Rafting down the Martha Brea

[dololie]

Has anyone done this excursion through RCL or is it better to find someone who lives there that does excursions. Also, how far is Martha Brea from the ship.

[bahama-momma]

I did this thru Carnival - and I'm not sure if any tour guides offer it. I don't remember it being that expensive - it was very leisurely trip and I'd do it again. We visited the small shopping area that was set up before you take the raft trip and had a free sample drink as well. Along the way (on the banks of the river) some people have little areas set up to sell their goods and if you are interested they'll pull the raft up close so you can see the goods and buy if you are interested. After the trip then you come to another shopping area and you can pick up replicas of the raft and other bargins. Overall I'd recommend this excursion

[cruiseco]

Originally Posted by dololie

Has anyone done this excursion through RCL or is it better to find someone who lives there that does excursions. Also, how far is Martha Brea from the ship.

Here's a link to the guys that actually do the rafting:

http://www.jamaicarafting.com/Facts.htm

That page has their phone/email and I'm sure they can tell you how long it takes to get from the cruise ship pier to their place.

I'm pretty sure that every tour company that advertises a Martha Brae rafting tour uses these guys as the actual supplier. So you can deal directly with them or if you want to combine the rafting with some other activity you can book through a local driver/guide or through a tour company. But since the rafting company includes transportation from MoBay in their price I can't see much sense in hiring a driver/guide to get you there and back unless you're going to be doing other things also.

[cccer]

We did this four years ago through Carnival, we were supposed to go tubing, but it got messed up with the reservations.
It was a long bus ride from the port to get to the river, it was almost 2 hours each way. It was very nice, but I would not do it again because of the long trip.

[Marie51]

I did this a few years ago and I remember a long bus ride. The rafting itself I thought was boring....you just sit there the whole time and it was very hot of course. I would not do it again. Boring for me, but others think it is wonderful.

[Peg_S]

Wow. Thanks for letting us know. That's half the day!

Is the tubing excursion in the same area? Same long bus ride?

Thanks,
Peg

[cruiseco]

Originally Posted by Peg_S

Wow. Thanks for letting us know. That's half the day!

Is the tubing excursion in the same area? Same long bus ride?

Thanks,
Peg

Just to be clear, the Martha Brae River is close to Montego Bay. So if your port of call is Ocho Rios then, yes, you would have a long bus trip each way. But not if the ship docks in Montego Bay.

Tubing excursions are available in both the Ocho Rios and Montego Bay areas so there's no need for a long bus trip from either port of call if this is your preferred activity.