Luxury Hotels Atlas / Places / Jamaica / Blue Mountains / Strawberry Hill
Strawberry Hill
Blue Mountains, Jamaica · Island Outpost · Core Luxury
High in Jamaica's Blue Mountains, this plantation land has grown coffee, bananas, and mangoes since the 1700s and was named after Horace Walpole's English estate. Island Records founder Chris Blackwell bought it in 1972, Bob Marley recovered here after the 1976 attempt on his life, and Hurricane Gilbert flattened the Great House in 1988 before Blackwell rebuilt and opened the hotel in 1994.
- Opened 1994
- Neighborhood: Surrey County
- Rooms from 400 sq ft (37 m²)
About Strawberry Hill
- The land has been a working coffee, banana, and mango plantation since the 1700s, named after Horace Walpole's English estate, to whom legend says it was once deeded.
- Hurricane Gilbert flattened the original Great House in 1988, prompting Blackwell to rebuild the resort, which opened as a hotel in 1994.
- Its guest book includes figures such as Mick Jagger and Prince Charles, reflecting its deep reggae and cultural history in Jamaica's Blue Mountains.
- The smallest published suite or villa start at 400 sq ft (37 m²).
History
Strawberry Hill sits high in Jamaica's Blue Mountains above Kingston, on land that has been a working plantation since the 1700s—named after the English estate of Horace Walpole, to whom legend says the land was once deeded. Planted with coffee, bananas and mangoes, its Great House had become a celebrated guest house by the 1940s, famed for Sunday tea in its private botanic garden. Island Records founder Chris Blackwell bought the property in 1972 as a private retreat; it was here that Bob Marley recovered after the 1976 attempt on his life.
After Hurricane Gilbert flattened the Great House in 1988, Blackwell rebuilt Strawberry Hill as a resort, opening it as a hotel in 1994 with a new Great House and a scatter of 19th-century-style cottages set into the hillside. Now part of Blackwell's Island Outpost collection, the retreat is steeped in reggae and cultural history, its guest book reading like a who's who of music and celebrity.
The setting
2 miles from I-35: Cute.
Restaurants and bars
- The Restaurant at Strawberry Hill — Restaurant · locally sourced New Jamaican cuisine
- The Bamboo Room — Restaurant
Experiences
- Infinity Pool — A pool suspended high above Kingston, described as iconic, that can host up to a hundred guests.
- The Restaurant — Serves locally sourced New Jamaican cuisine in an airy room with white wood jalousies and fretwork, seating up to 80.
- The Gold Room — A multi-media centre memorializing the Chris Blackwell and Bob Marley creative partnership.
- Yoga Pavilion — Sits at the edge of the Main Lawn with views of the Blue Mountain peaks; can also host events and weddings.
Amenities
- Infinity Pool
- Jadevine Courtyard
- The Gold Room multi-media center
- Private Dining Rooms
- Honeymoon Registry
- Wedding packages and Wedding Calendar
Open Strawberry Hill in the atlas for live weekend rates, photos, and the full folio.
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