Moderate

Expensive | Inexpensive

Firefly Beach Cottages

With a lot of Jamaican flair, this laid-back hodgepodge of white concrete and wooden buildings opens directly onto a "skinny-dipping" beach. There's even a so-called penthouse in the garden with sleeping lofts, plus studios and cottages - including one large two-bedroom unit that can sleep up to eight (in cramped conditions). Most units are cooled by air-conditioning and ceiling fans, and many beds are canopied. Each unit comes with a small bathroom containing a shower, while all rooms have verandas and kitchens, but there's no restaurant. Local eateries and the beach (you don't even need a suit) are close at hand.

Norman Manley Blvd. (P.O. Box 54), Negril. 18 units. Winter $134-$210 double. Off-season $96-$158 double. AE, MC, V. Amenities: Small exercise room; Jacuzzi; massage (not in room); laundry service. In room: A/C (most units), kitchenette, fridge, no phone.

Jackie's on the Reef

The setting is a soaring concrete building that looks as though it was never quite completed; the result evokes a postmodern cathedral, thanks to long corridors that spill into sunlit communal areas. In Jackie Lewis's own words, "This is a healing joint," welcoming a revolving series of practitioners imported for temporary sojourns from Manhattan. Treatments might include facials, body massages, reflexology, and more.

Most bedrooms are generous in size with mosquito netting draped over beds in old plantation style; however, there are no TVs, phones, air-conditioning, or even fans, and furnishings are rather simple, with usually just twin beds and small tables in the rooms. Each comes with a shower-only bathroom. The hotel lies 7 miles (11km) from the nearest beach, but there's a small seawater pool and a ladder down to the reef for swimming.

West End, Negril. 3 units, 1 cottage. $150 per person. Rates include breakfast, dinner, and yoga class. No credit cards. Drive 2.5 miles (4km) past the oldest lighthouse in Negril; just keep heading out the West End until you come to the sign. Children not accepted. Amenities: Dining room; small seawater pool; spa; snorkeling; outdoor massage; yoga; meditation. In room: No phone.

Tensing Pen Resort

Here you get privacy, a lush setting, rustic thatched huts or cut-stone cottages, and fun touches such as outdoor showers where you can flaunt it all in front of Mother Nature (who's seen it all). Its drawback is that it's not on the beach, but opens onto a craggy coastline instead. Far out along the West End Road of Negril, it's a 10-minute ride from Negril's Seven Mile strip of sands.

Accommodations range from a rustic bungalow with patio to a garden studio to a private "Great House" for families or intimate groups. French doors open onto private balconies overlooking either the sea or private patios with lounge chairs. Room decor is in the classic West Indian style with wooden louvered windows, white plaster walls, tile floors, and simple furnishings crafted from tropical wood. Beds are comfortable and the bathrooms are neatly kept with shower units. Some of the more spacious units also feature walk-in closets.

There's no pool, but there is access to the water if you don't mind swimming from the cliffs. You climb a ladder to get back to land. Snorkeling is also good here in the clear waters. Peppered with hammocks, the gardens are filled with bougainvillea, orchids, bromeliads, and ferns.

West End Rd. (P.O. Box 13), Negril. 12 units, 3-bedroom Great House. Winter $110-$210 double; $230 cottage; $420 Great House. Off-season $90-$145 double; $155 cottage; $285 Great House. AE, MC, V. No children under 8. Amenities: Restaurant for guests only; babysitting; laundry service. In room: Full kitchen in Great House, no phone.

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