GoldenEye and the luxury of sleeping in the Jamaican villa where Ian Fleming created James Bond

For those unversed in the James Bond universe, Jamaica could simply be one of the settings where the world's most famous secret agent paraded his penchant for the exotic, cachet enemies and tailored suits.

However, the Caribbean country is the small homeland of the British spy, because its creator, Ian Fleming, wrote the 14 books that recount the adventures of 007 in a mansion just twenty minutes from the city of Ocho Ríos and ninety minutes from the tracks. from Montego Bay International Airport.

Of course, if you have a private plane, you can land at Ian Fleming Airport and be in GoldenEye in nine minutes, the name by which everyone on this island knows Fleming's home.

His house is situated in an area filled with underwater caves, waterfalls and breathtaking views even by Jamaican standards.

It went something like this, if we look at the experts on the novelist: Commander Ian Fleming was one of the British espionage kingpins and first came to Jamaica in 1943. This is where the experts are divided: some believe that he settled here simply to rest from the hustle and bustle of World War II;

others that, in reality, the soldier was in the Caribbean on a secret mission to locate some of the submarine bases that the Nazis were suspected of having in the area.

Be that as it may, Fleming continued to go to Jamaica regularly until 1947, when he decided to settle permanently.

His villa is also controversial.

His biographers say that the spy (if that is what he was,

in short) baptized his house in honor of the secret operation that the British high command had designed to liberate Gibraltar in case Hitler decided that Spain was a good place to invade and stay.

On the island they say that GoldenEye is simply a nod to the wonderful views of this enclave.

Reception of the GoldenEye hotel, the former residence of Ian Fleming in Jamaica.

Christian Horan Photography (Christian Horan Photography / is)

The estate was bought in 1959 by Chris Blackwell (the mythical founder of the no less mythical Island Records, a label that released some of the most important albums by U2, Tom Waits or Bob Marley).

He kept it as is and over time decided to turn it into a small five-room hotel that immediately became a pole of attraction for high-flying tourism.

Now, on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the premiere of

the first film in the Bond saga with Sean Connery as the protagonist, the property is renewed and offers its visitors the possibility of living a completely

experience .

One of the new bedroom villas built at GoldenEye.Brie Williams

In 2022, Blackwell has decided to go one step further and turn GoldenEye into a corner of the James Bond adventures.

For starters, Fleming's house has been joined by half a dozen more rooms, spread over various one- and two-bedroom villas, all endowed with the same luxuries as his older sister.

For 500 euros, one can sleep next to the typewriter on which Fleming

to Bond and, for a little more, one can add the favorite champagne of the secret agent (Bollinger) or Blackwell's own rum, a concoction that is difficult to find outside of the island and it is a favorite with local

.

The accommodation has four restaurants where the famous secret agent 007 is honored.

The property has also opened four restaurants, where there are many tributes to 007. And the excursions from the villa include some of the most spectacular waterfalls in Jamaica, private beaches that are difficult to access from another place and the option to stay in other parts of the Caribbean island where Blackwell has decided to install small franchises of the original project.

The hotel complex also includes a

and all the luxuries that can be expected from a

that pays tribute to the enormous shadow of a character who jumped from literature to cinema and from there to the collective unconscious.

Swimming pool at Ian Fleming's house near the town of Ocho Rios, north of Jamaica.

Christian Horan Photography (Christian Horan Photography / is)

The mansion is still a huge icon in the area and a large part of the workers live in adjacent towns and keep their own memories, mixed with legends, jokes and rumors that reflect Ian Fleming's fame as an affable and friendly guy, as well as a rake. , which is an essential complement to make the trip even more memorable.

Beach bar on the private beach of the GoldenEye 'resort'.

In the words of Blackwell himself to

the best idea, if one has the necessary resources to take a week's vacation determined to follow in the footsteps of James Bond, would be: "Come with some friends, rent the five rooms of the mansion Fleming and feel how he felt when he looked out the window while writing the adventures of 007. There are wonderful excursions, the food is excellent and the landscape is indescribable, but nothing equals the experience of feeling like Fleming for a few days: it is the most close we will be to being 007. Not bad, right?

Subscribe here to the