#1TravelMom Posted August 1, 2014 #1 Share Posted August 1, 2014 I see that the Blue Hole is #1 on tripadvisor. Has anyone been there very recently - just wandering if it's getting crowded? Also, there are members in our group who are not in great shape and will not be "jumping" in. Will they enjoy this? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaxstiles Posted August 2, 2014 #2 Share Posted August 2, 2014 Not crowded at all. We went in June and had a party of 17. I wanted to get away from tourist traps and overcrowded excursions such as Dunns River Falls. I'm so glad I chose this tour. This place is truly amazing!! We are now planning another trip back to Jamaica! Call Liberty Tours to book a tour! Ricardo will take great care of you. Nothing but awesome reviews. I based our trip on reviews on CC but also tripadvisor. They will not disappoint. Have a wonderful time! Sent from my SM-N900T using Forums mobile app Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaxstiles Posted August 2, 2014 #3 Share Posted August 2, 2014 Sorry meant to add that we had a few that did not participate. They had a shaded area for them to sit and enjoy the breathtaking scenery. Everyone is still talking about this place. Definitely the highlight of our cruise! Sent from my SM-N900T using Forums mobile app Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
websiteauthor Posted August 2, 2014 #4 Share Posted August 2, 2014 Jaxstiles do you have an email address for liberty? Their contact form isn't working Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
#1TravelMom Posted August 3, 2014 Author #5 Share Posted August 3, 2014 Thanks for the info. We will be visiting soon. I was hoping that it wasn't getting too crowded. We use Noel "Steve" Smith as our driver when in Jamaica. He's a great guy - always have a fabulous day with him. noelsmith66@yahoo.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaxstiles Posted August 3, 2014 #6 Share Posted August 3, 2014 (edited) libertytoursjamaica@gmail.com Ricardo from Liberty Tours is awesome! Enjoy your trip! Sent from my SM-N900T using Forums mobile app Edited August 3, 2014 by jaxstiles Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
seaquester Posted August 3, 2014 #7 Share Posted August 3, 2014 I see that the Blue Hole is #1 on tripadvisor. Has anyone been there very recently - just wandering if it's getting crowded? Also, there are members in our group who are not in great shape and will not be "jumping" in. Will they enjoy this? When are you going? We were there in April and it was not crowded at all. I highly doubt it will ever be, considering the cruise ships do NOT offer tours there or ever will. For this reason, we chose to go to the Blue Hole to escape the ship crowd. We also used Ricardo at Libertytoursjamaica and had the best day of our vacation there. I am looking for a cruise in the spring to book for the Western route, just so our group can go back there again. Ricardo was very accomodating to our needs and group size. There is a link to Ricardo's email via his website and an awesome youtube video posted there that really gives an indepth view of what to expect. However, seeing in in person is 1000 times more beautiful if you can imagine that. www.libertytoursjamaica.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
digitalknoll Posted August 10, 2014 #8 Share Posted August 10, 2014 I see that the Blue Hole is #1 on tripadvisor. Has anyone been there very recently - just wandering if it's getting crowded? Also, there are members in our group who are not in great shape and will not be "jumping" in. Will they enjoy this? Definitely not crowded. We went October 2013 and had the most perfect day with our group of 7. All were not in the best of shape so as long as they don't fear water or heights, they'll be fine. You also don't have to participate at each step of the falls/jumping. The guides are great and will keep you safe. We had a wonderful, wonderful day at this hidden gem. Enjoy! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WestfieldTraveler Posted August 11, 2014 #9 Share Posted August 11, 2014 We went last week and it was absolutely awesome! I had originally had my heart set (for decades!) on doing Duns River Falls when I finally made it to Jamaica. After our driver recommended only doing Blue Hole we saw why and no one cared to visit Duns River falls afterward, especially myself. I'm not sure what you would consider crowded, but I would say a maximum of 8 10-passenger or so vans could park in the area at the same time, and unless there are a lot of ships docking in Jamaica that day there is unlikely to be a backup. At worst, you would wait 5-10 minutes for your adventure. If folks don't want to jump or even swim there are options for walking up and getting wet under the falls. The guides are great. To get there, we used Errol Bowen of http://www.traveljamaicatours.com. Very nice, gave excellent recommendations and really made it a great day for us. