What the heck to do with a 4 year old in Ocho Rios?

[moesyk4]

Normally, we don't book ship excursions, but because I've heard Jamaica can be pretty sketchy, we were looking at booking a ship excursion. Ship excursion or not, I can't find anything to do with a 4 year old! Almost all excursions include Dunn's River Falls which has a minimum age of 6. Tubing, horseback riding, sky explorer, etc. all have min. age of 6 or a min. height requirement. The only excursions left people specifically said in the review "fun, but wouldn't do with kids" because it was either tours or unlimited drinking without much activities.

[Jamaica Dreamin]

I REALLY want to see Jamaica. It's just one of those places on my bucket list I guess you could say. However, I cannot find anywhere that really works for me with my 4 year old daughter either. I am currently thinking of just getting off the ship at port for a few minutes just to say I was there and then enjoy some ship time with fewer people aboard. (I HOPE to find come coffee in that few minutes because as long as I can do that I'm OK this go around.) I think she would enjoy some mother/daughter time more than me dragging her somewhere with the hopes she has a good time. We have 2 other stops on the cruise for us to do excursions together that fit our tastes better. When she is a couple years older I will take her back so we can do some other things together there. This will be our first cruise, so I guess I'm not much help, but I thought I'd let you know where I stand with my 4 year old.

[suzybeezy]

We booked with knowjamaica tours. We chose a private tour so we could customize our visit and see the things on the island we wanted to see. But they also offer a reasonably price tour to James Bond Beach, Shopping and a Local School (which I think would be cool to see). With our private tour option, I'm still researching since where we go will be up to us - I like that flexibility and it may work well for someone with young kids. :)

[Capt_BJ]

ONE:

 

- DRF does NOT have a minimum age of 6 altho your ship's excursion might. From the DRF web page http://www.dunnsriverfallsja.com/index.php :

 

Q: What are your operating hours and cost?

 

A: The entrance fees to the property are as follows:

 

Patrons (Age 11 & above) – US$20.00 per person

 

Patrons (Age 4 – 10) – US$12.00 per person

 

This cost is for entrance only and gives you access to the property to explore, use the beach, sunbathe, sight see or climb the falls.

 

DRF is a national park of Jam' and you are paying a daily entr' fee and ages under 4 are free . . . not proscribed. At the base of the falls is a beach area, with (primitive) rest rooms, a snack bar etc etc. When you pay your fee you can stay all day and climbing the falls is just a part of the experience which you can opt out of . . .

 

Along the climb up the falls there are several intermediate areas steps so folks can exit early, or enter without going to the bottom, or just using as an entrance to a pool like this

 

 

You can climb the stairs and get to these pools and splash with your 4yro. In the pic I'm splashing w/my 22yro!!!

(the hand holders are a cruise ship tour doing the one climb special)

 

Just get in a taxi at the port and ask to be taken to DRF and negotiate your pick up time (they always charge for a round trip). Your driver will suggest about 90 minutes which is sufficient for one climb - the standard tourist stint - I tell them to pick us up in 4 hours . . . . (the excursion assumes you want to go to the falls, climb one time quickly, return to the bus and move on to the next thing. A small child does not fit into that model, would slow the group, so excluded IMO. When I go to the falls we stay several hours, climb several times, have a meat pie and a beer and enjoy the DAY)

 

TWO:

 

There is a Margaritaville walking distance from the piers. While I'm not one to usually endorse a US chain for an island visit, they DO have a small beach and a pool and a water slide and I've seen folks with kids comment favorably

 

THREE: or maybe one and a half

You can EASILY just get in a taxi and ask for a local sight seeing tour - this is actually what all the taxis are set up to do IME. You can do DRF AND get a little drive about for the same price if you have good negotiation skills!

Edited July 31, 2013 by Capt_BJ

[mitsugirly]

Just a thought...

 

We went to Ocho Rios last March and I really don't care for Jamaica, but didn't want to just sit on the ship. At the time, our daughter was 3 years old. I really don't care to book ship excursions (especially because a lot of them are like you said, an older age requirement) and of course because they cost so much.

