Tell me about Labadee...

[Jasonmom]

Just now, brillohead said:

Tram goes to and from Columbus Cove.

Boat goes to Columbus Cove but does not return.

 

Thanks

 

[HBE4]

18 minutes ago, brillohead said:

The pier is after the security buildings, so people coming back on the boat wouldn't be processed through the x-ray machines and metal detectors.  

 

D'oh   *slaps head on forehead*

 

Thanks. Never occurred to me.

[BTHodgeman]

21 minutes ago, sbcatcher1 said:

I have purchased the all day coaster ticket + rented the clam shell with 2 loungers. Is the clam shell close to the coaster entrance? 

Definitely. It’s less than a 10 minute walk. The only part that’s really closer is the part of Adrenaline Beach where the floating bar is. That’s the part where the rentable daybeds are located. 

[The Fun Researcher]

3 minutes ago, brillohead said:

Boat goes to Columbus Cove but does not return.

 

Ooh, creepy.  Like "Hotel California".  😉

 

Dan

[HBE4]

8 minutes ago, brillohead said:

 

You're very welcome.  

I'm only a lowly Emerald still, but there are some things that I do know, and I'm happy to be able to share that info with my fellow cruisers!

 

I'm a lowly Emerald as well (should be diamond in 1 or 2 more  cruises) but like to think we can share a different perspective that is equally valuable to other infrequent cruisers. 🙂

[brillohead]

3 minutes ago, HBE4 said:

 

I'm a lowly Emerald as well (should be diamond in 1 or 2 more  cruises) but like to think we can share a different perspective that is equally valuable to other infrequent cruisers. 🙂

I only need seven more points.... which will happen in the middle of a B2B2B in September (don't be too impressed -- it's a 4-3-4 instead of a 7-7-7).  

But yes, EVERY perspective is valuable.... my perspective usually involves a lounger in the shade!  LOL

 

[dadofjessie]

I don't like Labadee.  I have been there twice with RCI.  I am not a beach person and I find the food only so so.  What really bothers me though, are the vendors, they are WAY too pushy, to the point of being harassing.  Many have complained to RCI about it and it only seems to be getting worse.

[brillohead]

2 minutes ago, dadofjessie said:

I don't like Labadee.  I have been there twice with RCI.  I am not a beach person and I find the food only so so.  What really bothers me though, are the vendors, they are WAY too pushy, to the point of being harassing.  Many have complained to RCI about it and it only seems to be getting worse.

So DON'T GO THERE.

 

It's BEYOND easy to avoid the vendors.  They aren't allowed to come into the eating areas, they aren't allowed to come onto the beaches.  

If you don't like the pushy vendors, just don't go up to the pushy vendors.  Problem solved.

 

[dadofjessie]

1 minute ago, brillohead said:

So DON'T GO THERE.

 

It's BEYOND easy to avoid the vendors.  They aren't allowed to come into the eating areas, they aren't allowed to come onto the beaches.  

If you don't like the pushy vendors, just don't go up to the pushy vendors.  Problem solved.

 

Not exactly the case, just walking around, they will come up to you.  So, problem not solved.

[HBE4]

8 minutes ago, brillohead said:

only need seven more points.... which will happen in the middle of a B2B2B in September (don't be too impressed -- it's a 4-3-4 instead of a 7-7-7).  

 

Congratulations! No matter how you get there, you'll get there.  Since you turn Diamond on the 3-day leg, you should be able to start enjoying the benefits on the last leg. Let us know if the DL is all that it's cracked up to be. 😉

 

I think I'm still 10 points out but seriously thinking of booking a JS next 7-day cruise to put me over the top.  But the price difference will have to be reasonable. As I always buy the drink package, about the only Diamond benefit I'm looking forward to is the increase in balcony discount....and maybe using the DL during off-hours....and a free photo.

 

14 minutes ago, brillohead said:

But yes, EVERY perspective is valuable.... my perspective usually involves a lounger in the shade!  LOL

 

Best place to be!