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GnRTravel Posted August 11, 2014 #10 Share Posted August 11, 2014 (edited) When we were there about 2 weeks ago, there were a lot of people there. A local bus had come up from Kingston. But it still didn't feel crowded. We all moved around to our own spots. I would ask your driver to go earlier in the morning. The secret is getting out! You do pay 10.00 per person to get in. If you have a guide (you need one and your driver should have one waiting for you--ours did) tip the guide as well. We used Marvyn's Paradise Tours (marvyngayle@yahoo.com) (http://www.marvynsparadisetours.com/) His price was great. It was very personalized. I loved every bit of the day. He will take you wherever you want, he is professional, friendly, and very safe! If you don't know what you want, just ask him. He knows Jamaica. He can do just 2 people alone (which was awesome) or a group. We skipped Scotchies since we were eating Jerk Chicken all over Jamaica. Instead we went to Juicie Beef in Ocho. It was delish! Marvyn helped us order, went up and negotiated our prices so we got his "local" price and not the tourist price. We had 4 beef/cheese patties/1 cocobread/3 bottles drinks the total was like under 10.00 USD. Edited August 11, 2014 by GnRTravel Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melsherard Posted August 14, 2014 #11 Share Posted August 14, 2014 How far is the walk from where you get dropped off to the scenic area? Are there benches to sit on? I am traveling with my aunts who cannot walk very far. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WestfieldTraveler Posted August 15, 2014 #12 Share Posted August 15, 2014 How far is the walk from where you get dropped off to the scenic area? Are there benches to sit on? I am traveling with my aunts who cannot walk very far. You'll have about a 20-100 foot walk, depending on where your van parks, followed by a 20-30 step stairs down to the "viewing" area. There is a bench were you can see part of the area, but the main attraction is the activity, although it is a bit scenic. You can see some of the people jumping into the water and starting to do the climb from there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brookie848 Posted August 15, 2014 #13 Share Posted August 15, 2014 We are docking in Ochos Rios and I was wondering how long of a drive would it be to Blue Hole? Also, what are the roads like? Earlier this year, my DH got really car sick in St. Maarten. The curvy roads and especially the speed bumps did him in! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WestfieldTraveler Posted August 15, 2014 #14 Share Posted August 15, 2014 We are docking in Ochos Rios and I was wondering how long of a drive would it be to Blue Hole? Also, what are the roads like? Earlier this year, my DH got really car sick in St. Maarten. The curvy roads and especially the speed bumps did him in! The roads along the coast will be no problem, and when you go up inland towards the Blue Hole it is a little curvy with some bumps, but I did not think it was that bad. Just let your diver know to take it easy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Travel Junkie Judy Posted August 21, 2014 #15 Share Posted August 21, 2014 We are planning on going to Blue Hole in November. We've been to Jamaica several times and used a private driver named Daisy out of Montego Bay. We are going into Ocho Rios this time. Are there any good private drivers there? I only have a phone number for Daisy & an email would help. I don't think she has a computer. Thanks, Judy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wineandbeach Posted August 21, 2014 #16 Share Posted August 21, 2014 We went with Liberty Tours and they were great. It took about a half hour from Ocho Rios but our driver had us entertained the whole time so it seem long at all. It was bumpy near the end but not too bad. Crowds: There were definitely people there but in no way crowded. It was a great day and the guides all work well with each other. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kdgordon64 Posted August 25, 2014 #17 Share Posted August 25, 2014 We just returned from a cruise with a port stop in Jamaica. When we cruise I like to look for unique non-crowded excursions and found this one for Jamaica. Everything was great, from the first email I sent until we were dropped off back at the port. Our driver was Rose Marie and she was great, gave us an informative ride both ways, answered our questions, and even tried sharing her wifi with my 16 year old daughter who had been going through wifi withdraws. We were a group of five ages 16-72 and had another family of 4 added to our group. The van was air conditioned and had enough room for us all. Once we arrived at the Blue Hole, Ricardo was there to meet us in person and we were then turned over to our lifeguards and unfortunately I can only remember Devroe's name as one of them. But they were all wonderful. They are very adept at leading you up the river and off the jumps into the pools. They are monkeys themselves, very sure footed and helpful/attentive to