Things to do?

Question

going on cruise in august. was just wondering if anyone has been to cozumel, ocho rios, or grand caymans. if so any fun stuff to do in those places other then the excursions. thanks

Answer 1

Grand Cayman, Ocho Rios and Cozumel...

Grand Cayman, take a tour of the island...you can hop on the little trolley....and it isn't very expensive. The island is small, you can visit Hell, and send home a postcard from "Hell"...you can visit the turtle farm...if you feel those things are too touristy, they have beautiful beaches, you can walk, but a taxi is faster. Grand Cayman has few if any vendors that will bug you...shopping isn't as cheap here as with the other islands. If you decide to do something more touristy, the Stingray/snorkel is great, we have done it a few times.
Ocho Rios...do not wander off on your own. There is however a few places to go within walking distance....Margaritaville, which tends to get very crowded...and the shopping area, Island "something" I don't remember the name...it is much better than TajMahal shopping area. If you want to do a tour, contact Peat Taylor at his website...www.peattaylor.com His son Neil works with him. Going on a tour with him is safe! He will take you to Dunn's River Falls...we have done this with a couple of times...and it is very reasonably priced with Peat.
Cozumel...there are beaches, and shopping all within walking distance of the pier. Vendors don't hound you too badly...just be polite, say no (if you want to) and keep walking. This is your best place for shopping for inexpensive items. Our last trip to Cozumel, we rented Dune Buggies...it was a blast!

There really is alot to do in these ports....or you can do nothing!

Have Fun...

Dolores
Merry Meeting Travel
[e-mail]

Answer 2

I have been on that itenerary two or three times b/c it is my favorite.
In Cozumel there is a little restaurant right on the street of downtown that is amazing. However I cant remember the name, but Senor Frogs is also always good.
In Grand Caymen there is a few things that are a must to do. Swimming w/ the stringrays, if it is available, it is an experience of a lifetime. Also you should go to the turtle farm and hold a turtle. Then you should visit Hell, b/c afterwards you can officially say that you have been to Hell and back, although it is just really neat to see. And then finally you need to go to the rum cake factory. The rum cakes are made w/ real rum and are amazing. They will have samples of every flavor available along w/ the flavored rums that they use. Most importantly you can not stop in Grand Caymen or Ocho Rios for that matter w/o going to Margaritaville. I recommend the frozen strawberry margarita. It is an awesome place to stop. They also have good nachos and be prepared b/c they have a water slide and small pool. If you want to shop dont do it in Grand Caymen b/c everything is ridiculously expensive.
Finally in Jamaica, my most favorite place in the world. It is a must to go to Dunns River Falls and climb the waterfall. But if you want to do this make sure you plan an excursion for it quickly b/c it will be the first to fill up. Other than that, Margaritaville as I said before. Jamaica is also the place to shop the shopping is great in Ocho Rios. However I do recommend being careful b/c there will be people all over asking you to buy weed, but it is not the same as it is in the states and Jamaica is alot more strict w/ their laws on weed, they will actually have police purposefully coming up to foreigners. So beware. I hope this helps and I hope you have a great time b/c that is my favorite itenerary.

Answer 3

I have been to all three. Cozumel is a place to go to the beach for snorkel, swim, scuba or just sun. The island does not have scenic things to go see; we tried that and found out first hand. It has some nice beaches but is mainly a place for scuba and snorkel. If you want to do something really exciting, do one of the ship's tours to the mainland, like to Chichen Itza or Xcarat. The only other thing to do in Cozumel is some light shopping for jewelry and leather products mainly.

In Gran Cayman plan to spend a day at the beach. They have a lovely beach area called 7-mile beach and you can easily get a taxi or shuttle bus to the beach right at the pier. No need to pay the cruise line for a tour when you can get a taxi/shuttle for about $5-7.00 each way. The beach has showers and changing areas as well as a place to buy snacks and souvenirs. There is some shopping in the town if you want the
usual tourist fare of "T" shirts and stuff.

