Hellshire Beach is one of Jamaica’s biggest disappointments. I would come here with my family almost every year for the last 15 years or so. If I’m in Kingston, I have to go to Hellshire. There is still beach here, but it’s definitely not as lush as it used to be. It’s with a heavy heart that I have to write this because I don’t like to disparage Jamaica, as this is where my family was born and raised. I have a deep love for Jamaica and because of that, I have to tell the truth. Hellshire is really hellish. From the minute you pull up, there are nothing but these degenerate guys harassing you and telling you where to park, where to eat. They run up to your car and will bang on your car trying to bully you into where to go. Now, you find parking, and here they come again as if you’re prey and they are carnivores looking for their next meal. A bunch of guys just out there doing this all day, calling it “hustling” when it’s really harassment. For me, as a woman, I would not feel safe out there alone because I know that they’d immediately target me and try to make me go this way or that way. My male cousin is driving the car, and we pull up to a spot, immediately this guy comes at us telling us where we need to go. Now, I’m already disgusted by the groups of men hanging out and harassing people all day - and this guy proceeds to talk to my cousin as if we women (3 of us) were not even there. I immediately catch an attitude and start telling him where he can go. He was so disrespectful. The beach and the whole area is filthy. If these guys spent half the time cleaning up the beach and parking lot, being productive and taking pride in the place, maybe I’d feel more inclined to listen to them. The fact is, they want quick and easy money without any real effort. The beach is full of trash. It’s really disgusting that, with the beach disappearing b/c of climate change, there isn’t more of an effort to keep it clean. However, this is one of the problems that I have with Jamaica - they keep the resort beaches clean, but leave the locals and public beaches to dwindle and deteriorate. Despite these delinquents on the beach, we bought some necklaces from a friendly Rasta man who was beading them himself and had some other handmade goods and t-shirts. Of course, the restaurants are amazing - you won’t find fish and seafood this good anywhere else in Jamaica!