I just returned from another trip to Sandals Whitehouse which sits all by itself on the South Coast of Jamaica. I often have clients that are looking for this type of secluded area, but are worried about not having enough things to do “off the resort”. I can tell you there are plenty of things to do from Sandals Whitehouse and one of the more popular tours is YS Falls which is only 45 minutes from the resort.
My husband and I chose the YS Falls/Zipline Tour because the Black River area was closed. This tour was not only a highlight of our trip and very fun, but I thought the $71 per person tour price was an exceptionally good deal considering zipline tours all by themselves are usually in the $80 per person range. My only hesitation was that I’m really scared of heights, but I decided to go for it and go outside my comfort zone. Wow, I’m so glad I did.
We were picked up at Sandals Whitehouse at around 9am and had a fun tour guide that we called “Mommy”. As we made the 45 minute drive to YS Falls, she taught us a little Patoi (language Jamaicans speak in addition to English), let us know about the little parishes we passed through and gave us a general overview of the area.
Once we arrived, we got suited up in zipline apparel and the guides went over the safety information so we all felt very safe and excited to get going! The first zipline takes you directly across the top of the falls. Again, for me this was the scariest because I’m not only scared of heights, but had never done anything like this before. The second line is fun because you bounce through the jungle up to the spot where you are now at the top of YS Falls. Let’s just say, the third zipline is worth the whole trip. You basically zipline all the way down the falls and it is so thrilling. There are two more short zips you make before offloading your gear and moving on to the waterfalls. You get to jump in the falls, rope swing in, and basically just enjoy some time in the beautiful setting. This tour is great! You are back by 2pm and ready to eat lunch.
A tour many guests were raving about when I was there was Floyd’s Pelican Bar Tour. Sounds like a blast and is probably the most popular tour from Sandals Whitehouse, so you may want to pre book this tour before you leave. An Island Routes boat takes you from the pier about 45 minutes out to Floyd’s Pelican Bar which is on a sandspit in the middle of the sea. You are fed a lobster and fish feed and get to enjoy drinks and music. There are also stingrays to swim with. Everyone who came off the boat had huge smiles on their faces, so another tour you might not want to miss.
Other fun “off resort” activities from Sandals Whitehouse are the Appleton Rum Estate Tour (who doesn’t like a rum tour), horseback riding and if you are interested in immersing yourself in the local community, they even offer the Reading Road Trip tour for $20. Basically your $20 gets donated to a local school and you get to go take over a local classroom for a bit and read to the kids.
When you add in all the fun activities included at the resort (ie. Water skiing, snorkeling, diving, paddle boards, windsurfing, sailboats, kayaks etc.), you will not be bored. We are here to help with both choosing the best Sandals Resort for you and help with off resort tours as well. Just give us a call at 1-800-321-7907 and ask for Patty, Linda or Sandi.