What To Wear In Jamaica: Our Jamaica Packing List And What To Bring To Jamaica For Your Next Trip

What to wear in Jamaica if you travel in all inclusive resorts or even for a backpacking trip. Our Jamaica packing list for 1-2 weeks trip. Jamaica is one of the most sought after countries to visit in the Caribbean and it’s because the weather is pleasant year-round and the environment is just incredible.

Crystal clear beaches, amazing resorts, good and exotic food, parties and fun activities. It’s a country someone thinks about when they want to relax and have fun and packing for Jamaica might be the first fun packing you’ll ever had. We know we will never avert packing for such an amazing destination. Let’s look at the essentials and must-haves, plus a few luxuries you can (or should?) have when packing for your Jamaican holiday. Read here our best Jamaica travel tips, Negril vs Montego Bay and Ocho Rios vs Montego Bay!

Read here best restaurants in Ocho Rios, Jamaican food, best Jamaican breakfast, Jamaican drinks, Jamaican vegetarian food, best Jamaica sim card for tourist, the most instagrammable places in Jamaica, best restaurants in Negril and best restaurants in Montego Bay

Read here how to get from Montego Bay airport to Ocho Rios, how to get from Montego Bay airport to Negril, Kingston airport to Ocho Rios, Kingston airport to Montego Bay, Kingston airport to Negril and how to get from Kingston airport to city center.

WHERE TO STAY IN JAMAICA

There are dormitory rooms that you can rent the bed for as low as $20 USD a night if you want the cheapest option in Jamaica. Double room hostels can costs up to $30-40 USD a night while mid-range hotels costs more or less $80 USD a night.

Click here if you want to find the best deals with Booking in Jamaica

Having insurance while you are traveling outside your home country is very important. Make sure that you have one too, to keep you safe in your trips around the world.

What To Wear In Jamaica: Our Jamaica Packing List And What To Bring To Jamaica For Your Next Trip

Weather in Jamaica and the Best Times to Visit

Jamaica like the rest of the Caribbean has a tropical climate, which is dominant throughout the year. Coastal breezes can be felt during evenings, and the mountains surrounding the island may contribute to some variation in temperatures, however these will be very minimal. Again, think of Jamaican as sunshines and rainbows whole year long.

Seasonal rains can occur in October and in May and their colder winds or winter (known as northers) can be felt from December to March, but nothing too extreme so dressing and packing for Jamaican can pretty much be the same whatever Month you decide to travel to the island.

Click here to know more about the weather in Jamaica!

Casual Clothing and Resort Wear

Yes, resort wear. When you’re packing for a Jamaican trip, you are expecting to spend a time in beautiful resorts, and beaches. You’ll need to prepare light clothing (cotton, linen, rayon), and best with light colors. Blouses for women, Cool and Simple Tshirts and Shirts for men will be the first choices. For pants, better go for light and cropped pants or linen pants if you’re planning to have more casual activities and coverups for times when you are not swimming, and a few pairs of shorts.

Swimming Wear

You’ll spend a lot of time swimming, or at least lounging when you’re in Jamaica so better look good, relaxed and fun with a few pairs of bikinis (choose some 2-pieces or one pieces), and swimming trunks and shorts for men, and you’ll be good to go. Try to have some variation in style or color, if you’re planning to get some of your Instagrammable shots in the island (we know you’re planning to!),

You will get the most out of the beautiful scenery and create the photos you want to have. Make sure to bring coverups for all the times you’re not in the water. Sun is definitely hot, so you’ll need to get protected from that.

Foot Wear

A good pair of sandals or slippers will be enough for a travel packing for Jamaica, however, if you’re expecting a few sit down dinners, or maybe hitting a few clubs, or parties, you can pack extra shoes, but make sure they are comfortable enough and know whether you’ll be walking on the sand with them, or just walking in the resort or clubs. We have our favorite foot wear that can double up as underwater wear, so these might be good to have too!

