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Port Antonio

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Jamaica, Port Antonio, boats in the blue lagoon

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Overview

We're hesitant to describe anywhere as the 'real' Jamaica, but Port Antonio, with its charming mess of markets, higglers (street vendors) and Georgian architecture in various states of disrepair, its greenery and nearby beaches, does a pretty good approximation. There are definitely no Margaritavilles here; just a capillary-like tangle of backstreets, browsing goats and friendly locals. Wandering past the old houses lining the Titchfield Peninsula, it’s very easy to think you’ve roamed into some quaint colonial ghost town.

Attractions

Must-see attractions

  • Folly

    Folly

    Port Antonio

    This rather appropriately named two-story, 60-room mansion on the peninsula east of East Harbour was built entirely of concrete in pseudo-Grecian style in…

  • Titchfield Peninsula

    Titchfield Peninsula

    Port Antonio

    Along this hilly peninsula – known locally as ‘the Hill’ – are several dozen Victorian-style gingerbread houses, most notably DeMontevin Lodge, an ornate…

  • Errol Flynn Marina

    Errol Flynn Marina

    Port Antonio

    Port Antonio has one of the finest natural harbors in Jamaica, which has been converted into a posh yachting dock where sailboats moor and the well-to-do…

  • Folly Point Lighthouse

    Folly Point Lighthouse

    Port Antonio

    Near the Folly mansion stands the orange candy-striped Folly Point Lighthouse, built in 1888, which overlooks Monkey Island. Said island adds even more…

  • Navy Island

    Navy Island

    Port Antonio

    In colonial days, the Royal Navy used this now-lush island to careen ships for repair. In the mid-20th century, Errol Flynn bought the island and built a…

  • DeMontevin Lodge

    DeMontevin Lodge

    Port Antonio

    This 1881 hotel, perched high on the Titchfield Peninsula, is one of Port Antonio's most iconic buildings despite (or possibly because of) it's slightly…

  • Christ Church

    Christ Church

    Port Antonio

    A redbrick Anglican building constructed in neo-Romanesque style around 1840 (much of the structure dates from 1903). Look for the brass lectern donated…

  • Bikini Beach

    Bikini Beach

    Port Antonio

    A small private city beach with a pretty lick of sand that's almost entirely wave-free, near the Errol Flynn Marina. There's a small grill shack offering…

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