There are endless beautiful sights in Monterey, California – from the beautiful beaches and hiking to the world-famous Monterey Bay Aquarium. See what else there is to do!
Are you visiting Santo Tomás de Castilla, Guatemala any time soon, or do you have a desire to visit this beautiful country? Check out the video guide I made below and see what there is to see!
This is primarily a shipping port, so if you are visiting via cruise ship, this is the port you should book an excursion on. There are plenty of things to do if you are willing to drive around an hour or so away from the port. We did one of the cheapest options, which is a $25pp tour of the city. It was very eye opening! You can tell these people are not used to a lot of visitors.
I hope this video is useful to anyone who watches it. Please leave a comment and don't forget to like the video!
Are you traveling to Grand Cayman soon? There are a lot of fun and exciting things to do on this island, so choosing an excursion could be difficult.
If you are on a budget, then an island tour might be the perfect tour for you. My family of 4 did this tour for a cost of about $15-$20 USD a person, which is substantially cheaper than what the cruise line wanted to charge for the same excursion. The sellers on the pier were extremely competitive in trying to get our business, with the different tour operators going lower in price than the one who previously quoted us. So don't jump at the first offer you hear, shop around for only a minute and you are bound to save $5 or more per person.
Below is a video photograph tour showing some of the sights you can expect on a tour of Grand Cayman. Your guide will take you past interesting houses such as the governor's mansion, how the locals live, a stop at the Tortuga Rum Co. where you can sample rum and rum cake, the dolphin discovery (and the turtle farm, right across the street), and ends at 7 mile beach. You can stay here for the rest of your day, or the tour does include a drop off back at the pier.
Please enjoy! And if you can, leave me a comment letting me know what you thought of the video, or if you have been to Grand Cayman, what was your favorite thing to do.
I uploaded a new video I made to the Ground Travel YouTube page! I would love if you all could check it out and leave me a comment. Also if you haven't yet, please subscribe!! It would mean a lot to me :)
Welcome to the next installment of excursion destinations for the Western Caribbean! In this post I'll be covering what we did in Falmouth, Jamaica; you should note that the above picture is actually Ocho Rios, where we spent most of time. As always, if you have any questions after reading, please don't hesitate to ask :)
**If you are looking for a review of the ship & my stateroom, see this post.**
Departure Date: September 13, 2014 Departure Port: Port Canaveral, Florida Cruise Length: 7 days
Itinerary
Day 1
Embark/Sea Day
Day 2
Sea Day
Day 3
Cozumel, Mexico
Day 4
Grand Cayman
Day 5
Falmouth, Jamaica
Day 6
Sea Day
Day 7
Castaway Cay
Day 8
Disembark
Falmouth, Jamaica - Dunn's River Falls, Bobsled and Sky Lift - $134 per adult ($74 child 6-9)
If you have read my post on the Tulum Ruins in Mexico, then you know we had a less than satisfactory experience with the vendors that Disney used. Disney definitely went above and beyond to make sure that this experience in Jamaica, which we booked through them, was much better.
Before you leave the ship, Disney has everyone going on Disney booked excursions meet in a central, large location, such as the main theater room. Your ticket, which you most likely got the night before, will tell you where the meet up location is. To check in, you just stop at the table in front of the theater doors, and a cast member asks to see your ticket, they assign you a character (this defines all the people in your group) and you all sit together in one row. As my family was sitting in our row, waiting to be dismissed/follow another cast member off the ship, another crew member came up and sat next to us. They proceeded to inform us that they had already been in contact with the vendors who would be running our excursion, and that they had a special meal planned for my sister waiting at our eventual destination. They also had reserved the very front seat of our bus just for her, so she would be less likely to get carsick.
Of course we were very relieved to learn of this, but it didn't end there. A Disney team member personally escorted our family off the ship and delivered us directly to the vendors of our excursion. Our super friendly Jamaican tour guides then led us over to the bus (it was like a really large van that seated about 15), telling us that in Jamaica they were much better than any guides they have over in Mexico. So apparently Disney let them know about our less than satisfactory experiences in Mexico, and our guides were determined to make up for it.
