Martha Brae River
Martha Brae River
4.5
About
Float along the Martha Brae River in the heart of the Jamaican countryside. travelers will love gliding on the bamboo raft through the jungle, where wildlife and historic sites abound. During the hour-long ride, you can get on and off the raft as you please to swim in the river’s calm and crystal-clear waters. The guides will tell you all about the local plants and animals and the area’s history as you pass through the lush vegetation along the way. Most guided tours include round-trip transportation from Montego Bay. – Tripadvisor
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  • Kim W
    7 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Awesome Experience 👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽
    My husband and I booked this excursion for while we were in port during our cruise. It was our first time in Jamaica. Our Raft Captain was Reynaldo aka Rastah Pastah. He shared a wealth of knowledge of both, Martha Brae River and Jamaica. He kept us entertained with his awesome singing! We could have stayed on the raft all day with him. I highly recommend this excursion to anyone visiting Jamaica. You won't be dissapointed. Yea mon!
    Visited March 2023
    Traveled as a couple
    Written April 3, 2023
  • Volusia69
    Bedford, United Kingdom78 contributions
    4.0 of 5 bubbles
    A relaxing raft ride
    A relaxing ride down the river on a bamboo raft. Captain gave us loads of facts about the river and the surrounding area. A little hard sell of some hand made art at the end, could be a little awkward if not expected. As you are almost feel guilty not to buy something.
    Visited May 2023
    Traveled as a couple
    Written May 6, 2023
  • Shar M
    7 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Fun great captain makes all the difference. Ours was the best
    Richard capt 125 was fantastic. He has a love of birds and pointed out the difference birds based on their calls. I told him about the Merlin Bird app which helps identify based on sounds you record. Hope he can use it in the future. What a fun time we had. Our raft trip was not rushed. We love it.
    Visited May 2023
    Traveled with friends
    Written May 29, 2023
  • Cathy H
    Rancho Cucamonga, California15 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Fun and beautiful experience
    What a beautiful tour! Ronaldo " Rasta Pasta" was our guide today. He is very friendly and knowledgeable of the area. My husband was able to "captain" the raft for about half the tour, which he loved. The scenery and sounds of birds was so tranquil. Absolute must do. We booked through Island Route Tours while at Sandals Dunn's River. The transportation driver gave us history of each town we went through and pointed out points of interest along the way. Great trip!
    Visited June 2023
    Traveled as a couple
    Written June 2, 2023
  • Running_waters_54
    Rock Hill, South Carolina53 contributions
    4.0 of 5 bubbles
    Relaxing but best as a group
    Group of eight went on this experience. Four of us were able to stay together on our rafts which made it fun. From our collective experience it was enjoyable and relaxing overall but your “raft driver” will play a big role in it. One set had a driver that was way too talkative and continuously interrupted their conversation but the remaining three of our sets had drivers that had the perfect amount of conversation from being informative, funny and helpful with photos. We were able to experience “driving” the raft ourselves. There were many vendor booths set up along the river but none operating at the time we went. Wear mosquito repellant! They offer a small complimentary fruit drink at the beginning or you can pay for rum. Some vendors at the beginning and small shop at the end. We paid with credit cards so we had to drive back down to the end point to pay. Cost was $45/pp at the time of our visit. It’s not something I’d go back too but was something cool to experience while in Jamaica especially if you’re not to far from the area.
    Visited June 2023
    Traveled with friends
    Written June 16, 2023
  • Faith
    7 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Peaceful & healing experience
    I visited in August of 2023. This was the most peaceful and healing experience. I highly recommend this tour. 90.00 per raft (up to 2 ppl). Vendors along the riverside had a variety of items for sale, handcrafted items were my favorite.
    Visited August 2023
    Traveled solo
    Written September 2, 2023
  • Enos G
    Basildon, United Kingdom106 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Family Holiday
    My 4TH Time Back To Montego Bay Jamaica. My Son And Daughter Second Time Our First Time On The Martha Brae River . What A Geat Time We Had Will Do It Again Thats For Sure . ps no snakes or crocks in the river only ones that i saw are on peoples feet.
    Visited September 2023
    Traveled with family
    Written October 15, 2023
  • Stacey P
    25 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Lovely relaxing ride with beautiful scenery!
    A really beautiful, relaxing ride. Our captain wasn’t that talkative but the captain of the raft my kids and brother were on was very knowledgable and told us lots about the river and the area. Life preservers are provided and I was able to take my 3 month old on too. Stunning surroundings, beautiful weather and they would let you stand up on the raft and paddle it if you wanted. Great trip out
    Visited October 2023
    Traveled with family
    Written October 30, 2023
  • Isabellash
    Miami, Florida6 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Best raft captain: Clive
    Clive was our raft captain. He was so profesional and really made our experience peaceful and enjoyable. The river is beautiful. He took pictures of us and even told me how to pose to get better angles! Thank you Clive!! You made our day!
    Visited October 2023
    Traveled as a couple
    Written November 2, 2023
  • Andrea R
    15 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Rafting was great!
    We had a great day with our guide Simms on the river. The rafting company was efficient, clean and safe PFDs (personal flotation devices) were provided. We bought a bottle of rum punch, although you could bring your own things if you wanted, we enjoyed it thoroughly. We bought pictures, rum cake, and a coconut for our kid. We felt safe, the river was exceptionally beautiful. DON'T FORGET to TIP YOUR GUIDE!
    Visited February 2024
    Traveled with family
    Written February 11, 2024
These reviews are the subjective opinion of Tripadvisor members and not of TripAdvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.

Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.

Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.

Popular mentions

4.5
4.5 of 5 bubbles1,952 reviews
Excellent
1,265
Very good
492
Average
143
Poor
26
Terrible
26

marc kez
Newcastle upon Tyne, UK13 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2024 • Couples
Linford 116 RAFT CAPTAIN hats off to you my guy I choose him as the older generation has much more respect as the younger ones just want to get you down so they can get back up the top to take the next ones down this guy took his absolute time with us there was no rush what so ever nothing was a hassle we sung together we rafted together this was the best experience I could of asked for my advice is look out for him and choose him just like I did there was this other guy an older guy yellow t-shirt on that stayed behind the whole way then along side them were singing together and another couple was on other raft we loved it this is the experience I prayed for and got it thanks to you your 67 and still going strong I hope you have many many years left in you
Written March 4, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Kenneth P
Toms River, NJ48 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Feb 2024 • Couples
Very nice authentic bamboo river ride in Jamaica I would recommend it, however,mit is not cheap and if you hire a taxi driver to and from here it’s really expensive,
Written March 3, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Hailey W
1 contribution
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Feb 2024 • Family
This was a perfect length excursion. Well organized. Odell Miller was an excellent raft captain! We had the best foot scrub and highly recommend this excursion!
Written February 24, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Nick P
Maidstone, United Kingdom66 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Feb 2024 • Couples
Try to pick a day when there are no cruise ships docked. On our visit we more or less had the location to ourselves. The drop off point is upstream. Here there are a few stalls selling souvenirs and a bar. Getting on board the raft is easy. You don't particularly need wet shoes. There then follows a glide down the river of about 3 miles, taking an hour or so. Some attractive stalls on the right hand side of the river although we didn't stop or ask to stop at any of them. At the end of the trip there's the official photographer, offering to sell you pictures of your arrival for $10 a piece, there's a small store with souvenirs and a cafe. We tried spiced chicken wings at $15 - bit pricey, but spicey hot. Bring cash for any purchases and trips
Written February 22, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Susan B
Minneapolis, MN4 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Feb 2024 • Couples
There are several bamboo rafting scams in Jamaica, but the Martha Brae is the real deal. A very relaxing, slow ride (about 1 1/2;hours) down a small winding river with lots of foliage all around you. It cost $100 the raft that seats 2 people. The rafter let's you try the pole, and that was fun. No pressure but he does sell some items at the end for $20.

Whatever you do, don't do the Rio Nuevo River rafting. You go about 2 blocks and half that is trying to get the raft out of the mess of rafts around theirs. At another block or so they turn around and pull you back up.
Written February 19, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Linda L
Gloucestershire, UK7 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Feb 2024 • Couples
Leon, our tour guide was excellent. He picked us up spot on time, was friendly, courteous and professional. He certainly helped make the trip enjoyable.

He also took photos on my phone for us as we left on our raft and promised to forward additional photos he took on his phone for us.

Excellent service, would recommend him every time.
Written February 17, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Kathy R
6 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Feb 2024 • Couples
Our guide was very helpful, especially since I'd injured my foot. He made sure I could still safely do the photo ops and gave a GREAT leg and foot massage. The trip itself was pretty short though, just a mile long, but interesting none the less.
Written February 11, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Andrea R
15 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Feb 2024 • Family
We had a great day with our guide Simms on the river. The rafting company was efficient, clean and safe PFDs (personal flotation devices) were provided. We bought a bottle of rum punch, although you could bring your own things if you wanted, we enjoyed it thoroughly. We bought pictures, rum cake, and a coconut for our kid. We felt safe, the river was exceptionally beautiful. DON'T FORGET to TIP YOUR GUIDE!
Written February 11, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

WB C
Edmonton, Canada12 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Jan 2024 • Family
Simply awesome! Our guides were friendly and knowledgeable. Highly recommend not booking through any sites as you will be overcharged! We went directly to the office and paid $99 per raft.
Written February 10, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Kathy M
2 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Jan 2024 • Friends
Great services by Byron’s Tours
Can’t say enough great things about our driver O’Neil. He was great
We felt safe and had a great time when we went on a excursion with him
We’ll definitely hire him once again in June
Thank you so much for your services
Written January 31, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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Martha Brae River - All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (2024)

Frequently Asked Questions about Martha Brae River