JamWest Adventure Park: A Jam-packed Day of Adrenaline

When most people hear JamWest Motosports, their first thought may be the largest speedway in the region, and they wouldn’t be wrong. The popular venue is a favourite of many racecar driving enthusiasts, and has been for over 15 years. What some don’t know is, the 300-acre land is also home to the activity-filled Jamwest Adventure Park! Adventure. Adrenaline. Amusement. All in one…“here is the fun”!

Image: Dreco Hamilton

JamWest Adventure Park is located in Little London’s ‘bike country’ where you tend to see more motorbikes than vehicles, about 20mins outside of Negril. General admission for JamWest Adventure Park is inclusive of:

• Testing the rock climb challenge
• Feeding a variety of birds at the aviary
• Interacting with animals at the Petting Zoo
• Cooling off in the Rocky Village mineral bath
• Frolicking at the Childen’s Village + Water Park⁠

The main activities⁠— ATV, Zip line, Go Kart, Push Cart Ride — are available at an additional cost and can be bought as package deals. If you’re an adrenaline junkie who wants to experience it all you may need 2 full days at Jamwest Adventure Park. Its opening hours + tour durations + wad of available activities wouldn’t allow you to complete all the excursions in a day, but you can surely have a jam-packed day of fun! Tours are scheduled every half hour in the lounge area, which is the central bar & grill with a DJ to keep you entertained while awaiting tours. The schedule seems to be very efficient; my longest wait for any of the tours was 10 minutes! A JamWest safari vehicle will arrive to quickly transport you through the bumpy terrain to the respective tour areas.

By the way, before you continue…

Don’t be surprised if you see and hear the zooming of powerful engines speeding around the track at some point during your visit; Jamwest Motorsports has a renowned speedway after all! The best view of this (outside of the stands) would probably be from the heights of the zipline towers.

Jamwest Adventure Park Zipline

The JamWest jeep will drop you off at a safety station where you’ll be suited up with a helmet and harness before walking to the base of tower 1. The tower’s flight of stairs is long enough to make you reconsider the decision to jump off a structure (true story). Once you finally reach the top level, guides will demonstrate the correct jumping techniques before leading you to a leap of faith. Unlike my previous ziplining experience, this one doesn’t require gloves because the metal lines are adequately covered with material to make it safe for hand holding.

7 ziplines will have you gliding 60 feet in the air to adjoining towers. The whole zipline course grants a bird’s eye view of the racetrack and surrounding land. It will surely give an adrenaline rush, especially after working up the courage to run and jump out of a tall structure! Zipping across the towers includes an interesting surprise (which I won’t ruin for you), and lasts approximately 1.5 hours. Would you jump???

Images: JamWest Adventure Park

Jamwest Adventure Park ATV

The ATV tour includes a few test laps to determine if all drivers are able to handle their respective vehicle. If you’re a typical Jamaican like myself, your instincts may kick in to avoid potholes (a depression on the road surface), right? In this case, don’t; they’re called ‘all-terrain vehicles’ for a reason. Once given the OK, the guide will lead a line of ATVs on a 6-mile trail of dirt road, complemented with a series of bumps, twists and turns, and pools of muddy water to keep you on the edge of your seat, literally!

The route traverses through a small nearby community and beach area. A part of the beauty of Jamwest Adventure Park is its fusion with the land’s wildlife. On your bumpy ATV ride you’re likely to pass groups of grazing farm animals like goats, cows, and sheep.  After returning to the road, you’ll be surprised during the change in route (also won’t ruin this surprise for you!). How fast do you think you could go? My highest speed was around 40 km/h.

JamWest Adventure Park Go Kart

JamWest’s go kart course is like a miniature version of their renowned speedway; it’s actually just beside and in view of the motorway track. Each race is 10 laps around the serpentine track in low go karts after a guided test lap. The track is mostly narrow with many bends and a few wide spaces that are ideal for overtaking. Because of that, I think a little more strategy would be needed to be exercised by racers here compared to go karting by the Kingston airport if you want to steal first place.

Jamwest Adventure Park Safari

The Jamwest safari tour is rich with information, and would probably be most enjoyed by those interested in plant and animal species (mostly reptiles and birds), Jamaican history, or general knowledge of swampy lands. Grab your bug spray and join an informative guide on a nature trail in a large section of Jamwest’s expanse of land. To speak to the authentic nature of the lands where JamWest Adventure Park is located, there was a litter of young wild boars running across the tour path into nearby bushes. It includes 2 walking stops, where you’ll take a short stroll to view animals on location and wetlands.

There’s quite a bit to see and learn on this 1-hour tour. If you’re far from being a bird lover the next activity is definitely not for you…

JamWest Adventure Park Bird Aviary

The safari tour concluded with a trip to an aviary filled with multiple species of birds. As mentioned earlier, this activity is also available as a part of the general admission. A handful of bird feed is all you need to make a wad of new feathered friends, at least until it’s all eaten. It is very likely that the fowls may weigh you down with their collective feasting or while searching for an ideal seating space on your arm. The birds eat right out of the palm of your hands, which may or may not be as nice as it sounds lol.

JamWest Adventure Park Mineral Pool

The Rocky Village mineral bath is a natural pool created by limestone. Its innate wealth of minerals fills the water as it springs from the rocks. In my opinion it’s the ultimate cooldown after completing a packed Jamwest itinerary, offering cool and rejuvenating spring water. If that’s not enough to convince you to take a refreshing dip, the mineral components are said to act as a fountain of youth by erasing years after just a 20-minute bath. Water flows over small rocks into the mineral bath and over the steps that lead to a large fish pond.

Jamwest Adventure Park⁠— “Here is the Fun!”

If all of this sounds like a full day, that’s because it is!  Realistically you should probably expect to do up to 5 activities in a day, and that’s if you reach the adventure park early enough and it’s not too crowded. I did say it is an activity-filled excursion, where in my case 7 hours was not nearly enough. I haven’t yet gotten to experience the rock climb wall, horseback riding in the sea, motorway speed driving, push cart ride, nor water park, but that was totally fine as more fun than bargained for was had!

If you’re seeking a full day of fun with family and friends, you can easily do that at JamWest Adventure Park!

I can’t be the only one raving here… have you ever tried ANY of these daring activities?

Tell us about it in the comments!