Experience Jamaica in a whole new way at Montego Bay’s Palmyra Resort & Spa, a sweeping vacationdestination featuring both residential and hotel properties.

Fast Facts
Opened: December 2009
Property Size: 16 acres
High Season: December 15 through April 15
Famous Visitors:
Jamaica’s prime minister, The Honourable Bruce Golding
Don’t-Miss Event:
General manager Lester Scott hosts a monthly cocktail party for Palmyra residents and local business owners in the resort’s clubhouse.
Dining: Jamaican fare from master chef Scott Simpson, who has worked in restaurants from Ecuador to Thailand
Distance from Airport: 15 minutes

The Palmyra is the newest addition to former Ritz-Carlton honcho Horst Schulze’s superluxe Solis resort line that includes the stunning Lough Eske Castle in County Donegal, Ireland. “It’s a full-service property, so it’s a place to come and be pampered,” says Maurice Aronow, executive vice president for sales and marketing. “It’s like a home away from home.” If only home were this exciting.

In addition to restaurants like the gourmet-inspired Hemingway’s Hideaway and a 30,000-square-foot spa, Espa, slated to open early next year, there is also a fitness center, swimming pools and water sports like snorkeling, kayaking and windsurfing. On-site gaming—the resort is the first place in Jamaica to host casino gambling—is scheduled to begin in early 2011.

The Palmyra’s properties, including villas, condominiums, penthouses and suites, feature spacious floor plans that provide unrivaled luxury and seclusion. Private verandas create the feel of a personal beachfront property. Interiors are decorated with a muted, relaxing color scheme that incorporates sandy beiges and dark colonial woods, and modern and traditional furnishings make the place feel exotic but familiar.

Golf lovers will find three different courses nearby—Half Moon, the White Witch and Cinnamon Hill—offering varying difficulty levels and terrains. The White Witch is sure to challenge even the most skilled golfers with its notoriously tricky blind shots and blustering winds; Half Moon, designed by renowned course architect Robert Trent Jones Sr., and Cinnamon Hill both offer challenging or intermediate golf tours.

Jamaica enjoys the same gorgeous sunsets and electric-blue waters as other Caribbean islands, but it’s much larger—and 20 to 25 percent less expensive—than other hot spots like St. Lucia, Barbados or the Bahamas. The Palmyra resort is located in Jamaica’s second-largest city and is accessible to many of the island’s best-known attractions, including the historic colonial Rose Hall plantation and the Blue Mountain coffee plantation. For more information, visit thepalmyra.com or call 876-953-9787