Just returned from 5 night Navigator/Labadee/Falmouth

[bsbcgirl]

Had a great NOS cruise from 2/21 to 2/26. I will not do a full review since many folks have already reviewed the ship itself. (will answer particular questions, however) I would like to offer some thoughts/comments on Labadee and especially Falmouth. I have never visited Labadee before, but I am definitely a beach person. I was delighted with everything about Labadee.

(Thought it was much nicer than Cococay). We took the tram to the Columbus Beach area (near the Water Park) and had a great time. In our particular beach area, the water was clear, calm, and free of any rocks, shells, or coral. (Took water shoes, but did not need them). The barbeque lunch was adequate. You do not have to tip for a chaise lounge, but quite frankly, I would feel guilty not offering a couple of bucks for a chair considering the economic situation on this island.

Now for Falmouth. I was quite apprehensive about this port, since it is still under construction and since I felt very uncomfortable in Ochos Rios a few years ago on another cruise. Well, Falmouth turned out to be a great experience. As only the 2nd ship to ever visit this port, we were welcomed with warmth and enthusiasm. It was truly heartwarming. However, this port is nowhere near being even half complete and I urge you to book an excursion. You can spend about 1-1.5 hours shopping at the makeshift facilities right at the port, but that's about it. My group booked Royal Caribbean's "Historical Highlights and Beach Break" ($49 pp). It was a little disorganized in the area where they were getting everyone loaded on the correct buses/vans for all the different excursions. This should work out over time. Once we got going, everything went smoothly. We got a little flavor of the area and its history for the first 30 minutes, and then we arrived at a private beach and stayed here for about 3 hours. It was beautiful. Again we were treated with warmth and kindness. The beach was beautiful, there were restrooms/changing facilities, a cash bar and a Jamaican/chicken barbeque lunch. The ride back took only 20 minutes. The $49 pp included all transportation, a chaise lounge at the beach, and the lunch (with lemonade or punch).

[Oppgaard]

Any chance you have the dinner menus for your cruise or can remember what they offered? Thanks.

[bsbcgirl]

Sorry, didn't copy the menus or the cruise compasses.

[jamie11]

I am doing a 5 night navigator cruise on april 4th and it also goes to Labadee and Falmouth. I was a little skeptical of falmouth when I heard that it is a new port and that it was not finished. Im glad you liked falmouth, at least i know i will probably enjoy it. Do you know of anyone who did the zip lining in Labadee, I am curious to see whether it is worth it since I am highly interested in that excursion.

 

 

[bsbcgirl]

Folks on the ship seemed to enjoy when I heard them talking.

[will773]

Glad you had a great trip!

[Oppgaard]

jamie11,

 

We are on the same sailing as you are - April 4. Why don't you come over to the roll calls and join us? I'm Jerry from Southern California and will be sailing with my sister who is from Southern Illinois.

[boingy300]

Thanks for the encouraging words re: Falmouth. We will sail in 1 week. Eager to play. But now is when the time begins to fly by! Thanks for posting and welcome back!

Karen

[Retiredprofessor]

Thanks for your review of NOS. My husband and I are looking forward to our cruise a week from tomorrow. We booked an excursion in Labadee called Castaway at Malfani Beach because we found Coco Cay somewhat crowded in the past and thought Labadee might be the same. Did you hear anything about Malfani Beach? Also, did you have a lobster night? I heard they are doing away with it. :):):)

[shordiebecka@gmail.com]

thank you so much for posting! its so rare that I see anything about NOS- Falmouth/Labadee cruises. I leave on the 21st for mine! How was the food, and is there anything (shows etc) you recommend?

[mtsnd1900]

Jamie11,

 

Check out the zip line here or one of the many other vids on youtube:

 

looks pretty fun - my wife and I are doing it in Sept. Sure, there are better ways to spend $170, but i am sure this would be more memorable than a few of them. comes down to budget, preferences, and memories.

 

enjoy!

[erbunny]

I am doing a 5 night navigator cruise on april 4th and it also goes to Labadee and Falmouth. I was a little skeptical of falmouth when I heard that it is a new port and that it was not finished. Im glad you liked falmouth, at least i know i will probably enjoy it. Do you know of anyone who did the zip lining in Labadee, I am curious to see whether it is worth it since I am highly interested in that excursion.

 

DH and I were on the first cruise to Falmouth and really enjoyed all the excitement. We took an excursion to Dunns Falls, but we are really looking forward to revisiting Falmouth in a year or two. There are several threads on the various boards about Falmouth, includiong the destination board. The overall opinion of tose who have been is positive. As for the Labadee zip line, We both loved it, and we are 62 and 64. You actually go on 2: the first is a short trainer.

]

[bsbcgirl]

Yes, we did have lobster one night. I did not order it, because I don't eat shellfish. I would say that the food, overall, was pretty good, not great. Formal night (2nd night) was the best - the sliced filet of beef was really good. For me nights 4 and 5 were the weakest. If you're a seafood lover, I think that the menu will be better for you than those of us that are not really big fish eaters. I find that the desserts are their weakest part of the meal and the appetizers the strongest. Some nights I ordered 2 appetizers knowing that I was not really enthusiastic about the entrees.

I did not hear anything about Malfini Beach. I will tell you that the beach area of Labadee near the water park and the shopping village ( I believe its called Columbus Beach) was truly pristine and beautiful. I am returning to this same spot when I visit Labadee again in July on Allure.

[joey1]

Can you tell me what time the ship arrived back in Ft. Lauderdale? What was the earliest you could disembark?

 

Thanks!

[BillDg]

Can you tell me what time the ship arrived back in Ft. Lauderdale? What was the earliest you could disembark?

 

Thanks!

 

 

I was on this cruise as well. We got back to Ft.L right at 7:00 as scheduled. HOWEVER, there was a long delay in being given the release by customs. Self-disembarks, which should have started at 7:50 did not actually begin until alomost 8:45.

We had a scheduled disembark time of 8:30 and were off around 9:00. Although the lines were long, we made it through customs/immigration fairly quickly. We had an 11:15 flight out of FLL and made it without any hassle (less than 10 minute cab ride to the airport).