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It is a well known fact that the partner of a Birder rarely feels quite as passionate about bird watching as their loved one, nor does the pleasure of staying in a rustic lodge for a week generally  rate as the perfect ‘get away from it all’ holiday for non-birders.  Hotel Mocking Bird Hill turns all this upside down to provide a destination that is as much for the birder as it is for their holiday partner.

This intimate eco-hotel is situated in the lush tropical north east corner of Jamaica, Port Antonio, where the Blue Mountains meet the warm Caribbean Sea.  The hotel’s 6.5 acres of lush bio-dynamic gardens are recommended as one of the top birding sites of the island by Birds of the West Indies by Alan Sander, so without even having to walk out the door there is the chance to encounter some of Jamaica’s 28 endemic varieties.

Boutique-style tranquil luxury accommodation is offered in one of the hotel’s 10 light airy rooms, the perfect base for those that believe in responsible tourism provided by independent hoteliers.  With solar power, natural air conditioning, anaerobic wastewater treatment, this is guiltless indulgence at its very best for a long-haul destination.

Organic gourmet dining is provided by our Chef Melvin Laidlaw, whose unique style fuses European, Asian and traditional American with his rural Jamaican roots to create flavourful masterpieces.  It is no wonder that the terraced Mille Fleurs restaurant has received rave reviews by the likes of The Guardian.

Nearby attractions includes Frenchman’s Cove where a stream winds lazily down into its white sand beach that shelves steeply into the water. Guests here can enjoy the best of both worlds, fresh and sea water, or pop along for a romantic walk for two at Long Bay. Other attractions include visiting the autonomous Maroons, who carved out their place in history for beating the English in the C17th, and, a favourite, visiting the world’s most expensive and best coffee at source at a Blue Mountain Coffee Plantation.

Competition Winners 

Winners of the competition will win 4 days bed & breakfast at Hotel Mockingbird Hill, where they can enjoy their legendary organic breakfasts that are renowned throughout the island as the perfect decadence.  Included within the prize is 1 full day of birding in Ecclesdown Road that 10000birds recently proclaimed as the site for boasting the best birding in the Jamaica.

Included: 4 nights Bed and breakfast on request based on availability (we cannot guarantee a room category but plan to give a superior room depending on our availability and the flexibility of the winner's dates).  1 day birding accompanied by a  local birdguide. A picnic breakfast will be provided on this day. 

Not included: Other meals, beverages, transportation 

To Enter: Simply enter our multiple choice quiz below.  We suggest doing some research first and reading up on Jamaican Birding, perhaps through 10,000 bird site.    We will pick a winner and notify them by email on March 29th 2010.  This prize can be used at any time over the next year excluding Christmas.

Closing Date: March 29th 2010

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If you are thinking about staying at Hotel Mocking Bird Hill for a birding holiday, you are probably wondering a little who will be your birding guide? Here's all the information about Ricardo you could need.

Ricardo resides in the capital City Kingston, but he is no city slicker. He grew up in the rural community of Hopewell, Hanover in western Jamaica and made his move to Kingston to pursue a degree in Zoology at the University of the West Indies. This is where his love for nature and birds began. He has participated in several bird banding workshops and volunteered at banding stations on the island which helped to hone his skills and give a better appreciation of the life of birds on Jamaica.
 
Now with over 7 years experience in birdwatching, Ricardo is as good as they get, but will be the first to point out that he does not know half as much as he needs to. He currently works as an Environmental Officer at an environmental agency and is also pursuing a Masters degree in ecology with a special emphasis on birds. He enjoys – well – birdwatching, and considers himself fortunate to have had the opportunity to see hundreds of birds from North, Central and South America as well as the Caribbean. 

A dedicated life member of BirdLife Jamaica, he participates in their monthly birding trips to various sections of the island and finds mentorship in the more experienced members.They have broadened his passion of birds to now include butterflies and plants, a combination that can only work to his benefit.
 
