Jamaica...What to do

[Snookum]

:)We are a family of 6 and two of us are in mid 60's and somewhat overweight. However, we are both adventurous and have done plenty, like zip lines, etc. Can anyone recommend a private excursion...not ship....that we might be interested in. We have a 42, 45 and 16 and 21 year old to please also. I saw the blue hole but don't know if that would be too hard on my husband he has a little bit of a bad knee or if it's much of a walk or climb. Being a little overweight we may have a difficult time. Any recommendations, tours, beaches, private resorts anything you may know of. TIA

[Clarea]

You may also want to consult the port of call forum here:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=111

[DonnaK]

stay on the ship!

[Cruising Golfer]

Find the local pot dealer and get wasted, get the munchies, and pig out on Jerk cooking... :cool:

[bouhunter]

stay on the ship!

 

So very helpful to the OP.............:rolleyes:

 

OP: We had a GREAT tour with Peat Taylor - easy to find his website with a google search. Blue hole involves climbing up a river and is somewhat difficult if there are physical limitations. But it's not REAL tough. Do a search on Youtube and you'll see what it's like. We combined it with river tubing - terrific day! End it with some jerk at Scotchie's or Mama Marley's :)

Edited July 12, 2016 by bouhunter

[Freehike]

We did the Blue Waters beach club when we docked in Falmouth. The reviews are overwhelmingly positive. We thought it was OK. Nice beach, very friendly staff (and plenty of them). The price includes food and unlimited alcohol, although it's a little watered down.

 

If you just want to veg out on the beach, it would be hard to beat for the price. There are sea urchins in the water though, so water shoes are a must.

 

You can save a fortune if you buy it direct and take a cab VS buying through RCI.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[troykahack]

Margaritaville Catamaran Sail, Beach Break and Party - FYJ3

 

Avoid this excursion if it was us....

 

We took this excursion on our Jan Oasis cruise. The Catamaran ride was nice and the drinks flowed on the return trip, if you liked Rum.

 

The stay on the beach was horrible. The Cat stops short of the shoreline and had to wade through 3-4 foot seas to reach the beach all the while trying to keep our bag above water. We were the second group to go and the people departing that were dropped off at the beach were already in line eager to get back aboard the Cat. We asked each other why they were in such a hurry to get back on the boat. LOL We soon found out....

 

The lounges on the beach were nice, the beach itself was nice as was the water.

 

The problem is the locals have overrun this beach and live in cardboard shacks on the beach, use the facilities on the beach for this private excursion, dump all their trash. The information is misleading. We thought we would get food, as it says Jerk Chicken and other things as well as drinks. The only free drinks were on the Cat. Drinks on the beach started at $15 and up. The lunch plate was like $20 and was a joke.

 

The worst part, the locals all try to peddle beads to you. Try to shame you into buying all their beads. They all sale the same thing but put constant pressure on us to buy their beds. You can hardly see the beach/water for the locals standing in front of you trying to sell beads at a crazy price, and they didn't smell very good either.

 

The location is fenced off but we felt far from safe. Many locals were going around the fence where it came down near the waterline. Many had bags and were making transfers to others, both locals and cruise people. I have no factual info what they were doing but I have a idea.

 

The locals have ruined this excursion and the expense for food and drinks is a real rip off. We complained to Shore Excursion once back aboard and on our survey but the excursion is still listed. Maybe it has been fixed. Just be aware when they say a beach cookout and drinks doesn't mean it is free or taste good.

 

The Catamaran ride was nice. We could have just done the Cat trip and would have been happy. We just marked this up to another adventure in our life.....

Edited July 12, 2016 by troykahack

[yknot13]

Margaritaville Catamaran Sail, Beach Break and Party - FYJ3

 

Avoid this excursion if it was us....

 

We took this excursion on our Jan Oasis cruise. The Catamaran ride was nice and the drinks flowed on the return trip, if you liked Rum.

 

The stay on the beach was horrible. The Cat stops short of the shoreline and had to wade through 3-4 foot seas to reach the beach all the while trying to keep our bag above water. We were the second group to go and the people departing that were dropped off at the beach were already in line eager to get back aboard the Cat. We asked each other why they were in such a hurry to get back on the boat. LOL We soon found out....

 

The lounges on the beach were nice, the beach itself was nice as was the water.

 

The problem is the locals have overrun this beach and live in cardboard shacks on the beach, use the facilities on the beach for this private excursion, dump all their trash. The information is misleading. We thought we would get food, as it says Jerk Chicken and other things as well as drinks. The only free drinks were on the Cat. Drinks on the beach started at $15 and up. The lunch plate was like $20 and was a joke.

 

The worst part, the locals all try to peddle beads to you. Try to shame you into buying all their beads. They all sale the same thing but put constant pressure on us to buy their beds. You can hardly see the beach/water for the locals standing in front of you trying to sell beads at a crazy price, and they didn't smell very good either.

 

The location is fenced off but we felt far from safe. Many locals were going around the fence where it came down near the waterline. Many had bags and were making transfers to others, both locals and cruise people. I have no factual info what they were doing but I have a idea.

