Western Caribbean Excursions

[appraise]

We are cruising on the NOS out of New Orleans on February 9th and I need your advice on choosing our excursions. This is our first cruise. We visit Falmouth, Grand Cayman and Cozumel. We booked the Tulum tour for Cozumel and only want to book one more excursion. I think we can find our way around Grand Cayman okay on our own, probably will hit the Rum factory, DW likes coconut rum. Since it is our first visit to Grand Cayman I'm thinking after the Rum factory hang out on a beach, which one and what resort, perhaps finishing with some shopping. What should a taxi on Cayman cost from the ship to the Rum factory?

On Jamaica I was thinking of checking out the shops at the port then simply returning to the ship. We don't want to do the river or falls trips. Any thing doing in Falmouth worth checking out, the plantations, historical buildings??? Any suggestions you may have will be appreciated. :confused:;):)

[DarthGrady]

We are cruising on the NOS out of New Orleans on February 9th and I need your advice on choosing our excursions. This is our first cruise. We visit Falmouth, Grand Cayman and Cozumel. We booked the Tulum tour for Cozumel and only want to book one more excursion. I think we can find our way around Grand Cayman okay on our own, probably will hit the Rum factory, DW likes coconut rum. Since it is our first visit to Grand Cayman I'm thinking after the Rum factory hang out on a beach, which one and what resort, perhaps finishing with some shopping. What should a taxi on Cayman cost from the ship to the Rum factory?

On Jamaica I was thinking of checking out the shops at the port then simply returning to the ship. We don't want to do the river or falls trips. Any thing doing in Falmouth worth checking out, the plantations, historical buildings??? Any suggestions you may have will be appreciated. :confused:;):)

 

I have always liked 7 Mile Beach at Grand Cayman. Very clean and free. A taxi there isn't much, even less if you share one with others. There are several bars along the beach that you can hang out at.

[TEXASMUNK]

If you like the beaches....in Grand Cayman, you can taxi over to 7 mile beach...tons of places to simply enjoy the sand, sun and surf...along with a few adult beverages.

Or..Snorkel with the Dolphins in Grand Cayman....lots of on your own trips....such as Captain Marvin (google).

Falmouth...lot so shops and a few nearby beaches.

Cozumel....a shopping must, plus some really good food and fun

[boingy300]

I am a fan of Captain Marvins in Grand Cayman. The stingrays are gentle and feel like velvet.

Karen

[rosebud1g]

Grand Cayman- we have also used Capt Marvins. Its great because he takes you out there in the AM-way before the cruise ship excursions start in the PM...this way the stingrays are nice and hungry. Then you go snorkeling and see TONS of fish. This was awesome!!! def would do AGAIN!

On another cruise, we just took a cab to 7 mile beach and the water was too cloudy to snorkel. I was a bit disappointed. Wished I would have went with capt marvin again... another co is Mobydick tours.

 

Cozumel I would go to Nachi Cocum.. all inclusive.. awesome!

google that name or you can book with island marketing.

[boingy300]

Our 1st time in Grand Cayman we walked around w/o a plan, offered drugs, and really didn't have a good impression of the island (Example it ended in a Burger King where the lady had found a worm in her burger). In hindsight we were totally unfair to this beautiful island and have gone back again and again. If budget or beach day only is the plan- 7 mile but otherwise there is tons to do on this tiny bit o' gold. Again Capt. Marvins is my pick.

Karen

[kentuckyphotogirl]

We have gone on the stingray excursion twice in Grand Cayman w/Native Ways. It was awesome-something not to be missed.

 

We also recently were in Falmouth on Liberty. I think the excursion was the heartbeat of Jamaica...... a tour bus took us through the countryside to see how people really live in Jamaica, then we went to a working plantation where they grow sugar cane and papaya. It was great..so glad we did it. We got to taste several different rums, breadfruit, jerk chicken, & papaya juice. We are so glad we did this-we were concerned about Falmouth but the locals were amazing...

[Trekker954]

i highly recommend taking an excursion to Stingray City. There are many tour operators, including every cruiseship if you are nervous about private tours. We even saw dolphins humping the anchor lines. pretty weird.

