A group of 30 UK participants has successfully completed the Sandals Foundation’s fourth annual Island Challenge, raising over £100,000 for children’s healthcare in the Caribbean. The four-day fundraising adventure, which took place from 2nd- 5th October 2026, started with a 10-kilometre run from St. Mary to St. Ann followed by an hour-long kayak through the White River Fish Sanctuary and culminated in scaling Dunn’s River Falls. Over subsequent days of the Island Challenge, participants endured an eight-kilometre trek through the Jamaican rainforest, a gruelling, hilly half-marathon from Falmouth to Good Hope where they were joined by local athletes, a hike up the famous Blue Mountains, and even an intense military endurance test led by the Jamaica Defence Force. The group helped conservation efforts on the island by planting trees at the Bogue 2 Forest Reserve and participated in a Reading Road Trip to Chalky Hill Primary School, where they met local children, whose families will benefit from the money raised by the initiative.
It is an annual fundraising event that supports children's healthcare in the Caribbean through various physical challenges.
Over £100,000 was raised to strengthen children’s healthcare in Jamaica.
Participants ran 10 kilometers, kayaked through the White River Fish Sanctuary, and scaled Dunn’s River Falls.