 

The locals have ruined this excursion and the expense for food and drinks is a real rip off. We complained to Shore Excursion once back aboard and on our survey but the excursion is still listed. Maybe it has been fixed. Just be aware when they say a beach cookout and drinks doesn't mean it is free or taste good.

 

The Catamaran ride was nice. We could have just done the Cat trip and would have been happy. We just marked this up to another adventure in our life.....

 

Thanks for your review of this excursion. We were considering this as a possibility for our upcoming cruise. Looks now as though we will have to do our favorite thing in Falmouth...Stay on the ship.

[Cruise a holic]

stay on the ship!

 

I agree! Jamaica is our least favorite port. We just walk around the dock area as the shopping or window shopping is great then back on the ship. We also do not feel safe and have on the couple of occassions been annoyed by some locals and really didn't feel safe. A great time to enjoy the ship without any crowds.

Edited July 12, 2016 by Cruise a holic

[troykahack]

stay on the ship!

 

 

I think this is actually good info for the OP. We are avoiding all cruises at this time that go to Jamaica. We decided that any future cruise that goes to Jamaica, we will find something to do on the ship, maybe the Spa Massage.

 

Now, we do like Diamonds International as they are one of the few distributors for Bremont Watches, which we love. They are our everyday wear for me. The others are for fancy times.

 

So, a off to the local fenced in Port of Falmouth is not bad, just don't go outside the fenced area.

[troykahack]

I agree! Jamaica is our least favorite port. We just walk around the dock area as the shopping or window shopping is great then back on the ship. We also do not feel safe and have on the couple of occasions been annoyed by some locals and really didn't feel safe. A great time to enjoy the ship without any crowds.

 

Agree.... Not sure what is a good excursion here in Jamaica. Would like to hear from other who had a good time.

 

When we went to Falmouth, the week before on Allure, people off the ship, I think the number was high as it was a bus accident. I think to Dunn Springs/River....

 

We were a bit fearful on our excursion, and couldn't wait to get back to the boat. We did enjoy the local Port shopping.

[jcross2]

We love Jamaica; even went there on our honeymoon in 1973.

 

When we go there on cruises we almost always book with Carolyn Barrett on an hourly rate, which lets us customize our tour to suit the interests of the friends and family members with us.

 

She also offers packaged type tours which are described on her website: http://www.barrettadventures.com/falmouth-cruise-brochure.html

 

I highly recommend her tour company.

 

Jan

[troykahack]

We love Jamaica; even went there on our honeymoon in 1973.

 

When we go there on cruises we almost always book with Carolyn Barrett on an hourly rate, which lets us customize our tour to suit the interests of the friends and family members with us.

 

She also offers packaged type tours which are described on her website: http://www.barrettadventures.com/falmouth-cruise-brochure.html

 

I highly recommend her tour company.

 

Jan

 

I have heard that many parts of Jamaica our nice... I suppose the issue is to find the right guide... our excursion was bad...

 

I will look into this guide... I am going to guess that the MODS will delete the link or will close the thread... maybe not...

Edited July 12, 2016 by troykahack

[BLAMBKY]

:)We are a family of 6 and two of us are in mid 60's and somewhat overweight. However, we are both adventurous and have done plenty, like zip lines, etc. Can anyone recommend a private excursion...not ship....that we might be interested in. We have a 42, 45 and 16 and 21 year old to please also. I saw the blue hole but don't know if that would be too hard on my husband he has a little bit of a bad knee or if it's much of a walk or climb. Being a little overweight we may have a difficult time. Any recommendations, tours, beaches, private resorts anything you may know of. TIA

Just came back (mid June) from the blue hole (Peat Taylor tours) and I would say there is

very little walking, just watch your step like you would normally, when not on sidewalks. The only things that I would say avoid (given bad knee/overweight) is the rope down the fall to jump. Unless you have lots of arm strength (I do not but did it!) you are focusing on keeping your feet a certain way to keep them from the current. My husband did not do it due to shoulder issue but he was still able to see/video tape all of us! And the other thing is the cave I like to refer to as the "birth canal" :eek::D I am not fond of tight enclosed spaces but my brain was on vacation! Do not let them try to talk you into squeezing through the cave. It is not easy or fun, my opinion! I came away with little spots on my lower arms from shimming through it & coming out under the waterfall. Maybe going down is easier than going up. I am not sure if I am going to try it again next year but definitely going back to the blue hole. They do have life jackets but we were ok, not using them. The guides actually have first aid & lifeguard type training. I did not know that until after we finished. Good to know!

[cyntil8ing]

I didn't see which port, but we have been to all three.

 

Ocho Rios -- our first visit to Jamaica. We took a ship tour to Mystic Mountain where we did the chair lift and the bobsled. The pool and restaurant were very nice. We did not zipline, but the opportunity was there. The "tour" was basically a bus that ran back and forth all day between the ship and the park. We could explore at our leisure and grab the bus back when we were ready. This was a very nice day.