[reney313]

I also highly recommend stingrays in GC for your first trip. You can find many reputable captains on the port forum. Moby Dick, Capt. Marvins and Capt. Bryans are all well known. (I have used Capt. Bryans and prefer his sailing catamaran). If you prefer to go to 7 mile beach, I recommend the cab take you to Royal Palms. It is a $2 per person charge for entrance, but that gives you a great spot on the beach...close to the pier so the taxi ride is less expensive there and back (about $4 per person)...and use of restrooms, showers, a pool, etc. You can rent loungers for $10 per person if you would prefer. We rented the cabana and absolutely loved it, but we had a larger group so it made more $$ sense.

 

In Falmouth, there isn't much to look at in the shops. I would again highly recommend booking an excursion here so you can get out and see the beautiful countryside/island. There are many choices and I found them all reasonable for the experience.

 

In Cozumel, I see you have Tulum booked. If it is $$ concern after booking this long excursion that is preventing you from booking in the other 2 ports, I would recommend maybe canceling Tulum and going to a beach or other excursion in Coz. Tulum is a LONG day from Cozumel and may be a better option to see the ruin from a land based Cancun/Playa Del Carmen trip....In addition, many of the ports on the W. Caribbean (Costa Maya, Roatan, Belize) offer other mayan ruins so if you think you'll be going back to Western in the future, it might be an option to wait to see the ruins until you are in one of those ports. Tulum is a great stop, but I wanted to offer some other options, just in case.

[appraise]

Thank You all for your ideas. It really is helpful to hear of others experiences. On visiting the stings rays, how deep is the water, sadly I'm not a swimmer. Just had breakfast and read the post on the dolphins and the ship's anchor lines, quite a visual image. Now we know why dolphins follow ships, I guess. :confused::o:)

[boingy300]

We enjoyed the ATV adventure in Falmouth, but if you're a newbie -I'd recommend Dunn's River Falls. Enjoy. Jamaica is gorgeous.

Karen

[amybear912]

Cayman is one of our favorite beach days... We're fans of just grabbing a cab over to Royal Palms and hanging out on the beach... It's cheap to get there, cheap to get in, and the people are friendly... Nice facilities and the food and drink are reasonably priced (for Cayman standards)...

 

Falmouth is another story and we are on the fence as well... Hoping others will chime in here with some other ideas besides Dunns...

[redpryor]

Just jumping in here. I have a Western Caribbean itinerary booked as well, and have gained some great information here!

 

I'm happy to hear of some reputable vendors in Grand Cayman that are far less $$ than the cruise ship excursions.

 

Does anyone have recommendations for food in Grand Cayman?

We are probably going to do snorkel/stingray in the morning, and then visit the beach for the rest of the day. Our ship leaves at 4pm, so we don't have time to get back aboard for lunch.

 

I was also thinking of doing ruins for Cozumel, but I've got 3 kids, and I do NOT think they'd enjoy a long trip to/from the ruins! I'm still trying to figure out what to do at Cozumel. Since we already have beach opportunities at Labadee, Jamaica, and Grand Cayman, I thought it might be overkill (?) to do beach again at Cozumel. What am I missing on this island?

Also, on Jamaica, we are seriously considering not even getting off the ship. But I really hate to do that. I have stopped in Jamaica once before. We did a White River tubing excursion, which was actually pretty disastrous, but for reasons that had nothing to do with the excursion or the island itself. My husband has been to AI's in Jamaica twice, so he's pretty much seen and done everything. Does anyone have family-friendly suggestions for Jamaica with 3 kids (ages 4, 7, and 10) in tow?

I am planning to do the water trampolines and what-not on Labadee. Has anyone done that and have thoughts?

 

Thanks so much!

[kentuckyphotogirl]

Does anyone have recommendations for food in Grand Cayman?

 

We really liked the Rays, Reef & Rum Point tour from Nativeways. It includes lunch and the beach area on Rum Point. We have done that tour when our children were younger and they loved it.

 

 

I was also thinking of doing ruins for Cozumel, but I've got 3 kids, and I do NOT think they'd enjoy a long trip to/from the ruins! I'm still trying to figure out what to do at Cozumel. Since we already have beach opportunities at Labadee, Jamaica, and Grand Cayman, I thought it might be overkill (?) to do beach again at Cozumel. What am I missing on this island?

