How do I get around Montego Bay?

Licensed charter taxis are the only transport worth trusting from Sangster International Airport. JUTA (Jamaica Union of Travellers Association) and JCAL drivers operate from a dispatcher booth outside customs. A JUTA taxi from Sangster to the Hip Strip on Gloucester Avenue runs about 2,000-2,500 JMD ($13-16 USD at 158 JMD to the dollar). To Rose Hall, expect 3,000-4,000 JMD. None of these are metered. You agree on a price at the dispatcher's booth before walking to the car. The dispatcher is the critical step. Skip it and freelance drivers in the arrivals hall will quote double. JUTA taxis carry red PPV plates (Public Passenger Vehicle). If the plate is white, the driver is unlicensed and uninsured. Walk past the solicitors. Every time.

Route taxis follow fixed corridors and pick up passengers along the way. They're the white Toyota Corollas and Proboxes with red plates, packed tight with 4-5 people in a sedan. The main corridor runs from Sam Sharpe Square downtown through Gloucester Avenue to Ironshore. A seat costs 150-250 JMD ($1-1.60 USD). You flag one down, tell the driver your stop, and pay cash when you exit. The horn tap means "I have space," and you'll hear it constantly along the Hip Strip. Minibuses work the same way on longer routes toward Falmouth or Lucea, with reggae rattling through blown speakers and vinyl seats hot enough to burn bare thighs at midday. No air conditioning in most. That said, they move fast and cost next to nothing. The catch: routes aren't posted anywhere. Ask your hotel front desk which route number reaches your destination, or you'll end up circling back to Sam Sharpe Square.

Walking works on Gloucester Avenue, the 2 km tourist strip between the airport roundabout and Doctor's Cave Beach. Sidewalks exist here, and the salt breeze off the Caribbean takes the edge off 33°C afternoons. Jerk chicken smoke drifts from roadside grills on both sides. You can walk the full length in 25 minutes. Outside this corridor, sidewalks vanish. The A1 highway shoulder is not a pedestrian path, no matter what Google Maps suggests. Downtown around Sam Sharpe Square has some walkable blocks, but solo-traveler safety scores 3.2 out of 10 (see the TTDI Solo-Safety Index), and the midday humidity turns even a 10-minute walk into a sweat-soaked effort. Carry water. Stick to mornings before 10 AM.

Rental cars are available at Sangster International from Island Car Rentals, Avis, and Budget. A compact runs $45-65 USD per day. Jamaicans drive on the left, British-style, and the A1 coastal road between Montego Bay and Ocho Rios is narrow with blind curves. Gas costs roughly 220 JMD per liter ($1.40 USD). If you rent, stick to daylight hours; road markings fade after dark, and goats drift onto the shoulder without warning. Mind you, a car is the only practical way to reach YS Falls or the Blue Hole without paying a tour operator $80-120 USD per person. For anything within the city itself, a JUTA charter or a route taxi is faster, cheaper, and lets someone who knows these roads do the driving.