After we boarded the bus, we were narrated to for the hour or so drive it took to leave Falmouth and arrive in Ocho Rios, where this particular excursion takes place. We learned all sorts of interesting stuff about Jamaica; they can grow just about any kind of plant here, signs with "jerk here" were referring to seasoning (not actual jerks!), the drivers flash their lights to warn about speed traps or cops ahead (like we often do here in the states, as well) and other assorted random trivia/history about this beautiful island.
Once we got closer to our destination, our guide told us the general outline of the day. As this is one of the most popular tours in Jamaica, some groups would climb the falls first, and some would take the chairlift ride/bobsled ride first. Our group climbed the falls first.
In order to get to the bottom of the falls (you climb up them, not down them), you have to descend down quite a few stairs and ramps (see right photo). This was also where we split off from those on the excursion who did not want to climb the falls but wanted to see/take pictures. They went off on their own path that meandered along (more or less) with the waterfall.
To the left is a view of the beach which sits at the very foot of Dunn's River Falls. You can see the freshwater that flows out to meet the ocean. This waterfall climbs about 600 feet, but it's pretty much impossible to get a picture of the complete falls unless you take it from the air, and even then, the waterfall is very well covered and shaded by trees and foliage.
Now, before you begin the climb, the waterfall guide goes over some basics. First off, this guide is not the one who was in the bus with us. This is a guide who works specifically for Dunn's River Falls and Park. They know the safest ways up the falls and are there to help each person in the group. We were told to follow their path up exactly and not to deviate. We later learned the reason is because it appears they scrape the moss/algae off the rocks along the common route. If they didn't do this, the rocks would be incredibly slippery and dangerous. I know, because I walked along a few that were very slippery.
To the right you can see right where you start climbing up the falls. There is an employee recording each groups assent (you can buy the video after for around $20-$30), and there are multiple groups climbing up at a time, so it's important to know your guides name, and stay with your group. In order to help you do this, and help with safety while climbing, they instruct everyone in the group to make a human chain. So we all hold hands as we climb the falls. I did this for the first few minutes, but quite honestly it is a bit strange to hold hands with someone you don't know, and make them help you up the falls. I only took the girls hand ahead of me a few times, when it was tricky going. It's also a bit awkward when the person ahead of you is clearly an adolescent, and wouldn't be able to help an adult very well up the falls. Other than that, our family group of 4 pretty much just helped each other up the falls.
There are parts where the going is like walking up stairs, and then the falls level off. The water temperature was actually very pleasant, nice and mild, just a touch cooler than you might expect. Then as you climb, you start to wish the water was a LOT cooler, because even though you're soaking wet, you still manage to sweat. It was the weirdest thing (at least, to a native Californian who is used to no humidity). The high humidity and the exercise climbing made the water feel that much nicer.
As a side note and precaution: don't bring along things that can't get wet! Bring a waterproof camera, and don't use a cell phone. If you must bring your expensive SLR, double
ziploc bag it and then put it int a waterproof bag as well. It's possible to keep your bag mostly dry, but you should be fairly agile and able to climb holding it over your head for parts of the excursion. My sister brought along her moderately expensive camera, and while the guide felt that it would get ruined, he offered to carry it for her to keep it safe. She decline his kind offer (she wanted to take pictures!) and she was able to keep her camera safe and dry. She is also an avid hiker and sure-footed, so just take caution when doing this excursion for your expensive electrical gadgets.
Difficulty:
I have read mixed reviews online about this excursions difficulty, ranging from extremely difficult to a walk in the
park. The truth, as it usually does, lies somewhere in the middle. I would put it a moderate, almost moderately easy. It's not like you climb straight up for 20 minutes. You can take short breaks along the way, and climb as slow as you need to. For any difficult crossings, the guide is always there to help. We were quite please with how they just sort of magically appeared right when you needed them to. We were a few feet behind the main group, but our guides did not forget us! They would also stay and wait at the difficult parts and make sure that everyone in the group was caught up before moving on. To the left/above you can see the human chain we were instructed to make for most of the climb, and the guide leading us, as well as the guide/cameraman.
There were a few places along the falls where you were able to either slide down like a water slide, or fall backwards into deeper pools of water. The only one in our family who was willing to do any of this was my mom! So way to go, mom! She took one for the team. You can see two short clips of her braveness below; and sorry for the blurriness...they were taken on my waterproof camera, and water drops were hard to wipe off the lens.