During his spare time, Ricardo doubles as a birdwatcher and as a birdguide. He is always equipped with at least an extra pair of binoculars, a spotting scope and keeps a first aid kit in his car. With a growing love for photography he sometimes takes his camera to enlarge his collection of bird and butterfly photos. He often carries a playback to attract those difficult birds but sometimes leaves it to avoid disturbing the birds during breeding and other crucial times. His main focus is the comfort of the guests and he is always willing to go the extra mile to make the experience even that more special.
 
If you ever have to ask "how in the world did you detect that bird so far away?"… or "…so well camouflaged?" he might answer "I smelled it"…don't believe him!

Ricardo's personal photography collection is stunning, click here to view birds and here to view butterflies.

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Jamaica’s No 1 eco boutique lodge, Hotel Mocking Bird Hill, has joined forces with Strawberry Fields Together to create a Caribbean adventure for those seeking an active yet laid-back holiday to uncover Jamaica’s 7 shades of blue:  hiking, biking, rafting and snorkelling along costal trails, freshwater rivers and the Blue Mountains themselves.This 10-night all-inclusive package based on Jamaica’s north east coast ensures a holiday off-the-beaten-track that mixes ‘more than the beach’ with a healthy dose of tranquil luxury and outstanding cuisine that has been acclaimed by the likes of the The Guardian and Fodors.

A diverse itinerary has been carefully crafted to appeal to the independent ecological traveller as well as culturally & socially oriented tourists curious about their holiday location. Rejuvenating coastal trails that lead to deserted beaches or picnic hikes to grand mountain ridge waterfalls for a rather different type of afternoon swim; a hike to the ruins of C18th coffee estate led by the leader of Jamaica’s autonomous Maroon community, inventors of the now legendary jerk style of cooking, are just part of what this amazing Jamaican experience has to offer.  

Rafting down the Rio Grande, a hike in the beautiful Blue Mountains to a Blue Mountain Coffee farm to discover where the world’s most expensive coffee is grown, following in the footsteps of Errol Flynn and discovering Frenchman’s Cove where the sea merges into river inlets of a spring and a river ramble to Reach Falls in the middle of the Jamaican tropical Rain Forest are a further taste of the opportunities this holiday will give you.

Guests will be picked up and driven to the 18 acres that is the Strawberry Fields estate in the little fishing village of Robin’s Bay, Parish of St Mary. Staying in Moonlight Magic, an airy bay-fronted first floor room of a cottage overlooking the private cove & 500m sandy beach, guests will be able to take full advantage of its Jacuzzi bath after spending time discovering secret Jamaica.

From the North East Coast, guests will be driven to the organic Hotel Mocking Bird Hill, Jamaica’s award-winning boutique eco-lodge, home to the Mille Fleurs Restaurant, voted Jamaica’s Best Kept Secret and recommended green hotel by OK Magazine. This intimate 10 room-400m hotel sits in 6.5 acre gardens listed as one of the top birding sites within the island. 

The parish of Portland offers visitors unparalleled natural beauty, rugged, exciting coastlines, a romantic beaches, hidden coves, rivers, and waterfalls with the Blue Mountain range providing a spectacular backdrop; Port Antonio, as the capital of Portland, has retained its charm as a quiet rural township and is home to one of the most beautiful harbours in the Caribbean.

Click here to view the pdf version of this soft adventure in Jamaica

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One good Reason to visit Mocking Bird Hill is to learn to cook authentic Jamaican style food alongside not just our own wonderful Chef, Melvin Laidlaw, but the acclaimed Jamaican cookery writer Virginia Burke, author of Eat Caribbean. 

You will you discover that there is an art to making the renowned Jamaican Jerk Sauce, the world’s first & finest barbecue marinade, and explore modern Jamaican cooking from the wealth of cultures and history that have fused to create such an eclectic & delicious Caribbean Island cookery style.  Each cookery class is supplemented daily with activity that gets you off the beaten track to discover some of the most beautiful coves and beaches of Jamaica, as well as discovering the Blue Mountains where the world’s finest Blue Mountain Coffee is grown above the clouds.

