Visa for Jamaica

[Scandiccruiser]

Hello! First I would like to thank you all for great tips.This is a great chat to follow! I'm from Scandinavia and I'm going on a cruise on February on Voyager of the seas. But now we have a problem, the CARICOM http://www.caricom.org/ requires a visa for Jamaica if you are coming from scandinavia! Just my luck.. The cost for the visa is 100 usd (+courier costs for sending the passports back and forth) and I'm not that eager to pay that since the stay in Jamaica is just for few hours and I haven't hear such great things about the place after all. Do you think it is ok if we don't have the visa and we just simply stay at the ship while in Ocho Rios?

[oppis]

Never heard about a visa for Jamaica. And the price for that is more than a visa for Russia or China.
Ask your Cruiseline about it, I´m not sure about it. And Ochos Rios is not worth the 100 US Dollars. If you really need a visa, I see no problem when you stay onboard while other passengers make their tours in Ochos Rios.
BTW, I did not like it, to many people asking, if you want to buy drugs or if you want sex. We prefered to go back to the ship, as soon as we were finished with the Dunn River Falls.

[Scandiccruiser]

The silly thing is that the Visas are being demanded just during this spring and because of a cricket world-cup that is being held in the Caribbean!
Do you think if we don't have them we can still get to the cruise without a problem and just miss Jamaica?

[Dave]

Yet another reason to avoid Jamaica. I wonder what the logic is behind requiring visas for those from Scandinavian countries but not others?

You are correct in that you may need the visa even if you don't leave the ship. I say this because I've been on cruises where everyone had to to be cleared by U.S. Immigration officials (entering St. Thomas after visiting Nassau) even if they planned to remain aboard the ship. You may have a similar situation. I'd check with the cruise line.

[Scandiccruiser]

I checked from RCLL and I got an answer that since the stay is less than one day we won't be needing the visa. That's a load of my back. And since I got this information via e-mail I'm going to print it and take it with me so I have something to show if someone tries to tell otherwise..
By the way, the visa is being required for Australian and New Zealands people also. Cricket is popular there so there will be a lot of players and fans and press coming to the world cup. Hmm. 100 usd per person... not bad money for the caricom...