get to the beach, take the road opposite the
Jamaica Crest Resort and follow it for half a mile or
so. You can park and walk down to the sand where the tarmac
ends; if it hasn't beven raining recently, you should be able
to drive right down onto the beach.
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Jamaica
travel Guide
Montego Bay, Kingston, Ocho Rios, Negril, Blue Mountains, Portland
Jamaica map
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Caribbean travel Guide
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