 

We love Chankanaab....it is only a 5 minute or so taxi ride from the pier and it is great....has a small Mayan ruin, swimming pool, snorkeling, dolphins, restaurants...

 

Also, on Jamaica, we are seriously considering not even getting off the ship. But I really hate to do that. Does anyone have family-friendly suggestions for Jamaica with 3 kids (ages 4, 7, and 10) in tow?

 

Again, we really loved the heartbeat of Jamaica excursion-a bus tour of the countryside on the way to a working plantation...they will even get to plant a papaya plant-kids would love that!

[redpryor]

Thank you for the suggestions, Kentuckyphotogirl. I have been looking at Chankanaab - I'm happy to hear someone else recommend it. Now just trying to figure out whether to book the excursion through the ship for $49/adult and $34/child, or if it's much cheaper to do it on our own.

 

It looks like Chankanaab has everything - beach, snorkel, wildlife, ruins/history, and even opportunities to see dolphins, manatees, and sea lions. I don't imagine we'll pay for any of the encounters, but I wonder if you can watch them.

 

Do you know what things are included in the price of admission to Chankanaab? Like the pools, the "Discover Mexico" exhibit, etc.?

 

We're still pondering Jamaica. We really may not go past the ship's souvenir shops. I don't think my kids would enjoy a bus tour. They'd want to watch a DVD or play video games if they were in a vehicle that long!

 

I will look into the tour through Nativeways on Grand Cayman.

[kentuckyphotogirl]

Here is a link to a coupon for Chankanaab .....http://cozumelparks.gob.mx/cupones/index.html You can go to their website to see what is included.....it is cheaper to do it on your own.

 

And, as for the tour in Falmouth, we weren't on the tour bus very long...the plantation is pretty close. We chose that because we didn't want to ride a bus all the way to Ocho Rios or Montego Bay from Falmouth.

 

Enjoy your trip!

[Longhorn82]

We just went on the New Years cruise on N of S. In GC, we booked the excursion which included the Rum Cake Factory, "Hell", the Turtle Farm, and Sting Ray City. Not a bad deal, but we had to wait awhile to get our bus/shuttle back to the port. Apparently, they forgot about two buses worth of people. Finally, sent a bus which ended up crowded, standing room only. In Cozumel, we para sailed, which I loved! 2nd time doing it. First time in St. Thomas. A blast. In Falmouth, we just took a trolley around the city, since I'm not in enough shape to do the Falls. Before we booked the trolley, we attempted to walk around the town ourselves, but the vendors were way too pushy. I was back inside the gates in minutes. The beaches looked nice, but we didn't get a chance.

[sailingawaysoon]

For those reading that like all inclusive resorts while in port, we found a site that has great deals that include food and drinks for one price. In some cases they also include a room for you to use. We love doing this and experiencing different resorts. resort for a day dot com

[reney313]

In Falmouth our family did 3 different excursions and all got raving reviews. It was unexpected as this was the one port we did not pre-book anything...and the one that we thought we would just stay onboard or shop in the the "gated" area.

 

Myself and my 15 yr. old nephew: We booked the Chukka Rose Hall Zip Line tour the night before. I believe it was $99 a person through the ship. I absolutely LOVED this. It was far better than I anticipated and a very good value. I thought it would be "Fun" but expected it to not be $99 worth. I was blown away. 5+ stars from me and my nephew!

 

My dad and his wife: They booked the morning when we ported through the ship an excursion to go snorkeling and catamaran ride. I am not sure which one they booked, but I believe they said it was also $99 a person. They went to a few different snorkel spots. They both raved about how great the boat ride was (they are both "boat" people as well--and I'm sure my dad appreciated for once he was not having to drive the boat!). They enjoyed the snorkeling and it also included free drinks after they finished snorkeling. I'm not positive if they had lunch or not but I suspect they had something as it was a very long excursion.

 

My sister, her husband, her mother in law, and my 9 yr. old niece: They took the tour that went to a plantation, an elementary school, and a few other places. My niece could not stop talking about this tour. She really dug it, I think mostly because of the elementary school but I think she also liked learning about the sugar plantation too. To my surprise, my BIL enjoyed it also. The scenery was beautiful too. I believe it was something around $59 give or take $10 for the adults and less for the child. They also booked this the morning that we ported in Falmouth.