Sunset Cove is the west facing beach at the Grand Palladium Lady Hamilton, and the first thing to be clear about is that it is not in Montego Bay. It sits at Point in Hanover, just east of Lucea, roughly 40 minutes to an hour and a quarter west along the A1 depending on traffic through Hopewell. It is also not a public beach. You get in on a paid day pass, and the parish it sits in has more history in it than the resort does.
History
The parish is named after a German royal house
Hanover was created on 12 November 1723 and named for the House of Hanover, the German dynasty that had taken the British throne with George I nine years earlier. It is Jamaica's second smallest parish. Lucea, its capital, is a town of roughly 5,700 people with a working harbour and far more past than its size suggests.
Fort Charlotte, and what is left of it
The British built Fort Charlotte on Lucea harbour in 1761 to cover the north west coast, and named it after Queen Charlotte, consort of George III. The Jamaica National Heritage Trust records 23 embrasures with 20 guns mounted and a barrack for 50 men. In 1807, with the Napoleonic Wars running, three 24 pounders on traversing carriages were added to the seaward face. The circular stone base the guns swivelled on is still there, as is the cut stone artillery store. Part of the fort now sits inside the grounds of Rusea's High School, which dates to 22 December 1777 and was founded from the will of Martin Rusea, a French Huguenot who left money for a free school for the children of Hanover.
The clock that was meant for St Lucia
The clock tower in the middle of Lucea has stood since 1817 and it is there by mistake. The clock was a gift from Germany intended for St Lucia, and the ship's captain confused the destination with Lucea, which at various points had been written Santa Lucea, St Lucia and St Lucea. He landed it in Hanover. The town had ordered a smaller and cheaper clock of its own, decided it preferred the one that had turned up, and raised the difference by public subscription rather than send it on. A German landowner paid for the tower on condition that he got a free hand with the design, which is why the top of it is shaped like the helmet of a German royal guard. The clock still runs.
Sugar, then yams
Hanover was sugar country, and sugar here meant enslaved labour on a large scale. After emancipation in 1834 the parish's smallholders turned to something else, and the Lucea yam became the export, shipped to Cuba and Panama through the nineteenth and twentieth centuries largely to feed Jamaican labourers working the canal and the Cuban plantations. A parish forced to grow cane for Europe ended up growing food for its own emigrants. Inland at Blenheim, about twenty minutes from Lucea, is the birthplace of Sir Alexander Bustamante, national hero and Jamaica's first Prime Minister.
The resort is recent, and the name is unexplained
None of this belongs to the hotel. Spain's Fiesta Hotel Group, an Ibiza company founded by Abel Matutes Juan, broke ground at Point in 2006 and opened two adjoining resorts, the Grand Palladium Jamaica and the Grand Palladium Lady Hamilton, in July 2008. The initial investment was around US$220 million for 1,054 rooms, and in 2010 the company announced a further 800 suites toward a total above 1,800. Fiesta became Palladium Hotel Group in 2012. The company says the Jamaica project honoured a commitment Matutes had made to Bob Marley, which is how they tell it. Palladium does not publish an explanation for the Lady Hamilton name, and we are not going to guess at one.
What it costs and when it opens
Entry is by day pass bought at the front desk. Guest reports put an adult day pass at around US$110 for 10am to 6pm and an evening pass at around US$120 for 6pm to midnight, with a child pass around US$30. Passes are all inclusive apart from the a la carte restaurants. These figures come from guest sources rather than a published Palladium rate card, so treat them as an indication and confirm before you travel. Passes are usually available on arrival, but that is at the resort's discretion and high occupancy can close them.
What it is actually like
Sunset Cove is the better of the property's beaches: a proper cove with soft sand, shade from the trees behind it, and calm water. Because it faces west it gets the sunset, which is unusual on this stretch of the north coast. Kayaks, pedalos, small sailing boats and banana boat rides run from the beach and are included, and there is a grill and bar on the sand.
What you are buying is a large resort day, not a quiet one. There are multiple pools, a water park for children, several restaurants and a lot of people. It is a good option if you want everything handled and the sea calm, and the wrong one if you want a small local beach, in which case carry on into Lucea.
Going for the day is also the cheapest way to see Hanover properly. Lucea town, the clock tower and the fort are ten minutes from the gate. Build an hour of that in rather than sitting on the sand from ten to six.
What to bring
- Photo ID. The gate will ask for it before you reach the front desk.
- A card, since the pass is bought on arrival and rates are quoted in US dollars.
How it fits a day
We run this as a west coast day rather than a Montego Bay one. Leave the Hip Strip around 9am, be at the gate for the 10am pass, beach and water sports until about 3pm, then out through Lucea for the clock tower and Fort Charlotte before the light goes. If you are heading to Negril afterwards it slots even better, since Point is roughly halfway. What does not work is treating it as an afternoon add on. With the drive at both ends, a pass bought at two in the afternoon is poor value.