What To Wear in Jamaica: Clothes for Activities

Now there are also other activities to do in the island, like golfing, hiking, walks and other sight seeing, so having extra pairs of going out clothes that are not exactly bikinis and coverups, but thin and comfortable enough for the hot sunny Jamaican weather will sure come in handy. Make sure not to overpack these, because Jamaican vibes will sure force you to stay lounging most of the time!

Skin Protection from Heat and the Sun

In addition to proper summer outfits and clothes, packing for protecting your skin will be imperative. A sunblock with protection for UVA and UVB (for the best brands, choose a sunblock with triple +++) is very important. You’ll have to re-apply your sunblock every 20-30 minutes, especially if you’ll be staying under the sun for a long time, so make sure you pack enough for your trip.

The sun will most likely affect your hair too, so best if you pack hair products and conditioners that will be good for protecting your hair.

For your makeup, make sure that you have the right sunscreen and foundation for your skin. Don’t forget your moisturizers and lotions, because skin can get dry pretty easy in this weather. If you choose to bring makeup in this trip, choose lip balms, lipsticks and chapsticks that are light colors or good for very sunny weather.

These will likely be lighter than darker. Just like your skin and body, your face will most likely need to stay hydrated, so mist sprays can be very helpful to keep your face refreshed all day long.

If you have hair dye or hair color, make sure you bring the appropriate products or consult your stylist on what products to bring to prepare your hair for the weather! Heat protectants will be very important especially if you will use a lot of blow dryers or iron in the trip, or even just for extra lounging time under the sun!

Water Bottles

Keep your body hydrated! Instead of expecting to buy multiple water bottles for the duration of your trip, try to have a water bottle handy with you at all times so you can keep yourself hydrated and also be mindful of waste!

Accessories

What to wear in Jamaica unless you’re looking to attend high end parties where it’s important to be bringing a lot of bling and jewelry, best to keep accessories at a minimum on your Jamaican holiday. Most of what you’ll need will be sunglasses, and hats and caps to protect your face and to add to your outfit during your stay.

A day bag will also be good to have, to bring with you on some activities on the island. In any trip, we suggest to keep your valuables – money, credit cards, passports, identification cards, and other valuables in secure containers to avoid any theft — a general rule for any travel.

Bags, Containers, Luggage

What to wear in Jamaica talking about bags and luggage, depending on how long you’re planning to stay in Jamaica, a small hand luggage or small suitcase should be enough. This, a day bag, packing cubes, and water proof protectors are all you’ll need.

What are packing cubes you say? One of the biggest packing hack that we swear by is dividing your luggage in packing cubes so you can go from packing to unpacking, to packing again in no time. Organization will be a breeze, and you will minimize stress when you’re trying to look for your things on a holiday.

Usually, what we do is have a bigger packing cube for clothes, and casual outer wear. A separate one for underwear and swimwear. A separate packing cube for gadgets and devices (make sure that these are actually in water proof containers), and a separate packing cube for toiletries and makeup.

Pre-travel preparation

Ahh, the struggles of being a woman! Now, there are definitely a lot of ways for you to prepare, but since you can expect that you’ll spend a lot of time in bikinis and short wears, have your waxing appointments ready before your trip. If you shave yourself, or you have your own shaving kits, make sure you bring these, with your creams to not have the stress later on during your trip.

You want to be swim ready at any moment! If you need some nail work done, brows, lashes, make sure you have these prepared too before your trip!

Medicine Kits and other Extras

In addition to sunblocks, lotions, moisturizers, heat protectants, and tanning products, emergency supplies will always come in handy. Have some mosquito repellent and bug spray ready, in case the places you’ll stay at have these in the cooler evenings and your clothes make you more exposed to them. Medicines, vitamins, and essentials are always good to have in any trips too.

If you’re a content creator..

Water proof bags are definitely a must. You may want to bring your phones and camera gear near the water, or even in the water during this trip, so bring the appropriate water proof day bags, and water proof cases for your gear. Even if you’re not a content creator, it is now very usual to bring your phones out with you in the water, so having protective cases and covers are a must!

Don’t forget your underwater or water proof cameras if you’re planning to do a lot of shooting in the water! A snorkeling mask is always a great idea to enjoy. Bring yours from home and you will have available all the time to see the underwater life in Jamaica.

