What,exactly,was horrible about the various Caribbean ports?

We have not been there, but we are considering a Caribbean cruise. We like clean areas and well organized excursions. So, I get we should avoid Freeport. Others?

Also, I have read the Caribbean coral reefs are being destroyed by cruise ship waste. Does anyone know if this is true?

Ten bucks says you'll get a bunch of posts telling you to avoid BELIZE and ROATAN BEACH, HONDURAS. Just wanted to jump in and say how much I loved those places.

Here's what I had to say about Progreso, Mexico in August of 2005:

Several alternatives went through my mind as I took the bus from Progreso to Merida: was this some sort of joke? Is CCL in dire straits financially? Do they think we are stupid?

I remember reading that this was the World’s Longest Pier or something along those lines. Aren’t piers supposed to be elevated, or at least pier-like? This is a man made peninsula from Hell, with concrete trucks rumbling by at breakneck speeds, and in the distance, piles and piles of broken concrete, rusty ships, third world industrial things… and this was before the ride from the ship to the end of the pier. Never has the word “shuttle” meant so little.

The little shopping area in Progreso is where you should pick up your trinkets, jump back on the “shuttle” (imagine Tom Sawyer’s school bus preserved in acid and then carted on a rusty barge to Botswana, used there for a century, and then hauled here), and kick it back to the Lido Deck. Do not, repeat, do not go to Merida. It looks up to being Tijuana. I know there are aficionados of Merida, and you would do well to read their reviews. I am calling it the way I saw it, and I saw nothing redeeming about the place but the cathedral.

I don't think I'd use the word "horrible" for any of them. "Disappointing" would be my word for Progreso/Merida. I concur with Carla's assessment of that place. When your ship docks several miles from the shoreline, you might get the suspicion that things won't be good. If I ever go there again it will be considered a sea day for me.

Belize isn't a bad place, it just doesn't interest me. The people are very nice and they are trying very hard to go from third world to second world status.

I also like Roatan. It is perhaps poorer than Belize but again, the people are great and the beaches are well worth going to. When we were last there we hired a cab for the day and then a kid from the local high school was "assigned" to us as a guide and interpreter because the cabbie didn't speak English. It was a fun, rustic day that harkened back to travel in the old days with dusty roads, goats in the road, etc., and not in a tour bus with complimentary bottled water. I still fondly recall the school boy - Alberto. His big dream was to visit NYC and go to college.

Our tour guide in Roatan was Maria and the driver spoke english no problem. Maria had spent a few years in the USA but loved her homeland so she returned and became a tour guide on port days.
she was very knowledgable of the world.

We did like Roatan & Belize, we only saw a small area of each but liked what we saw.
Some of Caribbean islands are much better than others.

I've never seen a "horrible" port, there are some that I wasn't impressed with. Caracas and Isla Margarita come to mind with the ports I don't care to go back to, but they weren't horrible. I enjoy ports that are rustic (as Dave puts it). I would rather not see high-rises, hotels up the ying-yang, and bumper to bumper traffic, but that's my preference. You can read multiple reviews on the same port and not get two that agree. You'll never know if you like a port or not, until you visit it personally. Best wishes!

If you like ports that are well-scrubbed, consider a short cruise on the Disney Cruise Line that calls at Castaway Cay, their private island, preceded by 4 days in Disney World. Otherwise, I concur with the above posters.

The nice thing about cruising is that you get to "sample" many different ports without having to commit to staying there for several days. Spend a little time in each one, remembering that many of these are much poorer countries than ours, and they depend on our visits for their livelihood - often there is no other industry besides tourism. You may find yourselves pleasantly surprised at what you find there! If a port is less than enjoyable for you, head back to your ship for lunch and spend the afternoon onboard.

Though I have my favorite ports, I have some that I really don't like, Ocho Rios, Jamaica and Phillipsburg, St. Martin are two of my least favorite, but that's a personal opinion, some people like them alot. I've been to both these ports several times and maybe I'm just getting spoiled and tired of them. Some of the posters on here are real cruisaholic's (I only have a slight problem, usually 1 or 2 cruises a year at best), some cruise 3 or more times a year, so they get a bit pickier than most. Even my least favorite ports aren't horrible, haven't seen a Caribbean port that was horrible, so don't worry, be happy mon.

Thanks, everyone.

The beaches look so beautiful in the latest Pirates of the Caribbean movie (Great Bahama).

