Blue Hole ??s

[Palmetto_state]

How long a drive from Falmouth?

[NightOne]

How long a drive from Falmouth?

 

 

About 1 and 1/2 hours. I made multiple stops on the way there including climbing the falls at DRF so it didn't seem that long to me.

[eeudj]

We went 4 years ago. When it was still a secret. We were the only ones there. Seriously, we were. Can you believe that. Some areas, you will have to jump into, while others, the lower falls, you kind of take a slippery walk down into the water.

 

When were were there, there were no bathrooms. I'm not sure how they would get any plumbing out there. it is seriously, off the beaten path. in the rain forest. That is what makes it so beautiful.

 

Most likely depends on your tour group, if they provide snacks our not. Ours included lunch. We stopped at Scotchies for Jerk Chicken.

 

Out of all the excursions, that my kids have been on. This has been one of their favorites. They were 6,9,12,and 15 at the time.

 

What tour company did you use?

[mpcaruth]

My family and I went to Blue Hole and used Marvyn's Paradise tours. It was wonderful!!! I included more than 30 photos and lots of details of the Blue Hole in my NCL Getaway cruise review. It should help answer most of the questions you may have.

 

You can read about the tour beginning at post #54 at http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2331862

 

 

[NightOne]

My family and I went to Blue Hole and used Marvyn's Paradise tours. It was wonderful!!! I included more than 30 photos and lots of details of the Blue Hole in my NCL Getaway cruise review. It should help answer most of the questions you may have.

 

You can read about the tour beginning at post #54 at http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2331862

 

 

Looking at one of your photos from the other thread:

 

 

I have now seen this twice and it looks like they have added a rope in one section since the last time I was there.

 

In some of your other photos it looks like they have updated and added some railings at the beginning area too. Glad to see it is improving.

 

Thanks for the photos and review.

Edited April 1, 2016 by NightOne

[mpcaruth]

Looking at one of your photos from the other thread:

 

 

I have now seen this twice and it looks like they have added a rope in one section since the last time I was there.

 

In some of your other photos it looks like they have updated and added some railings at the beginning area too. Glad to see it is improving.

 

Thanks for the photos and review.

Surprisingly the rocks in which you walk over were not slippery. The cold and constant flowing water kept the slippery algae growth away.

[reallynewatthis]

We just got back from NCL Spirit and went there. We chose the Blue Hole over Dunn Falls because we heard it was less crowded. Not during spring break, that's for sure! Very crowded but the guides were great and kept everyone safe. We had fun, but I would not recommend it for younger children. The rocks are uneven, lots of little holes you have to watch for. Not a relaxing day for parents!

[pompeii]

The Blue Hole was one of the most fun days we've spent in any port! It is beautiful and we loved it! We went a couple of years ago with Errol Bowen of Travel Jamaica Tours and had a fantastic time from start to finish. My husband and I are 60-somethings and had no troubles climbing the rocks and jumping into the pools. There was also a rope swing that was fun. I second the suggestion about the water shoes; when we were there, if you didn't bring your own you had to rent them. They wouldn't let us climb around without them.

 

Errol's tour was great; besides the Blue Hole, he took us all around the area. I can't remember if he provided drinks, but we did stop for jerk chicken for lunch. It was just my husband and me on the tour; the price was very reasonable and he got us back to the ship in plenty of time after a full day. http://www.traveljamaicatours.com/home.php or email errol@traveljamaicatours.com

[holiday4]

We went to Blue Hole March 2016, and were unfortunately very disappointed. It was extremely crowded! We were pushed and pulled along a very long line of people and then waited to jump at each spot. It was far to scary for the children (9, 11) and seniors in our group. We were not able to linger, swim or enjoy the beauty due to the crowds. 3 jumps - $15! Not worth it to be herded like cattle. :(

[SunSeekerEBS]

Does anyone recommend a tour guide and have a website address for the BH? Now that's what we want to do in Ochos Rios!

Edited April 27, 2016 by SunSeekerEBS

[NightOne]

Can you get to the BH from Ochos Rios without a long trip?

 

Yes. The Blue Hole is closest to Ocho Rios.

 

It is like 20 minutes away. (7 miles or so)

[SunSeekerEBS]

Thanks Carl! If I had read the posts more thoroughly , the answers to all my questions were right in the posts. I guess it's time to wake up. LOL :o

[NightOne]

Thanks Carl! If I had read the posts more thoroughly , the answers to all my questions were right in the posts. I guess it's time to wake up. LOL :o

 

No worries. Looks like you'll be the only ship in Jamaica! (No others in Ocho Rios and no ships in Falmouth or Montego Bay)

 

So unless some big group from an all-inclusive resort or some other land based group is hitting the blue hole then you may have the run of the place. :)

 

Hire a private tour guide and you'll have time for Blue Hole, Dunn River Falls, Tubing, and Lunch. You'll come back to the ship waterlogged and exhausted. :D:D:D

[browns3030]

Does anyone recommend a tour guide and have a website address for the BH? Now that's what we want to do in Ochos Rios!

