Planning a tour that will please a wide range of ages

[spazzyjanet]

We will be in Falmouth for the day and I'm trying to plan a tour that will be appropriate for 3 kids ranging from 5-10, their 30-something parents, and my 65-year old Dad.

 

I've looked at Dunn's River, but it looks to be a 40-minute drive there and back and 80 mins on the road to climb a waterfall doesn't sound worth it to me.

 

River tubing looks fun and is a leading contender. White water rafting sounds fun too, but we weren't sure about it with the kids.

 

Blue hole looks fun, but my kids are probably too young to do the jumping. Is it still fun without the jumping?

 

Horseback riding would be fun. I'm not sure what my Dad would think about that. Knowing him, he'd make lots of jokes about the poor horse who has to carry him (what is the typical weight limit, btw?)

 

The beach? Maybe part of the day, but not the whole day if at all. We are doing a hotel on the beach in FLL and will be on the beach in Labadee.

 

Any other ideas? Right now, we are heavily leaving river tubing, but would like to see if it's worth adding something else to the tour. Any suggestions appreciated. Thanks!

[#1TravelMom]

We just got back last week. I highly suggest Liberty Tours. You can book a private tour with them. It is sooo nice to have a private driver for the day. I love to stop for photos along the way - when I see something interesting. Ricardo is so friendly - he will make sure you have a great day. Michelle was our driver this time. She is very friendly. Don't let the drive time intimidate you - she will provide lots of info along the way. Our DD10 climbed Dunns Falls for the first time when she was 4. She did river tubing also at that age. She had a great time then and several times since.

 

We also did Secret Falls this time. It is quite a bit further - I would save it for another time when docked in Ocho Rios. I think you would have a great day tubing and climbing the falls. We like to do the tubing first and get to the falls later in the day when it isn't so crowded. The guides for tubing make it so fun for adults and kids. We climb the falls on our own - just say no thank you to the guides. We like to take our time - not rush - and take lots of photos under the falls and on the rocks.

 

I think this plan is a great fit for everyone - Liberty is definitely the best company in my opinion.

[lifeasme123]

We just got off Oasis of the Seas this past Saturday. :( This was our 5th visit - all but 4 trips we hired a private driver for the day.

 

Our group tends to stay away from the cruise crowds...being carted around like cattle wasn't for us.

 

One visit we did the zipline. Look for the reviews for H'Evans Scent on Tripadvisor. You may want to check on cruise critics about young kids...we had teens, 20's and 30 somethings in our group and everyone had a blast.

 

One visit we did Dunns Falls - never again!!! It is too commercialized and for the fee, you get to go up the falls as a human chain. No thanks.

 

One visit we went to a local beach and hung out. After being in Labadee a beach visit was not fun.

 

Our last visit (last week) we did the Blue Hole. We were late getting off the ship and our driver was still there waiting for us. We left our ship at 1130am and got back by 430pm. The drive is almost 1 1/2 hours - 1 hour through normal streets then another 1/2 hour on bumpy roads.

 

This is by far one of the best excursions we have done over our many years of cruising. The Blue Hole is starting to gain popularity and I hope it does not become like Dunns River Falls. There were 9 of us in our group last week and everyone said they will never do DRF after visiting the BH. Some of the climbs were fairly easy and there were a couple of scary ones. The tour guides - who grew up in the area - definitely do everything to keep you safe. They know every rock to put your foot on etc. Any climbs or jumps you do not feel comfortable with - they show you a way to walk around them. I saw young kids there last week.

 

My DH hurt his toe on the first night of the cruise - courtesy of our 4 year old. :-) He came along too and enjoyed it. He videotaped us jumping, etc.

 

Back to the tour guides - ours were short of AMAZING! Wiz and Ice (Or Icecold). I don't remember. I do remember the amazing tricks and how well they took care of us. We tipped them very well as they kept us entertained and safe for the day.

 

Ihave heard of people doing two excursions in one day - that is doable. In our case, we had people in our group who didn't follow directinos on where to meet on the ship so it took a bit longer than expected to get off the ship.

 

BTW - we used greatvibestour dot com. Great customer service and follow through.

 

Hope that helps.

[spazzyjanet]

Thanks,

 

I am currently considering a tour with Courtney Taylor that would involve tubing, blue hole, lunch, and a beach stop for an hour. It would be a private tour for my family of 6 if we go this route and would be a total of 6.5 hours with us getting back to the ship about an hour before sailaway. Since we aren't going for a year I sincerely hope Blue Hole hasn't become Dunn's River by then. It's listed as the #1 attraction now on Tripadvisor so I suspect it is.

 

It appears that the beach stop is Mammee. Is this beach worth it, or are we better off getting back to the ship an hour sooner?

[mconthehighseas]

I just looked at Peat Taylor's and Liberty Tours' websites and there is nothing that sounds compatible with small children. Does anyone have a suggestion that does not involve climbing up the side of a waterfall, sitting still on a raft with no side protection, ziplining, bobsledding, or horseback riding?

 

If the only option is a beach day, fine. Which one would be best?