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Over the past few months, there has been much local and international discourse about public beach access in Jamaica. Jamaica has 424 beaches scattered across its 795 km of coastline, of which 352 (83%) are fenced off from the public by private hotels and villas. The remaining 72 beaches (17% ) are reportedly accessible to the public. Today, I’ll list them all and provide short notes and pictures about their current state. That way, you can be the judge about whether or not beach access in Jamaica is a problem, since the government is taking the stance that there’s “No Problem, Mon.”
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Kingston & St. Andrew (2)
Bob Marley Beach- Copacabana: This beach is located 4.2km east of Harbour View, characterized by fine to medium-grained black sand with pebbles and stretches for approximately 300m. There are no amenities available.
- Bob Marley Beach: Not listed by NEPA, is free to visit, and has had privatization attempts in recent years, but the public is fighting back. It’s a beautiful beach with black & brown sand and pebbles, but no amenities.
St. Thomas (4)
Lyssons Beach- Lyssons Beach: Free to visit but parking and restroom access comes at a fee (J$200). It is 300m in length and there are showers, restrooms, changing rooms, benches, tables and gazebos. Of note, this beach is currently leased to Tourism Product Development Company and sub-leased to Stone Plus Limited, a privately owned construction company. A section of this beach is also managed by the University of the West Indies.
- Prospect Beach: This fine brown sand and pebbly beach is 160m long, with moderate erosion and no amenities.
- Retreat Beach: This coarse brown sand and pebble beach is open to the public and used in conjunction with the Whispering Bamboo Cove Resort adjacent to the beach. It has no amenities.
- Rocky Point Beach: This brown fine sand beach is a public bathing and fishing beach with informal restrooms and seafood cookshops.
Portland (8)
Long Bay Beach- Hope Bay: a 200m long beach with fine and medium grain brown sand. It has restrooms but no other amenities.
- St. Margaret’s Bay: This beach is located close to the communities of Snow Hill and Burlington, and at the mouth of the Rio Grande River. The beach is dotted with remnants of dock structures from its former use as a transportation hub in the banana export industry. The beach also features an equipment storage shed for fishermen and houses 5 drains. There are no amenities.
- Winifred Beach: Operated by the state-run Urban Development Corporation (UDC), this beach exemplifies community resilience. Numerous attempts have been made to privatize this beach and displace the community residents who operate its restaurants and shops. Having won a court case to keep it open for the public, it remains free to visit but contributions help with upkeep. There are restrooms, changing rooms and some recreational facilities.
- Bryan’s Bay: NEPA describes this black sand fishing beach as polluted with garbage and debris, and states that the water quality is poor.
- Long Bay Beach: a fine-grained, white sand beach which stretches for 400m. It has a seafood restaurant but no other amenities.
- Drapers Beach is a 90-m long sloping beach with fine to medium grained light brown sand intermixed with pebbles, and limited amenities.
- Spring Gardens Beach: Located near to the mouth of the Spanish River, this beach consists of cobble stones which makes it difficult to walk on. Its only amenities are benches and a garbage can.
- Manchioneal Beach: Historically only used for fishing with boats, scales, a dilapidated dock and other fishing paraphernalia.
Frenchman’s Cove (PRIVATELY OWNED & NOT FREE TO VISIT!)Frenchman’s Cove, Boston Bay and San San beaches were counted by NEPA but please note that these beaches charge entrance fees– J$2,750, $500 and $600 respectively. As such, I will not include them in the count of accessible beaches.
St. Mary (4)
Pagee Beach- Pagee/ Frontier: This 1-km long beach has no amenities but is utilized for both fishing and recreation.
- Annotto Bay Beach: This 125m beach lies next to the road, and is used for recreation. It has changing rooms, showers, gazebos and bathroom facilities, which are all in a state of disrepair.
- Rio Nuevo: This fishing beach is comprised of fine grey sand mixed with cobblestones, and is mildly eroded. It has no amenities.
- Robin’s Bay: This beach has medium-grained brown sand, is moderately eroded, and has tables, chairs, a restroom and shower on-site.
James Bond Beach, while listed by NEPA, was omitted as it is privately owned and has been closed to the public for years.
St. Ann (6)
Fantasy Beach- Priory/Fantasy Beach: This public beach has beautiful brown sand but no amenities and is heavily polluted.
- Bengal Beach: Located in Discovery Bay close to the Trelawny border, this 500m long beach has fine sand and cobblestones. There are no amenities, and waves are known to get rough so extreme caution is advised for swimmers.
- Cardiff Hall/ Flavours Beach: This beach is free to visit but the sand is now severely eroded– on my last visit 4 years ago, there was no sand to sit or walk on. Changing & restrooms come at a small cost, which is waived if you dine at the restaurant located on the beach.
- Salem/ Sharkies: This beach is owned by the Llandovery Fruit Company, but leased to the Beach Control Authority. It has a popular seafood restaurant, changing rooms, restrooms, and a vending pavilion allowing customers to purchase fish.
- Roxborough Beach: this 110m beach has fine and coarse grain brown sand and a restaurant on-site with restrooms, gazebos and a spa.
