My local take
Sandals Montego Bay is closed until Dec 18, 2026. Hurricane Melissa shut it in October 2025, and Sandals is using the closure for a rebuild of the resort where the brand started more than four decades ago. Sandals says it’s taking bookings now for stays from the reopening date, and the Jamaica Tourist Board lists the same date. What’s coming, per Sandals’ June 2026 announcement: a new lobby facing the sea, a completely redesigned main pool, new swim-up rooms and ocean-view suites, and two new restaurants, Buccan and Scrimshaw. Sandals notes that renderings and product details are subject to change.
My take: this is the Sandals for couples who don’t want to spend their first and last afternoon in a transfer bus. It sits on its own beach right beside Sangster International, about 15 minutes from the terminal, and you can ride over to the sister resort, Sandals Caribbean Cay, for more restaurants and its private island. The trade-off is the runway next door: planes landing and taking off pass close by, and that’s part of the deal here. Every guest must be 18 or older, and the resort is designed for couples. Give a freshly rebuilt resort a little slack in its first weeks.
For a trip before December, look at Hotel Riu Montego Bay, an open adults-only resort ten minutes from the airport, or Sandals Negril on Seven Mile Beach, which reopened in December 2025. After the reopening, compare it with its sister Sandals Caribbean Cay. More options: the best adults-only all-inclusive resorts in Jamaica.
At a glance
- Name
- Sandals Montego Bay
- Status
- Closed since Hurricane Melissa in October 2025; reopening Dec 18, 2026, and taking bookings for stays from that date
- Jamaica Tourist Board
- Listed as reopening December 18, 2026
- Resort type
- All-inclusive, adults only, designed for couples
- Age rule
- Every guest must be at least 18
- Rooms
- 255 rooms, in Luxury, Club Sandals and Butler categories, including new swim-up rooms and suites and Oceanview Club Rooms
- Restaurants and bars
- 9 restaurants and 6 bars, including the new Buccan (open-flame cooking) and Scrimshaw (seafood)
- Pools
- 7 pools and 3 whirlpools, with a completely redesigned main pool
- Water sports
- Scuba for certified divers, water skiing, wakeboarding, Hobie Cats, paddleboards, kayaks, snorkeling
- Spa
- Red Lane Spa (treatments are optional extras)
- Included
- All taxes and gratuities, airport lounge on arrival, round-trip airport transfers, Wi-Fi in all public areas and rooms, in-room minibar with wine and local beer
- Sister resort
- Shuttles to Sandals Caribbean Cay on select days and hours
- Check-in / check-out
- 3:00 pm / 11:00 am
- Airport
- About 15 minutes by transfer from Sangster International (MBJ), according to Sandals
Checked October 2026 against the sources below. See sources. Something changed? Tell me.
What stands out
- About a 15-minute transfer from Montego Bay airport, the shortest of any Sandals in Jamaica.
- Rebuilt for the reopening: a redesigned main pool, new swim-up rooms and suites, and new Buccan and Scrimshaw restaurants.
- Nine restaurants and six bars, plus shuttles to Sandals Caribbean Cay on select days.
- Water skiing, wakeboarding, Hobie Cats and scuba for certified divers are included.
- Tips, taxes, Wi-Fi, the airport arrival lounge and round-trip transfers are included.
What to know before booking
- Closed until Dec 18, 2026, and a rebuilt resort can take a few weeks to settle.
- Right beside the airport runway, so aircraft noise is part of the day.
- Adults only (18+) and designed for couples: not for families or a group of friends.
- Spa treatments, off-site tours, private dinners and weddings cost extra.
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Rooms
Sandals sorts the rooms into three levels: Sandals Luxury, Club Sandals (with concierge service) and Butler Elite. Every room it lists has a king bed and an outdoor Tranquility Soaking Tub for two, except the new Oceanview Club Room, which has a walk-in shower and a balcony dining set instead. The new categories for arrivals from Dec 18, 2026 include a Luxury Room with a balcony, Oceanview Club Rooms that Sandals puts at over 500 square feet, Oceanfront and Beachfront Swim-up Club rooms, Beachfront Club Villa Suites, and a brand-new Beachfront Swim-up One-Bedroom Butler Suite. Butler suites add a butler, VIP check-in and 24-hour in-room dining. Check the view in the room name when you book: it ranges from tropical garden to beachfront.
