I just returned from a week long stay at Hotel Mockingbird Hill and it was spectacular! After spending a week in Negril and at another location in Port Antonio, I was excited to check into Hotel Mockingbird Hill for a week of relaxation and bird watching. This ended up being the perfect place to rest, rejuvenate, and see lots of birds! I also had delicious meals from their new restaurant menu (Chef Kion is spectacular) and Anise always provided great service. I am lucky enough to be able to work remotely, so I had to work two days of my stay. I was a bit nervous about the internet, but it was stable enough to support me being on VPN and having multiple calls a day. Strangely, the upload speed is faster than the download speed here (most places its the opposite) so if you are trying to stream video or games all day you might have an issue. This is not the place for that though! This did end up being a VERY relaxing place to work - Anise recommended the most beautiful desk in the photo - and I would recommend it. As the upload speed was high I had no issues in my meetings and people said my connection was stable. As another reviewer mentioned this would be a great place to write a book or work on a project thay requires concentration. Once I got my obligatory two days of work out of the way I spent tons of time exploring the gardens. These are the true highlight of the property and I spent several hours just walking the grounds. The hotel is also very close to Frenchmans Cove and multiple other beaches, but I would not recommend walking at this time due to the dust of the roads at the bottom of the hill. Its a short drive and there are taxis once you get to the bottom of the hill - which is an easy walk. As multiple other people mentioned - yes - there is construction going on and it makes the journey here a bit slower. In my opinion you can DEF do them without a 4x4 you just need to take your time. One other comment I wanted to address was about the bugs! Yes! You are in a tropical climate and in an area with lush vegetation! There will be bugs! Bring some bug spray and youll be fine! I stayed at a 5 star hotel in the area that cost 3x the price and they had mosquitos too! Its unavoidable and dont go into nature if you dont actually like nature lol! Thank you again to all the staff at Hotel Mockingbird Hill that made my stay do wonderful. I will be returning soon!…
The proximity of the hotel to recognized birding hot-spots was one reason for staying here, but the grounds themselves were truly wonderful to explore or simply to enjoy via overviews from the comfortable upper-level porch. Welcome signage in the rooms encourages guests to pay attention to water conservation and to minimizing the use of non-recyclables. Angela and the staff were so helpful, and the meals we had onsite were beautifully presented and very tasty (especially the coconut curries).
This was my first visit to Jamaica, and it was as part of a group of 11 people with birding guides. Our first 2 nights were in Montego Bay and then we drove a few hours to reach this magical place. Angela, the manager, was very gracious and everyone who worked on the property were helpful and friendly. My room overlooked the forest trails and the ocean and there were even more stunning views from the upper decks of the main hotel building. The bed was comfortable and I slept under the mosquito netting (on the king sized 4-poster bed) so that I could leave the lovely shutter-doors open to the night sky and sounds. A fantastic getaway from screens and electronics, and lovely flowers and well-maintained nature trails for hiking, birding and photography right on the grounds!!
I stayed there for 4 nights with a birding group. It was ideal for birding as the grounds are just lovely with native vegitation and filled with birds. It is too bad they don't serve breakfast earlier than 8 AM though. That is much too late for birders. Dinner was excellent and the chef is just incredible! My room was palatial and so light and airy. The view of the Caribbean Sea from the hotel is amazing.
Management very difficult. We left early so we could enjoy our vacation Worth it to lose money rather than have more of a very bad experience. The property is beautiful but it is for sale and the absentee owners just want to sell
Such a relief to arrive at this charming small hotel with efficient sympatico front of house, elegant, airy rooms complete with comfy beds and mosquito nets. Food ordered in from local caterer along with beers. The fine extensive gardens teem with wildlife , lots of birds, a mongoose and delightful lizards. Sound track on Sundays start with spirited preaching from local church followed by vinyl Sunday reggae. Rest of the time bird song, and at night cicadas and frogs. All very relaxing. We will prioritise a further visit next time we are in Jamaica.
Wow, what an amazing location. The staff are all friendly and very helpful. The rooms are exactly as described and you have access to beautiful gardens and the amazing north-east coast of Jamaica . The eco credentials are impressive. Post Covid, there is no on site restaurant, cafe, bar or breakfast facility . While all of this can be brought in, guests booking via Expedia should be made aware this needs to planned in advance and, in our view, affects the ambience ( particularly lack of a cafe/bar). This change is also not really clear on the website or pre arrival emails via Expedia, which is important, particularly as there are so many positive pre Covid reviews of the breakfasts and the Mille Fleur restaurant Thanks again for a great stay Angela/team and we hope you have a great season and that it becomes possible to make some adjustments as the business returns from Covid .…
This was our first trip to Jamaica and our honeymoon. I can truly say that our stay in Portland at the Mocking Bird Hill more than exceeded our expectations. The ambiance at Mocking Bird Hill and the lush tropical, colourful vegetation and birdlife surrounding the hotel creates a relaxing and most serene environment - a much welcome and humbling escape from the hustle and bustle of the city life we are used to. Angela, Paula and the rest of the team at the hotel were amongst the loveliest people we've met. They made our stay very personal, attended to all our needs and made sure we got the most of our limited time in Portland. They truly made it feel like a 'home from home' and we are very grateful for each and everyone's immense contribution to our stay. For anyone wanting to stay at a hotel that is warm, friendly, luxurious and comfortable, then Mocking Bird Hill is the place. The drive from the Kingston Airport is quite long and tiring (especially after a 10 hour flight from London), but that's quickly forgotten at the first glimpse of the stunning natural beauty within which this charming hotel is based. We stayed in a deluxe room overlooking the lush tropical garden and sea beyond. The room itself was very clean, spacious and surprisingly breezy - the fully opening doors leading to the terrace expressed a sense of indoor/outdoor living which added to the experience. This, along with the hotel's eco-friendly approach really encourages guests to enjoy and experience the gorgeous surroundings and appreciate this part of Jamaica for all its beauty and authenticity. The hotel has many activities to offer, from organising hiking up the Blue Mountains, bird watching, car hire and arranging transport to the various beautiful beaches that are so close to the hotel (Frenchman's Cove, Winifred Beach, Boston Beach etc). For us, the most unforgettable experience was rafting down the Rio Grande where we were hosted by a lovely local gentleman named Kevin (Captain no. 6) whose friendliness, politeness and humility made our day - a stop at Belinda's cafe is a must on this excursion and I can confidently say that her jerk chicken was the best chicken dish I've tasted in as long as I could remember. Walking on the roads in Port Antonio was also very nice. All the locals are very friendly and eager to talk to us - be sure to greet people as you walk by, they visibly appreciate it! Overall - what an amazing 6 days we had here. I can't wait to visit again, hopefully not too far in the future and for a longer period!…
Lovely stay in January, Angela was a very thoughtful host. Despite challenges of lockdown the hotel very much felt like a 'home from home' and the room and grounds were excellent. Beautiful views of the coastline and well located for Port Antonio and beaches.
small peaceful, surrounded by lush vegetation. the location in the hills provide another type of experience. wonderful rooms, great service, lots of open spaces to sit outside and relax. away from the maddening crowds, no elevators etc. Access to beach is available. The service is excellent.
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