Floyds Pelican Bar: Jamaica's Coolest Bar, St Elizabeth, Jamaica
Floyds Pelican Bar: Jamaica's Coolest Bar,St Elizabeth, Jamaica
Dubbed one of the world’s coolest bars, Floyd’s Pelican Bar has become a travel must and staple for locals and visitors alike. In fact, it has been on my travel bucket list for around 5 or 6 years now, so I was very excited to go on this adventure.
Built in 2001, Floyd’s Pelican Bar is a tiny driftwood bar, hoisted on stilts about a 3/4 of a mile out in the Caribbean sea. The bar was a dream realized by local fisherman and owner Floyd Forbes who conceptualized and built the bar after reportedly having a dream one night about having a bar out at sea. Fast forward to 2023 and what started off as a chill spot for the fisherman and his friends, has evolved into a tourist hotspot that sees hundreds, if not thousands of visitors per week.
Related: Rick's Cafe, Negril, Jamaica
How To Get There
Floyd’s Pelican Bar sits neatly perched on a sandbar in Parottee Point, St. Elizabeth. The journey from Kingston to Parotte is around 3 or so hours via the PJ Patterson Highway. The journey along the highway is a pretty straightforward one to St. Elizabeth so there’s not much issue there. Just turn on your maps when you get to the round-a-bout at the end of the highway and it will lead you there.
I’m not going to lie, I depended heavily on google maps to get me there and oftentimes felt like I was lost because there was so much greenery or I traversed through what seemed like someone’s community. But I’m here to tell you that Google is fairly accurate with its directions and you’ll get there safe and sound. Just enjoy the scenery and listen out for the turns and you should have no issues. Once you’ve arrived at Parotte, next stop is Floyd’s Pelican Bar.
The only way to actually get to the bar is by an approximately 10-25 minutes boat ride out to sea. There are 3 travel routes you can take. The first is via Black River. This is the closest town to Parottee, approximately 7 miles away. Taking this route will sometimes see boat operators include a dual tour of the Black River Safari as well which is a bonus win in my book. The second route is via Treasure Beach, which is approximately 11 miles away. You can gain access via Jack Sprat restaurant. And the third route, which is the one I took, is to go straight to Parotte Point and get a boat there. This is also the cheapest option. All three routes are tried, true and well established so don’t worry.
Just a note that there are also tour companies that offer south coast tours which includes Pelican Bar as a stop with other places like YS Falls, Black River Safari, Appleton Estate, etc which is obviously going to be more pricey but if you want to make a whole day or weekend of it, then this is a good option for you.
The Experience
My trip was a fairly spontaneous yet highly anticipated one. I literally woke up and decided that today was the day to head to Pelican bar. I can’t lie, I was excited to see if the rumours were true. Was it the vibe that it is being touted as? Is it really a travel must or a bust?
When I arrived in Parottee Bay, I noticed that along each side of the stretch, there were many different boat operators offering rides to Pelican bar and noting to be the official Floyd’s Pelican driver, I’m not sure who is the official boat operator (Eminem voice ‘Will the real Pelican bar driver please stand up?’), but they all should get you to your destination so you could probably just pick one or if you know someone who’s been there before, you could get the number for a boat operator and make arrangements. Just remember to be safe and tell a friend or share your location if anything.
Once I made my choice and settled in, I paid my boat fee and made my way to the boat captain who would be carrying me across the azure. At the time I went, I paid around $2000 JMD (~ $20 USD). However, with inflation moving mad as a hatter, it may be a bit more expensive when you go there.
The voyage to Floyd’s was really fun. Sailing across the ocean’s blue. Hair flailing erratically in the breeze. Salt water seducing you with its scent. The cool blue pools mesmerizing you with its beauty. Gorgeous enchanting views of the coastline. It was like a gently kiss from mother nature reminding you that she’s there. Absolutely fantastic.
The boat trek was short but sweet. I I reveled as I saw us getting closer with what was initially a tiny dot, shaping into view to form my destination. As I mentioned before, the trip is a fairly short one, just about 10 minutes. So within no time I arrived. From my research, I found out that the bar is made from driftwood, palm fronds, bric-a-brac and coconut tree trunks driven down into the sand and held up by stilts. It has a thatch roof which provides shade and shelter. After my boat captain tied the boat unto it’s hook at the dock, I carefully deboarded and made my way up some steps into the bar’s inner workings. The rustic design sees the inside tatted up with carvings from past visitors who wanted to leave their mark and immortalize their visit to the establishment. Other knickknacks like license plates, flags, hats and so on are also left by guests and plastered on the walls like a museum of memories.
