Vegan in Jamaica

[AwayWeGo]

I am going to Jamaica in a week and I am really worried about eating vegan there. I am going to be staying in Port Antonio and working in a homeless shelter for two weeks. We are staying in an eco resort that, as far as I know, has some vegan options. Mainly rice and peas, fruit and some sort of salad. I am bringing peanut butter, trail mix and some snacky options. I don't think patties are vegan

I have been there once before but at that time I was vegetarian so I wasn't paying too much attention to what was vegan. Is rasta food vegan? There is a rasta man who lives down the street from the resort who I am planning to visit, he makes me best stew!

Any suggestions for vegan-travelling in Jamaica?

[harpy]

Hi AwayWeGo

I've never been there but it sounds as if they have great fruit and veg in Jamaica so I'm sure you don't need to worry. Fruit and your snacks should keep you alive for a couple of weeks even if you have problems getting cooked food, but an eco resort of all places surely ought to do vegan food? You could always e-mail ahead to make sure.

There seem to be some restaurants as well http://www.happycow.net/north_americ...bbean/jamaica/ but I don't see any listed in Port Antonio. I think some Rastafarians are vegan but not all. Maybe if you ask nicely he will make you a vegan stew anyway.

Sorry, not much help but maybe you'll hear from someone who's actually been.

Have a great time - I feel jealous!

[AwayWeGo]

They definitely do have good fruit and veg so the raw food should keep my energy levels up. I am just concerned with getting full meals like I would here. As you said though it is only two week so I am sure that I will be able to survive.
You would think that an eco-resort would have vegan food but they don't cater to vegans. We emailed them and they said it would be fine but the organizer of this trip is veggie and she said that they have had problems in the past with a veggie deit, so I am not too hopeful. We told them it was a food allergy, which is a shame that we felt the need to do that but they took it more seriously.
Anyways, thanks for your help!

[harpy]

I find I feel a bit feeble if I eat nothing but fruit and vegetables for several days (probably all in the mind) so I always take bags of nuts and stuff like that along on trips where I'm not sure if I'm going to be able to find vegan meals, and then I'm fine.

Mind you if you can go shopping you can probably buy them there - I was reading they grow cashew nuts in Jamaica, as well as coconuts - yum!

Hope you have a lovely time, please let us know how you get on.

[fondducoeur]

When I was in Jamaica, I was staying at a resort for much of the time, and ate almost entirely salad, fruit, fruit smoothies, bread w/jam (which was delicious...pineapple, guava, etc) and fries. We did go to one place that had Rastafarian fare, but none of it was vegan, unfortunately (if I remember right all the dishes had cream.) However, I do think that rice and bean type dishes are popular, so if you are around places that are not tourist-y you may have better luck with something like that. Soy milk also seemed to be widely used.
Good luck and have a great time!

[khadagan]

I find I feel a bit feeble if I eat nothing but fruit and vegetables for several days (probably all in the mind) so I always take bags of nuts and stuff like that along on trips where I'm not sure if I'm going to be able to find vegan meals, and then I'm fine.

Mind you if you can go shopping you can probably buy them there - I was reading they grow cashew nuts in Jamaica, as well as coconuts - yum!

Hope you have a lovely time, please let us know how you get on.

I'm the same, I need something else to keep my strenght up which is carbs for me. I would bring crackers, bread or biscuits with me for the first days so I can have a quick something if I feel a bit weak, especially with warm weather. I find that you can usually find a place where you can buy simple bread, or crackers or something like that to keep my strenght up easily.