To check availability for the next 10-night luxury Jamaican cookery course from 3rd-13th May 2010 that will be held at Mocking Bird Hill & The Jamaica Inn in Ochos Rios please contact the organiser Sharon Hope of Lime Tree Lane Caribbean Dining via email: enquiries[at]limetreelane.com.

Itinerary

Mockingbird Hill & Jamaica Inn 10nts
3rd- 13th May 2010

Day 1
An afternoon arrival and transfer to Mockingbird kick starts your cooking trip to Jamaica, Upon arrival enjoy welcome cocktails and dinner at the hotel's renowned Mille Fleurs Restaurant.

Day 2
Start your adventure cooking in Jamaica by taking part in a Jamaican breakfast cookery class, before transfer to the beautiful Frenchman's Cove for a spot of relaxation and swimming, followed by an afternoon tea including freshly baked breads and pastries. Former Walkerswood & Caribbean food writer Virginia Burke introduces you to Jamaican 'Jerk',  and the history of Jamaican cuisine. A fitting BBQ dinner with a Jerk cookery class follows.

Day 3
Jamaican culinary tours have a strong focus on produce- this morning, Virginia leads a visit to the market, followed by a cookery class focussing on coconuts, papayas and allspice.  After lunch, sit back and relax on a late afternoon rafting trip down the Rio Grande, with dinner at Mille Fleur.

Day 4
Today begins with a visit to Green Castle Estate, one of the largest Organic farms in the Caribbean. Sample what the locals consider the finest Jerk at Blue Berry Hill en-route back to the hotel, before a tropical appetizers culinary session, where you'll be cooking with Caribbean chefs. Dinner is once again at Mille Fleur.  

Day 5
An early start for a sunrise tour of Jamaica's Blue Mountains -where the island's world famous coffee is produced. Visiting one of the region's coffee estates will provide a deeper appreciation of this premium bean. Sweet-tooths get a treat this afternoon, with Mocking Bird Hill's 'Dessert Delights', savoured with coffee, rum and liqueurs.

Day 6
 Start the day with a preparation class for a traditional Jamaican Gala dinner this evening. An afternoon visit to Port Antonio's stunning Winnifred Beach is your reward for all the effort. Linger over a delicious beach picnic, before enjoying the fruits of your labour at this evening's Gala dinner.

Day 7
All change! Departure from Port Antonio for Ocho Rios sees you arrive at Jamaica Inn (voted # 1 in Jamaica & # 5 in the Caribbean by Conde Naste readers November 2009) just in time for lunch. The rest of the afternoon is at leisure, and dinner is at Jamaica Inn.

Day 8
A morning visit to Prospect Plantation is accompanied by a visit to Jamaica's 'Wassi art' pottery works, followed by lunch at Scotchies restaurant. Relax this afternoon, then take in a dinner of hearty Jamaican fare at an Ocho Rios favourite- Miss T's.

Day 9
A late morning fine dining Jamaican cookery class at  Jamaica Inn is followed by lunch and a relaxing afternoon at leisure. You won't have to go far for dinner- tonight's is also at the Inn. 

Day 10
Continuing the culinary theme, indulge in a day of spa treatments that sound good enough to eat at Jamaica Inn's Kiyara Spa. Opt for Tropical spice renewal, Pina Colada body polish, Chocolate indulgence, or just relax on Jamaica Inn's enviable beach. Bid farewell to the beautiful island at tonight's farewell dinner at Jamaica Inn.

Day 11
Depart Jamaica Inn for your flight- or give in to temptation and extend your stay. Just ask for details.

