Bluefields Bay

Bluefields is a long shallow bay on the quiet south-west coast, with a public beach used mostly by the village and a fishing community that did something unusual: in 2009 the fishers themselves established a no-take sanctuary across part of the bay, patrolled by wardens drawn from their own ranks, and within a few years fish biomass and coral cover had measurably recovered, making it one of the more successful community marine reserves in the Caribbean. Snorkelling in the protected zone is good and improving. The village behind has a long history, with one of the oldest botanical introductions on the island and a house where the naturalist Philip Gosse worked in the 1840s.

What you actually see

• The fish sanctuary - a community no-take zone with a measurable recovery.
• The public beach - used by the village rather than by resorts.
• Snorkelling - reef inside the protected area.
• Bluefields House - where Philip Gosse wrote on Jamaican birds.

When to go

December to April is drier and the water clearest. The bay is sheltered and calm most of the year. Weekends bring local families to the beach. Snorkelling trips are arranged through the sanctuary wardens.

Honest expectations

This is a village beach rather than a resort one: facilities are basic, there are no loungers or lifeguards, and litter appears after busy weekends. Access to the sanctuary snorkelling is best arranged with the wardens rather than swimming out unannounced. The main coast road runs close behind the sand and is noisy.

Nearby

Negril is 45 minutes north; Black River is 40 minutes east.