What to choose for Jamaica?

[last spring break]

We are travelling on Royal Carribean with two 18 year olds. Last year we did the excursion to the Breezes Resort and our then 17 year olds were freaked out by the constant offers to purchase drugs while attempting to swim in the ocean. Because of this , they don't want to get off of the ship this year.

 

Any suggested excursions including a few hours at a beach?

[sappygirl]

We are travelling on Royal Carribean with two 18 year olds. Last year we did the excursion to the Breezes Resort and our then 17 year olds were freaked out by the constant offers to purchase drugs while attempting to swim in the ocean. Because of this , they don't want to get off of the ship this year.

 

Any suggested excursions including a few hours at a beach?

You might want to try Sunset Beach. We went there in Oct. Very nice beach.Food and drinks were good. Had no problems with locals there. This was the one in Mobay. Not sure if you will be in Mobay or Ocho Rios. Either place has Sunset Beach. You can google them for website. In Mobay there is also Drs Cave beach. Have not been there but read alot about it on here.

[kooljamming]

Sunset Beach in Montego Bay or Sunset Jamaica Grande in Ocho Rios. Both are private and only guests are allowed on the property. Sunset Beach and Spa offers snorkeling and a waterpark. Sunset Jamaica Grande has water slides, water trampoline and great pools. I posted some pics of SJG on a thread titled Beaches Boscobel.

[mcnabb3801]

my suggestion would be to stay on the ship we just got back and ocho rios is disgustingly poor and the people are terrible there it is just not worth the hassle I couldnt wait to get back to the ship when we were there

[wildcatksu]

my suggestion would be to stay on the ship we just got back and ocho rios is disgustingly poor and the people are terrible there it is just not worth the hassle I couldnt wait to get back to the ship when we were there

 

Wow, I thought Jamaica was beautiful. Sometimes it does kids wonders to see how others live.

 

We did Mayfield Falls in the morning. You could do a beach in the afternoon with it. You need a good guide. I for one was never approached. Our guide was always with us or nearby.

 

Don't skip Jamaica. There are so many things. There is whitewater rafting. There is also YS Falls and tubing.

 

Robin

[WeBeGone]

We enjoyed Jamaica. If you are in Ocho Rios, climb Dunn's River Falls and go to Fern Gully with a ship excursion. It was great. There's also the new Mystic Mountain which is what we're doing in March.

[CaroltheCruiser]

We are travelling on Royal Carribean with two 18 year olds. Last year we did the excursion to the Breezes Resort and our then 17 year olds were freaked out by the constant offers to purchase drugs while attempting to swim in the ocean. Because of this , they don't want to get off of the ship this year.

 

Any suggested excursions including a few hours at a beach?

Hello,

It is sad that your 18 yr olds had such a bad experience. We love the beauty of Jamaica and have not had this experience as you. I am thinking it is because we do not get off the ship and wander around the streets of Ocho Rios for shopping etc. But then you said they were approached with drugs while swimming in the ocean. WOW! We have been there twice. The first time we booked through the ship and went on a plantation tour and then to the falls. A great tour and never felt unsafe at any time. The second time we got off the ship, found a taxi in the safer area by the ship and headed straight to Dunn falls because we loved the falls so much. We were able to stay as long as we wanted and do it at our pace instead of the restraints of time given by a tour.

I would recommend that you go with some of the many tour operators listed on these Cruise Critic message boards. The tour operators seem to keep you from the problems listed for Jamaica. This is their livelyhood and they will strive to do a good job for you. I would mention to them your experience in the past for your teens and say you want to go where they would not be exposed to that again. We love the falls and have not done the tubing but are thinking about doing that on our upcoming cruise in February. Jamaica is just to pretty to stay on the ship in our opinion.

You did not say if you will be in Ocho Rios or Montego Bay?? If it is Montego Bay, they are definitely know for the drug problem and even I would hesitate to get off the ship there. But we look forward to once again going into Ocho Rios.

[Judge_Mental]

We were in MoBay and had NO problems b/c we were with Mark at A-Z planners. Please don't let one bad experience limit the wonderful opportunity to explore and enjoy a beautiful place. We did the Mayfield Falls, Pork Pit stop, Drs. Cave Beach break. Already did a mini review so didn't want to rehash. It was very much something I would have regretted NOT doing.

[dlkaspar]

I'm reading a lot of good comments about A-Z planners. I'd also read about Captain Marvin for Cayman. Here's my question- do you have to reserve and pay for these ahead of time? If so, what is your ship doesn't stop there due to weather? We'll be on Carnival Conquest Feb 8-14.

[sappygirl]

I'm reading a lot of good comments about A-Z planners. I'd also read about Captain Marvin for Cayman. Here's my question- do you have to reserve and pay for these ahead of time? If so, what is your ship doesn't stop there due to weather? We'll be on Carnival Conquest Feb 8-14.

We booked with A-Z. Did not have to put money down but do need to reserve ahead of time. You can e-mail them for info. As for Cayman I would definetly e-mail them first to see if you have to put money down and also ask them if you get refunded if the ship does not dock that day.

[kris621]

my suggestion would be to stay on the ship we just got back and ocho rios is disgustingly poor and the people are terrible there it is just not worth the hassle I couldnt wait to get back to the ship when we were there

 

It's too bad you weren't able to enjoy Jamaica and look past the people. We were harassed constantly but we knew ahead of time we would encounter this, and we just made sure to remember that they're poor, and here we are coming off a cruise ship! So they know we have money to spend.

