Montego Bay and a Toddler

[AJs Dad]

Ok, I have been reading through this forum and the Jamaica Port of Call forum. It appears that the most recommended excursion with a toddler is one of the beach resorts (Sunset Beach, Rose Hall Beach Resort, etc.).

 

Truthfully, part of me is trying to decide if a beach excursion after spending two days on a boat will be enjoyable. However, the other part of me thinks it would be fun.

 

Any other opinions?? :confused:

 

Next, I am reading some horror stories about Jamaica itself regarding shopping and "adult vegetation vendors". So, now I am wondering if I even want to get off of the ship in Jamaica.

 

Any takes on this?? :confused:

 

I am seriously looking at taking the Rose Hall Beach Resort excursion offered by Carnival because I (and my fellow travelers) are a little more comfortable with the ship sponsored excursion.

 

Anyway, I would really appreciate some input.

 

Thanks!

[Pudgesmom]

Jamaica is a beautiful island. We have been many times. It is poorer than the US, but vendors can be turned down with a smile and a "no, thank you."

 

Absoulutely get off the ship. I would personally go stir crazy with a 3 year on a ship. A beach excursion is perfect for a toddler. Be sure to bring some beach toys, sunscreen and a hat. The sun is much brighter in the islands. If you feel more comfortable with a ship excursion, by all means go that route. If you are on a budget though, you may find some money-saving tips on this website on doing it yourself.

 

Visit the Jamaica board here for more information on Montego Bay.

 

Beth

[cruiseram]

We were in Montego Bay in May with a 2 year old, from reading the boards I to was a little afraid of getting off the ship. We booked the Rose Hall thru Carnival and we had a great time at the beach. On the way back to the ship we stopped in the Downtown area for some shopping. We also drove past Doctor's Beach and Margaritaville it looked like fun, I think next time we cruise that will be our excursion. We did not experience any of the negatives that I had heard about. Have a great time.

[cruisinqt]

This will be our third trip to Montego Bay, Jamaica and we've enjoyed ourselves every time. It's not a bad area with a lot of crime or anything. The bad area is in Kingston which is quite far away. What makes people say negative things and even report "horror" stories is because of how they react to the aggressive vendors. The people are very poor and they hound you to get you to buy some small trinket. They are very loud and aggressive but they never touch the tourists or threaten them. Montego Bay thrives on tourism and if a vendor hurts or threatens a tourist he will be put in jail immediately. Montego has very strict rules about being kind to the tourists, the authorities know they need tourists to keep the place going. But the locals also know that if they beg aggressively people will probably buy something just to shut them up and they're usually right.:(

 

I've found being very direct and saying you will absolutely not buy anything at all if they bother you usually works. My husband says "leave me alone or I won't buy a thing" and they back down immediately. Most people have a hard time being that rude, but it works. That being said, the people in Jamaica are very friendly always waving and saying hello as you walk down the street and the area is breathtaking. There is very little violence in Montego either, like I said, that's all in Kingston. ;)

 

As far as shopping goes, there is a large shopping area right by the pier where the locals aren't pushy at all. Down in the city they're much more aggressive than they are at the pier and the prices are about the same. As for Sunset Beach Resort, it has restricted access with a security gate at the entrance so you will never find pushy vendors on the premises. It's very quiet there and most of the people are of the more well-to-do crowd. Plus, it's not just a beach place. My girls loved going on the paddle boats with me and the putt putt golf place is a favorite of theirs too. Sunset also recently built a water park on the premises which has a lazy river, slides, wading pools, etc. And the outdoor grill has burgers, fries, chicken nuggets, sodas, etc. which was great since we had kids. And it's all included in the entry fee. Plus, this place can be seen from the ship, it's a little too far to walk, but its so close you can get a taxi and be there in under 5 minutes. So you don't have to worry about getting stuck in traffic and missing the ship or anything.:)

[dianelevene]

We were just in Montego Bay in April and had a fantastic time. We had our two daughters who are 5 and 6 with us. My brother and his wife were with us with their 9 year old twins and so were my parents. We hired a private driver named Winston. He had a clean, nearly new, air conditioned van that seated 15 passengers. He picked us up at the dock and drove us two hours to YS Falls, which was lovely. This is his website http://www.winstontoursjamaica.com/.

