rosebud1g

Here's the latest video. We also went there and used Liberty Tours Jamaica with Ricardo. Wonderful day- best private tour ever.

Our family did a private tour with Liberty Tours Jamaica. They will customize a tour for you. Much better than a ship excursion anyday.

Best jerk chicken ever at Scotchies! Highly recommend this company!

Hello all!

 

My fiance and I (30 and 22 respectively) will be taking our honeymoon on the Liberty of the Sea in March and one of our stops is Falmouth. Neither of us have ever been on a cruise and I have only been to Jamaica once on a family vacation when I was very young, and then we stayed in our resort or went on resort only excursions.

 

My question is as first timers, should we stick with RCI excursions or can we go out on private tours? I have looked up websites like liberty tours jamaica and see that many of their excursions require 4+ people to make a reservation. Since it is just the two of us that doesn't seem to be doable.

 

We aren't looking for anything private, I'm just looking into the money side of things, I would hate to spend $120pp through the cruise line when I could do the same thing for $80pp!

 

We are wanting fun excursions! I did the Dunn's River Falls 10+ years ago, but think it would be fun to experience it again, we are also interested in tubing and things like that as well.

 

If this cruise goes well I could see this being a hobby of ours in the future. So, even if we don't do private now, I'm sure we will have chances in the future.

 

Oh wise cruise goers, please give me your advice!! :)

I have done both ship tours and private for my past 16 cruises!

I prefer to do the private ones. My family also used Liberty Tours Jamaica this past August while on Allure of the Seas. My suggestion would be to join your roll call group and ask if your fellow cruisers are interested in

doing the tour together, you will be suprised how many people will be interested. That's what we did. It will bring your price down, and LTJ will provide a vehicle to suit your groups needs. You will be able to customize your own tour, with a stop at River Tubing. You won't be able to do that with a ship tour. Also, Liberty Tours can take you to Scotchies for lunch for the best Jerk Chicken, you will ever have in your life! You will get a tour like no other. I highly recommend Liberty Tours Jamaica, this was the best tour I have ever done. We went to Secret Falls, Shaw Park, and Scotchies. Two people in our group wanted to go River Tubing, and they were accomodated while we visited Shaw Park. We felt very safe and secure with Ricardo. He kept the locals away from trying to sell their goods. I have been on a ship tour many years ago to Dunns, where the locals actually came INTO our van to sell us their carved wooden animals! This will not happen while on a tour with Liberty! Trust me, a private tour with Liberty is the way to go!

My family and I have used several tour groups while cruising to Jamaica, but I would have to agree with Tjterrill. We went to the Secret Falls with Ricardo - Liberty Tours Jamaica on November 6th. It was the best tour ever!! This excursion with Liberty was the highlight of our cruise! Our tour lasted about 5 hours, we spent about 2 hours at the Irie/Secret Falls, then lunch at Scotchies, some sightseeing, then some shopping. We requested a wheelchair lift van/bus for 17 people. The cost was under 60.00pp. Worth every penny!! Can't wait to do it again!

Totally agree with you! Liberty Tours Jamaica was awesome. We had researched and emailed other companies before our arrival and Liberty's price was the best to get us to Secret Falls, sightseeing and lunch at Scotchies. I'm happy we chose them, since we only had a small group of eight, we were able to have our own driver -Ricardo and van for a personalized tour.

Twinbee- that was very courteous of Ricardo to arrange that van for you. That's what makes Liberty Tours so unique- they will take care of your needs.

Can't wait to return to Jamaica again and use Liberty!!

I was the one that set this up and Ricardo did a fantastic job. This was our very first cruise and our first time in Jamaica. Ricardo called me at my home in Minnesota several times and we had a blast when we got there. In our group of 26, we had ages ranging from 6-66 and everyone had a blast. My teenage boys were a little disappointed they weren't allowed to jump from the 50-foot cliff into the falls, but I was perfectly ok with that! LOL!