From the distance, I could see that patrons were already there frolicking and lyming but I didn’t expect to see so many people. To be honest, I was hoping that because I went so late that most visitors would’ve left already. Sadly, I was wrong. Crowded was an understatement. Personally, I prefer to go places with limited foot traffic but unfortunately, I choose to go on the weekend and I went in the afternoon. Talk about recipe for travel disaster for a tourist hotspot. But I pressed on making the most of my day.
My first order of business was to find somewhere to sit. Like I said before, the place was crowded so I had to walk around a bit before I saw an open spot. Now Floyd’s is not a big place, so part of my criteria for choosing a spot was to find one with some amount room so I didn’t have to get too friendly with a stranger. I mean covid isn’t really gone. I ended up getting a spot on the far end of the bar where I could look out and see the boats coming and going. The view was good and I could hang my feet off the edge so I wasn’t mad at it.
Soon after, I was approached by someone who offered to carve my name in the bar for a small fee of my choosing. I like doing touristy stuff and making my mark, so I agreed to give him $300 JMD (about $2 USD) for my carving. It turned out pretty good if I do say so myself. :D.
After getting my name carved, I just lounged around for a bit and soaked up some sun. It was a beautiful day out. The sun wasn’t too hot and the breeze was cool. I embraced the scene and just felt calm. Soon after, I started to notice that boat loads of people were leaving to head back to shore (muah ha ha ha ha ha. My plan for a spacious visit was working), so I used this opportunity to get some pics and videos of my experience. You know pics or it didn’t happen. I did some selfies but I also stumbled upon a really nice lady who offered to help me take my pics and she did a pretty decent job. Shout out to you. Big ups!!!
Once I took off my content creator hat, my final order of business was to take a dip in the sea and wash off any worries or crawsis (pronouced ‘crosses’ meaning bad luck or misfortune). The water is waist deep so it’s perfect for swimming and standing and lyming with your drink in your hand. It was a bit cold, but after flouncing around a bit, it soon warmed up. I tried to take some underwater pics but that was a fail lol so I just enjoyed the little splash. When you’re in the water, it’s important to look and listen out for the boats coming and going in order to keep safe. Although, the swimming area tends to be a bit separated from the loading/unloading bay, still listen out just to be safe. In order, to get back up to bar, there’s a rope ladder along the side that you use to pull yourself up with. My short stubby legs needed some help so I do think they need to extended the length and shorten the distance between the steps for those of us who are funsized in the world. Otherwise, everything was great.
When you’re ready to leave, you simply call the operator or someone from the boat bay you came from and they’ll pick you up. And do try to remember the boat you came on so you don’t get left at the wrong stop. Honestly, it nearly happened to me. The only thing that saved me was the boat operator and my suitor recognizing me and I asked the person what to look out for so not to jump on the wrong boat. Loool! Or, I don’t know what I would’ve done. Once I was picked up, I took the short ride back to the shore and hopped in my care to head home.
Related: Breadnut Valley Falls, Jamaica
Food and Drink
Although I didn’t partake myself, I just wanted to point out that the Pelican bar does offer food and drink. Freshly caught fish and lobster (when in season) served with bammy, festival or rice and peas are available for purchase. You can also grab a drink from the bar. They serve a limited array of beers and sodas, most popular is the Red Stripe Beer which is often promoted as part of the experience. ‘Have a red stripe beer at Floyd’s Pelican bar’. I’m not going to lie, the prices are tourist prices i.e. a bit on the expensive side so I didn’t purchase anything. But if you want to add savouring a beer as a part of your experience, then definitely go for it. Also note that food is done to order so it is a bit of a wait. You can however call ahead to order to lessen the wait time.
What To Bring
Since you’re heading out to sea, it’s best for this trip to pack lightly.
Swimsuit (I’d say it’s best to wear it under your clothes because there is no change room)
Towel
Water shoes
Waterproof case for your phone +/- camera
Sunscreen (SPF 5+ baby!)
Hat/ Sunglasses
Money (cash only not card or apple pay etc.)
Camera / Action camera +/- selfie stick for us solo travelers
Drone if you’re fancy
Snacks
Your own relic to add to the wall
Good Vibes
Bonus Tips
Pack light (I’ve said it before but I’ll say it again)
Don’t take any valuables with you
Wear your swimsuit
Use the bathroom before you go
Overall
A trip to Floyd’s Pelican bar is a unique, one-of-a-kind experience. It’s a very relaxing mellow vibes perfect for a chill day out. The atmosphere and people were pretty warm and friendly. I’d rate it a solid 7.5/10 experience overall. I’d definitely go back again but hopefully on a less crowded day next time.