 

 

 

Falmouth -- we did the Falmouth Culinary Tour. This is a walking tour. They have since added a driving tour that we would like to try. We really enjoyed this experience.

 

Jamaica Culinary Tours

 

 

 

Montego Bay -- we came off the ship without a plan. This was a huge mistake we will never make again in Jamaica. We took the bus to town and walked around for about 30 minutes. It was terribly hot and there wasn't really anything to see. I wanted to go right back to the ship and dh didn't. A taxi driver saw our "discussion" and came over to offer his services. He saved our day! He dropped us off at a restaurant, the Pork Pit, and said he'd be back to pick us up in an hour. We ended up having a great meal and it really saved the day for us.

 

 

Edited July 12, 2016 by cyntil8ing

[tjmaher]

Loved our stop in Jamaica. We hired Courtney Taylor who took us on a tour and then to Montego Bay beaches for the day, which were beautiful. Courtney was always near us and we never felt unsafe. Courtney came to us and told us when it was time to head back to the ship. I would stop in Jamaica again, hire Courtney, again, and have a great day!!!!

[nealstuber]

When we went with my Parents and kids, we went to the Chukka Resort. Lazy river zip lines a nice pool and more..

https://chukka.com/

[lvs2rd]

I too recommend the Blue Hole tour. We docked in Falmouth in April 2015. We were on a 6 day cruise aboard IOS. My girlfriend booked private tours for Falmouth and Grand Caymen. The Blue Hole was a wonderful trip!! The guide met us at the pier and we (8 of us) had the best day. He stopped at a convenience store for us so we could buy some cold drinks. He also brought us to a great "hole in the wall" for a delicious jerk chicken lunch (included in fee). There is not much walking involved in the Blue Hole...as much or as little as you like. I chose to opt out of many of the "jumps" we were allowed to do (into the water)...and instead just swam around. We got back to the ship with a couple of hours to spare. A long day but well worth it!!:)

[paigebeverly]

We made Jamaica a beach day and went to Doctors Cave beach in Montego Bay. Found a private driver to take us and pick us up. The beach was awesome and clean, the food great, and the drinks strong. Had a great time there and only got approached twice if we wanted weed...but that was all outside the beach area.

[BLAMBKY]

I didn't see which port, but we have been to all three.

 

Ocho Rios -- our first visit to Jamaica. We took a ship tour to Mystic Mountain where we did the chair lift and the bobsled. The pool and restaurant were very nice. We did not zipline, but the opportunity was there. The "tour" was basically a bus that ran back and forth all day between the ship and the park. We could explore at our leisure and grab the bus back when we were ready. This was a very nice day.

 

 

 

Falmouth -- we did the Falmouth Culinary Tour. This is a walking tour. They have since added a driving tour that we would like to try. We really enjoyed this experience.

 

Jamaica Culinary Tours

 

 

 

Montego Bay -- we came off the ship without a plan. This was a huge mistake we will never make again in Jamaica. We took the bus to town and walked around for about 30 minutes. It was terribly hot and there wasn't really anything to see. I wanted to go right back to the ship and dh didn't. A taxi driver saw our "discussion" and came over to offer his services. He saved our day! He dropped us off at a restaurant, the Pork Pit, and said he'd be back to pick us up in an hour. We ended up having a great meal and it really saved the day for us.

 

 

 

This looks great may need to check it ourselves in the future.

[kmorg1234]

Totally concur with the Margaritaville tour review- the boat ride was nice, but the rest of it was horrible. Having to take all of your belongings off the boat through chest deep water was not fun. One guy even slipped on the steps and got a nasty gash.

[surreymum]

For a private tour I would recommend Knowjamaica tours. We used them a few years ago from Falmouth and did the tourist bit of Dunns River Falls and river tubing as it was our first visit but Javia tailored the rest of the day to our interests. He was interesting and informative and we left with a very positive view of Jamaica.

[jcross2]

I have heard that many parts of Jamaica our nice... I suppose the issue is to find the right guide... our excursion was bad...

 

I will look into this guide... I am going to guess that the MODS will delete the link or will close the thread... maybe not...

 

Hi Troy, it is okay to post info about private tour guides that a cruisecritic member has experienced firsthand. It's just against the rules for the tour operators themselves to do that, or for anyone to post a link to a travel agency or a site that has been banned from CC for some reason.

 

So I think we're okay!

 

Jan

[KnightsFan]

Woah, I'm so glad this got moved. It's gotten the most traction of any of the "What to do in Jamaica" threads I've seen!

 

For those who've done Blue Hole, the park "guides" are employed by the park, right? And you can just hire them when you get there?

[Ms Jo UK]

We love Jamaica both by land holidays and cruise stops.

 

Last time we were there 2015 we ported in Falmouth. We did rafting on the Martha Brae, this is a very relaxing guided float down the river and very scenic and the capatians of the rafts can be very entertaining and knowledgeacle. Not doe anyone looking for adventure but definately for those wanting a peaceful and scenic time.