Ports u love and ones to avoid.

[girlsjustwannacruise]

I loved hmc and the beaches of freeport but hated nassau. Do if im not going to bahamas I have no idea what I might like. Looking at oc jamaica and mexico. Maybe belize. Pleade help.

[ljhm02]

I loved hmc and the beaches of freeport but hated nassau. Do if im not going to bahamas I have no idea what I might like. Looking at oc jamaica and mexico. Maybe belize. Pleade help.

 

We have never been to Nassau or Freeport. We are going there for the first time on our Jan 28 cruise. Have no idea what to do there.

 

We have done Cozumel twice. We did the clear kayak in Cozumel. We loved Belize. There is a beach right at the port that you ride a sky lift to. Beautiful beach & great relaxing day.

[rolltidebama]

Cozumel is a great port with several things to do. Jamaica is beautiful but taking a tour is a must. My personal favorite is Key West.

[lego7191]

Our all-time favorite is Cozumel. It has something for everyone whether it be an all-inclusive, relaxing beach resort like Nachi Cocum, or a fun-filled day in town shopping and sight-seeing. One of my favorite activities in Cozumel is the 12 meter yacht regatta. Total blast!

 

We also like Grand Cayman. Very easy to waste a day there eating at a local restaurant or hanging on the beach. Very lazy days for us every time we go there. They also seem to have quite a few activities available but we always opt for the beach time.

 

Had a great time in Ocho Rios - climbed Dunns River Falls and went tubing down the White River - but reading the boards ahead of time had me terrified and worried sick about our visit there.

 

Looking forward to others' responses to this thread! Our upcoming January cruise has four ports - three of which we have not visited.

[L_K]

For me,

 

#1 San Juan (10 / 10)

#2 HMC (9,5)

#3 Grand Turk (8,8)

#4 Belize (8,5)

#5 St-Thomas (8)

#6 Nassau (7,8)

#7 Roatan (7,5)

#8 Key West (7,2)

#9 Grand Cayman (7)

#10 Cozumel (6,2)

#11 Costa Maya (6)

#12 Ocho Rios (2,5)

#13 Freeport (2)

[L_K]

We have never been to Nassau or Freeport. We are going there for the first time on our Jan 28 cruise. Have no idea what to do there.

 

We have done Cozumel twice. We did the clear kayak in Cozumel. We loved Belize. There is a beach right at the port that you ride a sky lift to. Beautiful beach & great relaxing day.

 

The beach with the sky lift is Roatan, Honduras. Belize is a tender port.

[kelkel2]

I really like Cozumel and Grand Cayman. Cozumel has so much to do. Private beaches, great food, great bars, good shopping etc. Grand Cayman is lovely. It also has great shopping and great excursion opportunities. I just wish it wasn't a tender port...

[lauraezzell]

I wouldn't say that I would avoid it, but I'm getting tired of it since every cruise I have gone on has been there - Nassau. It would be nice to go somewhere other than Nassau on a cruise.

[sharecruises]

Nassau and Freeport are both pretty boring...I used to go to Freeport a lot on the party cruises, was back there in November and it has not changed...boring, overpriced, the "lucaya Marketplace" looks in need of a paint job. Both have about the very same tempature as where I live *Ft Lauderdale...both look just like here, but not as nice...

it is funny, we do have various restaurants and malls that mimic their "bahama" design/colors/shutters <grin>

 

Both of them can be "chilly" in winter (so far pretty warm) but January is not for swimming there IMHO (unless you are from Minnesota or Buffalo and anything warm is good for you >?)

 

But ..the worst port of all...for me..was Falmouth Jamaica

 

Royal Caribbean built it in the middle of nowhere so they can port their huge ships Oasis and Allure...what a waste it is.

 

About 45 minutes from Montego Bay...and over an hour to Ochos...

and you must go to one of them to do tours...you pay for transport...and who wants to ride around bumpy Jamaican roads? with stops for pushy people to sell you stuff/? Just to get to the same excursions that you walk off the ship for when they dock in Ochos Rios??