 

[brillohead]

1 minute ago, dadofjessie said:

Not exactly the case, just walking around, they will come up to you.  So, problem not solved.

If you're walking in front of the stores, then yes, they will approach you.  If you're not by the back road of stores, they aren't going to come up to you.

They're not at Columbus Cove, they're not at Nellie's Beach, they're not at Barefoot Beach, and they're not at Adrenaline Beach.  Nor are they in any of the food areas. 

You have to go to the one specific road that they are allowed on.  If you avoid that road, you're fine.

[HBE4]

18 minutes ago, dadofjessie said:

I don't like Labadee.  I have been there twice with RCI.  I am not a beach person and I find the food only so so.  What really bothers me though, are the vendors, they are WAY too pushy, to the point of being harassing.  Many have complained to RCI about it and it only seems to be getting worse.

 

That's to bad about not being beach person because Labadee is all about the beach.  A good, old-fashion relaxing tropical beach (well, man-made but still). I like it much better than the "beach escape" excursions offered on other islands where they prop you down on some overcrowded hotel resort property with AC/DC or Journey music blasting over the speakers. Not that I don't like that music but I get enough of it on New Jersey or Long Island beaches. I want something tropical.

 

I hope they don't CoCo Cays-ize it with water parks, etc. I know that have the Zip-line and roller coaster there but it blends in well with the landscape.

 

[HBE4]

19 minutes ago, dadofjessie said:

Not exactly the case, just walking around, they will come up to you.  So, problem not solved.

 

As Brillohead mentioned, it's easy to avoid that road. There is a path that hugs the shoreline that will take you to Columbus Cove. There is a slight rugged section so if mobility-issues are a concern, take the tram. Vendors seldom bother people on the tram.

 

The first time I went to Labadee, about 10-11 years ago, the Vendors were all housed in a concrete, warehouse type building.  It was noisy, hot, sticky and very crowded with people grabbing at you. The current set-up is way better.

 

And I kind of like it. Think of it as a true "Haitian experience".  You can always walk away and safety is not a concern as their are guards nearby....although I think the guards are to prevent the vendors from fighting with each other.

[The Fun Researcher]

8 minutes ago, HBE4 said:

I hope they don't CoCo Cays-ize it with water parks, etc. I know that have the Zip-line and roller coaster there but it blends in well with the landscape.

 

Never thought of it, but I agree 1000%.  Would not want to see Labadee go down the route of CoCo Cay. 

 

Labadee is all about a natural tropical paradise IMO.  I remember our very first cruise, I just wanted to keep circling back to Labadee.  :)  Our other ports were Grand Cayman, Falmouth Jamaica, and Cozumel.  I was not prepared for the ship to pull up to what felt like a city. (Grand Cayman), or a nice port market area surrounded by nothing (Falmouth).  Didn't fit that tropical island feel that I had pictured in my mind.

 

I've since adjusted and love fully exploring the islands we visit, but I remember our first cruise that Labadee was BY FAR my favorite port.  Mainly for the feeling of more rustic beauty,  ease, and the relaxation.

Dan

[brillohead]

The funny part is, some people complain that they HAVE made Labadee into a theme park!  LOL

While you CAN do the inflatable water park and you CAN do the roller coaster and you CAN do the zipline, I don't think that those things are "must do" or "shoved down your throat" by any means.  They are unobtrusive to the average beach-goer, and IMO they don't detract from the Lazy Beach Day that is Labadee to me.

[KRAZYKRITTER2000]

Has anyone gone on the adult sandbar excursion? Were the drinks expensive and was it worth it?  

[HBE4]

11 minutes ago, brillohead said:

The funny part is, some people complain that they HAVE made Labadee into a theme park!  LOL

While you CAN do the inflatable water park and you CAN do the roller coaster and you CAN do the zipline, I don't think that those things are "must do" or "shoved down your throat" by any means.  They are unobtrusive to the average beach-goer, and IMO they don't detract from the Lazy Beach Day that is Labadee to me.

