Warning: Your driver might miss The Spa Retreat. Opened in November 2011, the boutique resort is hidden behind a large wooden gate on the West End cliffs of Negril. Its setting makes it a great secret haven for honeymooners seeking privacy and an adults-only experience.
The scene inside the 18 thatched-roof, stone cottages is serene; there are no TVs or phones in the rooms — though come nightfall, you might hear the faint sound of reggae music wafting from the bar.
Organized activities? Nah. Yoga and Pilates are it, though the front desk can arrange trips to golf courses, a rum factory, or the seven cascades and spring pools at YS Falls. Onsite, the saltwater pool is tempting, but as this side of the island is famous for cliffs (beaches are scarce), climbing down a ladder into the ocean is the thing to do.
Also, given the hotel’s name, the spa is a draw, especially thanks to the outdoor treatment cabanas on the waterfront. Therapies, like the resort itself, are simple but special — a hand-mixed cornmeal-and-coconut scrub leaves skin exfoliated and gleaming; a just-mashed pumpkin mask cools sun-exposed bodies.