 

Ricardo joked around with us, was very informative and answered all our questions and took very good care of us. I never felt like any of our items were unsafe or insecure. Would book with him again if we are in Jamaica!

 

We went to the Irie Blue Hole/Secret Falls and Scotches. It was the highlight of our trip!

Glad to hear you had a great tour! We also set up a private tour with our Allure roll call group and used Liberty Tours with Ricardo. Best Tour ever and highlight of our cruise!

How was your experience with Liberty tours to Secret falls? irie blue hole?:)

Best private tour my family has ever done! Highly recommend Ricardo with Liberty Tours Jamaica. Look them up on Trip Advisor. Lots of pictures posted there as well. Highlight of our cruise vacation!

We are wondering if it would be safe to do an excursion with Liberty Tours Jamaica to the Secret Falls and river tubing. I have heard great things about this company but my main concern is that we will be the only ship in port that day and feel we could be targeted. Normally there are more than one ship in port. Should we stick to a ship excursion this time?

ABSOLUTLEY you will be safe with Liberty Tours! Ricardo will keep you safe and away from the vendors. We used this company in August and LOVED every single minute of it. My only regret is that I didn't find them sooner- like the year before when I sailed on Oasis. Secret Falls was the best secluded paradise I have ever seen. You will not be able to see this on a ship tour, because they don't offer this tour. If you have any questions please feel free to email me privately at my screen name above @ msn.com. I have many pictures of our wonderful day with Ricardo.

I have been on 15 cruises, have done ship excursions in Jamaica, have done private excursions pre-arranged in Jamaica, have also stayed 5 days in Montego Bay at the Ritz Carleton. On this past cruise on Allure, we used this company: www.Libertytoursjamaica.com and had the BEST tour of our lives! This company can do any tour to fit your needs. They accomodate cruisers in the ports of Montego Bay, Falmouth, and Ocho Rios, and will stay with you the entire time. No need to worry about what time they are coming back. They will also keep the locals far from you from selling their goods. There are many tours to choose from if you go to their website.

I have been to Doctor's Cave Beach while on Liberty of the Seas. It was very beautiful, but crowded. I preferred using Libertytoursjamaica, and

set the time and place for our day. Highly recommend them!

Ok friends, lets see Jamaica. I need to mention some background here so you know why we decided not to do any excursions there. I am not sure if you are aware of this, but Jamaica is on of the most homophobic countries in the western hemisphere. There is a large amount of violence against homosexuals, that ranges from verbal to even homicide. Feel free do to a google search if you want more information on this.

 

I did not experience any aggression towards me at all, inside or outside the complex, I am pretty straight acting. On the other hand my bf said he was called a few homophobic terms more than once within the boundaries of the RCCL compound and followed around by some of the locals. I don't want to say he is feminine, but I guess he is more noticeably gay than I am. I actually did not wanted him to get off on that port, but he had other plans.

 

The second reason we decide to stay near port was because I had zero intentions on being inside a bus for over an hour to get to the desired destination. Falmouth is located far away from the most interesting things to do in Jamaica.

 

It puzzles me why RCCL decided to build a port for their two flagships in Falmouth, Jamaica. The town is poor beyond your imagination and well for us in particular you could say it is dangerous. So we decided to play it safe and just stay near port. Like I said I did however exit the compound and ventured into town, I will post on that later.

 

Ironically we woke up that day to the news that Obama had won the elections and two more states had passed gay marriage :rolleyes: life is funny sometimes.

 

This is probably the only time during my review that I will mention anything about this topic, but I just felt the need to share this with other fellow gay travelers thinking of visiting Jamaica. Thats all and nothing more, please don't think too much of it. I hope I did not offend anyone with anything said in this post.

 

 

 

All that said Mom and I were ready to have a BLAST. Hey, we where in the Caribbean, on vacation, in the WORLD'S LARGEST CRUISE (yes, by two inches over the Oasis ;) lol) and with near perfect weather :D. I also found out that some of my best pictures were taken that day, you are in for treat!. Jamaica has some of the most amazing wood carvers in the WORLD.

