Weather-beaten Black River may be the largest town in the parish of St. Elizabeth, but that is not saying much given the region’s bucolic feel. Spreading back from the coastline and centered around its bustling market and commercial main street, it is certainly not a tourist hotspot, though it does have a couple of interesting buildings along the waterfront. The most notable among these is the elaborate Invercauld Hotel, built in 1889 during Black River’s heyday as one of the island’s main ports.

The main reason people come here, though, is to take a boat safari up the Black River, the island’s longest river, populated by Jamaican crocodiles. Boats leave from the depot at both sides of the main town bridge, and meander upstream through the peaty, water-hyacinth-dotted river, passing thick clumps of twisted mangrove that provide a habitat for many bird and marine species. The crocodiles are used to visitors, and many of them have been named by the boat captains; nonetheless, at up to 12 ft (4 m) long, they look fairly menacing up close.

For those who are looking for an even quieter retreat, there is the option is to head west of Black River to Font Hill Beach Park , a privately-owned beach with a good strip of white sand.