 

So I started checking out private excursions that would take you to an AI (All inclusive which means you get the resort, beach, pools, water slides, all the food and drinks are included). We ended up going with Jamaica For A Day to a resort called Sunset Grande. The ship was literally parked directly in front of us (made for some excellent pictures) and we enjoyed the place.

 

I have a link in my signature line with a full review and tons of pictures from that day. You can check it out and if you have any questions, feel free to ask.

 

We will be back in Jamaica (this time in Montego Bay) and I will be using this same company (Jamaica for a Day) again to go to yet another one of their resorts...either the other Sunset resort or Rose Hall.

 

I highly recommend this company. :)

[jlrn366419]

We did beach day excursions (just a beach not a resort day pass) with our son in Falmouth and Ocho Rios. He was 2 and 3 at the time of each excursion. Like you, we generally do not do ship excursions but did so for Jamaica. At least it was nice water, nice weather and a nice beach. He enjoyed playing in the sand and surf. When he is a little older we can get more adventurous.

[Blk_Amish]

Jamaica Dreamin;39342426]I REALLY want to see Jamaica. It's just one of those places on my bucket list I guess you could say.[/color] However, I cannot find anywhere that really works for me with my 4 year old daughter either. I am currently thinking of just getting off the ship at port for a few minutes just to say I was there and then enjoy some ship time with fewer people aboard. (I HOPE to find come coffee in that few minutes because as long as I can do that I'm OK this go around.) I think she would enjoy some mother/daughter time more than me dragging her somewhere with the hopes she has a good time. We have 2 other stops on the cruise for us to do excursions together that fit our tastes better. When she is a couple years older I will take her back so we can do some other things together there. This will be our first cruise, so I guess I'm not much help, but I thought I'd let you know where I stand with my 4 year old.

 

I am here to help. I have been returning to Jamaica for 35 years since I migrated as a child. I recently return (7/24) from a solo trip and did a lot of things, my own kids have done with me. I have tons of pics, so email me and hopefully I can help you take Jamaica off your bucket list. I recently cruised on the Magic with a stop in Montego Bay but I prefer the Ocho Rios area, closer to home. Soon I will post a thread with pics for those who want to see Jamaica with kids.

 

For a 4 year old forget Dunn's River and check out:

 

Shaw Park Garden. It's a botanical Garden over looking Ocho Rios with a waterfall you can go in

 

Coyaba River Garden and Museum- garden and waterfall with a waterfall you can climb plus a lagoon, to splash in

 

Turtle River Garden - Absolutely amazing park. Clean, well manicured, not over run. This compared to the ones visited in Barcelona

 

Blue Hole- It has a waterfall but the water is blue due to the minerals.

 

Someone reliable - http://paulsjamaicatours.com/

 

JMOP- If you want to see Jamaica, ports are not the best way but a start with the right help. I have also vacationed all over the island staying at many of the popular family and adult resort - Couples (Ocho Rios), Beaches (Ocho Rios), Sunset beach and Spa (Montego Bay), Sunset Jamaica Grande (ocho Rios), Sunset at the Palms (Negril). Negril Escape (Negril)

 

ready2trip@yahoo.com

Edited August 8, 2013 by Blk_Amish

[mitsugirly]

I am here to help. I have been returning to Jamaica for 35 years since I migrated as a child.

 

I have also vacationed all over the island staying at many of the popular family and adult resort Sunset beach and Spa (Montego Bay)

 

I would love to hear more about the Sunset beach and spa in Montego. We are trying to decide if we should go here or....have you been to the Hilton Rose Hall before? Those are the decisions we are trying to make. Any advice on those would be helpful for us. We have a 5 year old we'll be bringing. :)

[Blk_Amish]

I would love to hear more about the Sunset beach and spa in Montego. We are trying to decide if we should go here or....have you been to the Hilton Rose Hall before? Those are the decisions we are trying to make. Any advice on those would be helpful for us. We have a 5 year old we'll be bringing. :)

 

I haven't been to Hilton Rose Hall but loved Sunset Beach and Spa because of the water park and off beach snorkeling. The pool has a beach entry (very shallow) so you could sit just getting your butt wet while entertaining a younger child. You can't go wrong with a 5 year old with the shallow entry to the pool and water slide.

