beaches near port in Jamaica

[Jenn M]

My husband would like to visit a beach while we are in Jamaica. Is there one in Montego Bay or Falmouth that would be nice and safe for a family? Can we take a taxi there from the port? Are there shops and restaurants in the port too?
Thanks for your help!

 

[dcassetta]

There is no Beach area right at the pier. The pier was specially built for the cruise ships, there is a shopping area there with a variety of cruise port stores and some local merchants. There's also a Margaritaville restaurant resort area that does have a pool. I would guess that the closest resort area would be the Royalton, and I do believe they offer day passes. It would be about a 15 minute cab ride from the cruise port.

 

[HappilyEverAfter80]

We were told there is a beach called red stripe beach 15 min away when we inquired at the info desk in the Falmouth port. We didn't end up going though.
There is also an excursion offered by Disney I think it's called melia beach break.

 

[Jenn M]

Thanks! From what I have been reading, it seems a little sketchy just outside of the port. Is this true? DH doesn't want to go to the big, hyped up beach that we pay to get into as an excursion. He wants to experience the real culture of Jamaica. Not sure if that is possible so close to a port! I just don't want to be wandering around looking for a cool beach to stop at. I want to be prepared! On our last Disney cruise, we walked past a beach in Nassau on our way to the old fort, so we stopped to have a drink. DH loved that! He is all about the beach. Thanks so much for your help!

 

[timrousbeastie]

My husband would like to visit a beach while we are in Jamaica. Is there one in Montego Bay or Falmouth that would be nice and safe for a family? Can we take a taxi there from the port? Are there shops and restaurants in the port too?
Thanks for your help!

You might take a look at Hilton Rose Hall. It is easy to book a day pass online (just type the same data twice) and, according to the reviews I've read, easy to get there by taxi. Royalton also looks great, but I like that the Hilton only is half a mile from the Rose Hall Great House so you could fit a tour into a beach day if you want to see something a little different. I had booked it for our stop in 2014 but ended up cancelling since the family felt it was a shame not to experience more of Jamaica.

The port area is new and very nice. I am all about experiencing local culture and Jamaica is our favorite port, but I would not venture outside the gated area and certainly not bring my family there.

Good luck. We did the falls and Dolphin cove in 2014 and are doing the same next month. Last year, we did the rafting on the Martha Brae excursion which was wonderful, too.

 

[Carrie in AZ]

You do NOT want to take your family outside that gate and just wing it. No way!

We spent our day at Hilton Rose Hall. I used Hilton Honors points to book a room there and we paid to hop on the Resort For A Day bus to get there and back, which I arranged in advance.

The beach was ok but we loved the pools. Still talk about our great day at their pools. The reason I am replying and telling you all of this is because we felt like we got a lot of local flavor while there. There were employees cooking jerk chicken down by the beach and it was delicious. It seemed very authentic and not "Hilton corporate" if you can sense what I am saying. Seemed liked some gals cooking in their own backyard. There was also an outside bar set up down by the beach and it was fun getting drinks there, too.

Not sure if they still offer these experiences, but I bet they do. It was a very nice day and I would go there again.

 

[HappilyEverAfter80]

Thanks! From what I have been reading, it seems a little sketchy just outside of the port. Is this true? DH doesn't want to go to the big, hyped up beach that we pay to get into as an excursion. He wants to experience the real culture of Jamaica. Not sure if that is possible so close to a port! I just don't want to be wandering around looking for a cool beach to stop at. I want to be prepared! On our last Disney cruise, we walked past a beach in Nassau on our way to the old fort, so we stopped to have a drink. DH loved that! He is all about the beach. Thanks so much for your help!

Unfortunately in Jamaica we don't like to experience anything on our own - only organized excursions or if we go for a week we stay at a resort. It's my least fav destination in the Caribbean.
I am not sure if the Red Stripe Beach is a big hyped about beach, it's not in any excursions. We were just offered to take a cab there and back, but didn't do it. To be honest it wasn't that cheap and we wished at that point we did the Melia Beach break with DCL.
We did venture outside of the gates and... I wouldn't do that again. Did not feel safe and there is probably a reason there is armed police presence as soon as you step outside the gated port area.

 

[Jenn M]

Oh brother! That sounds scary! Armed guards? Yikes! I am going to see if I can get a day pass to the Hilton Rose Hall. That sounds enjoyable and safe! Thanks for the help everyone!!