This hike really was quite fun and enjoyable, and I would definitely do it again. I'll share some more pictures from the rest of the hike up the falls below before continuing on with narration about the rest of the excursion.
After successfully hiking the falls (and seeing the above sign) you are left with the journey back out to the bus. They give you very little time to walk among the vendors, and actually recommended that we not stop among them at all, but only follow "track 2" out. You see, on the ground were two painted lines; one led you through all the shopping, and the other was basically the quick way out. They told us to go the quick way out. Not entirely sure why. Also, don't be surprised to smell lots of marijuana floating out from the various stores!
Once we made it back to the bus, we boarded again for a quick trip back down the road to the Sky Explorer chairlift and bobsled ride (probably 10 minutes from the falls). This area is also where you eat lunch. Once we arrived at the next area (called Mystic Mountain), our guide gave us the general plan for the rest of our time. We were told to meet back at the bus by about 2:20 PM local time, and we could do whatever we liked after we took our chairlift up the mountain.
The chairlift can seat about 3 adults comfortably and takes about 15 minutes each way. so plan accordingly when you are going to depart for the bus. I'll be honest, the chairlift is a bit scary. I am not fond of heights, and so going up is pretty intense. Only this flimsy bar between you and the ground 40 feet below. If you have ever taken a ski lift, this is the same thing (or so I am told, as I have never taken one before). I just tried not to look down, and instead focused on the incredible views offered as you slowly travel through the treetops of Jamaica.
I don't think this can be said enough:wear lots of sunblock! Apply it often! I was so glad I brought a towel with me from the ship (they actually suggest you take several, and provide them for you in the main theater I talked about earlier) as I wore it around my head to protect my face/neck from the sun. I'm very fair skinned, which means I burn quite easily. I applied lots of sunscreen before leaving the cruise ship, and reapplied it after climbing the falls, but I felt like I could still be burning with how hot the sun beats down on you.
Once you reach the end of the ride, you have arrived at the area where the butterfly gardens, bobsleds and lunch is located. We were very hungry from our climb up the falls, as was almost everyone in our group, so we all made our way to the lunch area. As Disney says in the description of the excursion on their website, you have the option jerk chicken, fish, or hot dog, along with sides of either fries or beans & rice. There was no soda option, but they did have a kind of nonalcoholic punch. I also didn't see any water bottles, which they were supposed to have for us. The jerk chicken was good; I'm not a huge fan of spicy things, but it was mild enough that I enjoyed it. I didn't try the fish, but my parents did, and they said it was not that great, and had a very fishy taste to it. Overall, the food was good. The only problem I had with it was that it was not very warm. I got a side of french fries, and they were room temperature and soggy. The chicken, too, was not hot, just sort of luke warm.
After we gathered up our food, we went to find the food they prepared for my sister so we could all eat together. We were a little nervous about this, based on our previous experience dining off ship with her in Tulum. We were told by our tour guide earlier that we were to head upstairs to the restaurant at the top of Mystic Mountain and ask for them to prepare Angela's food when we arrived. The view from this restaurant was incredible! You can see it to the left. That alone is a good enough reason to eat at this place. Another reason, though, is that the food itself is actually quite good.
We all sat at a table and waited while they brought my sisters food out and just soaked in the awesome view. The waitress kindly brought us all waters, too, as we were very thirsty. When they brought her food, we were in awe with how pretty it was, especially compared to our rather average looking cuisine (which you can see in the background of her picture). You can see in the photo to the left that they didn't just slap something down on a plate, but tried to make something delicious and appealing. Next to the food served on the ship, my sister enjoyed this most of all. They were very careful to not have anything she was allergic to in this meal, and my sister throughly enjoyed it.
After eating lunch, we decided it was time to ride the bobsleds, which take you through 3,280 feet of track. My sister was a little nervous about this, but was relieved to find out that two cars can be attached together and allow you to essentially ride with another person. I went down the track with my sister, me in the lead car and her behind. The lead car controls the speed via a hand brake, and I was super excited to do this. You pull back to go faster, which requires muscle (as in you can't just free fall and go super fast down the track) and release the brake to slow down. When you don't pull back on the brake, it will stop your car from moving at all. You have to keep some pressure and pull back on the brake the entire ride. My sister gave me strict instructions not to go too fast, but about halfway through the ride she was yelling at me to go faster. Before you ride, there are safety videos telling you what to do or not do, as well as signs depicting the various rules (the most important being don't stop on the track). Then the employees who buckle you into your seat also explain the rules again before you go. Below you'll see the few pictures we got of this, as well as a big water slide that dumps you into a pool. Guests to Mystic Mountain were encouraged to swim if they so desired. While we did not do this, plenty of other people did.
