Rudest Street People in the Carribean

[topaz123]

Wondered if we were alone in our impression of both Jamaica stops ( Ocho Rios and Montego Bay). We were badgered by Taxi drivers and beggars the entire day. One guy followed us for at least 2 hours in Ocho and would not stop asking us what we wanted to do, to go, on and on. I gave up saying NO THANK YOU. Whew......Mexico was bad, but I think Jamaica is the absolute worst for aggressive beggars. Anybody want to chime in??

[KirkNC]

I agree, I am about where I don't even want to take a cruise that stops there or if I do, just stay on the ship.

[sail7seas]

Easy. Don't return. :eek: :D

 

I agree about not leaving the ship in Jamaica. We had a few incidents that made us uncomfortable about going ashore particularly on our own.

[DonnaK]

In Jamaica, we've always booked an excursion, either via the ship or with a private guide (we love Marva Shaw). The guides really made sure that we bypassed the aggressive street people that harassed tourists, and I didn't feel unsafe or uncomfortable under their "protection".

 

However, we would never venture out on our own for the same reasons mentioned here.

[Bonnie J.]

Did you learn 'Ferra jacka, comma taly view', the French song, in elementary school. (Sorry have no idea how to spell it so sound it out!) Just say it when anyone comes up to you. You can also say' Je'n parle Englash'- I don't speak English. Chances are they don't speak French so will give up and leave you alone. We are taught to be polite and say "no, no thank you" but don't!

[MCC retired]

It is a shame how the locals can turn off opinions of a beautiful island with lots to offer .

Stick with the ship tours here and you will have a pleasant experience .

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums mobile app

[Jane2357]

Was there last year and will not get off any ship that stops there - we were pestered with those selling drugs.

[Amerryscot]

I've been several times to Jamaica, but can't remember being badgered.

[lady_cruiser]

That is why we like sailing on Royal Caribbean. They go to their private island, Falmouth, which "is" an enclosed compound but they have a Margaretville where you can grab a bite to eat and walk around to keep your land legs going.

[sail7seas]

Don't HAL and Carnival also go there?

 

It's very like the Carnival created port in Grand Turk which also has Margaritaville. :)

Edited August 12, 2014 by sail7seas

[skrufy]

Jamaica,!!!!!!!!!

[sail7seas]

Jamaica,!!!!!!!!!

 

 

 

:) Is that:

 

Jamaica, you like it?

 

or

 

Jamaica, you don't like it so much?

[biker@sea]

Being a bearded tattooed biker I was swarmed with " deal's " so bad in the parking lot right in front of cop's .D.W. and I turned around a went back to the ship before I end up in jail . :rolleyes:

 

We will not return !!!!!

[Marie51]

That is why we like sailing on Royal Caribbean. They go to their private island, Falmouth, which "is" an enclosed compound but they have a Margaretville where you can grab a bite to eat and walk around to keep your land legs going.

 

Falmouth is not a private island and it is not an enclosed compound. It is a city in Jamaica.

perhaps you are thinking of Labadee which is in Haiti.

[cb at sea]

In Costa Rica, we were strolling outside of the port, and an old man offered to shine our shoes...over and over and over and over......we were wearing flip-flops. He followed us for 3 blocks. Unnerving. We paid him $2 to leave us alone.

 

I know that these folks are MUCH less fortunate than we...but it is aggravating. I think more "tourists" would be more inclined to come ashore and spend money legitimatly if the weren't be hassled all the time. But, it's up to that country's government to enforce the "no begging" law or to make a "no begging" law....

 

On Labadee, you will not be hassled unless you go to the "straw market".....

Edited August 12, 2014 by cb at sea

[geoherb]

Jamaica is one port where we will never get off the ship. We went there on our first cruise together in 1989. We did a ship's excursion to Dunn's River Falls in the morning that was fine. We went into Ocho Rios in the afternoon. A guy tried to be our tour guide after we had repeatedly told him we did not want him to be. We finally escaped by going into a nice jewelry shop and staying for 10 minutes or so. I was thinking in the back of my mind that the guy's cousin was probably a cop who was going to arrest us for stiffing him.

 

Later on in the straw market, the vendors were super aggressive. We left there as fast as possible and went back to the ship. We avoided western Caribbean itineraries for 14 years after that because we did not want to go back to Jamaica. We did not sail to the western Caribbean again until we found a cruise that did not go to Jamaica.

 

When we could not avoid going there on a Panama Canal cruise, we stayed on the ship and had a great time.

[mr green]

The only 'problems' that we have had, have been in Mexico and Columbia, but even then the word 'no' was enough for us to have 'problem free' visits.

Jamaica? Nooo problems at all mon, we enjoyed the visit.