 

[mmouse37]

We asked a cab to take us to a beach and it was a 25-30 minute drive in a hot, cramped vehicle. They would not even leave the port until they had every seat in that cab (van) filled. We waited at least 20 minutes until they filled the cab. The beach was definitely a local beach and had a place to get drinks and food. It was a bit sketchy but OK. It was not a big beach at all but it was interesting.

There was some local guy flame throwing from his mouth and and people trying to sell you stuff as well.

MJ

 

[HappilyEverAfter80]

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We asked a cab to take us to a beach and it was a 25-30 minute drive in a hot, cramped vehicle. They would not even leave the port until they had every seat in that cab (van) filled. We waited at least 20 minutes until they filled the cab. The beach was definitely a local beach and had a place to get drinks and food. It was a bit sketchy but OK. It was not a big beach at all but it was interesting.

There was some local guy flame throwing from his mouth and and people trying to sell you stuff as well.

MJ

Thanks for sharing the pics! We almost did this as we got off the ship with no plan.
I wish we did the Melia beach break with lunch through DCL. Fairly inexpensive and also beach at a resort but cheaper than rose hall (no drinks included).

 

[Jenn M]

I have been looking into The Blue Waters Beach Club. They have a taxi, fees, taxes, etc to their resort for $30/ adult and $15/child. That doesn't seem like a bad deal. Has anyone ever been there? However, that does not include food or drinks. Trip Adviser has good reviews on it from this past summer. Thanks for all of the great advice! I have been really looking into other options which I didn't know existed before!

 

[jlemieu1]

We did the cave excursion. It had a beach stop that felt very real to me. Also they served a true jerk chicken for lunch. I'll see if I can find a picture

 

[jlemieu1]

Here

 

[Dug720]

Oh brother! That sounds scary! Armed guards? Yikes! I am going to see if I can get a day pass to the Hilton Rose Hall. That sounds enjoyable and safe! Thanks for the help everyone!!

Slightly OT, but if armed guards scare you, I'd avoid any large cities even in the US. Like NYC. We have armed guards (military and/or police in full battle/riot gear) in the airports and often around tourist-heavy places like Times Square.

 

[Birdie dog]

Holy cow. DON'T go to Mahogany Beach. It was beyond awful.

 

[Jenn M]

Thanks for the tip on Mahogany Beach! Also, do you know what beach that is a picture of jlemieu1? Looks like fun!

Dug720, you are right. I guess if you think of it that way. I have been to most major cities in the US, and the large cities in Europe: Paris, London, Athens, etc, and that wasn't any different. I guess I am overthinking this. Most of my over seas travel was prekids, so I worry more about taking my kiddos into scary situations. The armed guards are just keeping everyone safe!

Thanks everyone!

 

[SleepyDeb]

I have absolutely no problem with most US and European cities. However, I will never, ever, go back to Montego Bay. I was there for a conference that my company was hosting. About 80 ppl. Three women had their purses stolen at the resort. One couple were threatened with a machete when they walked from our resort across the street to Rose Hall. My husband and I were walking along the resort beach and, as we approached the end of the beach, 3 heads popped up from behind the rocks. We turned around quickly and the heads went back down. Almost everyone playing golf at the course next to the resort had their golf balls stolen when they hit them, and then someone came out from behind a tree and offered to sell them a ball. They know they were the same balls bc our company's logo were on them.

I've heard that other areas of Jamaica are lovely.

 

[scootch]

I have absolutely no problem with most US and European cities. However, I will never, ever, go back to Montego Bay. I was there for a conference that my company was hosting. About 80 ppl. Three women had their purses stolen at the resort. One couple were threatened with a machete when they walked from our resort across the street to Rose Hall. My husband and I were walking along the resort beach and, as we approached the end of the beach, 3 heads popped up from behind the rocks. We turned around quickly and the heads went back down. Almost everyone playing golf at the course next to the resort had their golf balls stolen when they hit them, and then someone came out from behind a tree and offered to sell them a ball. They know they were the same balls bc our company's logo were on them.

I've heard that other areas of Jamaica are lovely.

You have made me feel good about our decision to just hit Margaritaville and a few shops and enjoy the quieter ship for the day. Thank you!