 

To the orignal question - we got our own driver, who took us shopping, then to Mahogany Beach where we jet skiied and relaxed for a bit, and then went to Margarittaville. All in all, we had a great day in Jamaica and plan to go back for an all inclusive in the next few years.

[twooley2]

we booked the catamaran in montego bay.

[mrsfuzzmo]

From MoBay I would highly recommend Mayfield falls. We loved it there and spent the entire day walking the 2 miles of falls. Really awesome. I would think 18 yr olds would love it.

 

We love Jamaica and have no problem wandering around on our own. We've done land vacations there as well as cruises and have loved it every time. We don't mind the locals approaching us. We actually kind of like to conversate with them. VERY colorful people and a lot of fun once you get to talking to them.

[Nano]

twooley2 - did you enjoy your catamaran excursion from Montego Bay?

[twooley2]

We have booked it for July timeframe. So we still have yet to go. Looks like fun though. They also take you over to margarittaville after stopping to snorkel and they have carribean dancing lesson and music too. There is a deposit for 2 adults and 2 teens we paid a 50.00 deposit to reserve and you will loose the deposit if you change your mind unless you book another excursion through them.

http://jamaicacruiseexcursions.com/MontegoBayCatamaranAdventure.htm

[poochierebelbear]

Best wishes if you decide to get off the ship. I will hopefully never choose another cruise with Jamaica as a stop.

[twooley2]

I have been to Jamaica before and did not encounter anything I could not handle. A little begging and sorts nothing too extreme. Its another culture and that is why we visit other places too

[bigal3967]

My wife and I are just back from a cruise on Navigator of the Seas where we went to Ocho Rios Jamaica. We used Marva Shaw for our tour. She met us rght at the port and we were off immediately to where we met her son Javia. He was our tour guide for the day and was awesome. He told us all about the island and even though we changed several things about our tour that day, he was able to do all of what we wanted. We drove to St Anns bay and met someone there we know for about an hour or so. We then went up to Fern Gully and stopped and talked to a guy named Carl who told us all about the spices, sugar cane etc. A really cool look at the real Jamaica. We then went to a shop to buy our coffee and a few other items. We then went to the white river and did a romantic bamboo rafting trip with someone he knew. It was awesome. Javia waited on us for everthing we did. We never waiting on him. He took us to a local guy cooking right next to the road and had bread fruit, yams, potatoes, and cod fish for lunch. A typical Jamaican lunch. It was awesome!! We then went to local market and bought a few more items. We spent all day with Javia and I would definantly use Marva Shaw again. Their service is great and with quick emails and a great price, I do not think you can go wrong.

 

The contact info is:

 

her website: http://www.knowjamaica.com

 

her email: knowjam@yahoo.com

 

 

 

Big Al

[jbroons]

Best wishes if you decide to get off the ship. I will hopefully never choose another cruise with Jamaica as a stop.

 

 

Why Erica.....what happened to you??

[beachlover02]

Does anyone know if you can just get off the ship and get a taxi to Mahogany Beach and how safe it is?? It's been 5 years since i was in Jamica with my husband and didn't feel that safe. This time going with a friend and 4 18 yr old girls and we really don't know what we want to do. So we were hoping to just be able to decide once we got there instead of booking something before hand.

[maddog50]

Big Al,

We are traveling with 17 & 19 year old in April. What did this trip with Javia cost and how much did you tip?

[bigal3967]

We paid $130.00 which included $30 for admission into Dunns River Falls which we did not use but he gave us $30 toward the rafting trip we took.

 

Big Al

[poochierebelbear]

Why Erica.....what happened to you??

 

My mother and I took a taxi to find a pharmacy. We were walking past this KFC, and a guy approached us and told us his friend had a taxi for us. Set up!! We didn't take it. While at Doctor Cave Beach, a guy approached me in the water trying to sweet talk me saying he wanted to get to know me and then when I turned him down for minutes of talking, he tried to sell me something. Even thought those two incidents weren't that bad, I felt very unsafe and unsettled there. If I ever decide to go back, (which I highly doubt it), I'll be with a group.

[cruisedawgg]

My mother and I took a taxi to find a pharmacy. We were walking past this KFC, and a guy approached us and told us his friend had a taxi for us. Set up!! We didn't take it. While at Doctor Cave Beach, a guy approached me in the water trying to sweet talk me saying he wanted to get to know me and then when I turned him down for minutes of talking, he tried to sell me something. Even thought those two incidents weren't that bad, I felt very unsafe and unsettled there. If I ever decide to go back, (which I highly doubt it), I'll be with a group.

 

So many people badmouth Jamaica because "someone approached them etc..". Would these same people not travel down their street, to the next neighborhood, or to another city if that same Jamaican approached them there?

[pjhootch]

We just returned after stopping in Ocho Rios with our three kids, 17, 17 and 27. We spent the day with Wentworth Pearson (Wentworth Tours) and our kids loved him and had a great time.

 

We weren't very interested in doing the falls or anything specific, so he drove us all around, took us to the tram and ziplines, gave us a chance to shop, do the innertubes, gave the kids tips about what things should cost and told them a lot about Jamaica. My 17 year old son enjoyed Jamaica more than our other ports. We wanted a meal that wasn't aimed at tourists, and he took us someplace we would have never found on our own for lunch.

 

We just old our kids ahead of time that if someone offered to sell them drugs to politely refuse. I think my son was disappointed that Wentworth kept the kids insulated enough he didn't get the chance to say "no thank you" :-) We saw a lot of the island, spent almost no time around our fellow ship passengers and really enjoyed the day.