PENNEY'S ADVENTURE JAMAICA
ESCORTED ALL-INCLUSIVE ALL ISLAND SMALL GROUP & INDIVIDUAL ADVENTURE TRAVEL PACKAGE
THE ADVENTURE BEGINS HERE
Swimmin at Pirates Cove Negril
Swimmin at Pirates Cove Negril
BREIF HISTORY OF MONTEGO BAY
Montego Bay is the capital of the parish of St James and the second largest city in Jamaica by area and the fourth by population after Kinston, Spanish Town and Portmore. Montego Bay is a tourist destination featuring shopping, a cruise line terminal ( with new developments in the nearby parish of Trelawny Montego Bay is within close proximity to a second cruise line terminal that host some of the worlds lasgest cruise ships ) and several beaches. The city is served by the Donald Sangster International Airport located on the edge of the city. The city is enclosed in a watershed, drained by several rivers such as the Montego River and the Barnett River.
When the Spanish occupied Jamaica Montego Bay was an export point for lard, which was obtained from wild hogs in the forest. In many of the Jamaica's early maps, Montego Bay was listed as "Bahia de Manteca" (Lard Bay). The parish was given the name "St. James" in honour of King James II by Sir Thomas Modyford, the island's first English Governor. At the beginning of the English rule, the parish was one of the poorest; it had no towns, few inhabitants and little commerce, except for the exported lard. However, after the treaty with the Maroons in 1739, St. James became one of the most important sugar-producing parishes. Annually, more than 150 ships arrived in Montego Bay bringing slaves and supplies, and taking sugar. Commerce developed as wealthy merchants and planters erected many elaborate town houses. In 1773, Montego Bay had the only newspaper outside of Kingston - The Cornwall Chronicle.
Fire distroyed Montego Bay in 1795 and again in 1811 after being rebuilt, it was again destroyed in 1831 by a rebellion led by Sam Sharp. This rebellion was as a result of slave owners' reluctance to free the slaves, even after England proposed an end to slavery. Sam Sharpe at first tried to advocate passive resistance, but a group of slaves became violent and began setting fire to buildings and the surrounding plantation and cane fields. As a result of being the main planner of the rebellion, Sam Sharpe was hanged in the Montego Bay market place, which is today known as Sam Sharpe Square.
After emancipation in 1834, the fortunes of the town and parish declined until the banna trade banana trade was promoted by J. E. Kerr and Co. This prompted the start of tourism in Jamaica. A Freeport was constructed in the 1960s, and later, a cruise ship terminal was opened. Montego Bay was accorded city status on 1 May 1980. The Sanster International Airport, one of the two on the island, is located in Montego Bay.
When Chistopher Columbus for the first time visited the island in 1494, he named the bay Golfo de Buen Tiempo ("Fair Weather Gulf"). The name "Montego Bay" is believed to have originated as a corruption of the Spanish word manteca, allegedly because during the Spanish period it was the port where lard, leather, and beef were exported. Jamaica was a calony of Spain from 1511 until 1655, when Oliver Cromwell's Caribbean expedition, the Western Design, drove the Spanish from the island.
DRIVE TIME FROM MONTEGO BAY - 35 - 40 MINUTES
TOUR DURATION - 1 1/2 hour
WHAT TO BRING - Swim wear and towel
THIS TRIP IS ALL ABOUT WATER A 10 MINUTE BOAT RIDE.
The lagoon is the home of a rare phosphorescent microbe – a dinoflagellate – that lives where the warm fresh waters of the Martha Brae River meet the salt waters of the Caribbean. The constant movement and flowing of the river causes the microbes to move and glow with a neon-green color. The phosphorescence is so marked that the fish swimming in the lagoon have been likened to moving stars. The activity stirred up by the boats and swimmers only enhances the effect. This unique microbial phenomenon can be found in just four places in the world, and Jamaica’s Luminous Lagoon is considered the best place on the planet to experience it.
During the cruise, the boat stops to allow travelers to swim in the shallower portions of the lagoon, with the waters glowing around them as they enjoy the tropical ambience surrounded by mangroves. This is a real can’t-miss adventure for Jamaica visitors!
