JAMAICA HIGHLIGHTS

• Arrive in Kingston today. Due to the number of evening flights into Kingston, your Leader plans to do the welcome meeting on the morning of day two, and will leave a message in reception with details on timings and everything else that you'll need for the day. There are no activities planned today, so you are free to arrive in Kingston at any time. • Arrive into Kingston's International Airport (airport code: KIN), approximately a 15 minute drive from our hotel. Should you miss the meeting, your leader will inform you of any essential information as soon as you catch up. If your flight arrives earlier in the day, you can relax and soak up the Caribbean views and try out a local Red Stripe beer.

• Our day begins with a visit to the Bob Marley museum in Kingston, situated in the colonial house where the legend of reggae lived from 1975. For anyone interested in music, the museum is a great look into the mind and inspiration of one of Jamaica's most famous residents. • After our visit, we drive north out of the city on increasingly winding and unmarked roads, heading upwards into the Blue Mountains. Among coffee lovers, this place is known for its fine (and, when exported, expensive) single-origin coffee and we'll be stopping at a plantation to see what makes the coffee so impressive and tasty. • We then continue to climb into the Blue Mountains National Park to our cabin accommodation at Holy well, where the lush, green countryside is a tranquil contrast to our stay near Kingston. The National Park is enormous, spanning four of Jamaica's parishes and covering the eastern part of the island in breathtaking mountain scenery. There are lots of walking trails around our cabins and nature-lovers will be in their element, with endemic trees, flowers, birds and butterflies to discover. The cabins are simple, with one or two rooms in each, sleeping approximately four people per room, and shared facilities in each cabin. They are the perfect location from which to explore the Blue Mountains.

• The morning we will walk on one of the nature trails around our cabins, soaking up the views of the forested mountains. These trails are short; varying from 30 minutes to a couple of hours, and can be steep in parts. This steepness pays off in a variety of ways, from looking up at canopies of Blue Mahoe, Jamaica's national tree, to spotting the Giant Swallowtail, the largest butterfly in the New World and endemic to Jamaica, or hearing the sound of cascading water as a waterfall signals the end of the path. • We combine lunch with a little history lesson as we travel to Charlestown and learn about the story of the Maroons. The Maroon villagers were runaway slaves, who fought against the British from the 17th to 19th centuries. • We'll taste traditional Maroon food and experience the drumming, dancing and singing before leaving the mountains and descending to Port Antonio.

• We'll drive to the Blue Lagoon this morning, one of those places where the name really does it justice. The water seems to fluctuate between bright turquoise, royal blue or a deep sapphire colour depending on where the light hits. • We'll swim in this special place before driving just 15 minutes down the coast to Frenchmen's Cove, a gorgeous white-sand beach, sheltered in a secluded cove and backed by lush greenery. • We will be staying in Frenchmen's Cove for lunch. The area around Port Antonio is known for being the home of Jerk - so it's well worth trying a tasty plate of jerk pork or chicken today, washed down with a bottle of Jamaican Red Stripe. • After spending some hours here, we'll return to our hotel.

• This morning there is a chance to raft on the Rio Grande River. • Leaving the hotel at 9am we take a short transfer to the banks of the Rio Grande. The rafts are made from bamboo and sits two adults, you can sit back and relax as you don't even have to paddle, your raft captain takes care of that whilst you watch the scenery. The rafting takes approximately two hours and we end at a spot aptly named the Rafter's Rest. If you don't fancy rafting the morning is free to relax at the hotel, departing at around 11:45 to transfer to meet the rafters. • This afternoon we'll drive to Montego Bay, stopping for lunch along the way. • We'll arrive in the late afternoon and the rest of the day is free to relax.

• Just outside of Montego Bay is one of the island's many (but dwindling) Rastafari indigenous villages. • During our morning visit we'll get to grips with the Rasta lifestyle through learning about their music, lifestyle and spirituality as well as eating a delicious 'ital' lunch. Ital food is closely linked to Rastafari beliefs about vitality and purity - usually vegetarian or vegan, they use plenty of spices and natural ingredients to make delicious dishes. • After lunch we drive around the northwest coast to Negril, a small town with a wide reputation for some of the most beautiful coastline in Jamaica. As well as miles and miles of sandy beach, at one end of Negril we find clusters of high, craggy cliffs, jutting out over the water like spears. Perched high on one of these crags is Rick's Cafe, which we'll be visiting for sunset, one of the best on the island, as well as to watch the daring cliff divers who usually gather here to perfect their daredevil tricks.

• Today is free to enjoy everything that Negril has to offer. The long stretch of sand at Seven Mile Beach (in reality, it's closer to five miles!) is perfect for a long walk, or just to swim or relax with a rum punch and a lunch of chicken or curried goat or a quick and tasty Jamaican patty. There are many restaurants and cafes down the length of the beach if you want to get away from the midday sun. • Alternatively, if you're interested in getting out on the water, scuba diving, snorkelling or glass-bottomed boat trips are all available.

• Our drive this morning takes us inland towards the rolling hills of Jamaica's interior, and our first stop at the Appleton Estate Rum Distillery. In a beautiful countryside setting, the estate has been producing rum since the 1700s, and our tour today will show us how the sugar cane is magically transformed into Jamaica's beautiful golden rum. • We end the tour at the bar, where we will, of course, be sampling the goods! After some rum, we'll set off towards Treasure Beach, a low-key community that isn't a regular tourist hot spot. • This afternoon is free to explore the village and its beach, or perhaps take a Jamaican cooking class and discover the secret of a true Jerk seasoning, learn to cook steamed fish and bammy (traditional cassava flatbread), or to prepare a lobster dish. Seafood is excellent in Treasure Beach, so it's well worth tasting some of the local lobster or other catch at dinner this evening.

• There is plenty to explore in Treasure Beach, aside from the coastline itself. • Just 1km offshore is the unusual Pelican Bar - a fantastic driftwood construction on a sandbank in the middle of the ocean, the wood all nailed together with a thatched roof plopped on top. Taxi boats are easily found. • Alternatively, go dolphin spotting or take a boat 'safari' up the Black River, a swampy river home to the Jamaican crocodile and over 100 species of native bird. For those who prefer to stay on dry land, the local Treasure Beach Women's Group do arts and crafts workshops, giving an interesting insight into Jamaican crafts.

• Departing Treasure Beach this morning, we take a three and a half hour drive to Kingston airport, where our trip ends. • We will arrive at approximately 10am, and the earliest that your flight can depart is 12.30pm.