Spanish explorer Christopher Columbus in the late 1400s first visited Montego Bay, Jamaica, calling it “Golfo de Buen Tiempo”, or fair weather gulf. The name Montego Bay came from the Spanish word manteca, or lard, because the port was used to ship lard, leather and beef during Spanish occupation. Montego Bay remained a Spanish colony until the mid 1600s, when Oliver Cromwell claimed it for the British, who used it as a sugar port well into the 20th Century.
Fierce resistance to slavery and domination by the escaped enslaved Africans, the Maroons, and, derring-do high-seas bravado of pirates who menaced and mastered sea-borne shipping industries helped create a national character that celebrates independence and self-reliance, agricultural excellence, entrepreneurial initiative, and a wellspring of joy-driven faith and hope that brighter days are within reach.
These traits fueled Montego Bay’s emergence as a tourist haven of choice.Wealthy and ordinary people alike flocked in droves to the famous Doctor’s Cave bathing beach. That attraction has been the inspiration of exponential growth in Jamaica’s burgeoning tourism industry. Nowadays, Montego Bay’s appeal never seems to wane. Today when visitors come in search of sunshine and outdoor adventure, Jamaica's unsurpassed Caribbean hospitality keeps them returning again and again.
And when you visit The Ritz-Carlton Golf & Spa Resort at Rose Hall, Jamaica, what you come away with is an appreciation of the unique, indomitable star quality that is the hallmark of Jamaicans’ richly sonorous voice, their proud, confident walk, and their engaging genuine friendliness.
Time and time again, during our recent visit, we were reminded why we love Jamaica so much. To a person, we encountered energetic, focused, purpose-driven men and women whose attitudes and actions reflected their belief in and commitment to the mission at hand: building a people, and building a nation.
Jamaicans demonstrate their genius and their drive moment-by moment, it seems, with the attention they pay to what makes Jamaica work.We hadn’t been to Jamaica for a couple of years, and, quite frankly, we were floored by all the development, growth, and opportunity. Both arriving and departing Sangster International Airport in Montego Bay, we noted the facility, its amenities, and service are on par with MSP, ATL or any other world-class airport operations.
We smiled at each other as we cruised down amply-wide median divided four-lane highways on our way to our hotel resort. “We remember when..,” we both thought.
We visited a warehouse store, Mega Mart, to look for some food items to bring back to Minnesota, and maybe purchase an extra small travel bag. We tooled our plastic shopping cart up and down well stocked isles, stopping for samples along the way. “What? It’s Saturday. Is this Sam’s Club or Costco?”No, it is Jamaica. A Jamaica committed to the proposition that if it can be done anywhere, it can be done here. If anybody else has done it, whatever it is, Jamaicans can do it too, only better!
I mean, how else could you account for Jamaica’s world-renown Bobsled Team? How else can explain the universal appeal of Reggae music and Rastafarian culture?
A friend, who was also visiting Jamaica, but on the other end of the Island, noted the same penchant for business and development, but remarked he was still somewhat taken aback by the amount of poverty.
Not to worry, we think, and we know. Because for Jamaicans, the nation’s true wealth is the spirit of the people, and that is an asset that transcends and shatters barriers and lack. It is the essential quality and capacity that properly recognizes the temporal nature of any difficulty and both defines and seizes the opportunity that difficulties seek to obscure.Tony Mira is general manager of The Ritz-Carlton Golf & Spa Resort. “I am delighted to be in Jamaica at a hotel renowned for delivering the highest levels of service on the island,” he said in a statement announcing his appointment to the post earlier this year. “I plan to continue the success of this beautiful property and I look forward to working with all of its exceptional ladies and gentlemen.”
Mira, in the hospitality industry for over 32 years, attended Oklahoma State University where he earned a Bachelor of Arts in Hospitality and Restaurant Management. He worked as general manager at the Renaissance St. Louis Airport in Missouri, the Oakbrook Hotel Chicago, IL, and The Stouffer Hotel, Battle Creek, MI. He joined The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company in 2006 as general manager for The Ritz-Carlton, Dearborn.
“I look forward to becoming a part of The Ritz-Carlton, Rose Hall family and working with the ladies and gentlemen in maintaining our standard of service excellence in being Jamaica’s only AAA Five Diamond property, ” Mira said.
The Ritz-Carlton Golf & Spa Resort offers 5,000 picture-perfect acres of Montego Bay luxury and features 427 guest rooms and suites, each with a private balcony or terrace. The property boasts the 18-hole championship White Witch Golf Course. It has five exceptional dining establishments and over 25,000 square feet of meeting and function space. Luxury shopping is nearby at The Shoppes at Rose Hall.
Ritz-Carlton guest rooms feature 37 and 42 inch high-definition, LCD flat-panel television with complimentary premium channels and complimentary high speed internet access. Each room has a fully-stocked refreshment cabinet and, for your valuables, an in-room safe. The resort hotel provides 24-hour room service, and exceptional daily housekeeping service. The marble bathrooms with separate shower and bathtub simply mean one more place to relax and unwind in elegant comfort.Ritz-Carlton pampers guests with its 8,000 square foot Spa, Fitness Center and Beauty Salon. The resort’s Boutique and Gift Shop stocks anything you forgot to bring, and toiletries you will want to take home to keep the memory of paradise found vibrantly fresh in your mind.
Ritz-Carlton’s on-property walking and jogging trail, its outdoor pool and Jacuzzi, its two lighted tennis courts, and its non-motorized water sports program, mean you can keep as busy as you would like as you enjoy island sea and sun, soaking up Jamaican culture and hospitality.
Family friendly, the resort’s The Ritz Kids program and babysitting services offer supervised physical and creative activities designed especially for children ages 5-12. With full or half-day options, seven days a week, Ritz Kids programming includes beach games and water sports, creative arts and crafts, educational entertainment, environmental outdoor adventures and nature programs. Kids can enjoy swimming, sand castle building, water balloons, frisbee games, volleyball, junior tennis, board games and videos, and croquet.
Babysitters are certified in infant, child and adult CPR and basic first aid.
The Ritz-Carlton is also home to an astonishing collection of Jamaican art. Its gallery provides discerning travelers access to a level and quality of creativity that documents and celebrates the Caribbean experience. Ritz-Carlton exhibits unique pieces throughout the property. Guests can immerse themselves in Jamaica’s celebrated culture through innovative artwork that reflects the rich heritage and diverse population of the island.The collection embraces the beauty and natural warmth of the region with a display of lively colors and sophisticated fixtures through various mediums of expression. Intended to enhance the lifestyle experience for travelers, the collection affords visitors the opportunity to embrace Jamaica’s rich culture through the eyes of Jamaican artists.
“Not only does showcasing art developed by Jamaican artists create a sense of place by enhancing the property’s architectural and interior décor, but it gives the hotel an opportunity to support and give back to the area’s art community,” said Bernd Kuhlen, Mira’s predecessor as general manager of The Ritz-Carlton. “As part of the company’s Community Footprints program, an initiative where Ritz-Carlton Hotels collaborate with local organizations to assist and support social and environmental responsibility, the hotel will donate 5% of the proceeds for each painting sold to a local charity, such as the Blossoms Gardens Orphanage or the S.O.S Children’s Village,” Kuhlen said.
