Hotels in Jamaica

New to the Gold List

On the beach at Bloody Bay, this all-inclusive has green tile, rattan couches, and exposed wood beams that create an air of "Caribbean chic and sophistication." Pastel-colored rooms are decorated with local handicrafts, and the spa, set in a lush garden, offers seaweed wrap treatments and deep-tissue massage,"just going there is a very tranquil experience." Local musicians perform at the Piano Bar.

234 rooms

Amenities: Beach, Golf, Pool, Tennis, Water sports

New to the Gold List

This beachfront resort of red-roofed, whitewashed buildings has "pretty spectacular gardens and landscaping." Scuba-diving certification courses and horseback plantation tours are complimentary. Rooms, decorated in soft yellows, tropical prints, and bamboo, with dark-wood furniture, "seem too dark considering the location." Island cuisine is served at Calabash.

206 rooms

Amenities: Beach, Pool, Spa, Tennis, Water sports

Also featured on the Gold List in: 2005

This resort, set apart from other hotels along Negril's Seven Mile Beach, creates "an intimacy and a sense of seclusion," garnering a perfect Location score. Rooms have dark-wood beds, honey-colored ceramic floors, and slatted doors that open onto a veranda. The recently added Great House has a dance club and two restaurants: Feathers for Continental cuisine and Patois Patio for island-style tapas.

312 rooms

Amenities: Beach, Pool, Spa, Water sports

New to the Gold List

"You need a golf cart to get around" this former plantation outside Montego Bay. The white exterior contrasts with the colors of sky, sea, and land. Rooms are divided among five areas, and decor varies from colonial to Victorian to tropical. Choose from several restaurants, including the Italian Il Giardino, where "quantity trumps quality." A spa was added in 2006.

398 rooms

Amenities: Beach, Golf, Pool, Spa, Tennis, Water sports

New to the Gold List

"Staff are like family" at this colonial hotel on a private beach. Rooms in horseshoe-shaped buildings facing the Caribbean afford "inspirational sea views" and are outfitted with island antiques and fresh flowers. The restaurant's Euro-Caribbean meals end with "the world's best fudge served with Jamaican coffee." Spa treatments take place in thatched-roof huts on a bluff overlooking the sea.

51 rooms

Amenities: Beach, Pool, Spa, Water sports

New to the Gold List

Once part of a pineapple plantation, this Hollywood hangout spans a 110-acre peninsula. "One of the highlights is afternoon tea overlooking the ocean" from the lobby cafe, designed by Ralph Lauren. Rooms have peaked white ceilings, stained-bamboo four-posters, and "sunset views you will never forget." The new infinity pool incorporates stones from a former sugar works.

110 rooms

Amenities: Beach, Pool, Spa, Tennis, Water sports

Also featured on the Gold List in: 2005

Italian Renaissance meets Jamaican panache at the former Sandals Dunn's River, a 25-acre all-inclusive. Italian art and frescoes decorate the common spaces, and "tropical-style rooms" have mahogany four-posters and porcelain floors. White-gloved staff serve international cuisine at Marco Polo, one of five restaurants.

250 rooms

Amenities: Beach, Golf, Pool, Spa, Tennis, Water sports

New to the Gold List

On 50 acres in a Parker's Bay nature reserve, this two-year-old all-inclusive has a Venetian piazza and a "distinctly European" lobby with marble columns and vaulted ceilings. Rooms have showers so large "they could fit ten people." The seven dining options include lobster at Bayside and strip steak at Eleanor's.

360 rooms

Amenities: Beach, Pool, Spa, Tennis, Water sports