Within Walking Distance

The cruise terminal has no major attractions within walking distance of your Carnival cruise to Montego Bay, Jamaica. However, the Montego Freeport Shopping Center has a smattering of souvenir and beachwear shops adjacent to the port complex.

Beyond the Port Area

Small doves and finches eat right out of your hand at Rocklands Bird Sanctuary, in Anchovy, St. James, a 20-minute ride from Montego Bay (also referred to as Mo Bay by the locals). You might even coax a Jamaican doctor bird to perch on your finger and sip syrup. Your Carnival cruise to Montego Bay docks near many of Jamaica’s sugar-plantation manses,—including Jamaica’s most famous plantation home. Built two centuries ago, Rose Hall Great House gained notoriety from the doings of the White Witch, Annie Palmer, who dabbled in witchcraft and murder. Many Jamaicans insist the house is haunted.

Croydon Plantation, 24 miles inland from Mo Bay, is a mountain estate set on gently sloping terrain, with superb views of the Caribbean. Croydon Plantation – The Spirit of Jamaica provides an excursion to this beautiful mountain plantation. Montego Bay’s excellent golf courses include the Tryall Club, a regal 18-hole, par-72 course; Rose Hall Resort & Country Club, an 18-hole, par-71 course with a challenging layout (the 15th green is next to a 39-ft. waterfall); and the Half Moon Resort, at Rose Hall, an 18-hole, par-72 championship course designed by Robert Trent Jones, Sr.

Beaches In Montego Bay

Gorgeous Doctor’s Cave Beach, across from the Doctors Cave Beach Hotel, helped launch Montego Bay, Jamaica, as a resort in the 1940s. Dolphin Swim & Doctors Cave Beach combines this premier beach with an opportunity to swim with beautiful bottlenose dolphins. Enjoy a day at the beach with the Seawinds Family All Inclusive Beach Day, which serves up Jamaican jerk pork and chicken as part of their all amenities included, beach excursion. Note that most beaches in Mo Bay charge admission, around $5 to $10 for adults.

Shopping in Montego Bay

The main shopping areas near your Carnival cruise to Montego Bay are: Montego Freeport, adjacent to the cruise pier; City Centre, with much of the city’s duty-free shopping; and Holiday Village Shopping Centre, across from the Holiday Inn on Rose Hall Road. The Old Fort Craft Market, a shopping complex with nearly 200 vendors, fronts Howard Cooke Boulevard in the heart of Montego Bay. Be prepared to bargain for substantial discounts as you shop for straw hats and bags, wooden platters, straw baskets, beads, and toys. Snap up a jaunty jipijapa (Panama-style) hat for stylish shelter from the intense island sun.

Travel Tips

• The official language is English, but most Jamaicans speak a richly nuanced patois.
• The official currency is the Jamaican dollar. Visitors can use U.S. dollars, but should always find out if a quoted price is Jamaican or U.S. dollars.
• Jamaica’s year-round tropical climate has an average annual temperature of 82 degrees.
• Cruises to Jamaica dock at the Montego Bay Freeport terminal, a 5-minute taxi ride from Montego Bay.