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Here in Jamaica’s lush North East we believe romance never dies, sometimes it can be forgotten in the tempestuous maelstrom of life, but it can easily be returned to the fore, celebrated or rekindled by a healthy dose of ‘secret’ romance!  

Jamaica’s most romantic hotel, Mocking Bird Hill, can now be commissioned to give your room a secret make-over and transform it into the ultimate in surprise romance, or set the scene for the ultimate romantic proposal under starry Caribbean skies.  

Whether it is a room decked with petals, orchids, votive candles, our Swiss Dark chocolate Flirtatious Fondue and a chilled bottle of Champagne to hand, a tropical bloom-laced candlelit deck with canapés & wine at the ready for the perfect proposal, or simply on Day 1 on arrival a room prepared with flowers, wine, fondue and the most stunning array of organic goats cheeses to help celebrate your touchdown of your Jamaican holiday – romance will be in the air.

Read more about our new Secret Romance Turndown | Perfect Proposal | Step through the Door Romance on Arrival services.

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Jamaica's Blue Mountain Coffee is one of those drinks that once tried is never forgotten.   Vibrant but gentle, this rich but mellow coffee is the world's most expensive coffee and Japan's favoured drink after Sake. What we particularly love about Blue Mountain Coffee's unique taste is that unlike many other coffees you don't need a sugar plantation to make it into something that is palatable, even when served as an espresso.

Here's our favourite winter way of serving this rather special coffee; obviously you can try at home with your own favourite coffee blend. If we are feeling particularly decadent we like to add in a shot of our home-made orange liqueur, you can subsitute this with a shot Cointreau.

If you fancy trying Blue Mountain Coffee at source perhaps consider a visit to Hotel Mocking Bird Hill where we can take you hiking in the Blue Mountains to take a look around a Coffee Plantation or perhaps consider our Sea & Mountain Escape, where you divide your time between the Blue Mountains and the Caribbean Sea.

Cinnamon Mocha Drink

¼ cup & 2 tbsp. dark unsweetened cocoa powder
¼ cup sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon and more for garnish
2 long shots freshly brewed espresso
2 cups whole milk
Whipped cream
 
Method:

Whisk cocoa powder, sugar and cinnamon.
Add espresso and whisk till smooth
Heat milk in separate pan until it begins to simmer
Add espresso mixture and heat for 5 minutes
Remove from heat
Pour into 2 mugs
Add whipped cream and sprinkle with cinnamon
 

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Luscious Love – A Dinner of Seduction

Sliced Mango with crumbled Feta Cheese and Passion Vinaigrette
(Amuse Bouche)

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We believe that an eco lodge should be sustainable and be ‘green’, but that should in turn not affect style or comfort. Therefore all our rooms are large and airy, with cool white tiles, handcrafted bamboo furniture and original artwork.  Each room is ventilated naturally by cross sea breezes, but which keep out the elements in times of rain; in turn they allow you to be serenaded to sleep by an ecological evensong, the tree frog chorus.

More rhythmic chirping than deep bass croaking from these tiny choristers, their calls are made by keeping both their mouth and nostrils closed, whilst they use the muscles in both their body and throat to oscillate the air between the mouth sac and their lungs, a bizarre biological process to create the most perfect lullaby.

The tree frogs love our bio-diverse tropical gardens, and are just part of what allows to keep our lush gardens organic; they keep a check on creepy crawlies and in turn attract birds, which has established this tranquil eco-retreat as one of the” best birding sites on the Island” (Birds of the West Indies).

View Jamaica's Official Eco Hotel & Lodge Rooms & Rates 

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There are of course cheap ways to travel around Jamaica via illegal taxis or route taxis which operate like mini buses collecting people along the way until they are full. These taxis do have some insurance, but not to the level of the charter taxis and tourism transportation companies. As we repeat to customers it is not worth taking the risk; your own travel insurance will not protect you if, as they all too do, accidents occur, and you are in effect riding illegally within a country.