This next photo is a view from the observation tour you can climb; its about 2 or 3 flights of stairs up.
The bobsled was incredibly fun! Like being on a ride at Disneyland, only you get to be in control of what you do. I wish I had videoed parts of it, because it took you through very beautiful scenery. The way you build up speed on this ride is by gravity; the ride goes downhill pretty much the entire way. At the very end of the track, you catch on to a tow cable and it lifts you waaaay back up the mountainside (your bobsled is still on the track...it just tows you up a steep track, like how roller coasters get towed up a hill). It's a really cool system, and it lets you see just how many feet you descended, too!
I don't have any pictures of the butterfly garden, because it was very small. Mostly it was a walkway that had lots of flowers that would attract butterflies. While we were on the path, we saw lots of brilliantly colored hummingbirds, which I think is a lot cooler than seeing butterflies. We also didn't really spend any time at the exhibits they had here. We really wanted to ride the bobsleds a second time, but we just ran out of time.
I'll say this, the only negative about this trip was waiting at the end for our 2nd tour guide to show up. She had told all of us to be in the bus back 2:20, and so everyone was there. We waited. Waited some more. Finally the driver radios her and asks where she is, and she's riding the chairlift down. 15 minutes comes and goes (that's how long this lift takes) and still no sign of her. We waited for a good 45 minutes for her to show up, and didn't end up leaving till shortly after 3:00. Our driver was literally about to pull away and leave her when we saw her sauntering down the parking lot with a bag of food in her hand. When she boarded the bus she acted like she had no idea why we were all there by 2:20, she never told us that time to be back! That frustrated almost all of us passengers, and you could tell her tour guide partner/driver was upset, because unhappy customers don't tip well.
The port at Falmouth, Jamaica is actually pretty cool. I don't think I have any pictures of it, sadly, but it has obviously had some money spent on making it look really nice. Above is a picture from the portoffalmout.com and it shows how they've tried to improve the area. They've given it an old time feel, with brick stores and tall store fronts. There are lots of places to shop just feet off of the boat, so if you have no excursion planned, you can shop right here. It also makes it convenient for those returning from an excursion who wish to shop.
My Rating: 9.5/10
The reason for the less than perfect rating was because the general food they served us was not that great (cold food is never fun when it's supposed to be hot) and the inconsiderateness of our tour guide, making us wait around the bus while she was obviously just getting food.
I would highly recommend this tour to anyone thinking about taking it! It's a once in a lifetime experience you will never forget.
There are many, many options for excursions and what you can do in each port, so it can be difficult narrowing it down to the right activity, sights, shopping, etc. I had a great time on my cruise last September to the Western Caribbean, and I thought I would share with you all what I did at the various stops. Hopefully my experiences and insights will help others plan out their time better, and select excursions that really suit your party.
This will be a review of the Cozumel, Mexico stop only. For other stops, look for future posts!
**If you are looking for a review of the ship & my stateroom, see this post.**
Departure Date: September 13, 2014 Departure Port: Port Canaveral, Florida Cruise Length: 7 days
Itinerary
Day 1
Embark/Sea Day
Day 2
Sea Day
Day 3
Cozumel, Mexico
Day 4
Grand Cayman
Day 5
Falmouth, Jamaica
Day 6
Sea Day
Day 7
Castaway Cay
Day 8
Disembark
Cozumel, Mexico - Tulum Ruins - $129 per adult
This was my second time in Cozumel, but the rest of my families first time here. My dad had specifically mentioned wanting to visit some kind of ruins while on this trip, and I knew the perfect place to go.