 

 

Just wanted to say Thank You for your detailed pictoral review. We just went on Allure for the 2nd time in August, and this thread helped me to prepare for our cruise. I have been to all of the ports in Jamaica on a ship, as well as stayed at the Ritz Carlton Resort in Montego Bay, and Falmouth twice now, the first time was on Oasis, the second on Allure. I did exactly what you did my first time there, just got off, shopped at the port, then got back on the ship. Nothing spectacular. However, my second trip there was dramatically different, the BEST tour ever! I had met a group of people on our Roll Call and we booked a tour together to Secret Falls. We researched a few private companies via cruise critic and trip advisor. We found this company to be the best fit for what we were looking for:

http://www.libertytoursjamaica.com

We emailed this company directly thru their website, and got a response the same day.

A phone call was recieved as well, planning our tour, even though it was months away.

We went with a group of eight, we had our own driver (Ricardo) and our own airconditioned van. He met us inside the gate at our pre-arranged time and he wisked us away.

It did take about 45 min to get to Ocho Rios where Secret Falls was, but SO worth the drive! It was amazingly beautiful! The water was a turquoise blue, there are hidden caves, cliff jumps, an exciting Tarzan rope swing, waterfalls, guides to help you along the way, and the best part- NO CROWDS! Totally secluded. Pure Paradise. There are NO vendors there to push any goods to sell. We did leave our guides a tip, since they helped us every inch of the way. They know the Falls inside and out. If you go back to Jamaica soon- please consider this private tour with LibertyTours! You won't be disappointed, this truly was the highlight of our cruise! I have been to Jamaica six times and this was the BEST tour I have ever done, thanks to LibertyTours!

1. Can you go to the lockers throughout the day and put stuff in and out?

2. Is there a combination or keypad lock or is it an old fashioned key and if a key what can you do if you are going to be in the water all day with no one lo leave the key with?

:confused:

An important thing to know is that the lockers are available to rent with a CREDIT CARD only! Also food and water on the pool grounds is purchased with CREDIT CARD only as well! NO cash exchanged!

I kept the key bracelet around my wrist the entire time. No problem there.

Majestictoursbahamas.com is the only operator allowed to sell in advance.

THey do not advertise on thier website, but you can contact them via email and they will give you the details.

 

Who knows what june will bring and what the price will be. It changes seasonally.

Thank you. I couldn't remember for the life of me that site. I will check it out!

He said he had 2 vans, the one we were in had A/C

 

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Good thing, the car my friends were in weren't so lucky-no A/C.

How far is Scotchie's from the cruise port and how much is the taxi ride?

What port are arriving in?

There are 2 locations for Scotchies, Montego Bay and Ocho Rios.

We are going to go with Rusty and it is $25/pp and he can handle groups up to 30.

 

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Rusty is a common driver for a resort in Ocho Rios and his car is NOT air conditioned, the original poster is docking in Falmouth on the Allure. How is he handling a group of 30??

Markstours does a great job on this tour - just thought I would add this in case you are looking. He is a wonderful guide!

Is this the same as Mark Morris who you referred to on the other thread?

We will be in Falmouth in December.

We are thinking Liberty tours going to Secret Falls.

Does anyone know how long the drive is? On the site it says you will be gone 4 hours and you stop for lunch.

Just wanted to ask how your tour was and if you can provide any feedback for up coming travelers on your experience?

Can I ask where you went w/Liberty tours and how much did they charge you? Was it a private tour as in your own party or other people mixed with your group????

 

 

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We went to Secret Falls, sight seeing to Shaw Park, 2 in our group went River Tubing, Scotchies for lunch. There were 8 of us in our group, we met ahead of time on our Allure roll call and we arranged our tour that way, then contacted LTJ.

Thank you for posting.

I appreciate you taking the time to share your story.

When we go to Jamaica we try to only book ship sponsored excursions, to hopefully avoid what happened to you.