- Ocho Rios Bay Beach, also called Turtle Beach, is a public recreational beach located between the Moon Palace Jamaica Hotel and the Ocho Rios Marina. It offers amenities like restrooms and changing rooms, and water sports access. As such, a nominal fee is charged. This beach is owned and operated by the UDC.
Little Dunn’s River: A free waterfall & beach that we miss dearly! Public access is now restricted.NOTE: Since Little Dunn’s River is fenced off and mostly closed to the public, it was left off the list (it’s also not listed by NEPA). I opted to ignore a 20m stretch of beach listed as Swallow Hole in Runaway Bay and I didn’t list the Ocho Rios Fishing Village which is primarily used for docking, boat repair and storage. I also omitted the Puerto Seco Beach since this is privately owned, and entry costs J$2,000. However, these three beaches are listed by NEPA.
Trelawny (6)
- Rio Bueno Beach: This public bathing and fishing beach consists of medium grain brown sand. There are a few benches but no other amenities.
- Half Moon Beach: This crescent-shaped beach has calm waters, but no amenities and is largely used by fishermen. NEPA also lists this beach as being in “overall poor environmental health.”
- Flamingo Beach: This 40m bathing beach has suffered severe erosion damage with the passing of hurricanes. As such, very little sand remains and there are no amenities.
- Jacob Taylor/ Silver Sands: Located in the community of Duncans, this beach is used for both bathing and fishing and is comprised of fine white sand. There’s a parking lot and restaurant in way of amenities.
- Burwood Beach: This beach charges a nominal fee to use its parking lot, restrooms and changing rooms, but is otherwise free for locals. It also has tables and gazebos for patrons. It is comprised of fine white sand and has generally calm waves.
- Braco Beach: This beach has suffered from erosion and contains fishing gear sheds constructed by the Fisheries Improvement Programme, hence it is primarily used as a fishing beach.
I deliberately omitted the Bamboo Beach Club as it is privately owned and charges an admission fee of J$1,000 per adult. However, it is listed by NEPA as a public beach.
St. James (7)
Dead End Beach- Dead End Beach: Located at the end of Montego Bay’s Hip Strip, this narrow beach has calm waves and allows you to get close to planes landing at the airport. However, there are no amenities.
- Sunset Beach: Further up the street (walking distance away) lies Sunset Beach. It also has no amenities.
- Coral Gardens: This beach is located in a bay and is comprised of fine grain white sand, cobble stones, rock and old reef formations. There are no amenities.
- Success: Located 12 minutes away from the Greenwood Great House, this narrow 160m long beach consists of light brown, medium grain sand. There are a few derelict structures on the beach, but no amenities.
- Greenwood: Located next to the TotalEnergies gas station in Greenwood, this 50-m beach is comprised of cobblestones and has no amenities. The great house is 10 minutes away.
- Barrett Hall/ Lilliput: While the area within the boundaries of this beach is approximately an acre, the actual usable area is significantly reduced due to the presence of shacks on the beach (a squatter settlement for fisherfolk).
- Harmony Beach Park (formerly Dump Up Beach) is an extensive free recreational beach park managed by the UDC. Parking is available for up to 132 vehicles at a cost, and there are restaurants, a picnic area, children’s area, multipurpose court, 600m jogging trail, bathrooms, showers and changing rooms.
While listed by NEPA, I opted to exclude the Walter Fletcher Beach as it is currently closed to the public, as well as the Doctor’s Cave Beach which is privately owned and charges J$1,100 for entry.
Hanover (6)
- Orchard/ Old Steamer: Consisting of fine white sand, this beach has signs of erosion and has no amenities. Sea conditions are generally calm.
- Tryall Beach: This 200m seaside park is located close to the Tryall Golf Club and its waterwheel. However, its light brown medium grain sand has undergone severe erosion, and there are no amenities.
- Bull’s Bay Beach is comprised of fine white sand making it pleasant for swimming and strolling, but offers no amenities.
- Lances Bay is a 300m long public fishing and recreational beach with restrooms available.
- Watson Taylor Park: Managed by the Hanover Municipal Corporation, this 73m long beach is comprised of fine white sand and located in a bay. There are benches but no other amenities available.
- Bloody Bay Beach is located in Negril, Hanover and is comprised of fine white sand. Designated parking, restrooms, changing rooms and other facilities are available.
Westmoreland (3)
The state of Bluefields Beach in 2019- Whitehouse: This is a fishing beach used for cleaning and selling fish, gear and boat storage, and boat repair.
- Negril’s Seven Mile Beach is home to “two” public beaches, namely the Norman Manley Beach Park and Long Bay Beach Park.
- Norman Manley Beach Park is located seaward of the Negril Craft Market and Fishing Village, comprised of powdery white sand, and stretches a length of 280 metres. The beach’s changing rooms and restrooms are in a state of disrepair.
- Long Bay Beach Park is located south of the Azul Beach Resort Negril, and is equipped with restrooms, showers and changing room facilities as well as several benches and tables. It is managed by the UDC.
- Bluefields Beach: a white sand beach affected by moderate to severe erosion. Restrooms, showers and changing rooms are available at a small cost. Bluefields is also managed by the UDC.