[Blk_Amish]

http://www.flickr.com/photos/99954563@N05/

 

Recent trip

[mypokey2]

Hi! We just got off the Breeze. We used Courtney Taylor for our excursions in Jamaica and could not be anymore pleased with our trips to the Blue Hole, river rafting and lunch at Scotchies. We were quite a mixed party with two 60 year old one with rods in the back, a 35 year old Down syndrome son ,daughter and son in law 30 somethings and their 2 and four year old boys, so we didn't know what to expect. We had crazy Dean as our guide and he made sure that we got the best of all guides at each stop. They took extra care of the kids and said that they were the youngest to ever do the Blue Hole. Yes both boys took the leap with a guide and loved it. They carried them both up the side of the waterfall and still were able to assist us up the hill and encouraged all of us to jump, which we did and it was quite the rush. after 4 jumps we were ready to move on to our river tubing. We had 2 guides ( Orlando and George ) who kept us safely away from the rocks and banks and sang to us all the way. After all of this activity we were off to Scotchies, a stop not to be missed great Jerk,peas, rice and festivals and some Red Stripes. We invited Dean to eat with us and enjoyed his company and conversation. So if your looking for a company that goes above and beyond look no further than Courtney Taylor. He's the bomb!!!

[svmodi]

I am here to help. I have been returning to Jamaica for 35 years since I migrated as a child. I recently return (7/24) from a solo trip and did a lot of things, my own kids have done with me. I have tons of pics, so email me and hopefully I can help you take Jamaica off your bucket list. I recently cruised on the Magic with a stop in Montego Bay but I prefer the Ocho Rios area, closer to home. Soon I will post a thread with pics for those who want to see Jamaica with kids.

 

For a 4 year old forget Dunn's River and check out:

 

Shaw Park Garden. It's a botanical Garden over looking Ocho Rios with a waterfall you can go in

 

Coyaba River Garden and Museum- garden and waterfall with a waterfall you can climb plus a lagoon, to splash in

 

Turtle River Garden - Absolutely amazing park. Clean, well manicured, not over run. This compared to the ones visited in Barcelona

 

Blue Hole- It has a waterfall but the water is blue due to the minerals.

 

Someone reliable - http://paulsjamaicatours.com/

 

JMOP- If you want to see Jamaica, ports are not the best way but a start with the right help. I have also vacationed all over the island staying at many of the popular family and adult resort - Couples (Ocho Rios), Beaches (Ocho Rios), Sunset beach and Spa (Montego Bay), Sunset Jamaica Grande (ocho Rios), Sunset at the Palms (Negril). Negril Escape (Negril)

 

ready2trip@yahoo.com

 

 

We will be cruising on MSC in Nov, we will be docked in Falmouth (2 adults traveling with 2 kids ages 10 and 6). We are not swimmers. We a thinking of hiring a private drive/tour operator for an island tour and a visit to DRF/river tubing. Which places are better suited for non-swimmers: DRF, Blue Hole, river tubing? We don't mind walking in shallow water, just can't swim.

Also do you have any suggestions for an island tour? Thanks.

[moesyk4]

Hey, this is my post! To the Pper,, we ended up going with Courtney Taylor tours and couldn't have been happier. It worked out perfectly...Courtney himself took us around. We ended up with two pregnant ladies (surprise! friend told us on the ship) so we were glad we skipped the more intense excursions.

We ended up doing the river tubing, beach, and scotchies. Courtney was great with our DS and so was the tour guides. The river tubing was perfect for this age...the tubes had bottoms and all had ropes so we could hold on together. There were little "rapids" the first half (nothing remotely intense but was fun and DS loved it!), we stopped in between and he got to swing on a little swing, and then the second half was just peaceful. I think the deepest it got was about 4 feet, in fact, at one point I was slightly annoyed because my tube got switched and I got one that was flatter and I'm larger so I started scraping the bottom.

Bamboo Blu beach was perfect with DS...nice bathrooms, a place to eat if you wanted, the water was peaceful. He loves Scotchies as well.