GoldenEye
Location: Oracabessa, Jamaica
Barefoot luxury in the Caribbean
Location: Jamaica
Website: goldeneye.com
GoldenEye is special not just for its beautifully appointed villas, lagoon cottages and fabulous beach huts among the tropical plants and sandy coves, but because it’s where Ian Fleming penned all 14 James Bond novels.
Now owned by Island Records founder Chris Blackwell, who bought the hotel in 1976, the property is a true bastion of island life. It boasts a spa cottage right on the edge of the lagoon, a rum bar serving smoky plates from the Jamaican Jerk BBQ, the Bizot Bar for casual lunches and poolside breakfasts, and a rooftop bar with cocktails and views. The latest addition, five-bedroom Villa Vesper, is the second largest villa at GoldenEye, and perfect for older families.
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Local area
Wildly romantic Jamaica ticks much of the Caribbean holiday hit list: tropical beaches and bays, a lively music culture, important history and world-famous street food. Some of the island's big-hitters might be found in Jamaica’s capital, Kingston (the Bob Marley Museum, Hope Gardens), a two-hour drive from GoldenEye, but there is plenty to see and do in Oracabessa, on the north coast, where the property is located.
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This little town is 16km from the busy resort of Ocho Rios, and plucked straight from the reel of a James Bond movie – because it is. This is where Ian Fleming was inspired to write his 14 spy novels, so the setting is immortalised in literature and film. There are few places to stay in and around Oracabessa aside from GoldenEye and Fleming Villa (where the author lived) but celebrities have been coming here for years; Charlie Chaplin once described the area as, "like no place on earth, simply paradise".
Two public beaches worth visiting, James Bond Beach and Reggae Beach, have held some prestigious music events and festivals over the years, and offer the typical tropical beach experience (complete with rum bar). Firefly, the house that Noel Coward built, is 15 minutes’ drive from GoldenEye and worth a visit, while over towards Ocho Rios, there are plantation tours and trails to and through Dolphin Cove, Dunn’s River Falls and Mystic Mountain, where visitors can even embark on a bobsled ride.
If you’re heading out for lunch or dinner, you must go to Chris’ Cafe – think fresh curry shrimp and pineapple salad – served in an authentic street setting, which you can reach in 20 minutes on foot or two minutes in the car. Or there’s Maxine’s Hot Spot (also a 20-minute walk) for rum and beers, and Dor’s by the racecourse (a two-minute drive) for an authentic rustic fish bar experience.
Discover more about GoldenEye here: goldeneye.com