Explain Labadee, Haiti please...

[Cruising89143]

Nobody is joking. They are giving the original poster answers to his

questions. It is a beach...yes, a privately owned one. Actually

it is a spread out area....different beaches with some cabanas

offered, along with a zip line. Lounge chairs, clam shells, and drinks

and food.

 

Different strokes for different folks...Comparing it to a prison?:eek::rolleyes:

I would say you are totally off base.....you certainly may come

and go as you please.

 

If it is not something that appeals to you? Pick a different itinerary

or just stay on the ship.

 

Agree with Lois. While it's not my favorite port of call it is a very nice experience. RCCL has put a lot of money into the area to make it a nice private port of call for their guests. The prison comment is comical.

[hcat]

It sounds like it's totally a typical caribbean beach resort, but without the hotel on the property. No different at all than that concept I'd say.

 

I get the ability to enjoy a "resort" beach while on a cruise while still using your cruise charge account and packages and entitlements. Genius.

 

 

Think rustic resort... no potable water ....some bathroom facilities cleaner and nicer than others..the ones near the flea market area were not so nice! But we enjoyed our day there overall. Next time we will do a short beach day and go back to the ship for our lunch..

 

I have been to Haiti going back to the 60's and 70's...hope someday it will prosper. My family used to donate large amts of shoes/sneakers to children there and also paint supplies to local artists. It is a beautiful island plagued with natural and man made adversity. Whatever the cruise line contributes has to help the local economy..even if only for a few!

[DonnaK]

What is the nicest beach regarding sand and water access? Excluding anything related to cabana rentals.

Nellie's Beach.

 

Be sure that you are on the side of the peninsula that faces the ship. That's where the sand is soft, and the water is calm.

 

The side of the peninsula that faces the open water is rocky and rough (ADrenaline Beach) It is nice for watching the zipline, but not such a nice beach for swimming.

[kenevenpar]

 

Here are a few snaps from a few years ago:

 

 

 

[TommyD3]

I m on that cruise. Many seem to really enjoy the cabanas. I just usually get off for lunch and walk around a bit.

 

We were there earlier this year.

We are not really beach people but just walked around and ate:)

It was wonderful.

It is quite a large area.

The best Caribbean port in my opinion.

VERY nice free buffet lunch provided by the crew.

Able to get free drinks with the beverage package.

I did not see any armed guards that were mentioned earlier.

 

We will also be on the 12/13/2014 Connie cruise:)

[alainamarie]

Thank you for the pictures! I'm assuming those are the cabanas that can be rented? Looks like you had perfect weather too!

[melsdt]

Curt--what Celebrity cruises visit Labadee? I totally thought it was only royal and haven't seen it in any celebrity itineraries I have looked at. Now I am curious.

 

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[cle-guy]

Curt--what Celebrity cruises visit Labadee? I totally thought it was only royal and haven't seen it in any celebrity itineraries I have looked at. Now I am curious.

 

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Silhouette this fall/winter. It's alternating eastern and western caribbean cruises each week. Making for a nice B2B possibility.

[Cruising89143]

Curt--what Celebrity cruises visit Labadee? I totally thought it was only royal and haven't seen it in any celebrity itineraries I have looked at. Now I am curious.

 

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The Silhouette and Reflection have stops here on some of their western itineraries.

Edited July 2, 2014 by cruisingator2

[flyingv4me]

Celebrity is a RCI product. I did a B2B in January on the Silhouette, western and eastern caribbean. Wonderful cruises, by the way! We truly enjoyed our stop at Labadee and had cabana #10 on Nellie's Beach. Great views and wondeful location. I highly recommend Labadee and the cabanas!

[kenevenpar]

Thank you for the pictures! I'm assuming those are the cabanas that can be rented? Looks like you had perfect weather too!

You are welcome. Yes they are the cabanas to rent. when that picture was taken, they were not all finished, and we could sit there for a couple of hours for free:D

[TravelerThom]

There are at least five bars (Dragon's Breath Pub, Barefoot Beach Bar, Nellie's Passion Bar, Cafe Labadee Bar, Columbus Cove Bar), plus roaming servers of Labradozies (the signature drink).

 

According to Wikipedia Labadee is leased to RCCL until 2050, and since 1986 has been the largest source of tourist revenue to Haiti. It employs 300 locals, allows another 200 to sell their wares on the premises for a fee, and pays the Haitian government US$6 per tourist.

 

I have been to Labadee a number of times, and was on the Freedom of the Seas when it docked for its first visit after the earthquake. Shortly after most passengers disembarked the UN trucks arrived to pick up 179 pallets of relief supplies from was what I think was the only functioning dock in all of Haiti (and at the time only two months old). Of course RCCL is there to make a profit, but they are a significant contributor to the economy.

 

Thom

[dkjretired]

There are at least five bars (Dragon's Breath Pub, Barefoot Beach Bar, Nellie's Passion Bar, Cafe Labadee Bar, Columbus Cove Bar), plus roaming servers of Labradozies (the signature drink).

 

According to Wikipedia Labadee is leased to RCCL until 2050, and since 1986 has been the largest source of tourist revenue to Haiti. It employs 300 locals, allows another 200 to sell their wares on the premises for a fee, and pays the Haitian government US$6 per tourist.

 

I have been to Labadee a number of times, and was on the Freedom of the Seas when it docked for its first visit after the earthquake. Shortly after most passengers disembarked the UN trucks arrived to pick up 179 pallets of relief supplies from was what I think was the only functioning dock in all of Haiti (and at the time only two months old). Of course RCCL is there to make a profit, but they are a significant contributor to the economy.