 

Funny, when they first announced plans to build a roller coaster on Labadee, I thought it was going to ruin the island.  I guess I pictured some extreme ride like Kingda Ka or Top Thrill Dragster or whatever Superman/Batman ride they have at amusement parks.

 

I probably walked past the Labadee coaster a few times before I even realized it was there.  As you said, unobtrusive .

Edited April 3, 2019 by HBE4

[BTHodgeman]

8 minutes ago, KRAZYKRITTER2000 said:

Has anyone gone on the adult sandbar excursion? Were the drinks expensive and was it worth it?  

A couple of our traveling companions signed up, but the tour was cancelled because the sand bar had disappeared. (As I understand it, the sandbar comes and goes at certain times throughout the year...)

 

Instead, they were brought on a tour to a beach nearby, and they mentioned that the drinks were around $5 each vs. ship/island pricing of $11-13.

[sbcatcher1]

3 hours ago, BTHodgeman said:

Definitely. It’s less than a 10 minute walk. The only part that’s really closer is the part of Adrenaline Beach where the floating bar is. That’s the part where the rentable daybeds are located. 

Thanks for the info. What is a rentable daybed? I was hoping to use the loungers as 'homebase' while we were on the coaster. My granddaughter will most likely ride multiple times & I wanted to be as close as possible.

[BTHodgeman]

2 minutes ago, sbcatcher1 said:

Thanks for the info. What is a rentable daybed? I was hoping to use the loungers as 'homebase' while we were on the coaster. My granddaughter will most likely ride multiple times & I wanted to be as close as possible.

They are kind of like the cabanas, but more suited for 2-4 people. Think of it as a large mattress with post rails that have a top and curtains on the side to help keep the sun out. I think they rented for around $175 during our sailing, compared to something like $40 for the clamshell.

 

The clamshell was perfect for us, even though we didn't use it. We were able to use our lockable bag, lock it to a chair under the clamshell, and go spend time in the water, on the roller coaster, etc.

[mrpayroll]

Either one still involves some walking. The ferry is towards the end of pier but drops you off further from beach. To get the tram, there is a fairly long walk to get to ,but then a shorter walk after getting dropped off.

[buckeye rob]

Is the zip line close to the coasters ?  We have an 11:00 reservation on the Dragon's Breath and wondered how far and how close to reserve the coasters.  Would you do both ?  Gerry.

[brillohead]

1 hour ago, buckeye rob said:

Is the zip line close to the coasters ?  We have an 11:00 reservation on the Dragon's Breath and wondered how far and how close to reserve the coasters.  Would you do both ?  Gerry.

You can walk the entirety of Labadee in about fifteen minutes.  

I wasn't aware that you had to make reservations for the coasters... I thought you just purchased a ticket and walked up and stood in line (if there was one).

 

[paul1815]

On 3/27/2019 at 1:44 PM, E23NK1 said:

The vendors...well...definitely aggressive. Take this for what its worth and this is just our personal experience..

I enjoy haggling with them!  My attitude going in is to spend some money to support the economy...and haggling is part of the experience!  🙂

[Lionesss]

11 minutes ago, brillohead said:

You can walk the entirety of Labadee in about fifteen minutes.  

I wasn't aware that you had to make reservations for the coasters... I thought you just purchased a ticket and walked up and stood in line (if there was one).

 

On our May 5th sailing on the Allure we walked off the ship as she docked.

Walked to the beach and staked our claim of loungers.

 

Then went to the coaster and went up to the desk and asked if we could ride, the attendant goes do you have a reservation, we said no, he goes, ok, fill out this waiver.......can I see your sea pass.

Got our wrist band and on the coaster within 5 min.

There was no line.

 

We enjoyed doing it again, we have done it on almost all our cruises since it was offered (4 times) and only one time had a reservation to ride it.

 

Enjoy, we did.

 

Safe travels.