About our rating systemYou might think the name is a reference to the musical legends—including Bob Dylan, the Rolling Stones, and reggae god Bob Marley—who first put this West End hotel on the map back in the 1970s.
However, “Rockhouse” is the perfect description of the boutique resort itself: a collection of rounded stone, timber, and thatch cottages with outdoor showers strewn along the low sea cliffs on the westernmost point of Jamaica. Stone pathways are carved through the rock, weaving past patches of palms onto the very tip of the headland, where a stunning swimming pool provides the best sunset sea views on the entire island.
The best villas—gorgeously simple cottages, really, with spare wood furnishings and poster canopy beds that do not distract from the beauty of the surroundings—are built right out of the rocks rising from the water’s edge, often with stone stairs down to a ladder where you can slip into the sea for a swim. Garden villas come with a lofted sleeping area so four can stay comfortably (though any children must be at least 12). The cheaper ocean-view studios and garden-view standard rooms occupy a low, colorful building set farther back on the grounds.
The main restaurant (recommended separately) is on a deck partly suspended over the water, with the waves crashing below, or you can walk around the inlet of the cove to Pushcart for classic Jamaican cuisine in an open, clifftop bar setting (it, too, get its own review in the restaurants section).
- Reid Bramblett