The Mayan Tulum Ruins are not on the island of Cozumel; you must take a 30-45 minute ferry ride to mainland Mexico and then a bus ride that takes about an hour after that. We don't always book excursions through the cruise line, mainly because they are typically more expensive when you book with the cruise. However, we booked this excursion through Disney for several reasons. One, this excursion was quite lengthy, about 7 hours. Because you only have a limited amount of time in each port, and you don't want to get left behind, booking through the cruise line makes sense. They guarantee that they will not leave you behind on a cruise-booked excursion. The other reason we booked this through Disney is because we didn't want to arrange the transfers from our ship to the ferry and then from a ferry to a bus in order to arrive at Tulum.
The ferry ride was actually quite enjoyable. Disney provided motion sickness pills for all guests who wanted them before even departing the cruise ship, as well as suggesting we take a few towels. I did not take my motion sickness pills because I wanted to see if I'd really even need them, as I have never been motion sick on the big cruise ships. The ferry is much smaller in size, but still a very large boat, which probably seats 150 or so. I sat outdoors on the second floor with my sister in a spot with fresh air blowing into my face. The above deck seats are hard flat metal benches; not uncomfortable for the length of the trip. They had an indoor section down a flight of stairs that was air conditioned and had more comfortable seats, as well. The picture up above and to the left is a stock photo from the Mexico WaterJet's website. It looks similar to the ferry we road on, except the back half had a more open feel to it.
After that, we arrived at the dock, where we followed one of our tour guides on a short walk to our motor coach (aka bus). One slightly irritating thing was that our guides "required" us to take a picture with some rain forest-y greenery and ruin type thing behind us. We could later purchase these photos for a small fee if we wished. It was annoying because it took a good 20 minutes to get photos of every party in the group, when majority of the passengers didn't even purchase this photo. The photo to the right was in the same general area as the required photo was. Nothing that exciting.
To the left is an example of one of the shopping streets we walked down. We didn't have time to stop at any of the stores, but we were approached by many vendors, mostly trying to make a quick few dollars selling us sombreros and hats with words like "Corona" embroidered on them. The picture to the right shows a common "safety feature" added to fences in Mexico. In the very corner of the picture you can just make out the edge of our bus. This is apparently the only picture anyone in our group took of our tour bus!
Once on the bus, we pretty much had a non-stop narration of things about the Tulum Ruins, Mayans, and general things of that nature. Our tour guide also told us not to buy the hand carved stone statues you would see in stores, as he personally carved some (and passed examples around) that he would sell to us for a better price. They looked identical to all of the supposed "hand carved" stone statues you find in stores in Mexico, along with the accidentally left on "Made in China" stickers. The tour guide also spent some time talking about the Mayan Calendar and pumping us up with how cool it was, so he could to try and sell you a birthday certificate of your own in the Mayan Calendar system.
Once we arrived near the ruins, we were also warned to only shop in a particular store that was painted in yellow. Our tour guides reasoning? They allowed you to use their bathrooms for free, and he sort of implied that the other stores were very pushy, not as safe, etc. I thought this was a little sketchy, but we did as our tour guide directed.
Now, according to the Disney website, there is a short walk from the bus drop-off point to the actual ruins. The walk is about a mile long, or 15 minutes, and Disney says that this is not included in their price. However, our tour guide gave all of us passes to ride this tram, so I'm not sure if Disney changed their policy or what. To the left is a picture of the tram system. It's basically a bunch of cars pulled by a big tractor. There was a LOT of standing water at the boarding area. You had to strategically jump across some well placed rocks/bricks to avoid getting soaking wet feet.
Another thing Disney promises that guests will receive is a headset that uses the "whisper system". What Disney doesn't say that if there is inclement weather (also known as rain, which happens frequently in September) that the guides don't pass these out. The headsets are supposed to allow you to focus on taking pictures but still hear what is going on.
The tour guide likes to lead you around to the various important sites, and in general talk quite a bit. It was fine, and very informative, except I think way too much talking. It was very hot and humid, so even standing in the shade you sweat quite a bit. I was tempted to wander off and do my own thing, but I did genuinely want to learn more about this amazingly beautiful site. After about an hour, our tour guide let us go off on our own and we explored more of the areas that he didn't take us to.
