Jamaica Palace Hotel - Port Antonio, Jamaica 

The hotel is very beautiful and large, however it did feel like we were the only people there. I would stay here again but only for a few days due to it being far from town centre (not within walking distance) and the lack of atmosphere. The place was covered in art which varied from terrible, to very good, but all in all there was too much art on the walls which made the place look cluttered. There were also a lot of birds in cages on the property. They were very beautiful but I couldn't help feeling sorry for them. The breakfast was very nice and so was the lunch, however we never ate dinner there as it was very expensive. Instead we caught a taxi to port antonio town centre and bought dinner there. The view is lovely and so is the building itself and it would be ideal for a wedding or a romantic honeymoon or getaway if you appreciate quite surrounding and like being alone. The hotel is a short taxi ride away from the Blue Lagoon and San San beach. Boston Bay, famous for its jerk chicken is also not too far away neither is Port Antonio Town Centre, but it is too long to walk to any of these places. The room was very nice and clean, however I did see a coakroach in the bathroom and called the maid to remove it. But as someone who has lived in Jamaica before, I recognise that coakroaches can just fly in and they are not necessarily accurate indicators of the cleanliness of a place. I would stay here again

I'm going to try to be generous here, but I think I speak for a large contingent of the 52 people who stayed here for 4 days that this was lackluster in so many many ways. We cannot blame the poor roads and the lack of infrastructure (making our journey from Kingston Airport in a minibus a full five hours at night) but regrettably, upon arrival, our weary bones were met with rock-hard beds, air conditioning that vascillated between freezing and non-functioning, half the rooms had the smallest televisions ever invented and the pillows were lumpy and stale (that fusty smell). Breakfast is the meal to eat here, particularly if you like local food. Then go elsewhere. Not sure where, but do not waste your money here. The service is nice enough, but just to give you an example, we were served for our final farewell dinner the same pieces of (unheated) chicken from the lunch buffet - cold and with a wilted lettuce garnish. More than a dozen people pushed the fish away which was beyond "fishy" and off. Those, like me, who braved a mouthful spat it out somewhat indelicately. This is not a place you come to for the food nor the room. What this eclectic place has is potential ... it is a vast property that has oodles of bizarre (and much of it tacky, such as the painted sofa - literally, someone threw pea green paint on a chaise and so it's all cracking now) art and a checkerboard theme throughout the property. It has a nice pool, it has beautiful open spaces. Great for a wedding, but hire in someone who can cook good food because it's not here. There is a beach not too far away, but things seem to just be somewhat tired ... around this entire area. The staff were mixed. Personalities had been labotomised from the front desk, but bar staff were charming. The road trip from hell to Montego Bay was what we ended up with after four days. I would not go back, but would like to hear that someone had given it a good refurbishment.