Best white sand beach?

[BNBR]

23 hours ago, chickychick said:

Haha, a few decades ago, I'd go w/your recommendations, but nowadays I just want to sit on the beach & look at the water.  😉

 

 

This is what you do at the beach clubs.  Are you picturing loud spring break? Opposite. I sit on the beach, in a nice private spot, with drinks and food brought to me, as I stare at the water and day dream.

 

Ultimately, there are great options everywhere. If you want to be pampered as you sit and enjoy the beach, Mexico is the place to be as you can get this for $50, all inclusive. But you can certainly enjoy beaches at all of your stops. 

 

If the texture and shade of the sand is super important to you, grand cayman is probably the best from your list. 

Edited March 27, 2019 by BNBR

[Joebucks]

23 hours ago, BNBR said:

 

The Bahamas has the best beaches, by far. It's really not even close.  I'm a Floridian to a fault, but yeah, you can find the best beaches in the world in the Bahamas. 

 

You're doing it wrong. You're supposed to hate the Bahamas beaches because you had a negative opinion of a few locals. In all seriousness, they do have some gorgeous beaches there.

 

St John was also absolutely stunning

[BNBR]

6 minutes ago, Joebucks said:

 

You're doing it wrong. You're supposed to hate the Bahamas beaches because you had a negative opinion of a few locals. In all seriousness, they do have some gorgeous beaches there.

 

St John was also absolutely stunning

 

Right!? Why limit yourself to one place! Beaches are diverse and awesome for different reasons. It's hard to even pick a favorite.  St John is on the list for next time we are in St Thomas.

[Itchy&Scratchy]

21 minutes ago, BNBR said:

 

This is what you do at the beach clubs.  Are you picturing loud spring break? Opposite. I sit on the beach, in a nice private spot, with drinks and food brought to me, as I stare at the water and day dream. 

oh, please. Last year we went to the beach club in Cozumel. It was loud, music blasting, it was crowded, it was awful,  vendors wouldn't leave us alone, and for $17 pp we got a chaise on the beach and 1 umbrella for all to share. That was all. They didn't even have 5 chaises for us, even though we paid for them.

People who paid $65 pp to include food and booze were squished right next to us on the same chaises, with the same noise and people literally sitting on top of each other.

The water was too rough to enter.

No, thanks.

 

Not a beautiful white sandy beach in my book:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Loved Costa Maya's Blue Kay, though, it was much nicer, not crowded, the beach was way better.

[BNBR]

12 minutes ago, Itchy&Scratchy said:

oh, please. Last year we went to the beach club in Cozumel. It was loud, music blasting, it was crowded, it was awful,  vendors wouldn't leave us alone, and for $17 pp we got a chaise on the beach and 1 umbrella for all to share. That was all. They didn't even have 5 chaises for us, even though we paid for them.

People who paid $65 pp to include food and booze were squished right next to us on the same chaises, with the same noise and people literally sitting on top of each other.

The water was too rough to enter.

No, thanks.

 

Not a beautiful white sandy beach in my book:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Loved Costa Maya's Blue Kay, though, it was much nicer, not crowded, the beach was way better.

 

You went to the wrong club in Cozumel.  And now you act like that's normal? Give me a break. 

 

Mr Sanchos or for a more quiet, private club Nachi Cocom.  With the kids, we have done Playa Mia which was great with the massive splash area and water park, the beach was perfectly nice, but not ideal without kids. 

 

There is a large variety of options and it would be wise for someone interested to consult with the CC community to find the right one. 

 

As for Costa Maya, absolutely nothing comes close to Maya Chan, though they do have a lot of outstanding spots like Blue Kay, Tropicante, etc. 

 

By the way, Ocean Beach is horribly rated. It's clearly a dump. But I'm betting you went there for the promise of a beach day for $17.  We all know you are incredibly price conscious to a fault, and as you just proved, you got exactly what you paid for, if not less.

 

Personally, I'd prefer to try and save these nice people from making your mistakes to save a few bucks.  If you would have paid just a tad more, you could have had a private palapa, that you rail against while complaining of smushed in chairs, food, drinks, pool, beautiful beach, etc.  You got exactly what you paid for. Sorry. 

 

Edited March 27, 2019 by BNBR

[chickychick]

We love the Gulf Coast beaches but we want a cruise this time. We are departing from Galveston this time but Aruba will be from FL another time. Thank you all.

[Tapi]

I was born and raised in the Caribbean, and the cristal clear waters of Grand Cayman still mesmerize me.

 

Cozumel? Meh. Yes you can get a lot of bang for your buck, specially if you do things on your own, but the beaches aren’t as nice. Many are rocky and non swimmable. And I do hate the hordes of cruise passengers that’s swarm the more popular ones. We did go to Chen Rio (on the other side of the island) which was very secluded, but it was very rocky and only a small area was suitable for swimming. Beautiful scenery though. 

 

I used to be a Nassau hater until my last visit. We booked a private boat just for my family. The boat captain took us to an absolutely magnificent, secluded beach on Rosen Island. Not a sign of civilization or another human in sight. Absolutely blissful. Definitely one of the most breathtaking beaches I’ve visited on any cruise I’ve taken. Photos below:

[BNBR]

Just now, Tapi said:

I was born and raised in the Caribbean, and the cristal clear waters of Grand Cayman still mesmerize me.

