Jamaica: The Tryall Club

Katherine Gould is a luxury travel consultant for Sterling Brownell. She has just returned from a fabulous time with her family at the Tryall Club in Jamaica. Read on for her reviews.

I recently spent two weeks with my family at The Tryall Club, which is located just outside of Montego Bay in Jamaica. This trip marked my third visit to Jamaica and was by far my best! I'm a Caribbean expert who travels regularly to that part of the world - in fact, I've visited over 20 islands to date. The Tryall Club is a 2200 acre oasis of privately owned villas, set amidst some of the prettiest scenery one could imagine. The property is immense and breathtaking - scenic vistas can be found everywhere, which can be enjoyed not only from the verandahs of most of the villas there but also from the comfort of your own golf cart, which comes with every villa rental.

We opted for a 3 bedroom villa, which ended up being the ideal choice for us. Also included in the villa rental rate was a full staff (consisting of a chef, maid, laundress and gardener). The staff was exceptional. We were treated incredibly well, and I couldn't have been more impressed with their professionalism and the kindness they showed to my children. We also hired a nanny, who was as exceptional as the villa staff. She took care of my daughter each day while we played on the beach with our son.

The Tryall Club is a fantastic destination for families or a group of couples because it offers a wide array of activities. They have a robust tennis program, lovely 18 hole golf course, extensive beach activities, a recently renovated fitness facility that is one of the best I've seen in the Caribbean, as well as a newly expanded Kids Club with many activities offered for Tryall's youngest guests. Another unique aspect of the property is the size and safety of it. Guests can explore freely - we spent hours with our children in the evenings driving around in our golf cart, taking in the beautiful scenery.

Other favorite activities included a glass bottom boat tour at nearby Round Hill resort, kayaking off the beach at Tryall with our little boy, lounging by our private pool (all villas also come with those) and spending evenings with my husband on the verandah overlooking the ocean, enjoying a glass of wine (or two!!!).

There is truly something for everyone at Tryall, and the accommodation choices are vast - guests can choose anything from a 1 to 8 bedroom home, all of which are located in the hills overlooking the ocean or right by the ocean. I personally toured six different villas, and each one I saw was decorated beautifully and offered lovely views.

We did venture off property a bit, hiring the same driver to take us to all of our excursions. He was fantastic and very knowledgable. An additional trip highlight was lunch at a local cafe (which the driver selected and escorted us to), sampling true Jamaican cuisine. The food was divine, and it was a neat cultural experience.

Some people believe Jamaica is unsafe for visitors - I couldn't disagree more - we felt utterly safe wherever we were (on and off property), and I believe the Jamaicans are perhaps the friendliest and most service oriented people in the Caribbean. The staff at Tryall was no exception. They went above and beyond on every detail. The service combined with the natural beauty, luxurious accomodations, and plentiful activity options puts Tryall at the top of my list!

If you are interested in learning more about family travel in the Caribbean, contact Katherine by clicking here. To learn more about Brownell Travel, click here.