 

Oh Falmouth totally sucked...what a horrible place...huge fenced in cement lot...spindly little trees...it was very very windy there...2 guys on stilts provided "atomosphere' I guess but looked like they were about to be blown away LOL

 

Just a dump...the "pretty" Georgian buildings are a facade...inside each doorway is a makeshift little shop just like the straw market in Nassau

*(or the Sunrise Flea Market in Fort Lauderdale LOL)

 

the shops are full of made in china junk....you can't find stuff that says "Falmouth"... I did find one fridge magnet

 

Outside there are a few stands selling overpriced drinks or jerk chicken with a couple benches to sit on

 

NO restaurant...NO bar...no beach...no tiki bars...

 

God the suburbs of Broward County have more fun places and better, more tropical landscaping than this dump. MY own patio looks better and is more comfortable

 

Falmouth is a huge total rip. RCI loyalists say you 'can choose between Montego Bay and Ochos" ...yeah right, and pay for it

 

Oh and Falmouth itself has nothing...2 of my friends went on a little tour and were happy to be back to the ship...scary place, lots of beggars, burglar bars on windows...really a dump

 

Falmouth : Jamacian for "Stay on the Ship"

 

*and ps. I enjoy Ochos and am not "skeered" there, the pushy people don't even bother me. At least it is pretty, scenic (mountains)...green and lush with tropical plants.

Falmouth is "paved paradise and put up a parking lot with chinese junk for sale"

[2 cruzen]

Lucky enough to have done 6 cruises - 1 Alaska, 4 Caribbean, and 1 to Cabo. Only been to one port twice - Belize - and we loved both times in Belize. It gets a bad rap and I don't understand why. I think any port is great once you get out of the shopping district and see the real country. Seems a little contradictory, but I loved HMC - just because it was a total relaxing day with nothing to do but play in the sand/water and enjoy a cocktail, or 2. Also, loved Aruba and would go back to Roatan in a heartbeat. Want to see the island outside of Mahogany Bay. Have fun finding a cruise. And do your research on the ports of call section once you have decided.

[willow028]

Also, loved Aruba and would go back to Roatan in a heartbeat. Want to see the island outside of Mahogany Bay.

 

Roatan is amazing! Did a horse back tour while in port, then was lucky enough to have a friend move down there - talk about the best "AI" ever! Fantastic island to spend 9+ days at a time on!!!

[mikel24m]

Nassau and Freeport are both pretty boring...I used to go to Freeport a lot on the party cruises, was back there in November and it has not changed...boring, overpriced, the "lucaya Marketplace" looks in need of a paint job. Both have about the very same tempature as where I live *Ft Lauderdale...both look just like here, but not as nice...

it is funny, we do have various restaurants and malls that mimic their "bahama" design/colors/shutters <grin>

 

Both of them can be "chilly" in winter (so far pretty warm) but January is not for swimming there IMHO (unless you are from Minnesota or Buffalo and anything warm is good for you >?)

 

But ..the worst port of all...for me..was Falmouth Jamaica

 

Royal Caribbean built it in the middle of nowhere so they can port their huge ships Oasis and Allure...what a waste it is.

 

About 45 minutes from Montego Bay...and over an hour to Ochos...

and you must go to one of them to do tours...you pay for transport...and who wants to ride around bumpy Jamaican roads? with stops for pushy people to sell you stuff/? Just to get to the same excursions that you walk off the ship for when they dock in Ochos Rios??

 

Oh Falmouth totally sucked...what a horrible place...huge fenced in cement lot...spindly little trees...it was very very windy there...2 guys on stilts provided "atomosphere' I guess but looked like they were about to be blown away LOL

 

Just a dump...the "pretty" Georgian buildings are a facade...inside each doorway is a makeshift little shop just like the straw market in Nassau

*(or the Sunrise Flea Market in Fort Lauderdale LOL)

 

the shops are full of made in china junk....you can't find stuff that says "Falmouth"... I did find one fridge magnet

 

Outside there are a few stands selling overpriced drinks or jerk chicken with a couple benches to sit on

 

NO restaurant...NO bar...no beach...no tiki bars...

