Alfreds Ocean Palace-About Negril

What's Available!
The town of Negril has pretty much all of the comforts of home.
Grocery Stores, Medical Services, Pharmacies, Liquor Stores, Post Office, Banks, Internet Cafes, Cellular Telephone Services, Car & Bike Rental, Small Plane Airport, Tourist Gift Shops, Film Processing, Churches, Hardware Stores & a Craft Market
and more!

Facts & Info.
*Average daytime temperatures are about 80 to 85 degrees. Night temperatures usually drop to a comfortable 70 to 75 degrees. Summertime is usually warmer.
*English is the official spoken language but patois, a broken English with African & Spanish influences is used more often between the locals.
*Drinking water is purified & filtered by the most modern methods.
*Time zone is eastern standard time. Daylight savings time is not observed.
*Electricity is 110 volts/50 cycles.
*Public phones are available but not in abundance. You must purchase a special card from a local vendor in order to use these public phones, they Do Not work with coins. International and local calling cards are available for purchase at most shops.
*Cellular phones(pre-paid) are available to purchase from several different companies. Digicell & Cable & Wireless Jamaica are most common. Phone's are fairly reasonable in price, starting at about $40.U.S. & up. You then purchase talk time via a phone card. These phones can be purchased in Negril at cellphone outlets.
*Currency is the Jamaican dollar. The value of the Jamaican dollar fluctuates but at present time (August 2007) it is approximately Ja.$65.00 to U.S.$1.00.
*The Jamaican sun is hottest in the midday between 11 a.m. & 3 p.m. It is recommended for the average person to take only 20 to 30 minutes of sun a day. Sun screen protection is also recommended.
*Taxi's are unmetered & readily available but only charter licensed cars with red plates. Always negotiate & settle on a price before getting into a taxi.
*There is a protection season for the lobster, when they are reproducing they can not be harvested between April 1st through June 30th.
*There is a protection season for Conch, their numbers are dwindling from over fishing. Conch season is closed between July 1st through October 31st.
*Drugs are illegal.
*Departure Tax-a government imposed tax on tourists leaving Jamaica. Check with your travel agent for the current cost.

A Little History...
Alfred's Ocean Palace is located in the town of Negril at the western tip of Jamaica. Once a sleepy little fishing village Negril was for the most part, discovered by American hippies in the sixties. Not set up for tourists at this time, the hippies would just show up & make arrangements to stay with some of the friendly Jamaican families, sleeping wherever room was available. A secluded paradise, far away from first world hustle & bustle, Negril is the perfect spot to "get away from it all" offering a laid back atmosphere on the crystal blue waters of the Caribbean sea, with breathtaking sunsets & seven miles of white sand beach. Also offering the attractions of Negril's West End, where rocky cliffs pop-up out of the sea giving an alternative to the beach life. These cliffs get to be as high as 60 feet and are laced with underground tunnels & caves where it is said that runaway slaves hid from their captors in the days of British & Spanish rule. Today these cliffs offer a happier side to life with swimming, snorkeling, beautiful views & again, great sunsets. The word about Negril didn't take long to spread & in the late seventies & early eighties it started to boom with the tourist industry. Hotels, restaurants & bars started to appear & tourists from all over the world began to make Negril one of the number one vacation destinations. Concerned about the impact of the tourist industry on this environment & maintaining Negril's rustic atmosphere, Negrillions set some rules to protect their growing town such as, no buildings can be higher than the tree line. No high rise hotels on this beach. Also the fragile coral reef has it's own preservation society to protect it. The rule here is "look but don't touch" or "leave nothing behind & take only memories".
Negril is a place where time slows down & people take time to enjoy life & all it has to offer.