With about
2 hours delay my plane no. 1 leaves from Las Americas International Airport in Santo Domingo (Dominican Republic) at 12.00.
JY0624 of the Inter Caribbean Company in the direction of Providenciales
International Airport (Turks and Caicos), (price of a one-way ticket from Santo
Domingo to Kingston, with a stop in Port Au Prince (Haiti) and stopover in
Providenciales (Turks and Caicos): USD 264.32).
On the
small 16-seat plane, from Santo
Domingo to Port Au Prince there were only 4 people,
plus pilot and co-pilot and no hostess. From Port Au Prince (Haiti) to
Providenciales (Turks and Caicos), it was full.
Punctual
arrival at 2.20 pm at Providenciales
International Airport
(Turks and Caicos). There are 6 hours of time zone, compared to Italy.
A visa is
not required to enter the Turks and Caicos Islands (British Overseas
Territory) for tourism
reasons. The customs declaration form must be completed. In this airport there
is no transit area and therefore as soon as you arrive at the border area, the
passport control officer will call the attendant who will accompany you to the
security control area passing through the outside of the small airport but
without receiving the entry stamp in the passport.
Punctually
it leaves from Providenciales
International Airport
(Turks and Caicos). at 4.15 pm my plane no. JY0250 of the Inter Caribbean Company
in the direction of the Normal Manley International Airport of Kingston
(Jamaica), (one-way ticket price from Santo Domingo to Kingston, with a stop in
Port Au Prince (Haiti) and stopover in Providenciales (Turks and Caicos): USD
264.32).
I therefore
arrive at 16.55 at Normal Manley International
Airport in Kingston
(Jamaica),
located about 27 km
south-east of Downtown. There are 6 hours of time zone, compared to Italy.
A visa is
not required to enter Jamaica
for tourism purposes and for a period of up to 90 days. In theory, they might
ask you for your return ticket just as I did. The Customs Declaration Form must
be completed before going to the Passport Control Post.
Currency
exchange at the aforementioned airport is highly disadvantageous. The best
solution is to change money at one of the many banks located in New Town on
Knutsford Bulevard.
From Normal
Manley International Airport in Kingston (Jamaica), located about 27 km south-east of Downtown,
the cheapest way to get to the center of Kingston is to take bus no. 98 which
runs every half hour from Parade, the central square of Downtown to Port Royal,
passing through the aforementioned airport. The cost of the ticket is 100 J $.
You pay the driver as you get on. The journey takes about half an hour.
In Parade,
the central square
of Downtown, several
buses, collective taxis, minibuses for different parts of the city leave both
north and south, but the most numerous buses are those that go to the Tree Bus
Terminal located in Uptown, such as indicated on the front of the same. The
cost of the ticket is 100 J $. You pay the driver as you get on. From there you
can then take a minibus or collective taxi to your final destination.
For those
who come to Parade like me in the evening, the confusion of the same, not
knowing the place makes everything more difficult. In the end, I opted to take
a shared taxi which for J $ 500 took me to The Durham Hotel, located at 4
Durham Avenue in Kingston's Up Town, about 1.5 km northeast of the Bob
Marley Museum. 10 USD is charged for a bed in a tent. Very nice, with kitchen,
garden, bar. Too bad the location is a bit out of the way, even if in a quiet
area.
If you want
to go to Dowtown from there, you need to walk 300m. to Hope Road and take one of the many
minibuses (J $ 100) bound for the Tree Bus Terminal, where numerous Downtown
buses depart for Parade. The bus. n. 83 for example connects the Tree Bus
Terminal, with the Parade in Downtown, passing through Emancipation Park,
in New Kingston.
Kingston, the capital of Jamaica
is a dangerous city and it is good to know that the safe areas at least during
the day are the Parade and New Kingston.
To enter
the Bob Marley museum, located on Hope
Road, open from 9.00 onwards, you need to pay 25
USD or the equivalent in Jamaican dollars. The price includes the guided tour.
If you
intend to visit the beautiful and small Port Royal,
you need to take the bus from North Parade to Downtown of Kingston. n. 98. The
cost of the ticket is 100 J $. You pay the driver as you get on. The journey
takes approximately 45 minutes. This bus also stops at Kingston Manley
International Airport.
The very
quiet Port Royal can be easily explored on
foot. The most important attraction to visit is Fort Charles.
Entrance fee: J $ 250.
To reach
Port Antonio, a quiet town, located on the north - east coast of Jamaica, you
need to take a Minibus, which station just outside (to the north) of the Tree
Bus Terminal. It starts when it is super full. The cost of the ticket is 450 J
$. The clerk collects the money after you leave. The trip takes about 2 hours.
The minibus in question makes stops on request without any problems. It passes
x Annotto Bay, Buff Bay, Orange Bay, Hope
Bay and Snow Hill.
Port
Antonio is one of the safest cities in Jamaica and therefore you can walk
downtown without problems both day and night.
In Port
Antonio, I slept at the Porty Hostel, located
at 33A East Palm Avenue,
in a quiet residential area abundant 1km southeast of the transportation
center. It is a Guesthouse house well managed by the Italian Stefano. The price
of a bed in a dormitory is 19 USD, per night or the equivalent in Jamaican
dollars. Also included is free internet and use of the shared kitchen. For a
fee breakfast.