 

Cozumel? Meh. Yes you can get a lot of bang for your buck, specially if you do things on your own, but the beaches aren’t as nice. Many are rocky and non swimmable. And I do hate the hordes of cruise passengers that’s swarm the more popular ones. We did go to Chen Rio (on the other side of the island) which was very secluded, but it was very rocky and only a small area was suitable for swimming. Beautiful scenery though. 

 

I used to be a Nassau hater until my last visit. We booked a private boat just for my family. The boat captain took us to an absolutely magnificent, secluded beach on Rosen Island. Not a sign of civilization or another human in sight. Absolutely blissful. Definitely one of the most breathtaking beaches I’ve visited on any cruise I’ve taken. Photos below:

 

Nothing compares to the Bahamas! I have a friend in Nassau. Rose island is where locals go. It's amazing. 

 

Not sure about terrible beaches in Cozumel. Where we have been is not rocky, nice sand and water, etc. And as you said, you get a LOT for your money. I like service, drinks, food, quality experience and being pampered along with a nice beach. 

[Itchy&Scratchy]

16 minutes ago, BNBR said:

 

By the way, Ocean Beach is horribly rated. It's clearly a dump. But I'm betting you went there for the promise of a beach day for $17.  We all know you are incredibly price conscious to a fault, and as you just proved, you got exactly what you paid for, if not less.

You are wrong there. We weren't even going to get off the ship that day, so I didn't do any research in advance (mea culpa). At the last moment I decided to go to the beach (it was my parents' very first cruise, and I didn't want them to stay on the ship on a port day), so we randomly chose a name of the beach club off of a big stand next to the taxis. It didn't have club prices on it, just the taxi prices.

So, no, we didn't go there on a promise of a $17 beach day. :)

 

But we did go to Blue Kay in Costa Maya on a promise of a $10 beach day and loved it. Sometimes it's not all about the cost. Sometimes you get a gem for $5-10, and sometimes a dud for $65. 

A chaise on a beautiful beach (7 miles beach) in Grand Cayman was, I think, $5 pp, and we had a grand time.

[Itchy&Scratchy]

23 minutes ago, BNBR said:

  If you would have paid just a tad more, you could have had a private palapa, that you rail against while complaining of smushed in chairs, food, drinks, pool, beautiful beach, etc.  You got exactly what you paid for. Sorry. 

the thing is, people smushed right next to us paid $65 pp. Didn't get a private palapa either...

[BNBR]

2 minutes ago, Itchy&Scratchy said:

the thing is, people smushed right next to us paid $65 pp. Didn't get a private palapa either...

 

You are absolutely right! Those people also didn't read TripAdvisor or come to Cruise Critic to make sure they plan their vacation properly.  They overpaid and got a terrible product.  I am sure you learned your lesson. Maybe they did too?

 

I'll be at Nachi Cocom in a few months. Relaxed, limited entry, no crowds, excellent beach, food and drinks, pool, private palapas, etc.

 

To me, and when comparing to tbe cost of the cruise, these clubs are basically a rounding error. I don't care about $50 when spending thousands on a cruise. 

[Itchy&Scratchy]

19 hours ago, BNBR said:

To me, and when comparing to tbe cost of the cruise, these clubs are basically a rounding error. I don't care about $50 when spending thousands on a cruise. 

well, maybe, we care about $50 because we don't spend thousandS on a cruise.

[udivegirl]

On 3/26/2019 at 3:04 PM, chickychick said:

For our 1st cruise, we'll be leaving from Galveston (Carnival) in December or January.  Looking for something similar to the pure white sands & clear water of the FL Gulf coast. Which of the following ports would you recommend?

Cozumel, Montego Bay, Grand Caymen, Ocho Rios, Mahogany Bay, Belize, Costa Maya? Appreciate any & all help.  Thx.

 

Based off your list, that would be Grand Cayman, hands down.  7-Mile Beach is best.  Rum Point is also nice but much smaller (and quieter), and you would need a car to take you there.  It's a good 45-minute drive away. We vacation in Cayman a lot.  Jamaica has nice beaches as well.  Cozumel is definitely not known for beaches, nor is Costa Maya.  They have been having problems with sargassum seaweed lately all along the Yucatan.  It ebbs and flows, however.  Jamaica also has nice beaches, but I haven't been there in years. 

 

Avoid the cruise passenger crowd and grab a taxi from the port to 7-mile beach.  It is literally minutes away just up the main road.  Don't waste your money on an excursion.  Taxis are plentiful.  The southern end of the beach where it starts is just outside of town and very close to the cruise pier.  A person could actually walk there but time is precious on a cruise. The nicest part is the northern part of the beach.  Also, the southern end has more shells/iron shore/coral in the sand and it hurts the feet.  We like to go to Cemetery Beach for snorkeling.  There is excellent snorkeling just off to the right and out about 50 yards or so as you look at the water.  There is a public beach access path.  right beside the cemetery on the water side. 

 

When finished snorkeling head south on the beach to one of the hotels or Calico Jack's (great beach bar) and grab a taxi back.  Although, I think cruise ships now have excursions to Calico Jack's beach bar :(  so it might be crowded.  Once nice thing about 7-mile Beach is you can just keep walking to where its not busy.  You will be able to see your ship from the beach.  Very safe there as well.  No problems walking anywhere.

 

So that's just my 2 cents :))