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A Villaful In Jamaica
When a travel writer friend recommended we check out Villas by Linda Smith for a vacation in Jamaica, we initially balked. We confronted two stereotypes: to us, a villa is an expensive, uptight, don't-sit-on-the-furniture proposition. And we understood that Jamaica has a reputation for being unsafe. Well - so much for stereotypes.
The first time we clicked on the Villas by Linda Smith website, we were confused. The vivid, almost glamorous pictures said "luxury" while the prices said "bargain." Were we missing something?
For years we vacationed in a variety of old and new houses spread over North Carolina's Outer Banks, on a wide stretch of sand that we shared with, oh, perhaps hundreds of our closest friends. We schlepped to Food Lion for provisions, cooked meals in strange, often under-equipped kitchens and fought for restaurant reservations. Frankly, we loved it. But the rental prices kept rising, the commute became more congested and the neighbors grew louder (or maybe we just got older).
A Surprising Option
Villas by Linda Smith offered an unanticipated alternative. In the time it takes us to drive from home to beach house, we could board a plane and arrive in a villa in Jamaica. For the price of a modest oceanfront rental in the Outer Banks, we could stay in a private villa with pool, beach and (get this) a service staff. Including meals. And drinks. We kept looking for the catch, a hidden cost, a "gotcha," something to remind us that only the wealthy vacation this way. We never found it.
Linda Smith's portfolio consists of 75 villas for rent, many within a thirty-minute drive of chaotic Montego Bay airport, barring not uncommon traffic jams. She inspects and chooses the villas she represents, and the owners agree to make the improvements she "requests." The villas range from a 250-year-old pineapple and mango plantation perched on a 2000-acre mountain top (the movie set for When Stella Got Her Groove Back) to an intimate, seaside honeymoon cottage. None would be described as rustic - no Cargo furniture to be found.
Our stay in August at the sprawling villa "Noble House" was spectacular. As our driver descended the driveway through jungle-like foliage, the staff of seven stood out front under the canopy of trees and welcomed us with warm introductions. They handed each of us a glass of fresh fruit punch, gave us a tour of the house and stunning grounds and unpacked our belongings.
We initially were unsettled by the sudden reality of having a personal, attentive service staff, which here included a chef, a butler, two housekeepers, a laundress, and two gardeners/pool caretakers (type and number of staff varies based on the nature of the villa). Come now, is it really healthy for our 8 and 10 year olds to be served by a butler for a week? What will they expect when they get home? But we struggled, persevered and got used to it in about thirty minutes. Many of the staff have been serving guests at Noble House for years and years, as is the case at most Linda Smith villas, and they treated us like we owned the place.
The four-bedroom, six-bathroom, five-acre estate offered more than enough room for the two of us, our two pre-teen kids and their grandfather. We chose the 2,000 square foot pool cottage while the kids and Pop-Pop stayed in the 6,000 square foot main pavilion with its "Asian-meets-Caribbean plantation" décor, open-air rooms and a water garden. We could see no other homes from anywhere on the property, in stark contrast to our typical beach vacations.
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