The next port of call on this 7-day Western Caribbean cruise is Ocho Rios, Jamaica, and Holland America Line’s Nieuw Amsterdam arrived in port this morning at 8 a.m., on schedule. When cruising Jamaica, there are two possible locations you could visit: Falmouth or Ocho Rios. All the times I’ve been here, it’s always been Falmouth, so I was a bit excited to see what Ocho Rios was like.
There are two different piers your ship could be scheduled to dock at. The main cruise terminal, Turtle Bay Pier, is right in the center of town, with shops and restaurants just a short walk from the ship. The second pier, the James Bond Pier, is 15 to 20 minutes away from the town center and is an industrial pier, left over from an old bauxite mine that operated here. Now, the name of this pier is actually the Reynolds Pier, but it’s taken on the James Bond name because it was used as one of the filming locations for the Bond movie Dr. No.
The Nieuw Amsterdam docked at the James Bond Pier, which is about as alluring as a garbage dump. There are no passenger facilities here at all, and the only “shopping” you’ll find is a few locals selling souvenirs and sketchy drinks (“with lots of rum”) along the walkway that leads out of the terminal and into the street.
As soon as you exit the terminal, you are absolutely bombarded with taxi drivers who are relentless in trying to give you a ride and will follow you until you forcefully tell them “NO!” Once you tell one no, another immediately swoops in and starts this game all over again.
My goal was to walk to the town center, but those plans changed very, very quickly. Once the taxi drivers stopped harassing me, it was on to homeless people and panhandlers trying to sell you junk or flat-out saying, “Give me $2.” Pimps were along the sidewalk with binders full of pictures of all their girls they were trying to “connect” you with.
Then there were the drug dealers. Along with offering the official narcotic of Jamaica, weed, these thugs would rattle off a list of substances, some of which I’d never heard of. Once again, a polite “no” wasn’t enough to make them leave me alone. I had to be firm and tell them to just stop.
The crazy part is that all of this was taking place right in front of several constables who were keeping an eye on things. So much for law and order in Jamaica.
As I continued walking, I saw a well-dressed man crossing the street and making a beeline toward me. He was trying to get me to come to his “pharmacy,” even offering me a free ride to it. This was pretty much the last straw.
I didn’t get anywhere near the town center and wasn’t going to take any more chances, so I turned around and made my way back to the ship, passing the same drug dealers, panhandlers, and taxi drivers on my way back.
Considering Holland America has a substantial base of older people who cruise with them, it makes little to no sense that they decide to use this port, which I consider to be in a very dangerous part of town, far removed from the town center. Granted, the town center may not be any safer, but putting older passengers into a situation like this willingly simply doesn’t make much sense.
Jamaica isn’t known for being one of the safest spots to visit, so whether you’re stopping in Falmouth or Ocho Rios, be vigilant, travel in groups, stay on the ship, or book an excursion through the cruise line.
The most popular shore excursion for both Falmouth and Ocho Rios is a trip to Dunn’s River Falls, which has a beach and a 600-foot waterfall. Taxis would take you there, but I’d recommend booking a visit through your cruise line.
Now that I’ve checked Ocho Rios off the list of ports I’ve visited, I’m moving it over to my list of places where I don’t get off the ship. After spending less than 45 minutes ashore, I have absolutely no desire to ever relive this experience again.
Lido Market Breakfast
For those waiting to go ashore, breakfast was being served in the Lido Market, the ship’s buffet. Here’s a peek at the menu:
Lido Market Lunch
Since today was a port day, lunch was not being served in the main dining room and was only available at the Lido Market, the Dive-In for burgers and dogs, and New York Pizza. Here’s what was being served for lunch in the Lido:
Now, let’s take a look at some of the things going on around the ship:
Morning Highlights
- Tai Chi at the Lido Pool
- Abs class in the Fitness Center
Afternoon Highlights
- Shuffleboard tournament
- Coloring for adults
- Team trivia
- Pickleball
Evening Highlights
- Mass
- Music trivia
- Yacht rock and 70s music in the Rolling Stone Lounge
- One-Hit Wonders, 80s music, and requests by the piano players in Billboard Onboard
- Vocalist Sam Scott in the ship’s main theatre
Tonight is the second “Dressy” night of the cruise, and while business casual is pretty much the norm every night on Holland America, a few do up their game a bit for pictures or just to feel fancy.
It’s also the night for two different themed dinners. The first is served in the Lido Market, and while food from the Lido is free, tonight’s special offering comes with a $35 per person charge. The Caribbean Seafood Boil is offered once per cruise and is pretty much exactly what the name says it is: a boil loaded with seafood, corn on the cob, and potatoes. It’s offered at 5 p.m. and 7:30 p.m., and reservations are recommended as space is limited since they carve out a small space in the Lido Market for it.
In the main dining room, it’s the Gold Gala Dinner featuring a menu of Holland America Line’s most favorite dishes, and that’s where I headed after a few cocktails at the Ocean Bar.
I started out with a shrimp cocktail and a very small asparagus and artichoke salad. The salad wasn’t one of my favorites this cruise, and sounded better than it was.
For my main course, I went with the beef tenderloin served Oscar style along with a side of ricotta and spinach tortellini. The tenderloin was cooked a perfect medium rare and, while it wasn’t as good as a tenderloin you would get in the ship’s steakhouse, it was delicious nonetheless.
I ended the night with the Dulce De Leche and coconut tart, which was a bit on the heavy side but sweet enough to make it the perfect ending for a great meal.
Service tonight was… fantastic! Dinner was paced perfectly, I wasn’t rushed, and my servers were very attentive during the whole meal.
Being that this was the last time I would be having dinner in the main dining room this cruise, I have to say that while the food has been very good, service could be hit or miss, with some nights being a leisurely meal, while others felt like a race to get you in and out.
Those who follow along know that I usually avoid the main dining room on cruises, except on Holland America, and that will continue based on my experience here this week on the Nieuw Amsterdam.
After dinner, I stopped by the Rolling Stone Lounge on Deck 2 for the “Chocolate Surprise,” an array of passed chocolate treats, because if there’s one thing we need more of, it’s… chocolate!
Tomorrow will be spent at sea as we travel to our final port of call on Saturday: Half Moon Cay in the Bahamas. It’s also the biggest night of the cruise, Orange Night! So stay tuned for details, and as always, thanks for following along.
Personal Day-By-Day Holland America Nieuw Amsterdam Cruise Review: