What do Noel Coward, Ian Femming, Chris Blackwell, Gary Allen, Robert Montague, Audrey Marks and The Gleaner's editor-in-chief all have in common? They all have ties to one of the most northerly parishes, St Mary.

It is just about two hours from Kingston and you can get there via the Junction road or the longer scenic route via Flat Bridge. Its borders are washed by the beautiful Caribbean Sea and its hot spots include Prospect Plantation, Couples resorts, James Bond Beach, Firefly, Goldeneye and White River Rafting.

It is home to an aerodrome and just nearby is the garden parish, St Ann, with all its tourist attractions. St Mary is famous for bananas, pimento and other crops, but roadways can be rendered impassable after floods or hurricanes.

Iona High School, St Mary High are two schools to consider if you are thinking of relocating and the St Ann's Bay Hospital is close by, and in most parts of the parish, residents can actually leave their door open without fear.

There are many parts of the parish that would be ideal to reside, but my favourite section is Galena. Highgate is great too and so are some quiet nooks and crannies in Annotto Bay. The main roads are now paved, but watch out for speeding motorists.

Houses like this one can be seen throughout the parish.

1. Rio Nuevo

This upscale residential community is home to returned residents from Canada, The United Kingdom and the United States of America. Houses cost from $20 million upwards. The community features the battle site where the English defeated the Spanish, but according to one senior resident, tourists who come by are unable to access the site because of a locked wooden gate. They also have one major grouse, the streets are yet to be named. Views are fabulous with mountains on one side and the sea on the other. Those who care, can walk to the beach for a daily swim.

2. Rockmore and Wilderness

There are just about a dozen homes on one of the streets of this small residential area in Galena, just a short distance from Oracabessa. The lots are huge and just about every tropical fruit tree grows here. Residents say it's quiet and peaceful and the sea is across the road.

3. St Mary Country Club

Located in Charles Town, just minutes from the White River Rafting facility and above Prospect Boys' Home, St Mary Country Club is the preferred residential gated community of staff in the hospitality industry. There are also homes owned by city folks and rented to guests or used as their weekend getaway.

4. Pampano Bay

Rio Nuevo Resorts is just across the road from Emerald Estate and Wilderness.

Just minutes from Ocho Rios, this community features some palatial structures with well-manicured lawns and quiet tree-lined sidewalks.

5. Emerald Estate

Emerald Estate is one of the newest developments in St Mary. A gated community located in Huddersfield, it comprises bungalows, apartments and townhouses. The recreation/green area that will include swings, slides, and a play area for children is not yet complete, but only a few homes remain. The 126 structures were gobbled up mainly via the Internet, primarily by Jamaicans living overseas. According to the property manager, some of the owners have not even collected their keys yet.

There are lots available and these are going for $3 million. Two-bedroom apartments cost $6.2 million; two-bedroom townhouses sold at $11.5 million and three bedrooms cost $14 million. There is adequate security at the location and a club house and swimming pool are now under construction. There is room for expansion within strict guidelines.

Emerald Estate is close to St Ann's Bay Hospital, the Boscobel Aerodrome and James Bond Beach. If you missed out on this lot, developers are doing Stonebrook, something similar, but close to the new stadium in Trelawny.

barbara.ellington@gleanerjm.com

Famous for its banana industry. The port of Oracabessa, St Mary, was where many banana boats exited the island taking bananas and many Jamaicans who were migrating.

St Mary is one of the smallest parishes in Jamaica.

The capital is Port Maria, a town located on the coast. And that's one of the beautiful things about the parish, it's natural bodies of water. The ocean is of course a stone's throw away. Some of the rivers in the parish are Rio Nuevo, White River and Wag Waters.

Modern St Mary boasts a wide expanse of new main roads and a cool temperature can be linked to sporadic showers of rain.

Named for Mary, daughter of Sir Thomas Modyford, former governor of Jamaica.

The swank resort Golden Eye, located in Oracabessa, is the former residence of Ian Flemming, and the place where he wrote all his James Bond novels. Other notable resorts in the parish are Beaches Boscobel and Couples Tower Isle.

Producers of the St Mary Banana Chips has its main factory in the parish.

Info: Jamaica Tour by Margaret Morris and smilestmary.com