To reach
the famous Blue Lagoon, located just 7km east of Port Antonio, you need to take
one of the many Route Taxis that travel the coast between Port Antonio and Long Bay
every day. They depart from the transportation center and go to Allan Ave. The cost
of the service is J $ 100. You pay the driver before getting off. The journey
takes less than a quarter of an hour.
The Blue
Lagoon is state-owned and therefore in theory it should be free to access, even
if you are often approached by guys asking you for up to 10 USD, as happened to
me. With strong bargaining, you can get by by paying only J $ 200.
To reach
the famous Winnifred Beach, located just 13km east of Port Antonio, you
need to take one of the many Route Taxis that travel the coast between Port
Antonio and Long Bay every day. They depart from the
transportation center and go to Allan
Ave. The cost of the service is J $ 150. You pay
the driver before getting off. The journey takes less than 20 minutes. Get off
at the small village of Fairy Hill and take the dirt road on the left for about
a quarter of an hour, which first descends adjacent to elegant villas and then
through the woods to the beautiful Winnifred Beach. There are no signs
indicating the beach in question and therefore always keep to the main road
ignoring the deviations that you encounter.
To reach
the very famous and beautiful Reach Falls, located south-east of Port Antonio, it is
necessary to take one of the numerous minibuses heading to St Thomas that every day travel along the
coast between Port Antonio and Manchioneal. They depart, when full, from the
transportation center and go to Allan
Ave. The cost of the service is J $ 230. You pay
the driver before getting off. The journey takes about less than 45 minutes.
Get off at the small village
of Manchioneal and walk
uphill on an asphalted road for 3
km to the aforementioned waterfalls. It is also possible
to take a kind of taxi asking some of the characters waiting for tourists at
the crossroads. They will ask you for J $ 400 but by bargaining hard you can
pay J $ 250.
The entrance
fee to the Reach Falls is J $ 1,140 or USD 10 and it is
also possible to rent tight-fitting shoes to avoid slipping on the falls. The
guide is also included in the above price. To visit the falls it is necessary
to be in costume or in a wetsuit and make a lot of effort as you have to go up
the various pools that form the falls. To forget the idea of visiting the
falls without getting your feet wet. Impossible.
In Port
Antonio in Jamaica, from the Transportation Center located in the center, on
the seafront, near the Texaco petrol station, many minibuses leave every day,
when full, for Ocho Rios. The journey takes about an hour and a half. You pay
500 JMD before getting off the bus. It makes stops on request and ends the ride
at the Ocho Rios Transportation
Center, located on Evelyn Road.
From the Ocho Rios
Transportation Center,
located on Evelyn Road,
to reach Main Street,
which is the Mall Street
and the liveliest street in the whole City, you need to walk for a few minutes,
paying attention to when you pass the area. Ocho Rios Market, especially after
dark.
In Ocho
Rios I slept at the Reggae Hostel, located in Pier View Complex, 19 Main Street, at
a cost of 25 USD, for a bed in a mixed dormitory. Very nice and clean. A
computer with internet is available for free to customers as well as the use of
the kitchen.
After dark,
make sure you go out on your own even in downtown Ocho Rios.
From the Ocho Rios Transportation Center,
located on Evelyn Road,
several minibuses leave for Montego Bay every
day when full. To reach Falmouth
you need to take one of these. The journey takes about an hour. You pay JMD 350
before getting off the bus.
Minibas
pass from downtown Falmouth to the Montego Bay Transportation Center,
located on Barnet Street,
at the southern end of St. James
Street. The journey takes approximately 45
minutes. You pay JMD 300 before getting off the bus.
From the
Montego Bay Transportation Center, located on Barnet Street, at the southern
end of St. James Street, numerous minibuses leave for Lucea every day when
full. The journey lasts a scant hour. You pay JMD 230 before getting off the
bus.
From the Lucea Transport
Center, located near the
market and the sea at 300
meters. approximately from Sir Alexander Bustamante
Square Barnet, several Route Taxu leave for Negril every day when full. The
journey lasts a scant hour. You pay 300 JMD before going down. There are no
Minubus and Buses between Montego Bay, Lucea
and Negril.
In Negril,
you can get off at Long, Bay, or Negril
Square. To get around Negril you can take the
numerous route taxis at the price of JMD;
Montego
Bay, the 2nd largest city in Jamaica
is not too safe and it is good to know that the safe areas at least during the
day are Sam Sharpe Square
in Downtown and Gloucester Ave
in the north.
From the
Montego Bay Transportation Center, located on Barnet Street, at the southern
end of St. James Street, I took a 500 JMD shared taxi to the Chill Mobay Guest
House, located on Lot 5a Oscar Terrace, right on the headland adjacent to the
international airport.
In Montego
Bay I slept at the Chill Mobay Guest House, located in Lot 5a Oscar Terrace,
right on the promontory adjacent to the international airport, at a cost of 25
USD, for a bed in a male dormitory. Very nice, clean and well managed by a
Finnish Girl. From there, Donald
Sangster International
Airport (located 4 km north of Downtown) can be
reached in 10 minutes on foot, first along a slippery downhill path and then
the main road.
My complete travel report
with map, photographs and videos is available at this link:
http://vivendosalendo.blogspot.com/2017/07/viaggio-ad-haiti-repubblica-dominicana.html
