Sent by Michelle Fleming

S/V Bonanza

In March 2010, Bonanza transited the north coast of Jamaica from east to west. We stopped in Port Antonio, Ocho Rios, and Montego Bay. We used “A Cruising Guide to: The Northwest Caribbean” by Stephen Pavlidis and electronic charts for navigation.

Our Port Of Entry was Port Antonio.

The entrance is well marked by the Folly Point lighthouse and the Navy Island reef marker. We entered the East Harbour first to drop sails and have a look at the channel between Navy Island and the Titchfield Peninsula. This channel is well marked with red and green buoys as cruise ships pass through here on their way to the dock in West Harbour.

The West Harbour area is operated by the Port Authority of Jamaica and includes the cruise ship dock, the Erroll Flynn marina, and the marine police dock and station. The entire shoreline here lies inside a gated, fenced perimeter. Along the length of the waterfront runs a boardwalk and park with a very popular ice cream shop at the far end. Everyone is allowed into the area by first passing through the security gate. It is a very secure and lively place, popular with the locals and visitors, especially on the weekends.

Customs, Immigration and Quarantine clear yachts in and out the marina. After you clear-in, you can choose to stay in West Harbour at a slip, on a mooring, or at anchor, and you will be charged a minimum of $10.00 per day. There is no charge to anchor in the East Harbour.

We called the Marina on VHF 16 and they gave us instructions for arrival at their main dock where we could come alongside. To reach it you simply follow the channel markers that lead past Navy Island and the cruise ship dock. The dock master was standing by with several dock hands to take our lines and welcome us to Jamaica. He had already notified customs and immigration of our arrival and told us that as soon as the quarantine officer arrived and cleared the boat, we could come on into the marina facilities.

The quarantine officer came on board, had a look around and issued clearance. Soon Immigration and Customs officers came on board and completed all documentation. There are no fees or charges when arriving or departing Jamaica as long as you do so during regular office hours (8 am to 5 pm weekdays). It is necessary to get clearance to travel from port to port in Jamaica. There are no charges for this, but make sure that you obtain this clearance from Customs and Immigration before you move along the coast.

Erroll Flynn Marina

Erroll Flynn Marina offers cruisers first-class amenities whether you stay in a slip or in the anchorage. We stayed on a mooring and were charged $10 USD per day. We had full use of the pool and outdoor lounge area, wifi, access to computers with internet service in the office, laundry facilities (tokens), taxis, secure dingy parking, and a safe, friendly and helpful place to base ourselves while in Port Antonio. This is the best spot on the North coast to take on fuel and water. They also have a haul-out with a 100 Ton Marine Travel Lift with the lowest rates we’ve seen in the Caribbean.

E-mail: [email protected]

Tel: 876-715-6044

General Manager – Dale Westin

cell phone 876-832-4765

Ocho Rios

We entered Ocho Rios Bay by motoring around to the East of a cruise ship on the dock. Once inside the bay, we were confronted by a squadron of jet skis driving around in circles at high speed. The bay is tiny and lined with all-inclusive hotels that rent all types of recreational watercraft.

Within minutes of anchoring the Jamaican Marine Police arrived alongside requesting our coast-wise clearance. It was possible to take the dingy into the Ocho Rios Marina and lock-up next to the police boat. The guide book says fuel, water, and electricity are available here, but we saw no sign of any facilities.

After sunset, the action on the water calms down, but we had an uncomfortable swell running into the bay. An additional anchorage just behind the outer reef North of the cruise ship moorings looked calmer. This is a good spot to break-up the trip to Montego Bay, but I would not want to spend more than one night at anchor here. An outboard engine was reportedly stolen from a yacht the day prior to our arrival.

Montego Bay

The best thing about anchoring at Montego Bay is the Montego Bay Yacht Club. The anchorage is crowded with moorings and local boats on moorings. Check with the marina before picking up a mooring. Several large day-trip catamarans, who have moorings here, arrive after sunset and you wouldn’t want to be on one of their moorings by mistake. We anchored just inside the last channel markers close to the shore. We were told at the club that holding is fair to poor in the basin and that it was not a good place to be in a North wind. Double Dragon, a 50-foot Dutch catamaran, reports they were in the bay during strong North winds and watched four boats drag in the anchorage. Two were on their own anchors and two were on moorings that also dragged. The guide book encourages boats to use Bogue Lagoon instead.

The MBYC is an absolutely charming, old school style sailing club. For a fee of $10 per person you are welcome to use their spa-like washroom facilities (complete with outdoor private shower), secure dingy dock, wifi in the lounge, and enjoy a cocktail or dinner at the bar and restaurant. The club has a tennis court, table tennis, foosball, and billiards table. A short taxi ride away you will find the Mega Market. This is a North American style megastore that has a great selection of food, clothing, and electronics. It is well worth the trip to provision.

The office staff will notify Customs and Immigration of your arrival. Here, our port to port clearance was received by a customs officer who came to the club to collect it. We were also visited by the Marine Police at the boat, who came on board and requested boat and passenger information. We were leaving Jamaica from Montego Bay so when we were ready to clear-out, the MBYC notified the officials for us. Unfortunately, we had to do this outside of office hours and had to pay the $68 USD overtime fees. Interestingly, the marina collected the payment of this fee, along with our other charges at the MBYC and issued us a proper receipt. All encounters we had with officials in Jamaica where professional and cordial. The only fees we were charged was for our outside of office hours clearance outbound from Montego Bay. This charge was consistent with what other cruisers reported being charged. Receipts were issued for these charges.

Safety and Security

Safety is always a concern in Jamaica. We felt most secure in Port Antonio and would recommend that cruisers base their travels in the country out of that location. West Harbour offers the best anchorage with good holding and all around protection from wind and seas. We found the other north coast anchorages fine in settled conditions, but they do not offer much protection when the wind and seas come from the North. We felt personally safer in Port Antonio than in the other anchorages. There is a real advantage being inside the Port of Jamaica run security area of West Harbour. Port Antonio is a manageable size with everything you need in easy walking distance and the people are friendly and welcoming to cruisers.