The 22-acre Montego Bay resort features tropical gardens and potted plants, lily ponds, acres of beach, and all the facilities necessary for either relaxing or active holidays. The open-air lobby rises two stories, allowing for sweeping ocean views, and is dotted with seating/conversation areas furnished with oversized couches, overstuffed chairs, and two-person rattan lounging beds.

"Coyaba," an Arawak word for a place of ease and rest, aptly captures the resort's appeal. A small lobby with mahogany accents, ceiling fans, and wicker chairs exemplifies its Colonial style. (Note: From December 22 through January 6, the resort does not accept children under 12 years of age.)

Limited to guests age 16 and older, the 22-acre resort supplies a tranquil, soothing ambience even when fully occupied. Spacious grounds include mango trees that supply the resorts kitchens, expansive lawns, flowering gardens, and eye-catching tropical species such as a huge, 300-year-old cotton tree. Isolated from the rest of the resort is a clothing-optional section that includes a separate beach.

Replicating the town of Falmouth's central square--including a "Town Hall" reception area, "Court House" conference center, fountain, and cobblestone streets--the resort invites adults (minimum age 16) into a gingerbread village with a strolling band, vendors, and a "fruit lady" dispensing exotic fruits. Even at full occupancy, the 85-acre resort offers ample relaxation room.

Begun in 1953 as a collection of villas on a 110-acre pineapple/allspice/coconut plantation, the resort has long served socialites and celebrities. Villa owners have included writer/producer Noel Coward, Viscount and Viscountess Rothermere, and, currently, designer Ralph Lauren. Accustomed to opulence, owners come here for the restful rusticity, which also attracts celebrity and non-celebrity couples and families.

Winston Churchill came and loved the light for watercolor painting. Actress Marilyn Monroe and husband/playwright Arthur Miller, playwright Noel Coward, and novelist Ian Fleming also visited. What they found at this hotel, and what still attracts an international clientele today, is spiritual refreshment far from the madding world. Sea, beach, gardens, tropical air, and the attentions of staff members each averaging 25 to 30 years' experience, recall the grace of the pre-electronic era. The resort, opened in 1950, has been family-owned for two generations.

This 22-acre resort attracts families, couples, and singles seeking activity-filled holidays. The steep site offers numerous vantage points for viewing the ocean, with gently sloped ramps offering alternatives to stairs.

The resort attracts an international clientele. Although families are welcome and some children's activities are included, the resort is primarily for adults. A partner resort, Riu Negril All Inclusive, at the north end of Bloody Bay, is more family-oriented and includes a children's clubhouse. This resort's guests may use all facilities at the partner resort, which is 1 km (0.75 mi) away by road and 700 meters (766 yds) by beach, and may eat breakfast and lunch there, but the partner resort's guests may not use this resort's facilities and restaurants.

With origins dating to the 1940s, the Couples Ocho Rios' tall trees and tropical foliage, expansive lawns, and flowering plants create a tranquil ambience for relaxation and romance. As the name signifies, the resort accepts only couples age 18 or older. Registration, accompanied by champagne and chilled towels, takes place while guests are seated in a breezy, marble-floor lobby with potted plants and banana-yellow walls.

Designed for uninhibited singles and couples age 18 or older, the resort draws both youthful and middle-aged clientele seeking lively holidays among like-minded people.

Designed for uninhibited singles and couples age 18 or older, the Hedonism III draws a youthful clientele seeking lively holidays among like-minded people.

The casual resort attracts guests seeking relaxed holidays and access to renowned Doctor's Cave Beach. This resort has the added benefit of being adjacent to the main tourist strip on Gloucester Avenue, dubbed the "Hip Strip" where shops and nightclubs abound. The resort accepts ONLY adults and older children (minimum age 14).

Set among ponds, natural foliage, and sand, this 7-hectare (18-acre) environment-friendly resort includes seafoam-green paint allowed to acquire a weathered patina, unfinished-wood sunning decks and walkways, natural-rattan furniture, and naturalistic gardens. The Couples Negril welcomes couples age 18 or older.

Notable for friendly Jamaican hospitality with a hint of adventure, jungle-lush flowering gardens, and a casual atmosphere, the Jamaican-owned resort attracts families seeking relaxation and water sports for adults and activities for children. The resort provides a complimentary vacation nanny.

Small and intimate, this resort caters especially to families. With a staff-to-guest ratio of 1:1, a vacation nanny service, four restaurants, and a multitude of activities, the resort predominantly attracts parents of young children and infants, and, sometimes, teenage siblings.

Ian Fleming wrote his 13 James Bond novels here, creating the rustic estate in 1946 after he had fallen in love with Jamaica during a World War II intelligence mission to the island. He built a barn-like home, still standing, on 15 acres. Noel Coward rented the house for two months and then built his own home, Firefly, nearby. Celebrities flocked to both properties.

Compact, intimate, and tranquil, this resort attracts guests looking for fewer activities and more relaxation. The resort location is another draw as it is walking-distance access to Montego Bay's Hip Strip shopping and nightlife. (Guests must be couples at least 18 years of age.)

Arrayed over 26 acres of flowering gardens, lily ponds, and rubber, mango, and palm trees on the North Coast near the airport's runways, Sandals Montego Bay draws romantic couples seeking day and night group activities as well as space for being alone together. (Guests must be couples at least 18 years of age.)

Couples, couples planning to marry or celebrate unions, and families favor this beachside resort. Separate buildings connected by pathways and gardens house studios, suites, and townhousesall with kitchenettescreating a village atmosphere. Balconies with blue or yellow wrought-iron railings overlook winding lanes bordered by palm trees rustling in the breeze and lushly vegetated grounds.