The 427 guest rooms at Rose Hall's Ritz-Carlton Golf & Spa Resort--a quarter of which face directly onto the sea--got a face-lift last year.

by Julia Bainbridge on Travel Deals

Have you been daydreaming end-of-summer and fall travel deals?  I have. What often holds me back from booking, though, is the airfare. With my budget, even if a hotel is giving away free nights, getting there is still a problem.  But today's deal might just be the one that I turn into reality, as Air Jamaica has slashed airfares. You can travel from Chicago, Philadelphia, Baltimore, or New York to Montego Bay for $287 round-trip (including all taxes and fees). The price point for these flights is often around $550. Act fast, though: Seats are filling up.

Book by: August 11.

For travel from: September 6 through October 31.

Once you get to Jamaica, there are a slew of affordable hotel and resort options. Check out our "More Sun for the Money" feature from Condé Nast Traveler's March issue. There's the Half Moon resort, for instance, which was on the magazine's Gold List every year from 1995 to 2007 and where you can get significant discounts from September 1 to October 31. For instance, you can stay three nights in a garden-view room for $564 (including taxes and fees). That translates to $188 per night in a room that normally costs $296 per night--a savings of 36%. Got kids under 12? They can stay for free. The rate includes unlimited use of the resort's tennis courts, gym, paddleboats, and kayaks. Note: You must stay for at least three nights to take advantage of this promotion. To book this deal, go to the resort's Web site and type in the promo code HMFB09.

There's also the Ritz-Carlton, Rose Hall, where you can stay for up to 43% less, thanks to its offer of three nights for the price of two; five nights for the price of three; or seven nights for the price of four, until September 30. This property was on our Gold List from 2003 to 2005. To book, go to the general Ritz-Carlton site, click on Summer Offers, and then select "Peace of Mind: Resort." You'll then have the option to choose the Rose Hall property in the appropriate field.

The Ritz-Carlton Rose Hall is only a 10-minute drive from Jamaica's Montego Bay airport.

by Julia Bainbridge on Travel Deals

Wendy keeps telling me how great Jamaica can be for kids. Perhaps you recall her family trip there two winters ago? So we were delighted to learn of this deal: 5 nights for the price of 4 at the Ritz-Carlton Golf & Spa Resort, Rose Hall, with all meals included.

Rates for the "Escape to Luxury Package" start at $409 per night for a garden view room and include breakfast, lunch, dinner, all beverages (including alcohol!), high-speed Internet access, sailing and windsurfing lessons, and use of non-motorized sports equipment. Plus children under 12 stay and eat for free. In other words, a family with kids staying 5 nights will pay $1,636 total (including all taxes and fees) instead of the usual $2,045 and won't have to pay a cent for food and drink!

Book by: May 31. Make sure to mention the Escape to Luxury Package.

For travel from: June 1 to December 23

Condé Nast Traveler approved: The Ritz-Carlton, Rose Hall, was named one of our top 100 golf resorts every year from 2005 to 2008, and it made our Gold List from 2003-2005.

Note: If you book via the hotel's web site, you'll see the fare quoted for all 5 nights. After you book, though, you'll receive confirmation with the true rate of $1,636 total. If you book by phone, you can avoid this altogether.

Neil Mandt, who wrote, directed, co-produced (with his brother Michael) and starred in "Last Stop for Paul," a charming travel film the likes of which you've never seen.

Photo: courtesy of Mandt Brothers Productions

by Stephan Wilkinson

Ever been curious what your kids were up to when they did that post-college backpacking thing?  Be sure to see the delightful pseudo-documentary Last Stop for Paul.  Well, maybe you shouldn't, particularly if you're old enough to remember Mondo Cane or assume your daughter's still a virgin. 

This excellent comedy is a combination of that cultish Italian "shockumentary" of the early '60s, with a dash of Girls Gone Wild and a heaping bowl of every buddy film you've ever watched.  (Did I mention that I loved it?)  Last Stop for Paul will be "theatrically released" in October and presumably on DVD 20 minutes later, but you can also watch at least some of it in chapters right now on the film's website.

That's all you need to know, but if you want more...  (Oh, and did I mention that I want to go on their next road trip?)

Charlie and friends he made during our villa stay in Jamaica in January. The students attend St. Mary's Prepatory School in Montpelier, St. James Parish.

by Wendy Perrin

Remember that trip to Jamaica I made with my family last winter?  You may recall that I rented a house, but I never did tell you that it was the best-value Caribbean villa I'd found after weeks of research. The purpose of the research, and of road-testing the villa, was to write the article that just came out in our June issue: Wendy Perrin's Worldwide Guide to Affordable Villa Vacations.  Want to learn more about the house, the staff, the beach-resort access that was included in the rate, and my family's experience of "the real Jamaica" that tourists rarely see?  We've put up a slide show too. Enjoy!

Doug (3) and Charlie (then 4) on the villa's pool terrace soon after waking up, January 11, 2007.

Air Margaritaville, a restaurant at the Montego Bay airport, Jamaica, Jan. 17, 2007

By Wendy Perrin

Just got back from the third-world country that is JFK's Terminal 8.  Getting through Immigration and Baggage Claim was even worse than in Montego Bay last week.  In both Jamaicas (the NYC 'hood where JFK is and the Caribbean country), the process took 1.5 hours.

