Jamaica

Government advisories

• ☐ United States: level 2/4 — Level 2: Exercise Increased Caution
• ☐ United Kingdom: level 1/4
• ☐ Canada: level 2/4 — Exercise a high degree of caution

Health notices

• ☐ Global Measles (level 1)

Entry requirements

☐ Visitors to Jamaica must obtain a visa from one of the Jamaican diplomatic missions or in certain cases from one of the United Kingdom diplomatic missions unless they are citizens of one of the visa-exempt countries or citizens who may obtain a visa on arrival.

Practical

• ☐ Plug type A/B, 110V — bring an adapter if yours differs
• ☐ Drives on the left
• ☐ Emergency (police): 119
• ☐ Emergency (ambulance): 110
• ☐ Emergency (fire): 110
• ☐ SIM: Jamaica has two mobile network operators, Digicel and Flow (formerly Lime). Jamaican numbers are based off the North American Numbering Plan and consist of an area code followed by 7 digits. The calling code is +1 (876) then follows the numbers, e.g +1 (876) ***-****.
• ☐ Money: Credit/debit cards such as Visa, MasterCard and to a lesser extent American Express and Discover are accepted in many business establishments, such as supermarkets, pharmacies and restaurants in Kingston, Montego Bay, Portmore, Ocho Rios and Negril and most other major towns. A curious exception is petrol stations which mostly require cash. There are a few petrol stations in uptown Kingston that w

Laws that could get a tourist arrested

• ☐ Camouflage clothing ban — It is illegal to wear clothing with a camouflage design or any attire that resembles a military uniform in Jamaica.

Before you go

General trip-prep, not specific to Jamaica — the same short list applies anywhere.

• ☐ Register with your embassy's traveler program if one exists
• ☐ Check your passport's validity and blank-page requirements on your destination's official entry-rules page
• ☐ Photograph/screenshot your passport, visa, and travel insurance documents
• ☐ Download offline maps for your destination
• ☐ Confirm your bank/card issuer knows you're traveling
• ☐ Check whether your phone plan needs a travel add-on or a local SIM