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@KeeKalena:This was our dilemma too! We ended up going to Ocho Rios, but would love to go to St. Lucia someday as well. Jamaica is cheaper than St. Lucia - which ended up being our deciding factor, we were able to stay for longer and do more off-site things.
One thing to keep in mind is that will be hurricane season for the Caribbean so MAKE SURE you have insurance on the trip!
@hisgoosiegirl: Oohh good call! We had originally wanted to do a destination wedding in St. Lucia but was wary of having it in Sept because of hurricane season. But now for some reason, I've forgotten about that!
Good to know that Jamaica is more affordable that St. Lucia! How was the sight seeing there? I'm really excited about the falls and visiting plantations.
Thank you so much for your input!
St. Lucia is definitely more expensive. You can travel outside of the hurricane belt to have better chances during your honeymoon time. Don't feel limited to the Caribbean if you aren't "beach people". Don't go that route just because it's popular. Decide what things are important for you both to do and see and go from there. If you like to hike or ski, find a place on the globe that offers that in September...
@hecallsmelove: Strange as it sounds, I didn't even know about which one was more cheap or expensive. So I'm glad to get feedback from you guys.
I'm not sure why I was so drawn to St. Lucia but I was. I also heard very good things about Ocho Rios so I'm happy to go there as well.
FI and I are quite boring lol...we're not very outdoorsy people. We're not beach people in the sense that we can't spend a whole week doing nothing and staying on the beach. We do however like relaxing and seeing new places.
We went to Ocho Rios for our Honeymoon in October. We had a blast! We stayed at the Sandals resort. Outside of the resort is quite sketchy, but there was plenty to do outside the resort; ziplining, swimming with dolphins, Dunns Falls, watersports, snorkling scuba diving, etc. I would suggest staying at Sandals or all inclusive places liek that because they take care of planning all your excursions outside of the resort and transportation. Plus at Sandals theres stuf to do on the resort so you don't have to leave everyday! The weather was rainy the first day we were there but was beautiful the rest of the week.
@Petor2011: Great advice! I will look into the Sandals resort there. Ooohh you had me at swimming with dolphins. That's one thing I want to do before I die LOL. Yay I'm feeling better about Ocho Rios already! Thank you!
We went to St. Lucia and staryed at Stonefield Estates- if you aren't beachy people, I would definatly recomend it. Everyone that stays there gets their own little hut with your own pool and its very private and secluded and gorgeous. Its not on the beach and it is right next to the pitons. None of the big all inclusive resorts are near-by whcih is really nice because there are not a lot of people. THat might be a draw-back for some people, but we loved that. Check out the resort website, it was actually pretty affordable, especially for the accomidations, and we had a great time.
@kirafiki: Wow that sounds amazing! I will definitely check it out. Thanks for the suggestion!
i;ve been to Jamaica and definitely recommend it! I can't compare it to St. Lucia though. But if you end up in Ochos Rios, be sure to go to Dunn's River Falls! Another thing to consider. if you are really beach people, then you should also consider Negril, Jamaica as it has the best beaches in Jamaica.
Yeah we went to Dunn's River Falls (very cool) we ended up not doing anything else off-resort, lol - but dolphin swimming and ziplining sounded fun. We had thought about a plantation tour as well....and just never did it, lol. We just ended up being really lazy and liked sitting on the beach.
We stayed at Couples San Souci - but I have heard that the Negril beaches are better. CSS was fairly secluded and private - they had some great views and cozy hammocks all over the grounds to hang out in. Walking around at night was great because you stumbled upon several great hideaways to talk or kiss :)
@PurpleUnicorn: Thanks for the recommendation! I will definitely check out Dunn's River Falls!
@hisgoosiegirl: I'm really excited for Dunn's River Falls and also the plantation tours! I also heard that Negril beaches are amazing but we're not going mainly for the beaches. I'll look into CSS, it sounds great!
We plan on going to Ocho Rios for our honeymoon. We stopped there on our first cruise together and vowed to return for our honeymoon. On that trip we went to Dunn Rivers Falls (amazing, like PP stated), hung out at the beach, and went on a private tour of the area. On our honeymoon we are staying at sandals and are planning several off resort excursions such as ziplineing, swimming with the dolphins, a bike ride through the mountains, some plantation tours and we would love to skydive there if we find a place (a hobby of ours).
@mzlouis2b: That sounds amazing! We would probably do the same thing excpet for skydiving! LOL!
I've been telling FI about all of your suggestions and we're both so excited about all the suggestions!
@KeeKalena: like hisgoosiegirl, i stayed at a Couples resort, but in Negril (it was called Couples Negril, and there is another one in Negril called Couples Swept Away), and it was AMAZING! there were plenty of on site activities included in the resort like snorkeling, scuba diving, glass bottom boat and catamaran cruise boat rides, wind surfing. and more! LOVED IT!