Food & drink
Sandals lists nine restaurants and six bars. New for the reopening are Buccan, with meats and vegetables cooked over open flames and served family-style, and Scrimshaw, a seafood restaurant with Sandals’ first live lobster tank. The rest of the list: Parisol, a beach-club spot by the sea for breakfast and long lunches; Butch’s steakhouse; Tesoro for Southern Italian pasta and stone-oven pizza; Soy Sushi Bar; Heart & Sol for bowls, sandwiches and juices; Blum for Blue Mountain coffee; and the Bay Roc Rum Bar, named for the Bay Roc hotel the resort grew out of, with more than 30 rums. A culinary concierge desk handles reservations and dietary needs; special preparations such as kosher meals need a month’s notice. Sandals’ evening dress code applies at some venues: for men, long pants or jeans and dress shoes or sandals, with no flip-flops or sneakers. My take: Butch’s and Scrimshaw are the two dinners I’d book first.
Pool & beach
Sandals calls the beach Jamaica’s largest secluded white-sand beach, and it’s private to the resort. The headline of the rebuild is the pool: a completely redesigned main pool meant to be the center of the resort, lined with new swim-up rooms. In all, Sandals lists seven pools and three whirlpools. The Caribbean’s first swim-up bar is still here, now part of Parisol Beach Club, with the original bricks carved with guests’ names kept as a tribute. Water skiing, wakeboarding, tubing, Hobie Cats, sailboats, paddleboards, kayaks and snorkeling are included, as is scuba for certified divers. Sandals also lists an overwater wedding chapel, at extra cost.
Location
The resort is on Kent Avenue, right beside Sangster International Airport, about 15 minutes by transfer according to Sandals, and transfers are included. Hip Strip life is close: Doctor’s Cave Beach Club and Margaritaville are a short taxi ride away, and downtown Montego Bay is a little farther. Locals will point you to Scotchies for jerk and Rose Hall Great House for an evening tour. Sandals Caribbean Cay is a short ride east along the coast, with shuttles on select days. See where to stay in Montego Bay for the wider area.
Questions people ask
Is Sandals Montego Bay open after Hurricane Melissa?
Not yet. It has been closed since Hurricane Melissa in October 2025 and reopens on Dec 18, 2026, according to Sandals and the Jamaica Tourist Board. Bookings are open for stays from that date.
What's new at Sandals Montego Bay?
Sandals lists a new lobby facing the sea, a completely redesigned main pool, new swim-up rooms and ocean-view suites, and two new restaurants, Buccan and Scrimshaw. The original swim-up bar stays as part of Parisol Beach Club.
Is Sandals Montego Bay adults only?
Yes. Sandals Montego Bay is an adults-only all-inclusive designed for couples, and every guest must be at least 18.
How far is Sandals Montego Bay from the airport?
It sits beside Sangster International (MBJ), and Sandals puts the transfer at about 15 minutes. Round-trip transfers are included.
Can Sandals Montego Bay guests use Sandals Caribbean Cay?
Sandals lists shuttles to Sandals Caribbean Cay on select days and hours. Check the current stay-and-play terms with Sandals when you book.
Sources & updates
- Sandals: Sandals Montego Bay overview, inclusions and reopening FAQs · checked
- Sandals: Sandals Montego Bay rooms and suites · checked
- Sandals: Sandals Montego Bay restaurants · checked
- Sandals: Sandals Montego Bay activities · checked
- Sandals: FAQs (check-in times, dress code, transfer times) · checked
- Sandals: adults-only resorts (age rule) · checked
- Sandals Resorts International press release: first look at the reimagined Jamaica resorts (Jun 2026, via Journal des Palaces) · checked
- Travelweek: Here's why Sandals 2.0 in Jamaica will be worth the wait (Jun 2026) · checked
- Jamaica Tourist Board: hotel reopening schedule · checked
Update log
- — New researched guide written ahead of the Dec 18, 2026 reopening; facts checked against Sandals, its June 2026 press release and the Jamaica Tourist Board.
- — Moved source citations out of the text
Spotted something out of date? Tell me and I’ll check it.