By Sherry Laskin
Travel writer/NACTA Webinar Moderator
www.cruisemaven.com

JamaicaForADay.com —
A Change From the Usual Cruise Line Excursions

Many of us have clients who cruise simply for the ship experience and a week of relaxation, not for the ports. They've been to the Caribbean more times than they can count. Other cruise guests just want a break from the 5,000 other passengers.

Enter Stuart Cohen's latest venture: JamaicaForADay.com

Stuart Cohen, a long-time travel industry leader and innovator, has a company which offers an alternative to the traditional cruise line shore excursions: JamaicaForADay.com. You can spend a very relaxing day at a premium all-inclusive resort for the cost of, or less than, most ship's shore excursions. I was very curious to see how this all fell into place. Whether the cruise ships docks at Montego Bay, Ocho Rios or Falmouth, Jamaica, there's a resort option for everyone.

While in Falmouth as a port stop for the Celebrity Millennium, I decided to opt out of the cruise line's tours and head over to one of the JamaicaForADay.com hotels.

For a bit of background info, Falmouth is the "new" historically-themed port of Jamaica. A recent collaboration between the government of Jamaica and Royal Caribbean began a revitalization construction project to the tune of $250 million. So what to do when you get there? Here's how I spent my day in Falmouth.

Once cleared to leave the ship and with my hotel pass and transfers to/from the ship in hand, I followed the flow of cruise guests through the Disney-esque themed Falmouth port area. After a 10 minute walk, I found the collection of tour buses waiting for their passengers. I approached one of the uniformed Falmouth tour/information directors and informed her that I was to board a bus to go to the Hilton Rose Hall Resort with JamaicaForADay. "Oh," she said with a grin, "You are part of Stuart Cohen's group." Everyone knows Stuart.

A few minutes later, I boarded the clean and air-conditioned mini-bus and we were on our way. Mr. Earl — the driver, and I chatted for the entire twenty minute ride. The newly built roads made for a very pleasant and sometimes scenic drive along the north coast. Once at gate to the Hilton Rose Hall, a guard checked my pass and within a couple of seconds we were at the covered front entrance.

I'm a cruise person…I don't stay at hotels very often so I have very high expectations when I spend even so much as one day on their turf. The warm personal welcome that I received when I met with the hotel guest services manager immediately put me at ease. She was expecting me. Wow. That doesn't usually happen on a ship!

Wearing my colorful wristband, I was on my own to enjoy the resort. I could stay until 6PM…but I'd miss my ship so I requested that the mini-van return at 3:00. That would give me about five hours to take my tour, enjoy the beautiful beach, have lunch and still have time to relax. Maybe try the lazy river.

There were plenty of activities to choose if I wanted to be busy. Maybe I'll borrow one of the non-motorized water craft and paddle in the ocean for a while. Or maybe grab a tube at the Sugar Mill Water Park and try the lazy river. I wasn't sure what to try so I just kept wandering around, snapping photos and enjoying the scenery.

It was still about one hour until the restaurants opened for lunch, so I decided to try the Monday Special drink, "Tropical Dreams." And since drinks and food are included with the excursion and I wasn't driving anywhere, I thought it a great idea to enjoy a pre-lunch foo-foo drink.

Your wrist band entitles you to two towels that are loaned from the Activities Building right at the entrance to this huge water park. Everything you could need for a memorable and easy-to-do beach day is part of your JamaicaForADay.com package. According to their website here's a list of what's included:
• Full access to resort amenities including Private Beach and Pools.
• BIG NEWS: enjoy Sugar Mill Falls Water Park with tube slide and lazy river.
• Unlimited lunch & snacks.
• Unlimited beverages like sodas and juices.
• Unlimited house brand drinks to quench your thirst like beer, wine, tropical and
frosty drinks.
• All beach lounge chairs and beach towels.
• Non-motorized water sports including Snorkeling, windsurfing, kayaking, sailing,
volleyball, aerobics, and tennis.
• Participation in daily activity program.
• Live daily entertainment.­­
• Bathrooms available for changing.

If your ship departs late (like Oasis of the Seas), you can stay through 6:00PM if your cruise ship departure time permits a later stay!!!

You might recommend to your clients to sit outdoors for lunch and overlook the crystal clear sea at the Seaside Grill. Service was very "Jamaica-friendly" and I struck up a nice conversation with my waiter. I asked him to surprise me with something wonderful and he returned with a plate of jerk chicken (can't miss that in Jamaica) rice and peas (though actually beans, in Jamaica they're called "peas") and a side of icy cold cole slaw.

By the time I finished lunch, walked up and down the beach, stretched out for an hour's siesta and returned my towels, it was time to head back to the lobby and wait for my ride back to the port. As soon as I reached the reception area (and there's free wifi in the business center adjacent to the lobby) the driver was already there.

The cost for this JamaicaForADay.com shore excursion, is $90 per adult and $75 per child. This also includes the $15 round-trip transfers. It's a seamless way to enjoy a wonderfully relaxing day in Jamaica without all the hustle and bustle of the ship's tours. I highly recommend it.

If you're cruising to other Caribbean ports, Stuart has six more…ForADay resorts in Nassau, Barbados, Grand Cayman, Cozumel, Freeport and St. Maarten.