Help! What do I do in Jamaica?

[tesi]

Help. Leaving soon. What is the best thing to do in Jamaica (Me, my husband and 2 16 year old girls) I am afraid to let them out of my sight. What can we all do? Is a beach excursion safe?

[Andrealovescruising]

tesi,
The beach excursion is safe, as long as it's a cruise ship recommended beach, in my opinion.

I would highly advise against, disembarking in Jamaica, grabbing a taxi at the pier, and telling the driver to take you to the best beach he knows of. That may land you in some serious trouble.

Our personal favorite was Dunn's River Falls. You see a magnificent climbing waterfall, you get wet, and it's safe.

If your heart and mind are set on a beach for the day, check with the cruise line for reputable, safe beaches. I'm sure they are offered.

By the way, our 16 year old daughter(at the time) loved Dunn's River.

Some other posters on here will know of the safest beaches to enjoy during your stay.

Good luck.

A'ndrea

[AKMom]

I would highly recommend the services of Trevor Hudlin. His website is: http://www.trevorhudlintours.com/
We booked our tour with him on the advice of another who toured with him and all I can say is, “He’s Wonderful!!!” We went tubing and climbed the Dunn’s Falls. Tubing was my favorite. Trevor took us there first before the crowds arrived and my family and I (husband and two kids 13 and 9) LOVED it. Another thing that many folks were talking about on our ship was the Dolphin excursion. Many people loved that one as well. We did the dolphin thing in Mexico so we didn’t try it in Jamaica. Many people love the Dunn’s Falls but I wasn’t too thrilled with it. The lines were horrendously long. We had three cruise ships in port the day we were there so it made for a not so fun time. If I had to do it over again, I’d do the tubing and dolphins. As for Trevor Hudlin, he picks you up right at the pier so you don’t have to wait for all the others. His tour is private and he explains many historical things about the island along with local plants, etc. I was hesitant at first to book him but we took a chance and really enjoyed his tour. I recommend it to everyone! Have fun.

[SanDee]

Are you going to Montego Bay or Ocho Rios? If you are going to MB I highly recommend Sunset beach Resorts. We had a fantastic time! There were 13 of us. We were met at the terminal and asked where we were going. We said Sunset beach resorts. They put us in a brand new van. The cost was $2.00 pp. We had a great driver. It is less than a mile from the ship. You could see the ship the whole time at the beach. The cost is $40.00 for adults and $20.00 for kids. It is all inclusive. Includes all your food, drinks, water sports, water park, beach, pools, chairs and gratuities. Absolutely beautiful! We could not have asked for a better day. Food was great too! Swim up bar was nice. Our driver offered to return to pick us up. At 2pm we walked out and there he was. Hint: Brink proper clothing if you want to eat in their nice restaurants. No swim suits allowed. Otherwise just plan to eat at the snack bar that has great jerk chicken. Everything on the menue was hot and fresh. Check out their website at www.sunsetbeachresort.com Make sure you watch the video.

[Kjlive]

My wife and I asked the same questions on this chat 2 years ago. Another great option is Peat Taylor tours. (www.peattaylor.com). Peat's tour was great advice. Two years ago the cost was $30.00. You need to e-mail Peat on the date and time you are arriving. He is waiting for you at the port. He has a small "van like" bus. He takes you through the town, through some deprived areas, the rain forest, through a mountain village and to Dunn's River. (Included in the price). During the tour, Peat is singing to you! In addition, you stop at a 1 room school house of young children. We went inside and they sang to us. It was really neat. After about 1 hour at Dunn's, Peat will take you where ever you would like to go. (We went to Margarittaville. Wow. What a wild place).This was well worth the money and cheaper than the excursion. If you would like, e-mail me at KLJive@comcast.net and I will send you a few photos. If you go to Dunn's, be sure to get cheap water shoes and take a water proof dispossible camera. By the way. I felt very safe. The only issue is the vendors that you need to walk through after Dunns. They bug you to buy trinkets.