Mayfair Hotel, Kingston

For those who may have seen the John Cleese BBC TV series Fawlty Towers, I must say that when I first arrived in this delightful hotel in November, 1988, prior to a longer stay the following January, I felt I had fallen into the "Fawlty Towers" series at first. But only at first. The lovely lady who owns and runs the hotel is actually named "Sybil," as was Basil Fawlty's wife in the BBC series, and physically some parts of the Mayfair resemble the fictional Cornish hotel: but there all resemblance ends.

The food at the Mayfair is excellent, and reasonable in price, a great blend of Jamaican spice and English standard. By that I mean that meats are highly seasoned, so much so that the bland vegetables accompanying the meats are welcome in their blandness. The hotel bar is a great place to meet both locals and expatriate Brits from all over the globe. Don't miss Red Stripe on draft, unless you prefer Dragon Stout - not Guiness, but a good competitor! The same brewery that produces Red Stripe and Dragon Stout (Desnoe & Geddes) is lisenced to brew Guiness on the Island.

The hotel pool is not overly large, but it is large enough. And the guests are from all over. The Mayfair is a great jumping off point for many places of interest in Kingston and across the island. I look back on my stays at the Mayfair with great fondness, and hope to get back there someday.

Tom Byrd
Greensboro, NC