Tania

Unlike many people, we did not go to Dunn’s River Falls. I had done some research before our trip, and had talked to some people who had been to Jamaica on all inclusive vacations, so we were warned about the crime problems, potential pushy locals and limited places to walk safely. Our travel agent suggested that if there was one stop to do an excursion on our trip, it would be Jamaica. He was definitely correct.

My husband and I and two of our friends booked a mountain biking excursion and did not regret our decision. We had a blast! The excursion was booked through Royal Caribbean and appears to be through Chukka Cove Adventure tours (some extra info to help planning). We were driven up the mountain to a homestead at the top. The bikes (brand “Specialized”) and our guides were waiting for us there. After a brief bathroom break and collecting helmets, elbow and knee pads, we were provided a bike. There was a brief rundown on the use of the gears and rules of the road. We were off! The initial ½ km is up hill, but the rest is down hill, although the roads are a little bumpy in places. The guides are constantly calling out sides of the road to travel on in advance and my break pads appeared to be quite new, so I was comfortable. There was only one particularly gravelly hill that I got off by bike and walked. I figure I did pretty well since although I love to bike ride in summer, I live on the Prairies and we don’t have too many hills to negotiate! There were plenty of opportunities for photos. For our group of about 25, there were 4 guides, enough to space out in the group.

We did stop at a school for a few minutes to learn a bit about the Jamaican education system and see what a school is like. We even got to spend about 10 minutes inside the school courtyard and were allowed to look inside the classrooms. I felt a little disruptive, but it seems that we were there around lunchtime. It was especially neat for my husband as he is an educator and was able to see a school in another country first hand. It was a great add on to our excursion.

The excursion ended with a brief swimming/ snorkeling stop at Chukka Cove, with snorkeling gear provided. It was very nice and refreshing after a long, dusty bike ride down the mountain!

The tour was a great way to be able to see some of Jamaica, not just the touristy areas, while in a safer environment. I really appreciated it. Our drive up the mountain took us through residential areas to see how the locals live. The ride down was primarily on lesser-traveled back roads.

When we got back to the ship, we realized we only had less than 2 hours for some shopping, so after changing, we headed out quickly to the Island Village and Taj Mahal Shopping Centre for some shopping. At this time, the crowds were mainly gone and we actually got a lot of shopping done in a relatively short period of time! We were back at the ship with time to spare.

We did see the evidence of the warnings to tourists. There were armed police officers at the all the access points to the “tourist” areas. We didn’t have time to even think to venture out, but even if we did, it didn’t look too inviting to do so. The walk to the two shopping areas felt safe enough (with the guards) and is not very far at all from the pier.

Tania’s Editorial Section:

Jamaica is a beautiful island! Very lush and there are beautiful ocean views all over the place. I would not hesitate to go back to the island for a cruise stop, but am not sure about going for an all inclusive as my husband and I love to walk and explore. I know that others on our ship (and even in my traveling group) did not have as good of a time in Jamaica as we did. Some people who did Dunn’s River Falls talked about how lots of people were falling and they were quite crowded. I have seen waterfalls before and am happy that I avoided this tourist trap. Others talked about going off the beaten track and being hassled. Some people even went to the extent that they told guest relations/ excursions desk back on the cruise ship, that they should not stop at Jamaica due to the locals. I personally think this is a very selfish view of the situation. I feel that for any traveling, a little research is recommended so that you can plan for such issues. Not every place in the world is like most places in the US or Canada, where you can freely walk around with no problems. However, there are plenty of places in the larger cities of North America that I would not be or feel safe to walk around either, but that does not stop people from traveling to the cities. You just avoid the places that are not safe. Jamaica shouldn’t be passed up just because of fear or pushy sales people. Plan your day appropriately and you should be in for a wonderful time!

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