The Fashionlush Guide to Jamaica + TRAVEL VLOG!

HOLY SHIT- WHERE DO I even start this post? It’s been a few weeks since Jamaica, & I have been working on this TRAVEL VLOG ever since. First off, editing video is serious business. Secondly, reliving my trip through this video has been a real pleasure & I am so so so excited to share with you guys.

Jamaica is magic. Sandals is magic. The trip was pure magic. We were there for 6 days & honestly- I could have moved there forever. The people are wonderful, the food is delicious, & the whole “good vibes mon” is not just something you seen on tv. It really is the most good vibes place I have ever been.

You gotta see for yourself by watching the video & I really hope you guys love it. After the video comes a photo dump + a little Fashionlush guide to Jamaica. Just a pre-warning you’re about to experience a *wonderful* Jamaica overload.

[ P.S. shop all my Jamaica looks seen in the video here! ]

Where To Stay In Jamaica

Well- I am sure there are tons of great placed, but dude… SANDALS IS THE JAM. It was my first Sandals experience & I was literally blown away. We stayed at Sandals South Coast in their new over the water bungalows.

It is about a 2 hour (beautiful drive) from the Sangster, international airport, & when we arrived to the resort, we literally thought we’d pulled up to the gates of heaven. I typically go for the charming boutiquey vibe, but after this trip, I have a whole new view on resorts. It was luxury & relaxation at it’s finest. The best part about Sandals is you really do not have to do ANYTHING. The level of customer service & accommodations are out of control.

But back to the over the water bungalow. I almost had a coronary when we got to our room. First of all, they had spelled out one love in rose petals on our bed. We could’ve stopped their & I would have been happy, but then I went outside. I don’t even have words. There was a net hammock over the ocean, which became my daily  coffee (blue mountain Jamaican coffee is the best ever!!!)/reading spot, an outdoor bathtub, & our patio was directly over the ocean. First thing we did was get in our bathing suits & jump from the deck. Then we did that every morning to wake up, followed by breakfast on the patio.

Did I mention, Sandals is heaven on earth? 

But rewind, we had a butler & a BUTLER PHONE. Our butler,  Leon, quickly became my best friend ever. He was one of the most amazing people I have ever met. He told us to call him if we dropped the remote & were too lazy to pick it up. Obviously we didn’t do that, but we did have so much fun when he was in our presence. He went above & beyond, even helping Zack set up a rose petal filled bathtub surprise for me (major trip highlight!).

Also- it’s an all inclusive resort, which was a concept that took some time getting used to. This is embarrassing, but our first night at dinner I asked for my food to go & everyone looked at me like I was crazy. When we gave them the credit card, we got the crazy look again. No credit card, it’s all included. I looked like a total idiot taking my food to go, but they are so amazing & wrapped it up on a dining plate (no to-go boxes haha).

But yes, breakfast/dinner/the jerk chicken shack, the Jamaican Smiles (best tropical cocktail ever), the cute Parisian inspired cafe with crepes, lattes, & all sorts of desserts… no cash needed. When I came home, I had to go to the grocery store & walked out of the house without my purse. Definitely had to adjust back to real life using my credit card after this trip.

Also- there is always something going on at the resort. Never a dull moment!! One night we went to a dueling piano bar, the other night an all white dance party, & on Sunday we hit up the adorable little market they set for shopping. We spent majority of our time sitting by the pool (or dancing by the pool to reggae music, in my case), laying out on our deck, & hanging out in a cabana on the white sand beach drinking Red Strips. We really were looking to do as little as possible, but other active people were getting after all the fun water sports.

Gotta Talk About the Jamaican Food

I am a MAJOR foodie, so I have to take a minute to just discuss how much I love Jamaican food! Pre-trip I asked my readers what to expect, and was a little weary. I am not a picky eater by any means, but always a little weary when a new culture is involved.

We did a lot of eating at the resort (all inclusive, remember), & they had some amazing Jamaican food to offer! The main highlight had to be the Jerk Chicken Shack on the sand . IT WAS UNREAL & we ate that on repeat for a while w/ patties (it’s basically a savory pastry filled baked with turmeric!!!). We also had our fair share of sushi w/ the freshest fish & lots of lobster tails. You can’t go wrong with fish in Jamaica, it’s next level. Also, breakfast was always on point, but I am biased cause breakfast is my favorite.

Another major highlight was GRAPE NUT ICE CREAM. Creamy vanilla ice cream with grape nuts (the cereal). It was life changing & just reminded me I need to add vanilla ice cream + grape nuts to my shopping list. It is a popular Caribbean dessert, & the states should probably catch on.

