Kingston

Introducing Kingston

Its reputation preceding it like a police siren, Kingston deters most visitors. The crime, traffic, crowds and shantytowns of the capital are simply too volatile to mix into the average vacationer’s dream Jamaican cocktail. Few have the time (or inclination) to explore the city long enough to disprove the image.

To be sure, Kingston can be squalid, intimidating and, in places, extremely dangerous, but with some street smarts and an open mind, any visitor will be rewarded with a firm acquaintance of a city as unbridled and unique to the island as it is to the Caribbean and indeed the world. Ground zero for the reggae for which the island made its mark, the capital is about as far from the brochures for pampered resort life as it gets.

Kingston divides neatly into downtown and uptown, and outsiders will find it easy to plan their days by taking their pick of each. Having taken the hit from the 1907 earthquake, downtown is in a state of decay that almost screams ‘perpetual.’ Yet it still manages to boast a scenic waterfront, Jamaica’s greatest art museum and most of Kingston’s historic buildings, complemented by a frenetic street-life – most notably on King St or the Parade around William Grant Park, where street preachers and mixtape hawkers vie for the attentions of a bustling humanity.

Not 6km (yet a world) away, uptown holds the city’s hotels, restaurants and nightlife, largely confined to the pocket of New Kingston. In addition to two of the city’s most essential sights, the Bob Marley Museum and Devon House, the capital’s diplomatic and commercial status assures uptown a definite cosmopolitan suaveness – not to mention security.

Sadly, security does require mention – the threat of crime in Kingston can never be dismissed. Pockets of the west Kingston shantytowns are as dangerous as any place on the planet, and their volatility can spill over onto the downtown streets after dark. Be sure to follow safety directives, ask your hotel for guidance and keep your wits about you. If you do, a week spent in Kingston repays the curious mind the way few legs of a Jamaican trip can.

Last updated: Oct 20, 2009