GoldenEye: Double-O-Heaven

I don't have a good excuse. I took way too long to finish this post which is strange; because it was truly one of the nicest days I have spent in quite a while.

As a lover of hotels and the Bond books and films, I had long wanted to visit this famous beach hotel that was once the private home of Ian Fleming on the very beach where James Bond was first imagined. Called GoldenEye, the hotel has been built on Fleming’s original property including his own cottage on a pristine stretch of beach in Oracabessa, Jamaica.

If you are a regular reader of my blog, you may recall that I visited another Jamaican property in the Island Outpost family of hotels – Jake’s – just last summer. You can read those posts here, here, here and here. My experience at Jake's was so amazing that all signs pointed to visiting their fancier (meaning more exclusive and expensive) sister property, GoldenEye, as soon as I could. Renovated and re-launched just last fall, GoldenEye (and all Island Outpost properties) is owned by Chris Blackwell, founder of Island Records who was raised in Oracabessa and is best known for helping to introduce Jamaican music and culture to the rest of the world. Now a luxury resort, GoldenEye offers rooms starting at around $400 a night and has 2 restaurants, a bar and a spa. You can check out their very cool website here.

As I was again traveling in Jamaica for wedding this past April, I had the crazy idea to steal away from my all inclusive resort and make the 2 hour road trip to Oracabessa. But GoldenEye is uber-exclusive with people like Beyonce and Bono (you know, like people with only one name that starts with “B”) staying at the hotel so I knew just showing up on their doorstep would not work. I decided to contact GoldenEye directly through their website and they were happy to make a lunch arrangement for me at their restaurant. I impulsively booked a table and crossed my fingers a few friends might like to join me.

I would have gone alone but I didn’t have to! My new friends Melissa, Norm and Spiro (fellow guests of the wedding) were also up for a crazy adventure to the land of Bond. We booked a driver, Andrew, to take us out for the day and packed up our swimsuits and cold beer. Andrew picked us up in his sporty car and Norm rode shotgun to keep the Jimmy Cliff pumping and ensure we were never without a Red Stripe in our hands. After a quick stop in Ocho Rios for some shopping at the dodgy market, we headed to the town of Oracabessa, about 90 minutes south of Ocho Rios to find the entrance to GoldenEye hidden amongst the greenery and without a sign. How cool are we? We were warmly greeted at the hotel and were given a quick tour of the facilities starting with the beautiful lobby filled with Fleming and Bond memorabilia.

Our amazing lunch was served at their open air, ocean-side restaurant. Melissa and I started things off with the GoldenEye, their signature cocktail featuring their own Blackwell Rum. We also split the jerk chicken taco appetizer, which I followed up with a vegetable curry. We didn’t pass on dessert, which was brilliant because it was crazy good. We sipped a digestif and were surprised to discover that Spiro had secretly (and generously) picked up the entire tab. So very sweet.

After lunch we decided to take a dip in the infinity pool. Newly nicknamed Octopussy (Melissa) and Honey Ryder (moi) and still tipsy from the rum, we moved from the pool to the ocean and then to the famous lagoon that inspired the lagoon scene in Dr.No. I never wanted to leave there. Ever. But, I think perhaps we may have been overstaying our welcome, so the time came to say farewell. But not before we were lucky enough to get a quick tour of one of the rooms from the hotel manager. The beautiful villa overlooking the lagoon featured a four poster bed, outdoor shower and open air soaker tub. I imagine it would be the perfect honeymoon getaway. Maybe I’ll come back when I finally meet my Bond…or some other guy with a one-word name that starts with “B”.