Gloucester Avenue, PO Box 94, Montego Bay, Jamaica | (586) 210-9239
Budget-friendly hotel with an excellent location on Montego Bay’s hip strip
Within walking distance of bars, restaurants, and Doctors Cave Beach
Rooms are clean, though decor is wildly dated
Mid-size pool and a quiet, secluded hot tub
On-site bar and lounge area
Free continental breakfast and Wi-Fi
No full-service restaurant on-site, though plenty within walking distance
Decor throughout is dated
Hotel is not directly on the beach
Some rooms may get street noise
Named after Montego Bay’s most famous beach, Doctors Cave Beach Hotel is a budget-friendly 90-room property located on the city’s “hip strip.” Located across the street from its namesake, the hotel is within walking distance of shops, bars, restaurants, and nightclubs. It’s also a convenient 10-minute drive from the airport. The hotel has a small pool and hot tub and offers free breakfast and Wi-Fi, but there’s no full-service restaurant and decor is incredibly dated throughout. It’s worth comparing rates at the nearby Gloucestershire Hotel, but travelers looking for a resort-like atmosphere might prefer the Holiday Inn Resort Montego Bay.
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Scene
A budget-friendly property with a quiet atmosphere
Though it’s located on Montego Bay’s “hip strip,” a busy thoroughfare filled with bars, restaurants, and nightclubs, Doctors Cave Beach Hotel doesn’t really have a hip or happening atmosphere. Travelers looking for a place to sleep will be satisfied with the hotel’s quiet grounds, but guests looking to bring the party in from the streets will likely be disappointed. The hip strip’s buzzing atmosphere comes to a screeching halt in the hotel’s drab lobby, which features dark green paint and dated furniture. And since there isn’t an on-site restaurant or any form of entertainment, the hotel’s corridors remain empty throughout the day. The hotel may try to liven things up with a free rum punch happy hour at the bar one or two nights a week, and once in a while some guests may socialize by the pool, but don't count on it. The majority of guests at Doctors Cave are transit travelers who are staying in Montego Bay before a cruise or flight. The hotel also draws the occasional student group or church group. We wouldn’t recommend extended vacations here, especially for travelers seeking a resort-like atmosphere.
Location
Across the street from the beach, on Montego Bay's "hip strip"
Doctors Cave Beach Hotel is located on Montego Bay’s hip strip, a bustling thoroughfare filled with shops, bars, restaurants, and nightclubs. The hotel is across the street from MoBay’s famous Doctor’s Cave Beach, which was once believed to have medicinal powers. Today the beach is popular with locals and tourists alike, and is lined with tons of restaurants and bars, where beachgoers like to gather to watch the sunset. Doctors Cave Beach Hotel is about a 10-minute drive from Sangster International Airport, and about a 35-minute drive from the cruise ship pier in Falmouth.
Rooms
Dated, but clean
It’s impossible to describe the rooms at Doctors Cave Beach Hotel without calling them dated. Yellow sponge-painted walls with mint green molding and wildly patterned bedspreads with matching curtains scream '80s caribbean, while brass lamps and wicker furniture certainly don’t help the cause. Rooms are so dated, we can almost imagine Bob Barker showing a clip of Doctors Cave, while telling a contestant they’ve just won a trip to Jamaica on the “Price is Right.” Jokes aside, rooms are perfectly clean and suitable for a night or two. There are a few hints of the current decade within the rooms, like wall mounted flat-screen TVs and modern remote controlled air-conditioning units. Other in-room amenities include safety deposit boxes and ironing equipment. Bathrooms are tight on space and have shower/tub combos and small vanities. Just in case you forget where you are, shower curtains are emblazoned with the hotel’s initials. Doctors Cave has three room types: Standard Rooms, Superior Rooms, and Suites. Standard Rooms are the smallest, and feature two double beds and tiny bathrooms. Superior Rooms are a bit larger, and have an outdoor space, like a balcony or patio. Suites have separate bedrooms and living rooms, along with small kitchenettes.
Features
A small pool and bar, plus free breakfast and Wi-Fi
Doctors Cave Beach Hotel isn’t the type of place where guests check in and never leave for the duration of their stay. Instead, most people barely spend any time here at all, which is why Doctors Cave doesn’t have amenities like a restaurant or spa. There is a pool in the hotel’s front courtyard, but it’s hardly used. The small oval-shaped pool is surrounded by plastic lounge chairs and a few tables, but it doesn’t see much action. Most guests head across the street to the beach if they want to go swimming. Additionally the hotel has a beautiful hot tub in the rear of the property, which feels private and more secluded than the pool. Next to the pool is the hotel’s on-site bar. A few guests stop in for drinks throughout the day, but it’s hardly the type of place that attracts non-guests, so it’s typically quiet and uncrowded. As far as entertainment is concerned, Doctors Cave has an open-air game room with ping-pong and pool tables, but that’s about it. Doctors Cave offers free breakfast and Wi-Fi to all guests. Breakfast is served on the outdoor terrace between the pool and the bar. Waitresses stop by each table, offering muffins, pastries, and delicious Jamaican coffee. The hotel’s free Wi-Fi works well across the property.
