In 1974, Richard Hershman bought a cliff in Negril when Negril was still a sleepy fishing village without electricity, running water, or a single tourist. He opened a bar. That bar became Rick’s Cafe, and that cliff became one of the most famous in the world. Fifty-plus years later, the formula hasn’t changed: show up before sunset, order something rum-forward, and watch both the professional divers and the supremely optimistic tourists hurl themselves off 35-foot limestone ledges into the Caribbean. The cliffs have survived Hurricane Gilbert in 1988 and Ivan in 2004. Rick’s has been rebuilt, expanded, and consistently named one of the best beach bars on the planet. Forget the crowds: just get there by 4pm, find a terrace seat, and let Jamaica’s most famous sunset do the rest.
Filed under our Jamaica rundown, where the rest of them live.
