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The island of Jamaica, situated in the northwestern Caribbean Sea, seems an unlikely place for surfing to develop. Cut off from the large southward moving swells of the north Atlantic by it's larger neighbors, Cuba and Hispaniola, Jamaica seems trapped in the middle of the tiny, tranquil, Caribbean Sea, with very little potential for receiving good surfing waves, except maybe for when a hurricane passes by, which could provide a good swell, or be all blown out, or even worse... blow the whole freakin' island away! However, under closer scrutiny we find that this is definitely not the case. The truth is that Jamaica is blessed with an eight-month surf season with the remaining four months of flat time broken up into short one or two week spells. This provided the perfect raw material for the development of Jamaican surfing. The full potential of Jamaica's surf is still to be realized.
Jamaica is still a ways from being a regular international surf destination so you're not likely to encounter too many surfers there besides the locals. That's not to say all the beaches will be empty. Far from it, they all have their own cadre of dedicated locals, many of whom surf very well.
The usual amount of nasty reefs, mosquitoes, and pot-holed roads pepper Jamaica with typical surf destination hazards. Sharks are not really a concern, although too many white boys moving around in a rental vehicle can attract land sharks. Make contacts in the surf scene before you go, and count on them as escorts. It's really the only way to approach Jamaica. Jamnesia Surf Camp is the best place to start.
This is the most consistent surf season for Jamaica with continuous trade winds fanning a thousand miles of Caribbean sea and pumping non stop swell straight at the reggae island. With only a couple hours of glass in the mornings, summer sees surf up to double overhead at least 6 or 7 times in the season that is blown out most of the time except for the "hidden secret spots" that get perfect.
Jamaica's worst season for surf. With fickle swells that usually run between waist and chest high for only a day or two, fall is the Jamaican surfers most depressing time of year. However there is still the chance of a stray hurricane swinging by that can get things fired up but generally speaking Hurricanes are highly overrated as too many variables must line up for them to send good surf.
This is the season when Jamaica has some of the best days of surf. All day glass with weeklong swells up to 4' overhead on both the north and south coasts. Cold fronts pump energy through the gaps between Cuba and Haiti as well as between the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico that get turned into the west by incessant northeast trade winds and charge straight for Jamaica.
Spring in Jamaica is the other calm season. Spring can see 3-4 week flat spells that drive the locals crazy and often finds them praying for a hurricane to strike. Glassy doldrums engulf the whole island with only the odd tiny waist to chest high swells blessing the coast.
Fly into Kingston, as there are no waves in Montego Bay. Be careful driving as Jamaican's drive on the left hand side of the road. Portland, Saint Thomas and Saint Andrew provide the best and most consistent surf. Contact Jamnesia Surf Camp for a guide as there is virtually no signage and one must know where they are going or you could make a wrong turn and be lost (not good). Contact the Jamaica Surfing Association (876) 750-0103 for further info.
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