Canopy Adventure - good?

[yogateach]

Our ship is docking in Montego Bay, and one of the tour excursions is the canopy adventure tour. Is it in Ocho Rios? Any idea how far a trip from MoBay? Is it worth it? I don't want to take Carnival's tours, and am looking for alternatives.

Thanks!

[cali-croozer]

Our ship is docking in Montego Bay, and one of the tour excursions is the canopy adventure tour. Is it in Ocho Rios? Any idea how far a trip from MoBay? Is it worth it? I don't want to take Carnival's tours, and am looking for alternatives.

Thanks!

 

Do a search on this board and you will find a few threads with information and reviews--all good. As far as an alternative to Carnival's tour, if you want to do the Canopy Tour it is only offered through the cruise lines on the days that ships are in port. The ships reserve all of the canopy tours so none are available to book on your own.

[CruizenSuzen]

I've been waiting for someone to ask this! I did the canopy tour about two weeks ago in Ocho Rios. It was the time of my life!

 

The bus picked up about 40 of us at the cruiseport. The bus drove for about 20 minutes, and the stopped at their main tour location. This was the last stop for restrooms! Of course, they had a shop and a bar, but the stop was brief. We then drove for about another 20 minutes up the hills. If you get carsick easily (I do), this part of the drive was a little rough. The road is narrow and the turns are sharp. Kinda scary!

 

When you finally arrive, there are 10-15 guides that fit you in your harness, and give you gloves and a helmet. The put all the equipment on you, and tell you not to touch it. They then give a brief safety instruction and demonstration of how the zip lines work.

 

After the instruction, you take about a 10 minute hike to the first zip line. Honestly, this is the most physically exerting part of the tour. It's just a path with lots of trees and rocks, and a couple people slipped.

 

When you get to the first line, the guide hooks you up, and off you go! When you reach that platform, there's someone there to hook you to the next line. I shook like a leaf, waiting for my turn. My legs wobbled uncontrollably. The guides totally put me at ease and I never felt unsafe. It was exhilerating!

 

I'd do it over and over again. It was completely awesome!

 

Any questions?

[yogateach]

Thanks for the info!

[cali-croozer]

CruisinSuzen......what did you wear (shorts/pants/type of shoes)? Did you bring a camera? Did you bring anything else and was there a place to store your stuff? (I'm thinking of just the hip pack, camera, sail and sign cards, $$). Was there anything you needed more money for (pictures, snacks, tips)? Thanks in advance for your replies....we're on this tour in 2 weeks and I will be shaking too!:eek: PS.........mosquitos???

[CruizenSuzen]

CruisinSuzen......what did you wear (shorts/pants/type of shoes)? Did you bring a camera? Did you bring anything else and was there a place to store your stuff? (I'm thinking of just the hip pack, camera, sail and sign cards, $$). Was there anything you needed more money for (pictures, snacks, tips)? Thanks in advance for your replies....we're on this tour in 2 weeks and I will be shaking too!:eek: PS.........mosquitos???

 

I wore shorts as did most people. I made sure that I wore a longer pair because a short pair may "ride up". I wouldn't worry too much though. The harnesses weren't too flattering on most people. Wear sneakers or hiking books, whatever is most comfortable.

 

We brought a backpack which my husband wore throughout the tour. We brought a camera but didn't use it. One guy in a large group brought a small camcorder, which he used to video his buddies, but in a group of two, we couldn't swing that. Honestly, I was so charged, I wouldn't have even thought to take pictures.

 

Fortunately, the tour took care of the pictures for you. We bought a CD at the end of the tour that had about 15 pictures of us zipping down the lines, and four short videos of the tour. Pretty cool to show friends that you're insane. It was $30.

 

There weren't many bugs, but we did wear insect repellant.

 

Have fun!