Maybe its our personal charm!:cool:

 

john

[leaveitallbehind]

Falmouth is not a private island and it is not an enclosed compound. It is a city in Jamaica.

perhaps you are thinking of Labadee which is in Haiti.

 

While the picture shown is of the pier in Falmouth, you are correct with this information and that the poster must mean Labadee and clearly not Falmouth, Jamaica.

Edited August 12, 2014 by leaveitallbehind

[navybankerteacher]

Taxi drivers and venders are so aggressive in Jamaica that we chose it as a stay-aboard port. I've seen the island probably ten times starting with the Navy when it was still a British colony in the early 1960's - it has gone down hill regularly since, and I do not need to see any more.

[mitsugirly]

Wondered if we were alone in our impression of both Jamaica stops ( Ocho Rios and Montego Bay). We were badgered by Taxi drivers and beggars the entire day. One guy followed us for at least 2 hours in Ocho and would not stop asking us what we wanted to do, to go, on and on. I gave up saying NO THANK YOU. Whew......Mexico was bad, but I think Jamaica is the absolute worst for aggressive beggars. Anybody want to chime in??

 

This is something you should have never said to begin with. I know we are taught to say "no thank you" as a polite gesture, but people in Jamaica understand anything with "thank you" as a yes. So, that could be a problem.

 

Any time we go to Jamaica, we have booked an AI with Resort For a Day, which picks you directly up at the port and drops you back off there. Beautiful places, no soliciting inside the resort, no worries. :D

[Krazy Kruizers]

Don't like walking around Ocho Rios and Montego Bay in Jamaica.

And it is also bad walking around in Acapulco when you get off the ship. Men there "claim" they are working for the tourism and start to follow you everywhere wanting to take you on a tour even though you keep telling them you have been there before.

[DonnaK]

While the picture shown is of the pier in Falmouth, you are correct with this information and that the poster must mean Labadee and clearly not Falmouth, Jamaica.

 

However, the poster mentioned Margaritaville, which is in Falmouth and not in Labadee.

[FawnRiver]

We haven't been to Jamaica (yet).

 

Our worst experience was on Grenada and it was partially our own fault, we should have done a ship sponsored tour, but we decided just to walk around on our own.

 

We walked up to the Fort near the port, where we "acquired" the services of a local "guide". He just walked up to us and started talking to us about the island and followed us through the Fort. Admittedly, he was giving us good information, but I was less than thrilled with him.

 

That turned into a nice healthy hate when he told us that we shouldn't tell people on his island that we were Canadian:mad::mad::mad:, we should claim to be American or British, because that's who they respect.

 

Once we were through the Fort, he tried to get us to go further into the city with him to shop (from his friends' stores, I expect). DH was ready to go along, but I put my foot down at that point and told him we were going back to the ship. He tried to convince me to change my mind, which just pissed me off that much more and when he finally got it through his thick skull that I wasn't budging, he demanded twenty dollars from us. I told him he should have set the price before tagging along with us and I gave him a ten and told him he should consider himself lucky, he had time to go bug other people. Maybe I was rude, but you don't tell people to be ashamed of where they come from and if you're looking to sell a service, you set the price before provided said service.

 

With that, I hauled DH back to the ship, but that wasn't the end of the story. Outside of the terminal, this big momma (who I could disappear behind and I am neither short nor petite), comes right up to me and I mean right up to me, I'm talking practically nose to nose, and declares loudly, "I'm going to braid your hair". I have very long hair and regrettably forgot to wind it up into a bun that morning (mea culpa). I had had it, I stepped right into her and said just as loudly, "no, you're not" and walked into the terminal.

 

I was so happy to be back onboard the ship:D. If we ever, ever, end up porting at Grenada again, we're either staying onboard or maybe, possibly, we'll try a ship's tour.

[whataboutport]

This is something you should have never said to begin with. I know we are taught to say "no thank you" as a polite gesture, but people in Jamaica understand anything with "thank you" as a yes. So, that could be a problem.

 

Any time we go to Jamaica, we have booked an AI with Resort For a Day, which picks you directly up at the port and drops you back off there. Beautiful places, no soliciting inside the resort, no worries. :D

This was what I read on one of these boards posted by a woman from Jamaica, and I relayed the info and basically a long time poster told me to get real. :confused: This makes sense to me. Different cultures, same words means different things.

[mitsugirly]

This was what I read on one of these boards posted by a woman from Jamaica, and I relayed the info and basically a long time poster told me to get real. :confused: This makes sense to me. Different cultures, same words means different things.

 

 

Exactly. Different cultures=different meanings. I know just saying "No!" sounds so rude to people that have been raised to use thank you with it, but it's something you have to do when you are here or it could be taken the wrong way. :)