Let's talk about Jamaica excursions!

[oklamomof4boys]

That would be great! From DCL response: We have received information from our tour operator regarding ... the Chukka Amazing Race in Falmouth, Jamaica. This tour is setup like the Amazing Race TV show. They have groups that are racing against each other to the finish line. For each activity, the group cannot move on to the next activity until all group members finish. All guests would have to participate in all activities of this tour.

Thank you- this is information I needed too!

 

[oklamomof4boys]

My dh and my dd13 and her best friend 13 are signed up for this for our nov. 30th Magic cruise. I can report back if that helps you any.

A report back would be very helpful! Thanks!

 

[5Dreamers]

We did the green grottos cave tour last week. My kids are 11, 9 and 7 and they enjoyed it. Our tour guide at the caves, Dwayne, did a great job adding some fun and excitement for the kids. It's not physically difficult, the caves are big enough to walk through with minimal bending, some steps down to one portion that a few people found challenging to navigate. At one point the lights go out- on purpose and it is completely dark, a few kids didn't like that (including my youngest). The cave tour was about an hour, then we went to a beach for an hour where they had lunch. The kids and I didn't eat because we wanted to spend the time in the water and jerk chicken wouldn't appeal to them anyway. My husband said the food was fine, and there's a gift shop there and they sell bottles of rum on the beach. Overall it was a decent tour.

Thank you for sharing your experience!
My kids are 7, 10 and 13 and I was wondering if we would all enjoy this excursion.
Did you book through Disney?
If we don't get Dwayne as a tour guide, do you think kids would still have fun?

 

[Zeppelin]

just back from our DCL/WDW vacation...did the Tranopy (bobsled/zip line) excursion and its highly recommended...

1) i don't like heights but zip lining was great fun. totally safe and the guides are a blast...

2) the bobsled was too cool....don't use your breaks and let it rip...ALSO- do the bobsled first and if you want to buy additional rides do so ASAP....right around 10AM is it starts to get crowded with long lines...

3) its a bit of a long bus ride (50 minutes) and you've got to be in the Walt Disney Theater at 7:15AM....

 

[GrumpyBelle]

We have just recently returned from a cruise that included Falmouth as one of the ports. We did the tour of the greathouse and thought it was excellent. The guide did a great job presenting the history of the estate. she was wonderfully entertaining. Our trip also included a zip line and river tubing experience. Again all activities were well organized and the whole group felt safe the entire time.
Falmouth was a much more enjoyable stop than Ocho Rios.

 

[DisneyCruiseMAD]

We are deciding right now between the 11/8 or the 11/9 7 night cruise. We have already been on the 7 night Magic Eastern but we were thinking of maybe doing the Western because of Jamaica. However we have our dd who will be 22months at that time. I dont feel comfortable leaving her on the boat and I really want to see Jamaica.

What would you guys suggest?

 

[Stitch'sCousin]

We did the Chukka Beach Express in August and really enjoyed it. The beach was not too large and the sand was nice. We were not bothered by people trying to sell us stuff. If you wanted to buy something, you had to go outside the main beach area where vendors were waiting for you. There was a small bar and food area, as well as a gift shop at the beach. It was nice to only have a half day excursion after being on the go the two previous days in Cozumel and Grand Cayman. We spent about 3 1/2 hours at the beach and then returned to the Fantasy for a late lunch. We then got off the ship to do some shopping in the port area.

 

[DisneyCruiseMAD]

We did the Chukka Beach Express in August and really enjoyed it. The beach was not too large and the sand was nice. We were not bothered by people trying to sell us stuff. If you wanted to buy something, you had to go outside the main beach area where vendors were waiting for you. There was a small bar and food area, as well as a gift shop at the beach. It was nice to only have a half day excursion after being on the go the two previous days in Cozumel and Grand Cayman. We spent about 3 1/2 hours at the beach and then returned to the Fantasy for a late lunch. We then got off the ship to do some shopping in the port area.

Was it tough like Nassau getting off the boat? Or more like Cozumel? Cause we might go ahead and do that if that's the case cause we really want to do something other then shop and we can't do the waterfalls or caves like I would like with the baby. Thank you for answering!

 

[mulderxcoltrane]

Any good local restaurants that serve 'authentic' Jamaican food that are right at the Falmouth port? If not, how far to travel? We're not finding any excursion that enticing, but would like to experience some food from the culture.

 

[linsey23233]

We are a family of 4. We have 2 boys that will be ages 9 & 6 at the time of the cruise. We have not sailed on any other cruise lines but this will be our second trip with Disney. We sailed on the Disney Dream in Jan 2013 for my youngest son's Make-A-Wish trip and had an AMAZING time. They have been begging ever since to go again. We are excited to try out the new features on the Magic. Even with young children I must say I was very impressed with all of the adult only activities that were available, so make sure to take some time for some relaxation!

 

[LoveDisneyx4]

Are they any others with recent Jamaica experiences that they'd like to share (particularly those that have kids under 10)? We'd be interested in trying to do something while we are there but the Disney excursions do not offer much that includes this age group (under 10)--and we'll probably be avoiding a beach day so that we can enjoy Castaway Cay without sunburns. Anyone gone to Devon House I Scream lately? Thank you!

 

[DisneyHysteria]

@LoveDisneyx4 We were on the Magic from Jan 25-Feb 1 with 12 and 10 year old boys and we purchased the Tranopy Adventure booked through Disney. The drive was much longer for us as we had to dock at the Montego Bay freight port due to high winds at Falmouth.

The boys loved the adventure and liked it lots more than Stingray City in Cayman! Before our cruise I was reluctant to pay the cost for the Tranopy as I figured our kids would be afraid of the zipline height, but they were more unraveled by the Stingrays rubbing against them.