[Rosieo]

We did this tour last April in Montego Bay and just loved it. It was the best tour we have ever been on. We all wore shorts and so did most of the others. I took my digital camera and just used the strap on my wrist. My husband took the video camera, we have the small type, and just used the strap on his wrist and we were so glad we brought both. They do take pictures of you and at the end you can purchase the CD. Not really worth the $20. I could only find one picture of each of us on it and they weren't really good. At the end you could buy water and pop. You can not book on your own. We wanted to go again next April on our next cruise but RCCL says you need to be 18. We were on Princess last time and my kids were 12 & 15. Like I said, IT WAS THE GREATEST!

[craziedazie]

We bookes through Carnival about 3 weeks ago for our cruise that is next week and all of the times but one were booked so word to the wise - book early to get the time of your choice!

 

Suzen or Rosio - do you stay in the same order the whole time or can for example my hubby go in front of me and take pictures and then halfway though I can get in front of him and take pictures... does that make sense? We really wan some good shots to prove we were crazy enough to do this! :p

[CruizenSuzen]

You really stay in the same order for the most part. You're either clipped to the zip line or a line on the platforms at all times Many of the platforms are small, so it's done to keep you from falling off. They don't really want you messing with the safety equipment, so I don't think it's a good idea to unhook yourself to switch order.

 

Besides the safety issues, there's really not a lot of time to take pictures. You zip down the first line, and then are immediately hooked to the second. There were two spots that I can think of where I was on the platform for more than a minute. But even then, they're not going to let you stand where people land onto the platform for pictures and given the foliage, you probably can't take your own pictures from any other angle.

 

I would suggest buying the CD from the company if you want something to show friends. It's $30 bucks, which is a little steep, but if you really want to capture the moment, it's the way to go.

[cali-croozer]

Suzen.......a few questions, if you don't mind:

 

1) are you able to preview the cd; I'm assuming it shows everyone from the tour?

 

2) do they sell t-shirts?

 

3) did people tip the guides? how much?

 

(I'm trying to figure out how much $$ to bring with us; don't like carrying a lot, but want to bring enough).

 

Thanx

[craziedazie]

Thanks Suzen! I guess I wil just have to fork over the $$ for the CD. Probobly better than me trying to juggle camera equipment high in the air! ;)

[CruizenSuzen]

Suzen.......a few questions, if you don't mind:

 

1) are you able to preview the cd; I'm assuming it shows everyone from the tour?

 

2) do they sell t-shirts?

 

3) did people tip the guides? how much?

 

(I'm trying to figure out how much $$ to bring with us; don't like carrying a lot, but want to bring enough).

 

Thanx

 

Yeah, you get to preview the pictures of you. They go through all the pictures in a slideshow when you get there. THey just put the group shots and the pictures of you on the CD, though.

 

I think I saw t-shirts, but didn't look at them so I don't know what they were like or what the cost.

 

We tipped the guides ten bucks. We were one of the few people that did tip.

[Rosieo]

When we did the tour in Montego Bay we did not always stay in order. Some we had to because you remained hooked but others you didn't. So my husband and I took turns with the video camera and the digital camera. It was easy and we had no problems at all. We now have tons of great pictures and lots of video clips. Way more than were on the CD. We were one of the last ones of the group so maybe that's why we didn't feel rushed. There was no one behind us and the crew gave us all the time we needed to snap pictures. If we go again I will definitely take my own cameras.

[cali-croozer]

Thanx everyone for your help!

[jessca3]

Do you have to be physically fit to do this excursion? Someone once told me that you have to use your arm strength to pull yourself onto the platform. I'd love to do this but I'm afraid I'll get stuck on the line because I can't pull myself up!

[CruizenSuzen]

Well, I couldn't do 25 push ups if my life depended on it, and I managed. At the beginning of the tour the guides said that if you got stuck they would come get you. To my knowledge, no one got stuck. If you're in moderately good health, I would go for it. I don't know what your physical condition is, so it's hard for me to say for sure.

[Rosieo]

My son, very little, 75 lbs. didn't quite make it to the other side on one. They had to come down to get him. He isn't very strong and had no problems on any of them. There was one lady who kept bragging that she did everything all over the world and she got stuck not making it to the other side on a few. The crew is really good about helping people who get stuck and it only takes a few minutes for them to come get you. Don't worry about needing strength to get up on the platforms, as long as you are in good health you'll be fine.