World traveller Zoe Reeve loves coming to Jamaica

While many travellers opt for luxury hotels and five-star comfort, Zoe Reeve says she prefers the authenticity of "sleeping on local couches", as it allows her to build genuine cultural connections and have real-life experiences with the people she meets.

"I've always found it (travelling) fascinating, even as a child. I knew I wanted to see more of the world when I got older. Then in 2013, when I was about 19 or 20, I saved some money from a summer job and bought a flight to Jamaica. I had recently become a fan of dancehall music and wanted to learn more," the 33-year-old Englishwoman told THE STAR.

"While planning my visit to Jamaica, I discovered a platform called Couchsurfing, which allows you to stay on local couches around the world and meet other travellers for cultural exchange," she said. On that first trip, she stayed on a host's couch in Fern Gully, St Ann, for two weeks.

"I travelled alone. Everyone told me I was crazy, that I might get kidnapped. But I went and had the best time of my life, and there were other travellers there too," she said. "That's when I realised this is how I want to travel in the future." Reeve noted that her part-time jobs in England, often as a classroom assistant, are used to fund her travels. She estimated that she has stayed on more than 20 couches worldwide, and has never felt overwhelming fear.

"Since then, I've used many platforms, Airbnb, staying with friends' relatives, new acquaintances, or renting apartments from landlords," she explained. For her first trip, she FaceTimed the host beforehand, and checked profiles on the Couchsurfing platform to see if the locations are legitimate.

"I wasn't really scared, though there were moments on the plane when I thought, 'Oh my God, are you really doing this?' It was even my first time flying."

She is currently on her seventh trip to Jamaica, her first since 2022, and her first video went viral, gaining more than a million views. In it, she arrives at the Norman Manley International Airport with just a small bag, waits for a Number 98 JUTC bus to downtown Kingston, and confidently navigates the city. She made her first stop at a vegan restaurant off Matthews Lane, before checking into an Airbnb off Beeston Street. From the comments, viewers assumed she was short on cash, but for Reeve, it was simply her preferred way of immersing herself in the culture. Laughing at some of the comments, she recalled one in particular:

"Someone asked if I knew I was going to a tenement yard. I know what a tenement yard is, I've stayed in one before, and I have no problem with it. I just need a bed and electricity," she said, adding that she finds Jamaican humour amusing. Although she refuses to name a favourite country, she said Jamaica stands out for its strong, vibrant culture.

"You can sense it on every street in the art, the music, the fashion," she said. She also recalled living in Half-Way Tree for three months in 2016 while volunteering at a hostel in exchange for accommodation.

Reeve said she naturally connects with locals and blends into communities. She shared memories of spending time in Trench Town, where she helped a friend sell slippers in the streets.

"I loved how vibrant and lively downtown was. People would say, 'Wah whitey, you a sell slippers?'" she laughed, adding that those experiences helped her become familiar with the area. "Sometimes the police would come and we'd have to move, so I learnt the streets by following him from place to place."

Reeve, who is now vegan, also revealed that Jamaica has influenced her lifestyle in a major way.

"I met a Rastafarian in Fern Gully who introduced me to a vegan lifestyle, and I've been vegan ever since," she said. "I love discovering hidden spots that you won't find online. For this trip, I even have a list of vegan restaurants I want to visit."