My wedding was in Montego Bay and i definitely liked the beaches better in Negril. i can't compare to Ochos Rios though. Although in Montego Bay, we stayed at a 3.5 star resort (Couples is 5 star), so that may have influenced my opinion of each place as well.
@PurpleUnicorn: I've heard amazing things about the beaches in Negril. Maybe we could do a day trip there if we go to Ocho Rios, I'm not even sure if that's do-able LOL.
If it was, we would definitely go just to say we experienced the beaches in Negril!
@KeeKalena: it should be do-able, i remember when looking at all the excusions to choose from, a day trip to Negril beaches was one of the options!
@PurpleUnicorn: Awesome! Then that's definitely gonna happen if the final destination is Ocho Rios!
Thank you so much for all your help!
@KeeKalena: hey, no problem! I know how badly you want info from people who've actually been there! If you do stay at a Couple's resort, it's very simple to do a day trip or even split time between resorts. Something to keep in mind.
@hisgoosiegirl: Oh, I didn't even consider splitting time between resorts! Day trips are definitely do-able for us. I'm so happy there are bees who can help me out and give me advice and suggestions!
We are getting married at the Riu in Ocho Rios .....sooooo you know my answer :)
Ocho Rios is great (we honeymooned at Couples Sans Souci there) but if I could choose between the two I would say St. Lucia. It's just SO incredibly beautiful there! Though I've heard it's very hard to get to and very expensive.
@CanadianMermaid: OMG how exciting! I heard the Riu is amazing there!
@PitBulLover: Yeah I've heard amazing things about both but $$$ is something we don't have a lot of. The final decision would most likely be based on affordability. Since there are so many good things about both places, we won't feel like we had to sacrifice a lot because of money.
I'm from St. Lucia but actually lived in Jamaica for three years 2005-2008. I stayed at a hotel in Ochi (short for Ocho Rios) before also as well as visited Dunns River Falls. Jamaica is beautiful if you choose selectively where to go to and where to avoid. Awesome beaches and resorts (found in St. Lucia also), but it fails in comparison to the historic nature of St. Lucia. Even the famous Dunns River Falls in Jamaica are mostly man-made.
In St. Lucia, apart from the amazing beaches, many of which are secluded and allow for intimacy, you have a range of resorts to choose from, which means you don't have to incur ridiculous expense. Every few feet along coastal waters is another hotel, and more inland u'll find lots and lots of guest houses within walking distance, all at many varying price ranges. St. Lucia is also a volcanic island which means there are both white and black sand beaches (google them). Apart from that, St Lucia has the only drive-in volcano in the world. Literally the entire community of Soufriere lies within the crater of the volcano, and you are able to see bubbling water (the volcano is dormant, not extinct), bathe in the waterfall, or take a mud bath which leaves your skin feeling incredible smooth! All natural! Also you have a range of other waterfalls and hot springs and natural pools right through the island, as well as the Pitons which are fun to look at and more fun to climb, if youre up for that challenge! (google them also!) They are the most beautiful sight at sunset. Then you can go ziplining through the forest, or go up in a hot air baloon. There are countless water sports at every turn also - kayaking, jet ski-ing, you name it.
I may be biased seeing I am from St. Lucia, though i love Jamaica like my second home, but if price is the only down side to going to St. Lucia, you might just need to choose a cheaper resort than most, and the options are many.
Hope this helps!!
@glitter86: You are not helping my St. Lucia-fever! DH and I would love to go sometime in the next few years!
@glitter86: Dammit, and here I was thinking I'm closer to a final decision! Omg I knew I there was a reason why I wanted to go to St Lucia! It sounds amazing there!!! Thanks for your input!!
@hisgoosiegirl lol oh yeah, i forgot to mention snorkeling, glass bottom boats trips etc as well as ferry rides at night, one of which can take you from the mainland to a separate restaurant :)
sorrrry :)
@hisgoosiegirl: Yeah even if we don't get to go this yr, we could always go on one of our anniversaries!
@KeeKalena: yeah, that's our thinking too. We'd have had to scrimp a bit on exursions/length of stay to do St. Lucia in our budget.......whereas Jamaica we could do it all. Plus neither of us had travelled much, so we wouldn't have noticed if the resort wasn't super spectacular. We're looking at going maybe next spring to St. Lucia and at that point we'll be able to stay longer than 4-5 nights (want to do a whole week) and do more of the off-site stuff. We want to do it right when we do go ;)
@hisgoosiegirl: Yeah you're right. I would like to do St. Lucia properly LOL! FI has been to Cuba once and I've never been to a resort other than back home in the Philippines so we're no resort experts either.
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We've initially planned going to Ocho Rios, Jamaica for our honeymoon. People have told me that the Riu is awesome there.
I've also wanted to go to St. Lucia, but I think FI prefers to go to Jamaica. He's really open though to other places.
We're not really beach people so we would also like to do some sight-seeing and learn about the history etc. What are your thoughts? Has anyone been to one or the other or both?