The chaos in JFK's Terminal 8 did not surprise me. What surprised me was the PATHETIC security inspection we went through at the MoBay airport before the flight to JFK . . . .

Charlie and Doug "helping" Melvin the gardener at our rental villa

By Wendy Perrin

Sixteen years ago today (January 16, 1991), I was supposed to fly to Vienna for a vacation in Eastern Europe.  That morning the U.S. began bombing targets in Iraq and Kuwait, marking the start of the Persian Gulf War. All flights from JFK to Europe were cancelled, including my Pan Am flight to Vienna. My then-boyfriend and I had already carved out 12 days of vacation time and needed to substitute a new destination. Planes were still operating to the Caribbean, but we weren't lie-on-the-beach types, so we quickly sought a Caribbean island that was not merely a tourist fabrication but was, rather, a real country with a true foreign culture to explore.  Jamaica seemed to fit the bill, so we flew there the next day. We rented a car at the MoBay Airport and spent the next 12 days criss-crossing the surprisingly large and varied island, seeing the lush green jungles and rivers, the mountainous interior, and every coastline. (The undeveloped east coast south of Port Antonio, with its dramatic cliffs, crashing waves, and hidden waterfalls, was my favorite) . . . .

This brand-new stadium in Falmouth, Jamaica, will host the Cricket
World Cup in March. Photo taken on Jan. 15, 2007.

By Wendy Perrin

Thinking of attending the opening ceremony of the 2007 Cricket World Cup in Jamaica in March?  Well, I am here to tell you that construction of the 25,000-seat stadium in Falmouth is in good shape.  The highway leading to it from the nearest airport (Montego Bay) is another story.

Tim and I drove from MoBay to Falmouth this morning to check out the stadium. There was a ton of traffic on the potholed two-lane "highway," which is under construction as they try to widen it to four lanes in preparation for the Cup.  They're going to have to pick up the pace if they want to finish in time.

As for the town of Falmouth itself, I doubt anyone will be heading there for an after-match beer on a hot day. Don't get me wrong: I like Falmouth because it's an authentic Jamaican town with no souvenir shops or standard tourist amenities. Which is precisely why it's hardly ready for a big international event.

The main road from the stadium into Falmouth, Jan. 15, 2007

Sunday morning service at the Parish Church of St. James (built in 1775), Montego Bay, Jamaica, Jan. 14, 2007.

By Wendy Perrin

In yesterday's New York Times, guest columnist Orlando Patterson filed an op-ed piece from Kingston. He wrote:

"Drug addiction and violent crime are now endemic in Jamaica . . . . The corruption of the police and other security forces has reached a crisis point . . . where an officer can earn the equivalent of half a year's salary by simply looking the other way. Last year, 1,300 people were murdered here, in a population of only three million--and that was an improvement on the previous year."

I was thinking about this at the 7:30 a.m. Anglican service at the Parish Church today because here are three things I saw: (1) A tearful family whose teenage daughter was beaten and stabbed to death a week ago, in her own home. . . 

Tim and the kids at a Jamaican resort that will go unnamed, Jan. 12, 2007. 

By Wendy Perrin

I got a kick out of reading a post about my blog at Jaunted.com, which calls itself "The Pop Culture Travel Guide."  It's a cool site by people who, unlike me, know how to blog. I wish I had time to educate myself about the blogosphere, but it would take more than the 8 seconds of spare time I have daily, what with my insanely busy day job offline as an editor at Conde Nast Traveler Magazine, my travel schedule, and mothering two kids (who at this moment are climbing all over me as I lie in bed trying to write this at 5:15 a.m.).

Roadside "rasta mon" (Jamaican for male rastifarian) in the mountains near Montpelier, Jamaica, Jan. 11, 2007

By Wendy Perrin

Sorry you never heard from me last night. No, I did not get wasted away at the Margaritaville down the road. Nor did I smoke too much ganja with the rasta mon above. The reason is much more mundane: The Wi-Fi in my Jamaican rental villa went kaput.

 
Students at St. Mary's Preparatory School, Montpelier, Jamaica, Jan. 11, 2007

By Wendy Perrin

Whenever I travel abroad, I get the warmest welcome when I visit a school or church. It's a great way to meet outgoing locals and gain insights into the culture. One thing I learned today: Crime in Jamaica may be on the rise, but the children could not possibly be friendlier. (I also learned that here in St. James Parish, named for King James II of England, Brittania is a very popular name for girls.)

Charlie (4) and Doug (3) at our rental villa near Montego Bay, Jamaica

By Wendy Perrin

We made it!  Somehow or other we managed to get 2 preschoolers, 1 grandmother, 4 suitcases, 8 carry-ons, 2 car seats, 2 laptops, and 1 camera bag out of the house at 5:30 a.m., into a car to JFK, through the 45-minute check-in line (JFK's Terminal 8 does not allow curbside check-in!), through several security stations, onto AA flight 1193, through the Montego Bay airport, and into a van, which delivered us to our rental villa here in Jamaica.