Parts of Jamaica are hopelessly touristy, colonized by all-inclusives marketed towards travelers looking for little more than rum punch, reggae music and white sand. But Treasure Beach – despite the catchy name – is no tourist trap. A rural community that still survives mainly on fishing and farming, Treasure Beach is hours from the nearest international airport and worlds away from the hype and crowds of Montego Bay or Negril. I got a chance to explore the community and meet a few of its residents while working on an article for The New York Times travel section.
Rum and Reggae? Not Here
By Remy Scalza for The New York Times
OUTSIDE Treasure Beach, on Jamaica’s rural southern coast, a half-dozen oxen are blocking the one potholed road into town. When the taxi driver honks, they turn, stare and stand their ground.
But that’s hardly a problem. A twisting, two-hour drive through rain forest from the international airport in Montego Bay, Treasure Beach has long drawn travelers who come as much for its inaccessibility as for the black-streaked sand and azure water. The contrast from the rum-and-Rasta Jamaica of package tours is pronounced: no sprawling all-inclusives, no Margaritavilles; just a string of waterfront guesthouses set among local homes and a patchwork of rolling farmland.
Backwater status may be fleeting.
Click here to read the full article on The New York Times website.