 

God the suburbs of Broward County have more fun places and better, more tropical landscaping than this dump. MY own patio looks better and is more comfortable

 

Falmouth is a huge total rip. RCI loyalists say you 'can choose between Montego Bay and Ochos" ...yeah right, and pay for it

 

Oh and Falmouth itself has nothing...2 of my friends went on a little tour and were happy to be back to the ship...scary place, lots of beggars, burglar bars on windows...really a dump

 

Falmouth : Jamacian for "Stay on the Ship"

 

*and ps. I enjoy Ochos and am not "skeered" there, the pushy people don't even bother me. At least it is pretty, scenic (mountains)...green and lush with tropical plants.

Falmouth is "paved paradise and put up a parking lot with chinese junk for sale"

 

WOW got anger.Not a very nice post

[mikel24m]

Roatan is amazing! Did a horse back tour while in port, then was lucky enough to have a friend move down there - talk about the best "AI" ever! Fantastic island to spend 9+ days at a time on!!!

 

Roatan is our favorite island.Everytime we visit we love it more.We would be lucky to retire their,its beautiful

[willow028]

Roatan is our favorite island.Everytime we visit we love it more.We would be lucky to retire their,its beautiful

 

Not to hijack the OP's post, but my friend bought some land down there and built a house for not a heck of a lot of money - she loves it (although we do crack up when she messages us to please send her underwear as it's hard to find "American style" undies in island shops!).

[sharecruises]

WOW got anger.Not a very nice post

 

 

?????? no just truthful...."got anger">> no got a crappy day in a horrible port

 

why sugarcoat you know what?? OP asked for best/worst port

 

I do hope you go to Falmouth then you can tell us how you made lemons out of lemonade , should be very uplifting to hear :)

[sharecruises]

Now...a good port...maybe my fav....Costa Maya

 

I wish more ships sailed there

 

I went there when Glory sailed out of Port Canveral...(dream does that route now)

 

I luckily went there ...cause of Sandy...last October on the NCL Pearl

 

we were scheduled to go to Grand Cayman and Ochos but diverted to Cozumel and Costa Maya due to the storms

 

Love loved Costa Maya...

 

nice pool and shops...walk thru and jump on a bus/shuttle to the little fishing town of Mauhual (spelling?)

 

$2 fare..

 

avoid the first places they steer you to...we walked down the Malecon to a great place 100%Agave

 

the owner treated us like royalty...we had loungers, plus table and chairs and umbrella at no charge as long as we bought some of his delicous drinks and food

 

I had a wonderful huge Sangria Margarita..yum

and I had the best cheese quesidilla ever....with a little "rose' made of a tomato, yummy guac, pico de gallo and fresh "crema"

oh my

 

Friendly ladies have little tents and tables right there..enjoy a massage on the beach for $20..yes...$20 for one hour

wonderful...sand...sea....ocean breezes, Latin music playing but not too loud ...just wonderful

 

the little town is fantastic....it is like Cozumel used to be 20 years ago

 

they have a little internet cafe with really cheap minutes..like ? $1 or $2 for 1/2 hour I think...really sweet...nice crafts and things for sale

 

the people are funny and friendly, a bit pushy but lots of laughs

 

I love Costa Maya

 

(to to falmouth ..leave Costa Maya for ME ME ME haha)

 

:cool:

[johneeo]

I loved hmc and the beaches of freeport but hated nassau. Do if im not going to bahamas I have no idea what I might like. Looking at oc jamaica and mexico. Maybe belize. Pleade help.

 

Cozumel to me was a "knock your socks off" port. Just about everything to do, great port.

 

As for Falmouth Jamaica, I have to agree what has been said. Nothing at all in Falmouth, no beach, no bar, no nothing. Well, except the gated shops where you could buy some Cuban cigars and other stuff. Good day to spend on the ship.

