Deja Resort
A small, Jamaican-owned all-inclusive in the middle of the Hip Strip: you trade a private beach and big-resort facilities for Doctor's Cave Beach across the road and the town on your doorstep.
Where to stay in Montego Bay
Montego Bay is where most visitors land, with resorts from the Hip Strip by the airport to Rose Hall and Trelawny, though several Rose Hall resorts are still closed after Hurricane Melissa; our one-year-on recovery tracker lists every announced reopening date. For our shortlist, see the best all-inclusive resorts in Montego Bay.
Updated 
Is Montego Bay right for you?
Montego Bay suits first-timers, short trips and anyone who wants to be on a beach within half an hour of landing. It’s a working city first, with the resorts strung along the coast on either side of it rather than packed into one strip. That spread is the thing to understand before you book: a hotel sold as “Montego Bay” can be five minutes from the airport or 45 minutes away in Trelawny or Hanover. Skip it if you want a small beach town with a slow pace, which is Negril, or if waterfalls and rivers are the point of your trip, which puts you closer to Ocho Rios.
The city side has more going on than the resort brochures suggest. The Hip Strip is where the bars, jerk spots and craft stalls are, Doctor’s Cave Beach has calm water and changing rooms, and Rose Hall Great House tells the White Witch story every Jamaican child grows up hearing. Within an hour, you can float down the Martha Brae on a bamboo raft or see the Luminous Lagoon glow after dark near Falmouth.
My take: Montego Bay is the best base for a short first trip, and a good first stop on a longer one before you move on to Negril or the south coast. While Rose Hall rebuilds, I’d look first at the open resorts on Mahoe Bay and in Trelawny, where many of the region’s open resorts are right now, and keep a couple of nights for the city side.
Montego Bay hotels by trip type
All-inclusive
Excellence Oyster Bay
A polished adults-only all-inclusive on a quiet peninsula east of Montego Bay, with more à la carte dining than most and a jacuzzi in every suite.
Grand Palladium Lady Hamilton Resort & Spa
The all-suite side of the Grand Palladium complex: a big, lively family all-inclusive out of town, sharing ten restaurants and 21 bars with its sister hotel, with a Signature Level for extra privacy.
Adults-only
Excellence Oyster Bay
A polished adults-only all-inclusive on a quiet peninsula east of Montego Bay, with more à la carte dining than most and a jacuzzi in every suite.
Hotel Riu Montego Bay
A big, social adults-only all-inclusive on Mahoe Bay: a water park, five pools and the weekly RIU Party, ten minutes from the airport.
Hotel Riu Reggae
A lively adults-only Riu on Mahoe Bay, under 10 minutes from the airport, with infinity pools and the water park and RIU Party next door: built for fun, not for quiet.
Family
Grand Palladium Lady Hamilton Resort & Spa
The all-suite side of the Grand Palladium complex: a big, lively family all-inclusive out of town, sharing ten restaurants and 21 bars with its sister hotel, with a Signature Level for extra privacy.
Hotel Riu Palace Aquarelle
A big, new family all-inclusive near Falmouth: a water park, a kids' club and real two-bedroom family rooms, 35 minutes from Montego Bay airport.
Iberostar Waves Rose Hall Beach
A straightforward family all-inclusive on the Rose Hall coast, 15 minutes from the airport, with Star Camp for children up to 15, two pools and a jerk hut.
Honeymoon & couples
Excellence Oyster Bay
A polished adults-only all-inclusive on a quiet peninsula east of Montego Bay, with more à la carte dining than most and a jacuzzi in every suite.
Ocean Eden Bay
An adults-only, all-suite resort with its own pool, beach and restaurants, plus the run of the big family resort next door: more choice than most adults-only places, less seclusion.
Round Hill Hotel & Villas
Montego Bay's old-money resort: a quiet private peninsula with Ralph Lauren-designed rooms, plunge-pool suites and staffed villas, where you choose your own meal plan.