 

Thom

 

Which brings up a good point, Labadee is one of the few private islands where you dock and don't tender. Some lines are making docks but not all have them.

[stones902]

So I'm a bit confused as to what Labadee is.

 

I thought I understood it to be a private island owned by Royal Caribbean, with private beaches, bars and restaurants, and activities, etc. I realize it's cordoned off from the traditional Haiti so it loses the lustre of visiting a foreign land, but I am fine with a nice beach resort for a day.

 

Do I get the basic concept of the place?

 

Does our sea pass card work for getting drinks and food, or is that all for fee? Are things at the beach and zip lines etc. all included or for fee?

 

We've been to Labadee many, many times. Your basic concept is correct. As others have noted, Labadee is basically a leased peninsula of Haiti that is fenced off from the main portion of the island. It is surrounded by lush foliage and there are several nice beach areas. Access is via pier (versus tender on Coco Cay). There are trams and different services for persons with limited mobility.

 

My favorite beach area is called Barefoot Beach although that is usually only available to suite or frequent cruisers. They have a limited number of cabanas that can be rented which normally include snorkel gear, floating mats, bottled drinking water and an upgraded (surf & turf) lunch. Cabanas have installed electric outlets, ceiling fans and padded loungers. Cost is usually $200 - $250 based on proximity to the water.

 

All concessions (with the exception of the straw market) are staffed and operated by the cruise line. BBQ lunch is brought over from the ship. There are bars (again staffed by the cruise line) dispersed throughout Labadee. A straw market is available to passengers (staffed by local residents) where the normal T-shirts, hats, local art, spices, etc are sold. Bartering is common in the straw market as you would expect.

 

Labadee also has only of the longest zip lines in the world - 1/4 mile long. They also have a small roller coaster type train and a bouncy slide for the kids. There are upcharges for each of these features.

 

Labadee is definitely a beach day that we always enjoy. I hope this answers some of your questions.

[Lionesss]

We love Labadee, and is probably the reason we travel the Western Carribean.

 

At this point in our lives we are too busy on the resort area to rent a cabana, between swimming, jet skis, visiting the vendors, and volleyball, we would probably be in the cabana for less than 2 hours.

 

Now as we get older, they seem like a nice place to rest and relax.

 

But for the cost and benefit comparison , not for us.

 

Sea Ya

[EatonDoolittle]

Curt--what Celebrity cruises visit Labadee? I totally thought it was only royal and haven't seen it in any celebrity itineraries I have looked at. Now I am curious.

 

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Also Constellation in November 2015

[caladezi]

Labadee is nice but can not hold a candle to Disney's Castaway Cay. I have been to both on several occasions and there is no comparison if you want to go on a cruise with a private island.

[dkjretired]

Labadee is nice but can not hold a candle to Disney's Castaway Cay. I have been to both on several occasions and there is no comparison if you want to go on a cruise with a private island.

 

I can take two or three Celebrity cruises for every Disney cruise, I'll pass....

[Lois R]

I can take two or three Celebrity cruises for every Disney cruise, I'll pass....

 

LOL...Hi Don,:) I was sort of thinking the same thing......but I was

going to also say....it is Disney.....of course they are going to make

their Island like one of their theme parks.......and I agree, you will

pay the price for it.

[stickey_mouse]

I also LOVED Disney's Castaway Cay but am very much looking forward to Labadee this December.

 

How crowded does Labadee get? It looks like ours (Silhouette) will be the only ship docked there on the day we go, but I see that on some days, there are two ships there. I wonder if that makes a difference in the crowding or general feel of the peninsula.

[Lois R]

I also LOVED Disney's Castaway Cay but am very much looking forward to Labadee this December.

 

How crowded does Labadee get? It looks like ours (Silhouette) will be the only ship docked there on the day we go, but I see that on some days, there are two ships there. I wonder if that makes a difference in the crowding or general feel of the peninsula.

 

Hi,:) I was there last year and Sihlouette was the only ship....it felt

fine to me......I didn't think it was "overcrowded" but then again,

maybe someone else did...you know everyone has their own feelings

about what is crowded and what is not.....

 

Now, if there are couple of ships and they are both of the "giant

variety"...then I could see the place being packed.

 

I will be there again in November and I think a few of us on our

roll call will go together for a while.:)

[dkjretired]

Hi,:) I was there last year and Sihlouette was the only ship....it felt

fine to me......I didn't think it was "overcrowded" but then again,

maybe someone else did...you know everyone has their own feelings

about what is crowded and what is not.....

 

Now, if there are couple of ships and they are both of the "giant

variety"...then I could see the place being packed.

 

I will be there again in November and I think a few of us on our

roll call will go together for a while.:)

 

We were also on the Silhouette and there was only one ship. Not bad but I would guess with a couple it could be a problem.

[adijane]

Can anyone reserve one of the alcoves/huts on Labadee or just suite level on up?

[Lois R]

Can anyone reserve one of the alcoves/huts on Labadee or just suite level on up?

 

Hi, anyone can reserve a cabana. Some are only for suite passengers

but the majority are for regular cabins.

[Cruising89143]

We were also on the Silhouette and there was only one ship. Not bad but I would guess with a couple it could be a problem.

 

I have been there on the Allure with almost 6000 guests and saw no issues.