What I recommend in Ocho Rios is a rafting trip on the Martha Brae. Its a nice trip that takes about 4-5 hours from ship to river and back to ship. The tour will stop at a roadside market so you can buy souvenirs or you can wait until you return to the port where there are shops and market. There is no need to go into town, unless you want to live dangerously. The alternative trip which may be offered but takes longer is to Dunn's River Falls. Its a tour where you go in swim wear and climb up a water fall. Its one of the prime attractions in Jamaica.

Answer 4

I have a friend who has been to all three locations. He cruises for vacations on a regular basis. We were looking at taking one together with out significant others this past April. I really wanted to see Belize, so that's what led us to a cruise with Norwegian.

I've heard good things about Ocho Rios and Grand Caymans. They seem like they would be tons of fun. However, I can't tell you right off hand anything about them.

I have been to Cozumel though. It's an awesome city that provides a lot in walking distance of the pier. I couldn't believe how much time we spent walking around and looking at the various shops and attractions. Once you get off the boat, they are going to try to rent you a scooter or anything else you might need for the day. We just walked everywhere. If you are into mexican food, there are several places that you could try. Las Palmas and Phat Tuesdays is located straight across the road from the pier. To get to Senor Frogs, you'll have to take a left on the main road and walk a quarter of a mile. Carlos n Charlies, take a right on the main road and it's on the left about a quarter of a mile, is great if you want to congo for shots of tequila. It's a happening place at all hours of the day. About another quarter mile down the road is Margaritaville. However, if you want real mexican food without an American influence, head about a mile to the right on the main road. There is a grocery store called Chedrau. In the back is some real mexican food that's cheap. Three bucks and you'll have more than enough to feed you.

The shops are also awesome. You have stores that are established all around the world. You also have street vendors trying to make a living. One cool thing we saw while we were there was a guy that does spray can art. He paints anything you want using spray paint. He was located in the courtyard that's right across the street from the pier. Make sure you look up the roads that you come across also. There are some shops that might be of interests to you there. If you're on the market for jewelry, there are several places along the way. If you go to any talks on your ship about shopping in port (I recommend going to these to learn about the area before getting there), they'll mention Diamonds International. They'll tell you the advantages of buying Diamonds in Mexico. That wasn't for me.

Whatever you get to do, you'll have a blast. Have fun.

Answer 5

In Grand Cayman, you have to go to the Stringray sand bar. That was the highlight of our cruise! And everyone else who did it said the same thing. They take you out in a boat about a mile off the coast and you swim and snorkel in 3 foot deep water with a bunch of stingrays. It was a little bit scary at first, but the experience was sooo worth it. The stingrays are tame and your tour guide will catch them and let you hold them and take pictures with them.

In Cozumel, I would suggest going to the beach or going snorkelling. The water is gorgeous there!! We also did some shopping there,a nd got souveniers for everyone. They have a million little souvenier shops with pretty good prices. They will try to bother you and get you to come in their stores, but if you ignore them they will leave you alone.

In Jamaica, you really need to do an excursion that keeps you away from the people who live there. They can be kind of scary, constantly trying to sell you things(including drugs) and following you around. We went to Sandals Resort, and it was awesome! It was a private beach so noone bothered us, and it was all inclusive, so we got free drinks and food.

Answer 6

cozumel has great beaches and there are tours to the mayan ruins. grand cayman has awesome beaches .. any beach on the seven mile beach is great. there is a small town actually called HELL. many people like to send postcards from there cause it is actually postmarked hell. sting ray city is nice to visit. ochos rios has a walk up waterfall thing that is popular. the beaches are nice. be careful with the locals .. some areas can be a little "rough".

Answer 7

I have been to cozumel and grand cayman. In Cozumel we swam with the dolphins and they also have a really nice beach that we went snorkling in. In Grand Cayman we swam with the sting rays.