those of us with more limited mobility. They make it fun for everyone. They did take my camera and we have pictures/videos we would have never been able to get otherwise and are knowledgeable with a variety of brands of cameras. We had a wonderful time there then left and on the way back to the port Rose Marie stopped and gave us sugar cane to try then ate at Scochies where the chicken, rice and beans were very good. The cost of the tour which included fee into the Blue Hole, our lunch, and transportation was a very reasonable price. We were back at the port in plenty of time to be back on board for sailing. I would definitely recommend using Liberty Tours when visiting Jamaica. There are plenty of places to sit and watch and the lifeguards/guides can help anyone get anywhere. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Travel Junkie Judy Posted August 25, 2014 #18 Share Posted August 25, 2014 We just returned from a cruise with a port stop in Jamaica. When we cruise I like to look for unique non-crowded excursions and found this one for Jamaica. Everything was great, from the first email I sent until we were dropped off back at the port. Our driver was Rose Marie and she was great, gave us an informative ride both ways, answered our questions, and even tried sharing her wifi with my 16 year old daughter who had been going through wifi withdraws. We were a group of five ages 16-72 and had another family of 4 added to our group. The van was air conditioned and had enough room for us all. Once we arrived at the Blue Hole, Ricardo was there to meet us in person and we were then turned over to our lifeguards and unfortunately I can only remember Devroe's name as one of them. But they were all wonderful. They are very adept at leading you up the river and off the jumps into the pools. They are monkeys themselves, very sure footed and helpful/attentive to those of us with more limited mobility. They make it fun for everyone. They did take my camera and we have pictures/videos we would have never been able to get otherwise and are knowledgeable with a variety of brands of cameras. We had a wonderful time there then left and on the way back to the port Rose Marie stopped and gave us sugar cane to try then ate at Scochies where the chicken, rice and beans were very good. The cost of the tour which included fee into the Blue Hole, our lunch, and transportation was a very reasonable price. We were back at the port in plenty of time to be back on board for sailing. I would definitely recommend using Liberty Tours when visiting Jamaica. There are plenty of places to sit and watch and the lifeguards/guides can help anyone get anywhere. Thanks so much for this wonderful review. It is very helpful. Judy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BAV2005 Posted September 11, 2014 #19 Share Posted September 11, 2014 Does anyone know how long the bus ride is from Falmouth? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
#1TravelMom Posted September 12, 2014 Author #20 Share Posted September 12, 2014 About and hour and 15 minutes would be fairly fast. It could be a little longer if you run in to traffic. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BAV2005 Posted September 12, 2014 #21 Share Posted September 12, 2014 About and hour and 15 minutes would be fairly fast. It could be a little longer if you run in to traffic. Thank you! Sent from my iPhone using Forums Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Travel Junkie Judy Posted September 12, 2014 #22 Share Posted September 12, 2014 Thank you! Sent from my iPhone using Forums Hi, I notice that you are using the app “forums” Is it the Cruise critic app or the iPhone app? Do you like it? I do not like Tapatalk. Thanks, Judy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BAV2005 Posted September 14, 2014 #23 Share Posted September 14, 2014 Hi, I notice that you are using the app “forums” Is it the Cruise critic app or the iPhone app? Do you like it? I do not like Tapatalk. Thanks, Judy I am using the app that I downloaded from the App Store on my iphone...not sure if it's an iPhone app specifically, but I like it fine! It has all the basics and is easy to navigate Sent from my iPhone using Forums Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Travel Junkie Judy Posted September 14, 2014 #24 Share Posted September 14, 2014 I am using the app that I downloaded from the App Store on my iphone...not sure if it's an iPhone app specifically, but I like it fine! It has all the basics and is easy to navigate Sent from my iPhone using Forums Thanks for the info. I think I will download it on my iPhone and iPad. Judy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tncap Posted September 17, 2014 #25 Share Posted September 17, 2014 We had a group of 31 use Marva/Javia Shaw to the blue hole last week and had a blast! We went straight there from Montego Bay then back to Scotchie's for lunch and then some brief shopping. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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