Room with a Jamaican View: Hotel Mockingbird Hill

Tucked into the forests and organic gardens above the town of Port Antonio is Hotel Mockingbird Hill, an eco-boutique hotel that’s the epitome of Jamaica’s natural side.

Yes, this was the paradise I reveled in every time I gazed out my windows at Hotel Mockingbird Hill, an eco-friendly getaway in Jamaica. ©Laurel Kallenbach

Though not on the beach, the socially- and environmentally-conscious hotel overlooks the aquamarine water not far away. From its hilltop location, you can watch the sun set behind the Blue Mountains from the hotel’s restaurant and rooftop observatory.

In short, Hotel Mockingbird Hill is connected to the land, the sea, the sky and the community in a way that few places do.

The Luxury of Nature

“What is luxury? The definition has changed. It’s not just opulence; it’s having space and quiet.” –innkeeper Shireen Aga

Hotel Mockingbird Hill does indeed provide the most beautiful of places to relax and forget the cares of the world. Curl up on a deck chair, a pool chair or a day bed hidden in the verdant gardens for some R&R.

Indoors or out, I feel nature’s pulse from the moment I wake until I fall asleep—which is perhaps when I enjoy the earthiness the most.

After a satisfying, sustainable meal in the candlelit Mille Fleurs Restaurant (see my post for details about the wonderful cuisine), a hush settles over the hotel and the tree frogs sing their moonlight sonata. Fireflies (bigger than any I’ve seen before!) sparkle like fairies in the forest.

Night in the tropics: always relaxing when there’s a soft bed and the protection of mosquito netting. ©Laurel Kallenbach

While getting ready for bed each night, I kept all but one light off so as not to attract insects (there are no screens in the louvered windows so that nothing mars the view or separates you from the gardens and jungle surrounding the hotel.)

Then I would climb beneath the mosquito netting, which is rarely necessary if you turn on the ceiling fan above the bed; mosquitoes avoid the breeze.

Mosquito netting is one of my personal favorite luxuries: a diaphanous tent over my bed that assures that my sleep will be undisturbed by winged insects or the geckos who hunt for them.

To me, it’s a treat to sleep in a room open to nature, and mosquito netting over a comfy bed feels like a magic castle. On my first night at Mockingbird Hill, I awoke to fireflies in my room. One settled on the canopy above me and winked me back to sleep.

The pool at Hotel Mockingbird Hill is a refreshing blue lagoon. At twilight, the staff lights the lanterns to illuminate this picturesque area. ©Laurel Kallenbach

There are many other luxuries at this 10-room, eco-conscious inn:

• sipping a Red Stripe and jerk-spiced nuts at sundown
• meeting charming guests from England, Germany and the United States
• taking trips to the beach
• excursions for a raft ride or to Reach Falls
• strolling through the gardens and watching the hummingbirds
• lounging in the hammock in my room (and drinking in yet again that view!)
•  enjoying a cool dip in the chlorine-free pool.

—Laurel Kallenbach, freelance writer and editor

Originally published on May 5, 2010

Read more about my travels in Jamaica:

• A Cup of Jamaica’s Blue Mountain Coffee
• Creativity Blooms at a Writing/Yoga Retreat in Jamaica
• Rafting on Jamaica’s Rio Grande
• Reach Falls: Freshwater Fun in Jamaica
• Jamaica’s Colorful Roadside Attractions
• Winnifred Beach: Where Jamaica’s Locals Go
• What Makes Hotel Mocking Bird Hill So Green?
• Tropical Dining with a Jamaican Twist
• Artist Laura Facey’s Spiritual Voyage
  

  The colorful lobby of Hotel Mockingbird Hill is filled with tropical flowers and the sculptures of innkeeper/artist Barbara Walker. ©Laurel Kallenbach