Marijuana Farm Tours from Montego Bay: Which One to Book and What the Law Says
6 min read
For most visitors the best-known choice is the Marijuana Farm and Bird Sanctuary Tour at €95.62 per group: a private three-hour trip with hotel pickup, 103 reviews and a rating of 3.8. If you want a longer day with a swim and a sunset, the Negril Marijuana Farm and Mineral Spring Tour at €164.33 rates 4.8, from 19 reviews. If you want the farm only, the private farm tour is the short version, but its review record is still tiny (1 so far).
The four tours compared
| Tour | Time | From | Rating | Suits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Marijuana Farm and Bird Sanctuary Tour | 3 hours | €95.62 per group | 3.8 from 103 reviews | A private first-timer’s half-day for up to seven, with a nursery visit; check whether the bird sanctuary entry costs extra |
| Negril Marijuana Farm and Mineral Spring Tour | 5.5 to 6.5 hours | €164.33 | 4.8 from 19 reviews | A full day with a swim and Rick’s Café |
| Montego Bay Marijuana Farm Private Tour | 1 to 1.5 hours | €130.29 per person | 5.0 from 1 reviews | A short, private farm visit with round-trip transport |
| Cannabis Farm Tour with Lunch and Transfers | 5 hours | €201.53 per person | not yet rated | Visitors staying around Ocho Rios (pickup only from listed hotels and the cruise terminal) who want a farm lunch; not for children under 12 |
What the price on the page covers
On the most-booked tour the price is quoted per group: the tour is private, for your own group of up to seven people. Its inclusions list hotel pickup and drop-off, private air-conditioned transport, a guide and entry fees for the herb farm only; the bird sanctuary entry is not covered by that line, so check on the booking page whether it costs extra. Food is not part of it: the description says the refreshment stop on the way back is not included. Check that before you compare it with the per-person prices of the Negril tour or the private tour, and check on their booking pages which entrance fees are covered.
The tour itself is what the listing says: a pickup from your hotel lobby at designated hotels in the resort area, the farm’s nursery where you touch and smell the plants, a walk through how the crop is grown “from seed to sale”, and a bird sanctuary named in the short description, where reviewers had birds on their shoulders and fed them from their hands. The visit ends with sampling, and refreshments on the way back are not included. The guide is the part reviewers talk about most: one says he was patient and informative about how the plants are farmed, and reviewers single out the birds and the photos with the parrots.
Check availability and price of the farm and bird sanctuary tour
Why the Negril tour rates higher
The Negril farm and mineral spring tour is a different kind of day. It runs about five and a half to six and a half hours, adds a swim at the Mineral Spring, and ends at Rick’s Café with cliff jumping near the sunset; hotel pickup is included from the areas the listing names (Montego Bay, Grand Palladium, Lady Hamilton, Falmouth, Trelawny, Negril and Westmoreland), cocktails at the café are at your own expense, and whether entrance fees, food and gratuities are covered is worth checking on the booking page. Reviewers mention meeting the farm’s owner, a limestone massage at the spring and a driver who sorted out a small mix-up over the Rick’s Café stop.
Part of that rating is simply a bigger, more varied day, and it comes from 19 reviews against 103; it costs €164.33, against €95.62 per group for the farm and bird tour. What it does mean is that if you want the farm to be one part of a good day out and not the whole of it, this is the better value. The Rick’s Café half of the day is described in Negril and Rick’s Café.
Check availability and price of the Negril farm and spring day
The ganja farm that is part of another tour
If a farm stop is a side attraction rather than the point, the RastaSafari UTV tour includes a visit to a small ganja farm where you can sample derived products, alongside a countryside ride and a swim. It has its own article: UTV or ATV in Montego Bay.
What the law says, in plain words
Jamaica changed its rules in 2015. According to the government’s fact sheet on the Dangerous Drugs Amendment Act, possession of two ounces or less is no longer an arrestable offence and does not lead to a criminal record, though the police may issue a ticket. Smoking ganja in a public place is still an offence, and possession of more than two ounces is still a criminal matter. Visitors fall under the same rules as residents.
What that means for a tour:
- A farm visit with sampling is a private activity organised by the operator. A beach, a street or a hotel balcony is not. The farm on the lunch tour does not allow smoking at all.
- Do not carry more than two ounces, and do not try to take any of it home. Leave it in Jamaica.
- If you are on a prescription or have a drug test coming up, think about it before any sampling, and for health questions ask a doctor or pharmacist, not a tour guide.
Who should skip it
If you do not smoke, ask the operator whether you can skip the sampling, and go for the birds and the plants. With children, the bird sanctuary is an obvious draw, but the same trip includes a farm and a sampling. The lunch tour is not suitable for children under 12, pregnant women, or people with back problems or respiratory issues; for the other three tours, ask the operator about a minimum age and decide for yourself. Be wary of thin review records: the private farm tour at €130.29 has only 1 review so far and the lunch tour at €201.53 has none; both are priced per person, while the farm and bird tour at €95.62 is priced per group.
The booking, in one line
First time, short on time: take the €95.62 farm and bird sanctuary tour and check on the booking page whether the bird sanctuary entry is extra. Want a proper day out: take the Negril day at €164.33. More day trips of this kind are under adventure tours.