Better luck in the future.

Sea Ya

This past August we booked our own private excursion to Secret Falls with Libertytoursjamaica, and it was the highlight of our cruise! The ship tours do not offer tours to this private paradise. Had we not done this on our own, we would have not gotten our own taste of the true Jamaica. Ricardo was our driver who told us about the history of the island, showed us maps and currency and answered all of our questions. After Secret Falls, we stopped at Scotchies for some of the best jerk chicken I've ever tasted, saw how it was prepared and learned of the spices that are used to make it. Years ago I went on a Carnival excursion to Dunns Falls and I would never do that again. Too many passengers on a large bus was not enjoyable. Libertytoursjamaica customizes your tour to suit your needs. This was the best private tour IMO I have ever done, you will miss out if you do the ship tour.

Thanks everyone. I booked with Liberty really looking forward to it. Going to Secret Falls/Irie blue hole

That's great! What ship are you sailing on? Secret Falls was incredible! You are going to love it.

Thanks for the replies, I think we will go with Liberty, Taylor tours had some bad reviews on trip advisor and Liberty didn't

Our group of eight used Liberty Tour Jamaica with Ricardo in August while on Allure and I highly recommend this company.

Everything went smoothly as planned. We had spoken to Ricardo before we arrived quite a few times via email and phone. He was inside the port an hour before our arrival waiting to greet us. You will get more personalized service with him because of a smaller sized group. He will acomodate your tour as to when and where you want to go. I saw the Taylor's large bus waiting for the larger group. I was glad I wasnt on that. As soon as Ricardo gathered us, he whisked us off and we were on our way to Secret Falls being one of the first to arrive.

Go on trip Advisor and see my review with pictures. This was the best day of our cruise and I have Ricardo to thank for it, who made our day very memorable. I will be using Liberty again when I return to Jamaica.

Is there anything to do in Falmouth or must we book a tour or take a cab/bus away from the port area?

We used this company in August and it was the highlight of our cruise.

http://www.libertytoursjamaica.com

We went to Secret Falls, sight seeing in Ocho Rios and Scotchies for lunch. This was the most interesting trip to Jamaica we have ever had! I will always book with Libertytoursjamaica when I cruise to Jamaica!

Hmmm...interesting comments about wandering around MoBay solo. I will take those to heart as we decide what we will do there. I appreciate your honesty and knowledge.

 

Yep, it was Rob who responded to my message via their FB page. He seems pretty accommodating but whether or not we are getting a good deal still remains to be seen.

We also used Libertytoursjamaica this pat summer and I highly recommend them. Their website has the tours listed that are offered, but if you are interested in something else, they will customize a tour or you.

http://www.libertytoursjamaica.com

Ricardo from LTJ took us to Secret Falls and Scotchies and this was the highlight of our cruise!

Scuba girl,

In the past single tickets were available to buy for Atlantis via a website. Are they still available to do ahead of time for June? If so can you give me the site?

Thank you.

I've been in contact with Ricardo and our group is going to be using him on 12/18. Really looking forward to it and he's been very helpful in planning our excursion in Ocho Rios!

That's GREAT! We used LTJ in August and Ricardo was our driver. We had a wonderful day with him at Secret Falls, sight seeing and Scotchies for lunch. Secret Falls featured beautiful turquoise water, waterfalls, a rope swing, hidden caves, and guides to help you along the way that would put on a show, by doing cliff jumps into the falls. This was the highlight of our cruise. Can't wait to go back!!

I am not sure I want to do a tour and get stuck there longer than needed. Anyone know the price? Or the price of a private tour for 2 around jamaica from the MoBay carnival port?

 

Thanks

We used this company:

http://www.libertytoursjamaica.com

They were fantastic. They offer a variety of tours from Mobay, Falmouth and Ocho Rios. Rick's cafe is listed on their website. We went to Secret Falls and it was fantastic. Ricardo was our driver and we felt very safe and secure with him.

We had an amazing day! Give them a try!