Also, my wife loved this excursion the best.

The Adventure was very safe and fun!

 

[vinotinto]

We did the Dunn River Falls with lunch in Nov '13. It was just my DH and myself, booked thru Disney. We had a great time, it was our favorite thing that we've done. Had a great guide bring us up the falls. I would not take the kids unless they where like 10 or 11 and older. Don't bother brining anything, you will get soaked. The bus drive there was also really informational. Lunch was good too. The port is really clean and secure. No problems inside the port. At the falls the vendors are a bit more pushy, but our tour guide told us just to ignore them and we did.

Thanks for the info. We have a 10-year old who is very excited about climbing Dunn's River Falls and a 7-year old (around 46 inches) and trying to decide whether the 7-year old would be able to do the Falls.
1. Has anyone done the Falls with younger kids?
2. Where do you have the lunch (in the "with lunch" excursion).

I'm also considering the river tubing.

 

[Prose]

I'm the OP on this thread, and until it popped backup last week, I hadn't realized I never reported back! As I mentioned before, we chose the Chukka Dune Buggy excursion. DD (14 at the time) was bummed that she couldn't drive, but oh well.... .

I took a few photos that I hope will give everyone an idea of the port area....The port in Falmouth was built by Royal Caribbean. It is a gated area with a ring of shops and restaurants around a central plaza and a line of kiosks and stands down the middle. It is very mall-like - be careful to read the tags, especially on clothes. I almost bought a few cute tropical dresses, but none of them were made in Jamaica.



Just beyond that middle red-roofed building is a fence and gate. That is where you can exit the secured area. Some have asked about the area outside the gates. I can't speak to safety, except to say all of the Jamaicans we met were super-friendly. I took a couple of shots in the town immediately surrounding the port as our bus passed through.








It was a fairly short drive from the port to the Great Hope Estate, where our excursion was based. Our Tour guide was very entertaining, and talked a lot about the school system and economy. My daughter was fascinated by how people claim land and build houses - be sure to ask one of your guides about it.

We loved the excursion - especially DH and DD. They drove full-speed through every mud puddle they could find.

Our guide stopped and cut a coconut down for us, and we saw some ruins that had one of the Amazing Race excursion signs on it - it must have been one of the stops. If you are not keen on driving, don't worry - I rode with our guide, and we had a great time chatting. It is a very bumpy ride, so be sure you don't have any neck or back problems. DD and DH came out with ear-to-ear smiles and mud from head to toe. After your excursion, you have time for a cold drink and a little shopping. Bus return times are posted on the wall of the shop.

As you arrive back at port, be sure to have your Key to the World card ready. They will stop the bus and a security agent will board the bus and check everyone. The guide warned us that they are serious, but he taught us some Jamaican phrases to say that made her smile. When everyone is checked out, they will let you through the gates and back to the shopping area.

When you are ready to get back on the ship, you will go through a border control building. This is very much like going through TSA at the airport - with ID checks and x-ray machines for your bags. You have to go through DCL security/x-ray again when you board the ship.

Hope that helped - I would definitely recommend the Dune Buggies for those who can take a bit of a wild ride. Teens will love it.

 

[LoveDisneyx4]

@LoveDisneyx4 We were on the Magic from Jan 25-Feb 1 with 12 and 10 year old boys and we purchased the Tranopy Adventure booked through Disney. The drive was much longer for us as we had to dock at the Montego Bay freight port due to high winds at Falmouth.

The boys loved the adventure and liked it lots more than Stingray City in Cayman! Before our cruise I was reluctant to pay the cost for the Tranopy as I figured our kids would be afraid of the zipline height, but they were more unraveled by the Stingrays rubbing against them.

Also, my wife loved this excursion the best.

The Adventure was very safe and fun!

Thank you! Our girls are only 9 and 5, so we won't be able to try that excursion out yet. But it looks pretty adventurous! Thank you for providing some insight!

 

[2gr8DisneyKids]

There is a Beaches resort for families in Ocho Rios which is excellent. They do day passes and all is included once there- food, drinks, nice little beach, waterpark, sports activities.

How much was the cab ride there and back?

 

[nancy drew]

There is a Beaches resort for families in Ocho Rios which is excellent. They do day passes and all is included once there- food, drinks, nice little beach, waterpark, sports activities.

How much was the cab ride there and back?

I've love to hear more about this! How much are the day passes, and the taxi ride there and back? How long does it take to travel there and back?

 

[JennRR]

just back from our DCL/WDW vacation...did the Tranopy (bobsled/zip line) excursion and its highly recommended...

1) i don't like heights but zip lining was great fun. totally safe and the guides are a blast...

2) the bobsled was too cool....don't use your breaks and let it rip...ALSO- do the bobsled first and if you want to buy additional rides do so ASAP....right around 10AM is it starts to get crowded with long lines...

3) its a bit of a long bus ride (50 minutes) and you've got to be in the Walt Disney Theater at 7:15AM....

I've been looking into this excursion for this summer for my BFF and I. I'm super excited about it!

One question: do you remember around how much extra bobsled rides were? My BFF would love to do extra rides if we have the time.

 

[seselby83]

Has anyone booked Hilton Rose Hall for a day pass recently? I can't seem to get the website to load.

 

[Zeppelin]

I've been looking into this excursion for this summer for my BFF and I. I'm super excited about it!

One question: do you remember around how much extra bobsled rides were? My BFF would love to do extra rides if we have the time.

if memory serves me you buy a book of tickets for extra rides...starts around $15 for a single ride but goes down the more tickets you purchase...