[sail7seas]

We like Cozumel but won't leave the ship in Jamaica. We don't enjoy Montego Bay or Ochos Rios. JMO........

We were only in Costa Maya once some years ago but we had fun.

[narrow56]

I am a pretty big fan of Cozumel. I've been there twice and both times I did tours. The first was to some Maya ruins and the second was a tour around the island. Both were beautiful and so fun! Not to mention the beautiful blue waters.

 

Falmouth was nice. We did the Appleton Rum Estate. I'd never do it again (the ride there and back was a nightmare) but I'm glad we went.

 

Freeport seemed really boring to us. There weren't many excursion options so we stayed on the ship.

[meggie711]

My favorites are St. Maarten, St. Thomas, Cozumel and Coco Cay (RCCL's private island). We enjoyed Key West, but it rained most of the time we were there and most shops were closed, so we want to go back and really experience it. That leaves Nassau. Absolutely nothing wrong with it in my book, and I had a great time there on my first cruise, but it's just not my favorite. Because we've been there on every cruise but one, we're probably not even getting off the ship there on our next cruise. We might get off the ship to buy a few cheap souveniers for our little one and maybe stop in for a drink at Senor Frogs, but we don't plan to do anything else there but enjoy some ship time.

 

St. Maarten had very friendly locals, gorgeous beaches, and was easy to navigate on our own (with the help of the taxi drivers). Delicious guavacoladas as well. ;)

 

St. Thomas, again, had beautiful beaches, friendly locals, and easy to navigate. We found both islands affordable for getting around.

 

Cozumel, had a great excursion of snorkeling off of the Fury Cat. Had some great shopping, awesome drinks, and friendly locals. A very fun trip.

 

Coco Cay is a beautiful island, extremely relaxing, and a great time every time we go. We missed it on our last cruise due to being unable to tender because of wind/waves creating unsafe conditions. This is fairly common for that stop. I do enjoy because there's a good amount of shopping at a mini straw-market of sorts, and RCCL staff are there to serve drinks on the beaches. Hammocks can be found in offbeat areas, and are perfect for a relaxing day. Highly recommended.

[mikel24m]

?????? no just truthful...."got anger">> no got a crappy day in a horrible port

 

why sugarcoat you know what?? OP asked for best/worst port

 

I do hope you go to Falmouth then you can tell us how you made lemons out of lemonade , should be very uplifting to hear :)

 

Ahh try to make yourself feel better by calling peoples home town( and/or/country) a dump and crappy

 

Im sure I would feel safer their than in many US cities,poverty is everywhere :)

[Nebr.cruiser]

My favorite ports are in the Southern Caribbean, the more unspoiled islands such as Dominica and Grenada. On a cruise I've only been to the Bahamas once, to Princess Cays; we enjoyed a land vacation there, but it would be on the bottom of my list for a cruise stop.

 

I don't think that many longer cruises stop there. I also like St. Thomas, though we've been there too often, also Cozumel, Roatan and Belize.

[Hstergo]

Totally loved St Maarten and St Thomas so I would say those are the best ports I have been to.

 

As to the worst hands down would have to be Belize, unless you have a tour booked don't bother getting off the ship. when I got back from there I couldn't find anyone on the ship to say they enjoyed it. As a matter of fact most fellow passengers asked this same question over and over..

" why do cruise ship even bother stopping there?"

[NemoCrownie]

Favorite so far is Dominica. Also love Barbados, Aruba, Antigua and Grenada. Really enjoyed St Thomas, St Croix. Never been to a bad port, yet. Research on the CC boards and TripAdvisor and every port and excursion has been fantastic. I have no desire to go to Nassau or Falmouth but I am sure with research they would be fine.

[sail7seas]

Among favorite islands for us are Aruba, Bonaire, Curacao (The so-called A,B, C's), St. Maarten, St. Bart's, Key West, Antigua .......