Zimbali Culinary Retreats

The property was maintained well. Unfortunately, at times there were dog poop in the walk way. Thankfully that was later cleaned, but I hope the dogs can be poop in the bushes and not where the guest walks.

The female owner was not helpful when asked for a meal/something to eat outside of the lunch hour. Also, at times she was overheard having loud fusses that could have been done in private when the guests were not around.

The staff was amazing. They were attentive, hospitable and interactive. This is a great location if you want to unplug or reset from the world. You get exactly what was promised. So safe that you could sleep with your doors opened/unlocked. The ambiance was vibrant and scenery was captivating. Lunch and dinner prices were reasonable and the foods healthy and so yummy.

The road going to the listing was bit rocky so we had to drive with patience and caution. Though the food was very favourful and delicious there were not a lot of options since it was always the chefs choice however the town was like 15 mins once off the hill.

Great nature experience, very remote and quite place. Amazing food and cozy cottages.

Ms. Allissya (I assume one of the owners) wasn't too friendly and even rude at times which made our stay uncomfortable at times. All the other employees were very friendly. Also, the shower in our cottage wasn't working properly.

Positives: 1. Beautiful accommodation - greenery & wilderness. Serene & tranquil 1000%. An abundance of fresh fruit on-site - however, not all available for breakfast, but you can definitely request it from Mark (owner) who'll provide it the following morning. Thank you again 😊 2. Fast & good communication prior to arrival from Mark. Prompt and useful responses to my questions. 3. Clear directional GPS instructions from Mark (although we ended up taking a wrong turning - our fault & not due to the instructions given). 4. Staff: Samoya was really pleasant, helpful & funny. Acted like an intermediary between us and the other owner. GG (the gardener/farm hand) too was super nice and packed us away with an abundance of fruit (and even got me Noni fruit for my mosquito bites) when I asked him. 5. Accommodation feeling like a small home on a family plot. 6. Additional fruits given when asked free of charge...i was very happy to pay for them but was just asked to "give something to GG for his efforts". This was done.

Negatives: 1. Abhorantly horrible energy and attitude from the other owner /wife/chef. This just set the tone for the entire stay. I had a load of things written out that happened but I realised telling our experience of our interaction(s) with her would not change her as there has been numerous reviews stating the same thing from at least 2023. It's a real shame she is like this because my mother and I would've done two things; 1. heavily recommended family who visit Jamaica often and also reside here to visit Zimbali - we would've been happy to encourage them not to think about the journey to Westmoreland (as everyone is based more North, Central and East of the island), nor the long bumpy path up to the site itself. 2. We ourselves would've happily visited Zimbali again on our next trip to our beloved Jamaica. Nobody should take away your happiness or upset your soul as only you should be in control of this, however her sour, surrly face and just (as we say in Jamaica) 'renkness' + attitude actually had us just counting down the nights we had left from we arrived. Even my cousins that dropped us off were hesitant about leaving us there as they found her extremely unfriendly and unhelpful (and this was just their 3 min interaction with her). Yes, we could've done the tours that are mentioned on the website and that Mark came up to us and told us about, but we were there literally just to chill and do absolutely nothing as we were in Jamaica for a wedding and a memorial. My mother and I were the only guests for the duration of our stay at the property (except when they were hosting a cooking experience for a few hours), but not once did she introduce herself, ask about our stay or enquire about how the meals she cooked for us were. Samoya (the young lady onsite) & Mark did all of this. Things that could be improved; 1.