Jamaica
Falmouth, Jamaica
Falmouth: Jamaica's Georgian Port Town
- Port traffic
- ModerateNext 30 days
Good to know
What Cruise Travelers Should Know
Ships dock at a cruise port that opened in early 2011 and was built to take the largest cruise ships, and the old town begins at its gates. The port has its own shops, and a fence with staffed checkpoints separates it from the town.
- Falmouth is the chief town of the parish of Trelawny, on Jamaica's north coast about 18 miles (29 km) east of Montego Bay.
- Hurricane Melissa struck western Jamaica in October 2025 and destroyed Falmouth's courthouse and infirmary. Some historic buildings may be closed, so ask your ship what is open before you plan a walk.
- The Jamaican dollar is the currency, and US dollars are widely accepted in places visitors go, though sometimes at a reduced rate.
- Jamaica keeps UTC minus five all year, the same as US Eastern time in winter but an hour behind it while the US is on daylight saving time.
Falmouth on Your Own
Falmouth is a town for walking, because its historic district starts right outside the port and its grid of streets is easy to follow. Spend the morning among the Georgian buildings and Water Square, and if you want one outing beyond town, take a taxi to the bamboo rafts on the Martha Brae River.
- Water Square: The town's shopping square is home to the Albert George Shopping and Historical Centre, which dates from 1895.
- Planters' houses: The Barrett House belonged to Edward Barrett, one of the town's founding fathers and great-grandfather of the poet Elizabeth Barrett Browning, and it faces Barrett Wharf. John Tharp, once one of the richest men in Jamaica, had a house with its own wharf.
- The churches: St. Peter's Anglican Church, built in 1795, has columns of solid mahogany and a floor inlaid with crosses of mahoe and mahogany. The William Knibb Memorial Baptist Church was built in 1947 to honor the minister who campaigned against slavery here.
- Taxis and safety: Use taxis approved by the Jamaican Tourist Board. Drivers assigned by hotels and resorts usually carry photo ID and display a blue sticker on the windshield. Avoid isolated streets and deserted beaches, even by day.
- Getting back on time: All-aboard is usually about 30 minutes before sailing, and your ship posts the exact time. A ship will not wait for passengers touring on their own. While the US is on daylight saving time, Jamaica is an hour behind US Eastern time, so go by the ship's clock.
Getting Around Falmouth
The historic district is compact enough to cover on foot from the port. For trips beyond town, use a taxi approved by the Jamaican Tourist Board.
- Drivers assigned by hotels and resorts usually carry photo ID and display a blue Jamaican Tourist Board sticker on the front windshield.
- The Martha Brae River, where bamboo rafts carry visitors downstream, is about 6 miles (10 km) south of Falmouth.
- Good Hope Great House, an 18th-century plantation house overlooking the Queen of Spain Valley, is about 15 minutes outside town.
- Montego Bay is about 18 miles (29 km) west, and Sangster International Airport about 19 miles (31 km).
Where to Eat
Jerk, pork or chicken rubbed with spicy seasoning and cooked over a wood fire, is Jamaica's signature dish, and around Falmouth you will also find it made with shrimp and lobster. A national dish is ackee and saltfish, made with a local fruit cooked with salted fish.
- Patties, pastry filled with seasoned meat, make a quick lunch.
- Blue draws, also called duckunoo, is a dessert brought from West Africa: sweet potato, coconut, banana, vanilla and brown sugar, tied in a banana leaf and boiled.
- Curried goat, callaloo and saltfish are other dishes to look for.
Culture & Local Life
Falmouth's story is bound up with the Baptist church and the fight against slavery, and the town counts the sprinter Usain Bolt among its notable people. Its streets mix small houses known for their fretwork and windows with the large complexes of merchants and planters.
- The Olympic sprinter Veronica Campbell-Brown and the reggae artist Ky-Mani Marley are also on the town's list of notable people.
- The opening ceremony of the 2007 Cricket World Cup was held at the Greenfield Stadium, about 3 miles (5 km) from the town center.
- Falmouth Heritage Renewal, a nonprofit, works to preserve and restore the town's Georgian buildings.
- The Pottery House in the historic district has a resident potter who can be seen at work.
A Town Built on Sugar
Falmouth was founded in 1769, when Jamaica was the world's leading sugar producer, and for about 40 years it boomed as the port for the plantations of Trelawny. The end of slavery brought decline after 1840, and the lack of later development is the reason so many early buildings survive.
- A planned town: Thomas Reid founded Falmouth in 1769 on Martha Brae Point, and it was named after Falmouth in Cornwall, birthplace of the governor, Sir William Trelawny. It was laid out on a grid with wide streets, and it had piped water before New York City.
- Rapid growth: In 1774 the port had a single dwelling, but by 1793 it had more than 150.
- Sugar and slavery: Nearly a hundred plantations in the parish produced sugar and rum for Europe, and as many as 30 merchant ships could be seen in the harbor on a single day, many of them carrying enslaved Africans. The town's economy rested almost entirely on slavery.
- William Knibb: The English Baptist missionary William Knibb became minister in Falmouth and campaigned against slavery. During the Baptist War of 1831–32, led by Samuel Sharpe, planters burned a dozen Baptist chapels, his among them.
- Freedom: Slavery ended on August 1, 1834, followed by an apprenticeship period, and full freedom came in 1838. Knibb died in 1845.
- Decline: From 1840 Falmouth's trade faded. Its houses, churches and merchant buildings, mostly dating from 1790 to 1840, were left in place.
- A courthouse twice lost: The Georgian courthouse of 1815 burned in 1926 and was rebuilt in its old style in 2007, and Hurricane Melissa destroyed it again in October 2025.
- The cruise port: A new port built to take the largest cruise ships opened in early 2011.
Traveling with Family
Falmouth's easiest family outings are on the river rather than in town. A bamboo raft on the Martha Brae is the easiest family outing, and older children can try river tubing or horse-and-carriage rides at Good Hope.
- Younger children: Ride down the Martha Brae River on a 30-foot bamboo raft, with a raft captain who guides the way and explains the tropical scenery.
- School age: On a short walk through the historic district, look for the potter at work in the Pottery House and the solid mahogany columns of St. Peter's Church.
- Teenagers: Good Hope Great House, about 15 minutes away, offers river tubing, horse-and-carriage rides and all-terrain vehicle trips.
Shopping & Local Markets
The port has shops selling clothing, bags, liquor and jewelry, and Jamaican artisans sell crafts, paintings, jewelry and fabrics. In town, Water Square and the open market have local crafts and produce.
- Prices at many shops and stalls outside the port are open to bargaining.
- Jewelry in the port ranges from modest to expensive, so know the price at home before you buy.
- The Albert George Shopping and Historical Centre stands on Water Square.
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