You should know they use 110 V and frequency the American (United States and Canada) will fit. A few places make it possible to fit your European adapter in the plug because they provide adapters. If you are coming from European countries, we recommend you to bring an adapter to be able to charge everywhere.

I´m bringing my camera and phone with their respective chargers and powerbank

I´m bringing my laptop and charger and a universal adaptor

I´m bringing my passport, and Travel Insurance with Safetywing

Protection for gadgets and for theft

Anti-theft bags, locks for luggages, keeping important numbers and identifications with you, and spare money are all necessities in any travel. It will always be in handy to have these ready with you when you travel, even in a holiday destination like Jamaica.

Insurance and general things to have when traveling

Insurance is very important to have when you travel. For us, if you’re traveling a lot in places that expose you to water, in a destination like Jamaica, having insurance for important gears is good too. Double check that you are protected the best way you can.

Having insurance while you are traveling outside your home country is very important. Make sure that you have one too, to keep you safe in your trips around the world.

Basics and Toiletries

Finally, making sure you are covered with the basic needs like your personal toiletries are good to have when packing for a trip. When you are staying in high end resorts you will most likely have the best toiletries available, but just prepare any special products and knick knacks that you always want to have with you. Have your perfumes, deodorizers,

For the women, since a lot of the time will be spent in water, and lighter and thinner clothing, check if the trip will come during your time of the month. You don’t want to not be ready or to be stressed of having the special products you want to have during your special week, so have your feminine products with you.

If you haven’t tried menstrual cups, you might want to try or have these with you, if you are expecting to have your period and will still want to be in your cute, scrimpy bikinis all day long!

A Complete Packing Check List for your Jamaican Holiday

Want to have a quick Jamaica travel checklist? Here you go:

Airport Wear (can be work for both flights to and from Jamaica, and can double as longe wear on cooler evenings)

2 pairs of Casual Wear – Light enough that can be worn on day time activities and can double as evening for evening casuals or drinks

2-3 pairs of bikinis and bathing suits or swimming trunks and shorts (depending on how long your trip will be)

4-5 pairs of underwear

One cover up, something you can wear on top of your swim wear or bikini or a short sleeve shirt for men (light colored and light fabric)

Toiletries (ones you’ll need)

Water proof bags and packing cubes

Medicine, vitamin kit, sunscreen, lotions and other skin products

A pair of sunglasses and a hat or cap

A pair of sandals and slippers, and an extra footwear for day time activities (hiking or sport); extra special one if there are any special event or parties

Refilled Water bottle for bringing all the time!

WHERE TO STAY IN JAMAICA

There are dormitory rooms that you can rent the bed for as low as $20 USD a night if you want the cheapest option. AirBnb are also available, mostly for about $30-45 USD a night. Click here if you want to get $30 credit on your first booking in AirBnb.

Double room hostels can costs up to $30-40 USD a night while mid-range hotels costs more or less $80 USD a night.

Click here if you want to find the best deals with Booking in Jamaica.

FOOD BUDGET TRAVEL IN JAMAICA

You can find local meals in Jamaica around $3-4 USD per person. At lunch you might want a chicken sandwich for $5 USD salad, burger and pizza with a fresh fruit drink for $7-10 USD. You can have a budget of $15-20 USD a day and it can already get you more then enough decent meals in Jamaica.

CASH AND ATM IN JAMAICA

The currency of Jamaica is called Jamaican Dollars and as of now, $1 USD is worth 150 JMD Jamaican Dollars. Do not exchange your currency at the airport because you’ll get less than what you’ll get with the city’s exchange. Anyway if you are bringing USD you can use them while traveling around Jamaica no need to exchange them.

Bank or debit cards in an ATM are the recommended way to access your funds while traveling in Jamaica. Know real-time currency exchange here!

Having insurance while you are traveling outside your home country is very important. Make sure that you have one too, to keep you safe in your trips around the world.

Hope you loved our what to wear in Jamaica blog post guide! And can’t wait to hear about your packing list for Jamaica and if we forgot anything what to bring to Jamaica.

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Happy Travels!