 

YS Falls was very nice and very kid friendly. They also have a website http://www.ysfalls.com/. You take a ride pulled by a tractor through a horse farm. Then walk up a path (with steps) next to the waterfall. There are a few places to enter the falls to swim. For the bigger kids there was a rope swing to swing into the water. There were several guides who helped the kids (and adults) in and out of the water and even swam some of the littler kids around. After the kids played in the falls for a while we went down to the lovely man made pool at the bottom of the falls. The kids played there for quite a while before we hit the gift shop and bathrooms and then took the ride back to where Winston was waiting for us. If you go to YS Falls, make sure you bring watershoes since you need them in the rocky waterfall.

 

From there, Winston took us to the Black River. We took a safari boat ride and saw the river crocodiles up close. The guide even hand fed and pet one of the crocs. Our kids were all spellbound! The kids all napped in the car on the way back to the boat.

 

Winston was a safe and careful driver so we were very comfortable with him. He even talked about his career in NY as a security guard at a large bank. Nobody bothered us at all in any of the places we went and we all had a lovely day. We paid Winston for driving us to the places and then paid our own admission to the different places. My kids still talk constantly about the waterfall and how great Jamaica is. The only thing I would have done differently was to pack some more snacks. The day was busy and the kids got hungry but there were no restaurants to stop at to buy anything. If you don't like the idea of YS Falls and the Black River Safari, Winston will take you anyplace you want to go.

[Nebr.cruiser]

In Jamaica with 3, 4, 5 & 5-year-olds last year we did the river tubing and the beach at Dunn's Falls. Even the 3-year-old loved the tubing and wasn't scared at all. Since we had extra adults along who had already climbed Dunn's Falls, they took the kids to the small beach while the others climbed the falls. We used Phil Lafayette for our tour; he was great. The kids did get a little restless though in the (short) time Phil spent driving us around to some sights.

 

Otherwise, the beaches mentioned by previous posters should be perfect for a 3-year-old. Kids, sand and water are a perfect match.

[Nliedel]

I've been to Jamaica thirteen times and none of those trips has been a stay shorter than two weeks. I've driven the country, have friends in every city and love the island. I am also the mom of four kids, two toddlers (no, I have no sanity, so take it with a salt lick). I love Jamaica. That said shopping and sightseeing with a toddler is a pain in the lower back region. I'd go to a nice beach (Sunset Beach) and let the tike splash in the water and ig in the sand. Your little one will be in hog heaven and the parent types can take turns sipping a cool drink and relaxing.

 

Your little one is too little for tubing imo.

 

Jamaicans love kids and actually a little one will keep some of the more aggressive vendors away from you. You can plead no money and be VERY beleiveable, cause kids are expensive!!

[AJs Dad]

You can plead no money and be VERY beleiveable, cause kids are expensive!!

 

Great point. :D

 

It looks like the "horror" stories may be a little hyped up then. Ok. I'm feeling better. I think we may try out one of the beaches.

[cruisinqt]

That excursion with Winston sounds like a lot of fun. If it were just my husband and I we would probably try it. But since it is a 2 hour drive each way, I think my kids would drive me insane on the way there and back. That's just too long to be stuck in a vehicle with kids, no matter how interesting the scenery is. But that's just me of course, others may be okay with it but my hyper little duo just won't sleep in the car, ever, so I don't think it's for me. :( That's why the first time we went to Jamaica we opted for Sunset Beach Resort and loved it. I did a little investigating work before our first visit to Mo' Bay and most of the excursions offered are close to Ocho Rios, the other cruise port, the original one, and quite a drive for us docking at Mo' Bay. Just about all of the excursions offered in Mo' Bay take 2 hours or more to drive to. I don't want to spend my valuable port time stuck in a bus for 4 or more hours but that's me, you may feel differently. We've been to Sunset twice now and look forward to our next visit there this August. It's the best place to go in Mo' Bay in my honest opinion, for whatever it's worth anyways.:)

[dianelevene]

My kids did really well during the drive because they were with their cousins. They played games and talked to each other. We remembered to pack their Leapsters which generally keeps them entertained for quite a while. If it was just my two, they would have fought or been naughty!

 

Winston will take you anywhere you want to go and will charge you based on how far it is and how long a wait he has while you are there. We also did not want to go to Ocho Rios because of how far it is, I heard it was closer to three hours each way. Plus I did not want to fight the crowds since we were there during spring break week. YS Falls was absolutely perfect for us and our kids had such a blast!