And scenes of Caribbean Island towns (St. Andrews) in the old Miami Vice TV series look enchanting.

Maybe I'm dreaming.

quote:

Originally posted by fivepoints:
Also, I have read the Caribbean coral reefs are being destroyed by cruise ship waste. Does anyone know if this is true?

No cruise ship is allowed to discharge anything within 12 miles from land so the answer would be no. There were some incidents and even a huge fine for Carnival a while ago but those are exceptions.
Ports I would avoid are Jamaica (because of the constant hassle from vendors), Freeport (NOTHING to do there) and Belize. But in those ports there are some really nice excursions to do so it's still worth it.
Have fun

No horrible ports for me.

Some I like better than others. Jamaica and Freeport would be my most least liked. But I am keeping an open mind about Jamaica as was told it has improved.

I have not found a port that I could say I "hated". It does get a little tiring with vendors bugging you to buy, but hey, that's how they make their living. We have found some cute items from these vendors. If you go out on your own, you might encounter more pressure from the locals than if you were on a ship excursion. But, sometimes, that's the fun of it. Interacting with different cultures. You have to go with a sense of having a good time and experiencing differences in the way others live. They are not as fortunate as us, but rely on us to make their living. In most cases, just say no and they leave you alone. My least favorite is probably Isla Margarite. I agree with Penny3333. Was a little apprehensive when we got off of the ship and there were soldiers there to greet us. Wasn't too impressed with Antigua, but only did a beach excursion on our own and was at the mercy of the taxi driver. Should have done some research first. Either way, I look at it as being on vacation and wanting to have a good time.

DH and I weren't thrilled with St. Martin/Sint Maarten because we took an excursion that included busing from the Dutch side to the French side. Big mistake! The interior of the island is completely third world, which is okay until you get to the french side and all the multi-million dollar resorts and it becomes obvious that the $$ that you spend will not be trickling down! Bummed me out big time. Not even the free rum punch on the boat ride back to the ship helped! So, if you go there, stick to watersports, beaches or downtown shopping...those were all good.

Thanks all.

I agree that Belize is a little difficult. No cruise ship can dock there, so it’s a pain in the neck to deal with being taken to shore and back. Roatan is beautiful. It used to be an English territory, so majority of the population speaks English. We actually rented a car there. I made reservations from home right over the Internet with Avis. They were waiting for us right at port. Now the car was some old junker, but for $40, it was worth it. The beaches are a little bit far away from the port, so it would cost you a lot more to hire a taxi. We actually got a map of Roatan and drove around, visiting iguana farm, and driving around where old money houses are located. Later we had a very nice lunch of fresh local fish and went snorkeling. The water was very clear and the fish would swim up to you. Even if you don’t snorkel, bring a pretzel to feed the fish. It’s a lot of fun. Antigua I would say would make my list also, but I have not seen it mentioned here so far.

Howdy from Texas! I'm fixing to go on my 7th cruise in 2 weeks (AMEN!) out of Galveston to Belize, Roatan, Costa Maya and Cozumel - 3 of those I've never been to so I'm excited to actually see something new for a change.

However, I can guarantee you the worst port stop for us was VERACRUZ - hands down. Oh that was so disappointing...thousands and thousands of people lined up the streets right up to the ship just to stare at it in awe all day long and harass people trying to get off. It was like a mob waiting to attack us if we made a move. It was so bad the captain had to call the Mexican police to get it under control before the situation elevated. We, along with everybody else, stayed on the ship that entire 2 days we were docked in Veracruz. I would avoid Veracruz at all costs.

Just got back from our latest cruise in Nov. and I have to add to my earlier post re least favorite ports. I must add Martinique to my least favorite islands catagory, certainly would would not book a week there in a hotel! Again, I have to point out that it really depends on what you do in the port, what mood you're in, how much rum you drank, he he. Martiniqe was truly a waste. Luckily though, we did get to see some great islands, Grenada, St. Lucia, Antigua and the ever lovely St. Thomas. Princess Cay was nice too. Choochella went on the same intinerary a few weeks earlier and she didn't like Antigua. We thought the island looked a tad bit on the trashy side, the way they usually do, however we went to a lovely beach resort with a day pass and had the time of our lives, we loved it. I guess that proves my point, right? I don't like Jamaica, but have friends who rave about it. Still love the Virgin Islands the best though, such fond memories there.