There is a beach that you can access via stairway, which you can see in the picture to the right. For some reason, however, the stairway was closed off and we weren't allowed to access the beach. This was also slightly baffling, as Disney suggests in their excursion guide that guests bring a swim suit if they plan on swimming in the ocean while at the ruins. Now, there was another portion of the beach closed off to tourists due to it being a prime turtle beach, but that doesn't explain why this portion was blocked off. In the picture on the left you can see the fenced off turtle area beach. I've heard other people say it was closed for them as well, but because of bad weather. If the entire beach was closed due to turtle nesting, this is something that a Disney employee could have looked up and told guests before they departed on the excursion. I was extremely disappointed that I was unable to get down in the sand and feel the water, and also upset that I missed the chance to take some spectacular ruins pictures from the ocean.
Here are some more photos from the ruins; there were tons of iguanas basking in the sunlight and on rocks here!
After we left the ruins, we took the tram back to the shopping area. Again, as instructed, we only shopped in the yellow store (I think it was labeled "Market" or something like that). It was here that my sister realized she was sensitive to certain types of indoor lighting, and had the worst migraine of her life. After a few minutes in the store, she grabbed my moms arm, started to shake, and told my mom she was having a hard time seeing (translate: couldn't see) and was going to throw up. My mom quickly rushed her out of the store, where she leaned shakily against the building, trying to recover. She did feel better after a bit, and walked around to some of the outdoor vendors, but was relieved when the bus arrived. They were supposed to have our lunch on board (included in the price), and she was hungry.
Apparently it was just not my sisters day. They only had ham sandwiches for everyone, along with a bag of chips, a juice box, a muffin and a banana. My sister has quite a few allergies, along with being a vegetarian, which we told Disney employees. They promised us that they would have something suitable for my sister when lunch time rolled around. The only thing they had that she could eat was the bottle of water. My sister is allergic to bananas and all poultry (this includes eggs), which rules out many bread products, such as muffins and sandwiches. The tour guide acted like this was the first he heard of someone having an allergy and needing a different lunch (which it probably was), but didn't offer to do anything. Finally the driver, a bit ungraciously said, well I can go get her a subway sandwich. Luckily I brought some crackers (sealed) off the ship with me and she had a protein bar, or she would have been very hungry. As a side note, be careful what you take of the ship; they are very strict about this, and you get get severely fined for taking off things like fruits. That being said, if you are a picky eater, make sure to take snacks with you!
The ride back was fairly uneventful, if you don't consider my sister also getting carsick (or rather bus-sick) to be an event. While my family loved seeing the ruins, we didn't appreciate the hospitality (or lack of it) from our tour guide/driver. They seemed more interested in trying to sell you things and get a big tip than making sure you were enjoying yourself. I was talking to our guide on the trip back, and he asked what my father did for a living. I told him (my father is a retired environmental health specialist, also known as a health inspector), the guide just nodded like it was interesting. Then his friend asked (in Spanish) where does he work? And the guide responded (in Spanish) it's nothing important. Now, I'm not fluent in Spanish by any means, but "trabajo", "nada" and "importante" are words just about any high school Spanish student understands. For that reason alone, I told my parents that these guides didn't deserve a large tip from us, if any tip, at all.
Now, before people reading this think that this is a horrible trip to take and should avoid it, I want you to know that this was one of the best excursions I have ever taken. Not because of mediocre tour guides, but because of the incredible scenery and history of the Tulum Ruins. That, and Disney went above and beyond trying to make up this horrible (well, my sister said it was horrible, I quite enjoyed it) experience.
Excursion Rating: 7.5/10
The slightly lower rating is due to the bad tour operators. We approached the Disney excursion planners (not sure of their official title on board) and told them of our experiences. They said that there was some kind of miscommunication between them and the tour operators, because they did call and inform them of a food allergy and asked them to have something suitable for my sister. However, they were unsure as to why we were told to only go into the "yellow market" store, or of all the random sales pitches we received en route to Tulum, and made a note of it to look into their current vendors, because that shouldn't have happened.
Disney Rating: 10/10 Disney went above and beyond apologizing to us, and in general were awesome. They took down detailed notes of my sisters allergies and promised they would be in close contact with our next booked excursion with them (coming up in Jamaica). Let's just say, they did not disappoint. More details on how Disney showed us they care about their passengers and go out of their way to make you feel special and important in my next blog posting, when I cover our excursion in Falmouth, Jamaica.
For now, please enjoy more of the photos I took from the Tulum Ruins.