Leaving the resort, we of course did some eating as well. We actually love eating. So much eating. One of the ladies working the the gift shop suggested we stop at the border for Bammy. We had no idea what she meant, but she told us to just tell our driver & he’d know where to go. Bammy is a Casava flatbread & it’s delicious. It is traditionally served with fish, so we got the fish. It was a FULL fish, bones & all, which was new for me- but still so good.

Things To Do In Jamaica

Okay, I am sure there are tons of ways to experience Jamaica, but for us- this trip was meant to be a total reset. We wanted to just be sloths the entire time. That said, I can’t visit a country without a taste of the culture so we planned one day out & about.

The resort was located on the other side of the island opposite Montego Bay. We really didn’t know where anything was in relation to us so we had a list of things we were interested in doing & figured the driver would help us figure it out.

On our list was (thanks to all my readers suggestions!):

Rick’s Cafe, the Blue Lagoon, the Bob Marley museum, YS falls, & a healing beach we heard about (supposedly the water is the healing part?).

I was referred to Oliver of Island Vibes Adventure Tours from another reader & had reached out to him prior to our trip. When we got there, we texted him & gave him our list. We told him we aren’t really into huge tourist spots, we want a more authentic Jamaican experience, & gave him or list.

He told us he had a plan & would pick us up the next day at 11am. UM, K? We had no idea what we were doing. He told us a lot of things on the list were a three hour drive (closer to ocho rios/north coast) & more touristy, so he was going to take us to YS Falls & The Pelican Bar. The drive was short, and amazing. Oliver pointed out things along the way, & was happy to stop when I wanted to get a picture.

First stop was the YS river falls. I personally have never seen a real waterfall in person, so I was pretty thrilled about this. We got to the falls & took a small open shuttle ride through the forest to get to the falls & it was like a scene in Jurassic park. Nothing I have ever seen before.

When we got to the Falls we had our own guide who would walk us through the Falls so we didn’t step on a rock or something. We went through the Falls, under them, swam, & ended up at the rope swing. I was not down for the zip lining (as you saw in the video), but I was all about that rope swing. Afterwards we swam in the fresh water pool where the locals hung out.

After the Falls, my second BFF of the trip (or as he said, brother from another mother) Oliver, said we were now going to the Pelican Bar.

To be completely honest, I was weary. I like a beer or two, but I didn’t just want to go to some bar. Oliver insisted, & after the amazing Falls experience, I trusted him. It was another short twenty minute drive & we ended up at a tiny bar at the end of the road with no one in it. I was confused, but he told us we had to walk down to the beach & hurry cause they were waiting.

They ended up being a pretty small boat filled with 6 people. I was so confused, again. We got on the boat & the next thing you know were speeding out into the middle of the ocean. Oliver pointed it out, as you can also see in the video, & we couldn’t believe we were going towards that teeny tiny dot.

We pulled up & saw a bar literally built on top of a sand bar in the middle of the ocean. Did I mention, this is a bar in the MIDDLE OF THE OCEAN? When we climbed inside, it was bumping. Locals were playing dominos, tourists were dancing, food was cooking, & the bar was serving up Red Stripes. I was pretty much losing my mind at this point. The inside is decorated with all sorts of things people bring to leave their mark. License plates, a few bras hanging, t-shirts, etc. We left one of Zack’s Typical Culture zines, cause I had nothing & needed my bra.

We got some beers & then Oliver introduced us to the creator of the Pelican Bar, Floyd. Oliver asked him to tell me the Pelican Bar story. The owner Floyd, built the bar in 2001 as a hangout for his friends & quickly it became a hot spot. No laws in the middle of the ocean, if ya know what I mean *puff puff pass*. They had a guy there who carved our names into the wood so we’d leave our mark forever, good music blasting, lots of dancing, lots of people chilling & swimming, artisans selling fun goodies, & they will even cook fish/lobster pulled straight from the ocean. When it was time to go, they literally had to drag me onto the boat. I never wanted to leave all my Pelican Bar friends.

If I have ever had an out of body experience, this was it. In the VLOG you will see, I left that bar on another level (which may have been due to all the Red Stripes).

AS YOU CAN SEE, Jamaica was & is amazing. If you are ever planning a tropical vacay, please keep Jamaica in mind & definitely stay at Sandals. I am officially Sandals & we left the trip saying it was our goal to visit every Sandals ever (followed by Googling a list). Not sure if it’s doable, but I am down to try!!

Below is our farewell to Leon, please please please if you make it to Sandals South Coast, go find him & give him a hug from me!!!

Ahh- okay, now I need a 38934234234 hour nap. I hope you liked the post & the VLOG. Please show me some video love & subscribe to my YouTube channel! x, E

**THIS POST WAS SPONSORED BY SANDALS RESORT, AS ALWAYS, ALL OPINIONS ARE MY OWN!**