WHITE sand beaches, crystal blue seas and year-round heat are just a few of the reasons why Norse Atlantic Airways added another Caribbean gem to its route map.
On December 1 last year, the Norwegian airline took its inaugural flight from Gatwick to Montego Bay on the sunny island of Jamaica.
And the best part is tickets cost from as little as £303 each way.
Here are ten reasons to visit the country crowned Britain’s number one Caribbean destination.
SUNSET HORSEBACK RIDES
THE thought of mounting a horse may fill you with fear, but riding one into the sea is one of Jamaica’s most popular activities.
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Plodding through the waves off Negril in late afternoon meant we had a bright orange sunset as our backdrop.
Guides at Jamwest Motorsports and Adventure Park always pair riders with the steed best suited to their size and experience.
An hour-long ride costs around £75 ($96) per adult (see jamwest.com).
RIVER RAFTING ALONG MARTHA BRAE
JAMAICANS are known for their laidback lifestyle, and drifting along the slow-moving Martha Brae river is a perfect way to emulate this — viator.com has a number of tours.
For an hour, one of 85 expert captains used a huge bamboo oar to gently guide us in pairs on the 30ft-long raft.
Each vessel is made from the same wood which overhangs the three-mile stretch of water near the Jamaican town of Falmouth, in the area where Olympic sprinter Usain Bolt lived.
CLIMB DUNN’S RIVER FALLS
DUNN’S River Falls are undoubtedly Jamaica’s best-known tourist attraction and a national treasure.
Groups of ten hold hands as an experienced guide leads them up the 960ft natural waterfall.
More adventurous climbers can scale it solo, but water shoes are essential.
It flows straight into the Caribbean Sea in the port town of Ocho Rios, where cruise ships dock.
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The spot featured in Sean Connery’s first outing as 007 in 1962 movie Dr No, as he spied on bikini-wearing Bond girl Ursula Andress.
Tickets cost from about £20 ($25) at dunnsriverfallsja.com.
EAT LIKE A LOCAL
JERK chicken or pork are obvious specialities and you can’t miss the distinctive blend of allspice, cayenne pepper and thyme from roadside oil drum barbecues.
Locals will recommend a Scotchies Jerk Centre for the best taste of their national delicacy in a rustic, home-style setting.
Side dishes such as rice, peas and plantain — or my personal favourite, festival dumplings, which are similar to doughnuts — will leave diners’ mouths watering.
Fresh seafood is also to die for on the island, yet digging into lobster at Gloria’s Seafood City in Kingston, or freshly caught shrimp at Pier 1 on the Waterfront in Montego Bay, won’t break the bank.
I loved the cuisine so much, I had peppered steak and stewed chicken for breakfast and lunch.
BOB MARLEY MUSEUM
BOB Marley has a God-like reputation in Jamaica.
His picture is everywhere and the influence of his music is inescapable.
His former home in Kingston is immaculately preserved and filled with memorabilia after being converted into a museum five years on from his death.
Visitors can see the recording studio where he mixed records including Uprising, and inspect the bullet hole-riddled kitchen where he survived a 1976 assassination attempt.
They are even invited to buy cannabis, which is decriminalised there, at the Marley Natural Dispensary.
DRINK LIKE A LOCAL
REGGAE legend Marley also has a well-known cocktail and shot named after him.
Both recreate the colours of the Rasta flag — red, yellow and green — by layering grenadine, pineapple juice or banana liqueur, plus rum.
They’re popular with tourists, as is the island’s finest gold rum, Appleton Estate.
But locals will tell you Wray and Nephew’s 63 per cent Overproof is best.
BREATHTAKING BEACHES
THE island is home to some of the world’s most stunning beaches, its most famous being the serene Seven Mile Beach in Negril.
It’s perfect for watersports, and you can rent paddleboards, kayaks, jet skis, scuba gear and boats.
Tourists on a day trip to Montego Bay can stop at private Doctor’s Cave Beach Club, where the water is said to have curative qualities.
CULTURE IN KINGSTON
VISITORS to a luxury resort might not get to fully experience Jamaica’s rich culture.
But book on to the Kingston Creative mural tour (about £13, kingstoncreative.org) and you’ll get to admire a wealth of artworks painted across the walls of Water Lane.
The walk includes a virtual reality feature where pointing your phone at the wall plays a video showing the story behind each piece.
HOT HOTELS
EXCELLENT resorts line the coast, including the brilliant Azul Beach Resort, where couple rooms include hire fees for non-motorised vessels.
Further west in Ocho Rios, the equally fantastic Couples Tower Isle does glass-bottom boat trips.
If you’re honeymooning or travelling with your other half, this hotel has its own private island which you can exclusively book for dinner from $330 per couple.
Any couples who stay at the hotel for six nights or more within one year of their wedding will bag a free honeymoon package that includes a bottle of sparkling wine and 25-minute couples’ massage.
THE GREEN GROTTO CAVES
JAMES BOND returned to Jamaica in 1973 for Roger Moore’s debut in Live And Let Die, which saw him tied up with Jane Seymour in the Green Grotto Caves.
The limestone system, named after the green algae that covers its walls, is home to nine different species of bat.
Visitors wear hard hats as they make their way down to the underground lake.
The crystal-clear water is mythically known as a fountain of youth, which combats ageing.
It is also steeped in history from when the Spanish used it as a hideout during the English 17th Century invasion — and the Jamaican government stored rum barrels there in World War Two.
Tours cost from about £16 ($20) at greengrottocavesja.com.