City hotels
Partly openCoyaba Beach Resort & Club (formerly Zoëtry Montego Bay)
A small, quiet, Jamaican-run beach resort 10 minutes from the airport, for travelers who want breakfast included and the freedom to eat out, not a big all-inclusive.
Hip Strip or Rose Hall?
The Hip Strip (Jimmy Cliff Boulevard) is the town side: small hotels, Doctor’s Cave Beach, and bars and restaurants you can walk to, about five minutes from the airport. Mahoe Bay, just east of the airport, has the big adults-only Riu resorts, usually under 10 minutes away. Pick this side for the shortest transfer and if you want to step outside the gate into Jamaica. Expect street noise at night and planes overhead.
Rose Hall, about 15 minutes east of the airport, is the resort coast: big all-inclusives on their own beaches, with little to walk to outside the gate. For now, the open choices there are the two Iberostar resorts and part of Half Moon. Further east in Trelawny, 30 to 45 minutes from the airport, and west at Round Hill and Point Lucea in Hanover, resorts are quieter and more self-contained; pick them if you plan to stay put.
Free Jamaica trip checklist
Heading to Montego Bay?
Get my free Jamaica trip checklist, then guides for Montego Bay.
Your checklist is ready
Download it below, then print it or tick the boxes on screen.
Getting to Montego Bay
By air. Sangster International Airport (MBJ) is on the edge of the city, so transfers are short. Deja Resort on the Hip Strip says about 5 minutes, the Mahoe Bay Riu resorts usually under 10, Half Moon about 10 and the Iberostar resorts at Rose Hall about 15. Going west, Round Hill is about 25 minutes and Grand Palladium at Point Lucea about 40. Going east, the Trelawny resorts near Falmouth take 30 to 45 minutes. My Montego Bay airport guide covers arrival, from immigration to finding your ride.
Airport taxis. If nothing is booked, go to the Authorised Airport Taxi desk just outside the customs exit, which the two airport taxi companies, JUTA and JCAL, share. Jamaican taxis aren’t metered, so agree the fare at the desk before you leave.
By coach. Knutsford Express has a terminal next to the airport and a stop at the RIU in Montego Bay, with scheduled coaches to Falmouth, Negril, Ocho Rios, Kingston and Port Antonio. It runs station to station, so you’ll still need a taxi at the far end. My Knutsford Express guide has fares and luggage rules.
From Kingston. Kingston is on the far side of the island, several hours by road. Knutsford runs coaches between the two cities, but if Montego Bay is your base, fly straight into MBJ.
Driving. The coast road links the airport with Rose Hall, Falmouth and Hanover, and it gets slow through the city in the afternoon rush. If you’re renting, read renting a car and driving in Jamaica first.
Every Montego Bay guide
Questions people ask
Are Montego Bay’s resorts open?
Yes, but not all of it. The airport, the Hip Strip and many resorts are open. Several of the big Rose Hall all-inclusives, including the Hyatt and Secrets resorts, closed after Hurricane Melissa in October 2025 and aren’t due back until 2027. Half Moon has partly reopened and Iberostar Rose Hall Suites is open, and west of town, Grand Palladium at Point Lucea is open. Each resort guide on this site shows its current status.
Should I stay on the Hip Strip or at Rose Hall?
Stay on the Hip Strip for beaches, bars and restaurants on foot and a five-minute transfer. Choose Rose Hall for a big beach resort you won’t need to leave, once the one you want there has reopened.
How far are Montego Bay resorts from the airport?
From about 5 minutes on the Hip Strip to about 15 at Rose Hall, according to the resorts. The Trelawny resorts near Falmouth are 30 to 45 minutes away, and Grand Palladium in Hanover about 40.
Is Montego Bay or Negril better?
Montego Bay is better for a short trip, a short transfer and more to do in town. Negril, about 75 to 90 minutes west, is better for a long beach, sunsets and a slower pace.
Can you get around Montego Bay without a car?
Yes. Use licensed taxis, which carry red PP plates, for trips around town, and Knutsford Express coaches from the airport or the RIU stop for other towns.