 

 

I highly recommend Chris Linton from Chrisjamaicatours.com.

 

He took us to the Blue Hole in November, all the way from Montego Bay! He was great and we cannot wait to tour with him again this November!

[NightOne]

Does anyone recommend a tour guide and have a website address for the BH? Now that's what we want to do in Ochos Rios!

 

My guy is Javia Shaw with http://www.knowjamaica.com/

 

His mom Marva Shaw and him run it and have other guides as well. Very well reviewed here on Cruise Critic, usually #2 and sometimes #3 on Trip Advisor depending on the day, and I highly recommend them too. :)

 

Here is a video I did when I went with him from Falmouth:

 

 

Direct link:

[SunSeekerEBS]

That was a great video! I think I will try Javia. I can't wait for some Jerk Chicken too! Thanks!!! :)

[NightOne]

That was a great video! I think I will try Javia. I can't wait for some Jerk Chicken too! Thanks!!! :)

 

 

Scotchies is the most popular place cruise visitors go to get jerk (and I did too) but there are other places too.

[jillo9]

We will be arriving in Falmouth on 8/24/16...do you all think it is too much for Blue Hole, tubing, beach and lunch?

[hrjones1964]

Just did this a couple weeks ago, loved it! Now we went super early to avoid the big crowds and used Winston Gayle as a private tour guide. He is amazing and knows EVERYONE at Blue Hole so we got to go a tad higher in the falls area than the big groups do :D

 

Basic bathroom at the bottom of the falls, there were a few merchants during the walk that had food, drink and trinkets for sale.

 

Do you have Winston's contact info?

[NightOne]

We will be arriving in Falmouth on 8/24/16...do you all think it is too much for Blue Hole, tubing, beach and lunch?

 

It looks like you in port from 7:30am - 4:45pm on Disney Fantasy which is 9 hours and 15 minutes in port. That is pretty good but you should plan to be back to Falmouth no later than 4:00 (really 3:30) so that means about 8 hours of time.

 

I would say Blue Hole, Lunch, and Tubing OR Beach (not both) would be easily doable from Falmouth. Just watch the clock and plan accordingly. You may be able to do them all. You just want to make sure your guide is heading back to Falmouth from the Ocho Rios area at around 2:30pm to get you back by 3:30pm.

[jillo9]

Thanks NightOne. One more question for you...kids asked about ziplining on vacation, which through some a wrench in my plans. Do you recommend zipping in Jamaica? Also, do you think the blue hole is going to be super busy when we are there (Iknow you don't have a crystal ball ;) )

[NightOne]

Thanks NightOne. One more question for you...kids asked about ziplining on vacation, which through some a wrench in my plans. Do you recommend zipping in Jamaica? Also, do you think the blue hole is going to be super busy when we are there (Iknow you don't have a crystal ball ;) )

 

You are the only ship in Falmouth and the Carnival Dream is in Montego Bay which about 30 minutes farther away from the Blue Hole so I would say your chances look good. However, there could still be groups from land resorts, etc.

 

I wouldn't worry about crowds though as things move along nicely and there are lots of places to spread out.

 

I cannot help you on the zip lining as I have not personally done it. There are about 4 different places that do it but it is not as popular an activity as other attractions and doesn't get talked about tons here on the Jamaica forum section.

[Familycruisers20]

Just did this 2 weeks ago. We used Courtney Taylor for our driver, and he was great. We met him about 8:30am off the ship and got to Blue Hole around 10am. We did bring our own life jacket for my 8 yr old to make her feel more secure jumping - and water shoes...although we got there and only had 1 shoe for my daughter (we rented her a pair for $7). It was great! We had Alex as a guide and he took some pictures for us, but I tossed my water camera down to my husband to get pics while we were jumping after he jumped. My kids loved this and would love to go back. Afterwards we went to a small beach for about 30 min then grabbed lunch at Scottchis and headed back. We got back to Falmouth around 3:30. In plenty of time for the ship.

[Rebelmom2015]

Just did this 2 weeks ago. We used Courtney Taylor for our driver, and he was great. We met him about 8:30am off the ship and got to Blue Hole around 10am. We did bring our own life jacket for my 8 yr old to make her feel more secure jumping - and water shoes...although we got there and only had 1 shoe for my daughter (we rented her a pair for $7). It was great! We had Alex as a guide and he took some pictures for us, but I tossed my water camera down to my husband to get pics while we were jumping after he jumped. My kids loved this and would love to go back. Afterwards we went to a small beach for about 30 min then grabbed lunch at Scottchis and headed back. We got back to Falmouth around 3:30. In plenty of time for the ship.

 

 

We are doing the same excursion next week - thanks for the reminder about the water shoes! I've heard great things about the Courtney Taylor tours, too!

[laudie3a]

I'm following this because there are some really great recommendations for tour guides in here. All of these comments are getting me excited for my September cruise!