Errol Flynn called Port Antonio heaven on earth. A description echoed by subsequent visitors who have found this island Eden to be the perfect vacation destination. Orchids, bananas and palm trees grow in profusion.
Waterfalls drop into fern-edged pools.
Some of the island's most elegant villas and charming small hotels are tucked on hillsides overlooking secluded azure coves. Founded in 1723 as the capital of Portland Parish, Port Antonio was Jamaica's most important center for banana growth and export in the late 1800s. Today, Port Antonio's unrivalled scenery make it a popular location for movies and fashion shoots, while its resorts and villas continue to attract royalty, movie stars and captains of industry, commerce and politics. From the Romanesque ruins of the Folly, a mansion unwisely built of concrete and sea water, to Fort George, an 18th century British stronghold whose cannons still point to sea, the past is only a heartbeat away in Port Antonio. Maybe that's why life moves at a slower pace than it does elsewhere, so there's more time to enjoy swimming, snorkeling or scuba diving in the shimmering Blue Lagoon, which is fed by freshwater springs and sid to reach a depth of 200 feet.