St. Elizabeth (4)
Frenchman’s Bay, Treasure Beach- Treasure Beach: Calabash Bay, Frenchman Bay, Fort Charles, Great Bay, Billy’s Bay. These beaches are in good condition, within walking distance of each other.
- Galleon Beach in Brompton. Poor condition due to severe erosion (no sand), and the waterfront is lined by fishing boats.
- Crane Road/ Fullerswood: swampy, a known habitat for crocodiles due to the neighbouring Black River Morass. Unsafe for recreational swimming.
- Parottee: swampy, a known habitat for crocodiles. Also lined by fishing boats, unsafe and unsuitable for swimming. However, you can catch a boat to Pelican Bar here, a floating bar located on a sandbank in the middle of the Caribbean Sea.
Font Hill Beach, while listed by NEPA, was omitted from the list because it has been closed to the public for about twenty years.
Manchester (2)
Gut River Beach- Alligator Pond: Home to Alligator Pond Beach (Sea Riv) and Wards Bay. This is a fine brown and black sand beach with rough waves and no recreational facilities, but there are several seafood restaurants, most notably the Little Ochie and Oswald Seafood Restaurants.
- Guts River/ Hudson Bay Beach: The 19km road to get here from Alligator Pond is in deplorable condition, overgrown and in the most remote corner of Jamaica I have ever visited. The waves at this beach are very rough and unsuitable for swimming.
Clarendon (2)
- Farquhar Beach: This fishing and bathing beach has beautiful dark sand but rough waves and no amenities.
- Jackson Bay Beach: Located south of Portland Cottage and Rocky Point, this beach stretches for 350m and consists of pleasant light brown medium grain sand. It is extremely isolated with no amenities or surrounding developments. Also, the roadway goes through areas of swamp and marsh lands with varied surface conditions so exercise caution.
St. Catherine (2)
- Hellshire Bay Beach has suffered severe erosion, and very little sand exists there today. There are no public amenities but Hellshire is still worth visiting for some of Jamaica’s best seafood.
- Marine Terminal Beach is located in Old Harbour Bay and consists of moderately eroded medium grain brown sand. There are benches, restrooms and informal food shacks available.
Port Henderson Beach was omitted as it is listed by NEPA as being “not in operation,” while Fort Clarence was omitted as it is privately owned and has an admission fee of J$1,000.
Elle’s Analysis of Jamaica’s Public Beaches
My final count of public beaches accessible by Jamaicans is 56, 16 beaches fewer than what was listed by the government in their recent social media campaign and also 24 beaches fewer than what is currently listed on NEPA’s website. That’s because I omitted:
- Privately owned beaches which charge entrance fees
- Beaches which have been closed to the public for years and
- Those which are basically the same beach (i.e. duplicate, triplicate and one instance, a quintuplicate entry).
However, of these fifty-six beaches, you may notice a common theme:
- Most have no amenities
- Many have undergone serious erosion
- Several are primarily fishing beaches and,
- A few are UNSAFE.
I strongly believe that access to clean restrooms is the bare minimum to request from our taxes. Also, who wants to frolic on a beach with no sand, or among fishing boats, nets, and fish guts? And worse, who wants to endanger their life while swimming at a beach with rough waves, surrounding swamp and crocodiles? If I correct the final count of beaches based on which ones are safe, accessible and suitable for recreational use, that brings us to only TWELVE beaches available for Jamaicans compared to the 352 beaches fenced off behind private hotels, homes and villas. Then, when you take into account the actual length of these 12 acceptable public beaches compared to the private ones, you’ll realize that the headlines are not exaggerating when they say Jamaicans only have access to 1% of our coastline. It’s true.
The Jamaica Beach Birthright Environmental Movement (JaBBEM) is a grassroots community organization that is leading the fight to repeal the 1956 beach policy which facilitated the privatization of Jamaica’s coastline, and they need our help. There’s a government campaign to refute their claims, but it’s important for us as Jamaicans and friends of Jamaica to not fall for the propaganda. The best of Jamaica’s coastline is hidden from Jamaicans behind paywalls and fences. Why did we allow this to happen? How much longer will we allow this to continue? Jamaicans are quickly becoming second class citizens in our own land, but we have a choice. Our voices and actions matter.
Lastly, to the few Jamaicans who believe that things are fine the way they are because “we’re nasty, destructive people or otherwise unable to care for free beaches”, to them I say, you are the very reason slavery was allowed to exist in Jamaica for 300 years. There will always be people on the wrong side of history.
Wrap Up
Should Jamaican beaches be the birthright of the Jamaican people or is it okay that we’re only able to freely access 1% of our coastline (13% if you include the fishing beaches, swamps and those without sand and restrooms)? Sound off in the comments section below, and join the fight with JaBBEM. If you enjoyed this post, you may also like:
- Why I Won’t Swim With Dolphins in Jamaica
- When & Why to Avoid These 3 Jamaican Seafood
- What Surprises Me As A Jamaican Passport Holder
- Visa Free Countries for Jamaicans (Full List)
- Waterfalls in Jamaica (Full List)
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