Legal cabs within Jamaica do cost simply because it costs the owners of legal cab companies to provide them.  The reasons for this are:

1. Jamaica does not have its own car plants that produce cars on the island.  Due to being a former British Colony the island drives on the left, therefore to drive as a legal cab company you must have a right hand car drive.  This means that cars are imported from further afield than our nearest car-producing neighbours, the United States; rather they’re shipped from the UK & Japan which adds to the initial cost of the vehicles that are brought. In addition spare parts, tyres etc are all imported and are expensive. Costs to repair a vehicle are similar to the costs in Europe, it is just that the breakdown of the costs is different: in Jamaica the labour is the cheap component, the parts expensive.
2. Purchased cars need to be sturdy to withstand Jamaican roads.  Jamaica has some very good roads, it also has some very very bad roads.  It is vital that cars that are purchased by cab companies can withstand the latter as they ferry guests safely around Jamaica.   Taking guests up to certain areas in the Blue Mountains means that a 4×4 vehicle is needed and such luxuries cost in the initial outlay that cab companies must invest and recoup from their investment.
3. Insurance premiums for cab companies that fully cover their vehicle, driver and passengers is expensive.   Part of the reason for this is obviously that the bigger the car that is insured, if there was an accident, the bigger amount of damage that it too could inflict.
4. Legal cab drivers in Jamaica must undertake an extra test of competence that is certified by the Ministry of Transport, they have additional vehicle certification costs and registration costs under the transportation regulations set down by the Ministry of Transport. In addition, operators who transport tourists must be licensed by the Jamaica Tourist Board and pass rigorous quality control checks by the Tourism Product Development Company, another government organisation. Taxis are not metered but the basis on which they calculate their fares (per person which many visitors object to) is laid down by the Ministry of Transport. Naturally drivers that have comply with all of this and are fully insured are more expensive in regards to their salary than an illegal driver.
5. Petrol:  Jamaica does not produce its own gasoline, being an island all is imported from the US.  Therefore it is more expensive than for example the price of gas in the US or Canada.  In January the price per litre in Jamaica for petrol was JM$ 87, the equivalent of £0.60, €0.67, CA$ 1, US$ 0.98.  

For the above reasons a cab in Jamaica may seem expensive, but it is still cheaper per kilometre than many of its Caribbean Island competitors and European destinations:

• Tegel Airport–Central Berlin | 6.4km | US$ 24.00 | US$ 3.75/km                
• Heathrow Airport–St. Paul’s | 30km | US$ 89.15 | US$ 2.97/km
• Vigie Airport, Castries-Rodney Bay, St Lucia | 11.3km | US$ 25.00 |US$ 2.21/km            
• Pindling Airport Nassau–Paradise Island, Nassau, The Bahamas | 16km | US$ 32.00  US$ 2.00/km 
• JFK – Manhattan | 28km | US$ 45 | US$ 1.86/km (+ 15% tip = US$ 52.00)                
• Kingston –Mocking Bird Hill | 100km | US$ 165.00 | US$ 1.65/km                
• Paiarco Airport –Port of Spain, Trinidad & Tobago | 32km | US$ 20.00 | US$ 1.60/km 
• Grantley Adams Airport–Bridgetown, Barbados |13km | US$ 18.00 | US$ 1.38/km       
• Galeao Airport-Central Rio | 19.3km | US$21.75 | US$ 1.13/km                
• Hong Kong Airport– Central Hong Kong | 40km  US$ 45.00 | US$ 1.13/km                         
• Singapore Airport-Singapore | 20km | US$ 22.00 | US$ 1.10/km
• Hewanorra Airport-Rodney Bay, St Lucia |68km | US$ 75.00 |US$ 1.10/km 
• Bangkok Airport-Central Bangkok | 35km | US$ 12.00 | US$0.34/km  

Grateful thanks to Travelin Librarian & Mich Groff for use of JTB taxi license & Jamaican road imagery

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