Cruising- Grand Cayman and Jamaica(Ocho Rios)

[Merandab4]

We are taking a Carnival Cruise to Grand Cayman and Ocho's Rios, Jaimaca. When we dock at these places, are there things to do on our own, such as lay on the beach, or do you have to pay the $40 or $50 to go to the beach that is listed as a shore excursion?

I would love to here what others have thought of these places and what they did.

( I appologize if this post is in the wrong formum. I thought maybe someone here would be able to help)

 

[keishashadow]

Haven't seem much discussion on disboards about non-DCL itineraries.

We cancelled the Wonder 4 day inside balcony on the Legend & still had money leftover! I cannot wait for Dec. . From what i gather, in Grand Cayman you would need to pay for a taxi to get you to the beach or book the intinerary. Generally, they are much less expensive if you do a search & book direct w/tour company @ each port.

Try cruisecritic message boards - lots of good info...see 'ya there.

 

[curlyjbs]

Love Grand Cayman!!!
Don't bother with 7 mile beach. Rent a car and go to rum point island it's paradise. Even better do the Rays Reef & Rum tour with nativewaywatersports.com . You feed the rays, do some reef snorkeling and then have lunch on rum point island. The perfect day!!!

Just be careful returning to your ship. Make sure you leave enough time because the traffic back is horrendous!

~Connie

 

[swillis]

You can always try to venture on your own and do what you like while on a cruise. Especially if you just want to go find a beautiful beach to hang at for the day.
There are usually a bunch of cabs waiting outside the cruise port terminals wherever you dock, and they can end up being the BEST tour guides. They live there, and this is truely how they make a living.

I have never been to either of the islands you mentioned, but I have heard that Jamaica can be very "shady" outside of the tourist areas. I would do some reasearch before I went out on my own when on that particular island.

Some of the best sightseeing, and tours I have had while on a cruise happened when we just found a friendly cab driver who was willing to negotiate a price to drive us around. One cab driver took us for a tour, and dropped us off at a beach with a promise to return for us at a specific time. He did (came early actually) and it was great! And much cheaper than booking a similar tour through the ship.

Have fun! I love cruising, and Carnival is the best for family fun (I think anyway)

 

[travelgirl06]

Depending on who you are traveling with, I highly recommend climbing Dunns River Falls in Ocho Rios. You can easily hire your own cab to take you there and bring you back, and when we went you were free to climb the waterfall at your own pace. It isn't steep and there were kids as young as about 7 who were doing just fine. It's a ton of fun, very relaxing and a wonderful way to spend the day.

In Grand Cayman, there are nice beaches near the port, or you can take a cab to a recommended beach (check out the DCL forum, a lot of people have ideas for beaches over there). Stingray City is a wonderful tour also, as the water is warm and shallow and its nice to have a boat excursion. You can usually find vendors other than the cruise ships who will sell you a cheaper and much nicer tour (smaller group).

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

We've been to GC 3 times on cruises and twice to Ocho Rios. All Carnival cruises.
GC: if you like beaches and just want to veg, 7 mile beach is heavenly. The first time we bought the excursion thru the ship and waaay overpaid. There are plenty of cabbies at the dock ready to take you to a nice beach. We liked the area behind the Marriott. No big waves and the water is beautiful. We've done Stingray City twice and it really is so neat. We always book that thru the ship just in case there's a problem with the excursion boat, the ship will wait for you. (Typically, if you book an excursion thru the ship and you're delayed, the ship will wait for you. If you go off on your own, the will leave without you!)
We're not big shoppers but there were typical island shops for jewelry and handmade trinkets. They're not very pushy in GC.
Now OR is another story!!! First time we climbed the falls and then went to a beach (ship's excursion.) Climbing the falls was really fun but my ds5 needed some help. (I guess ds9 and I did too at times!) Then we went to the beach which was nice, but not as nice as 7 mile. This crazy drunk with a bottle of rum was crowing like a rooster out loud many times. He would walk among the beach chairs and give plastic roses to women in exchange for "tips." We really just would give anything to make him get away. It was soooo annoying. Also as we left to go back to the ship, my dh was offered "someting special for YOU, mon" (meaning drugs) several times. Ugh! and relentless too!!
For our 2nd visit to OR, we didn't pick it as a destination. Due to Hurricane Wilma, we couldn't go to Cozumel as planned, so we were told months ahead we'd to go to Costa Maya. Apparently they couldn't handle so many ships so as we checked in we were told Jamaica would replace our stop in Costa Maya. We stayed on the ship and enjoyed the big slide on a near empty ship!

BTW, I still have a couple of soda coupons and arcade tokens for Carnival if you're interested. pm me if you want them.

 

[Merandab4]

Has anyone ever done the Dolphin encounters?
How much does that usually cost, and is that something that HAS to be booked on the ship or can we do it cheaper through another company?
Also, tell me about the pictures. since you can not bring a camera, I assume they take the photos. Does anyone know how much this cost?

 

[webray]

You can definately do Grand Cayman on your own. It is fantastic.

We grabbed a two hour taxi tour for approx $20 per person when we got off the ship. They offered to drop anyone at the beach after the tour who wanted to go.

I am sure you could grab a taxi to the beach easily on your own.

 

[FLParadisevilla]

Love Grand Cayman!!!
Don't bother with 7 mile beach. Rent a car and go to rum point island it's paradise. Even better do the Rays Reef & Rum tour with nativewaywatersports.com . You feed the rays, do some reef snorkeling and then have lunch on rum point island. The perfect day!!!

Just be careful returning to your ship. Make sure you leave enough time because the traffic back is horrendous!

~Connie

I have to agree with Connie!! 7 Mile beach is not as nice as Rum Point. When I was there I stayed right on the beach next to Sting Ray City! It was great! The shopping down town was nice too!

 

[nosnobunny2006]

I've been to Cayman Islands twice and did 7 mile beach via taxi and the other time was shopping. The cab fares are regulated so it won't much matter which one you chose.

Also I've been to Ocho Rios four times, 3 via cruise ship and the last time for a week at a resort in Feb of this year. You'll hear a lot about Jamaica, some of it true. It's a place where you have to be careful. Even so, I have always booked through a local tour company. There are several but the one I use is Peat Taylor. He's very reasonably priced and will take you anywhere you want to go. Since this is your first time to the island, I would be very careful about venturing off on your own. The local vendors can be very aggressive but normally take a polite "no" for an answer. The most fun we've done there is river tubing. It's totally safe.

Beth

 

[Daynab]

We used Peat Taylor as well. We had the best day in Jamaica. We climbed the falls and then went to Margaritaville for the rest of the afternoon. We then were able to walk back to the ship. People may ask if you want to but pot, but a friendly no thank you is just fine.

In Grand Cayman we have been to 7 mile beach and we did Stingray City with a private tour company. You can find more info on Cruise Critic. I would not go to rum point from a cruise ship. It is beautiful, but as it is on the other side of the island as the ship docks, you could miss your ship. Good Luck and have a great cruise.