Jamaica Cruise Excursion: Dunn's River Falls & VIP Bamboo Beach Club

Dunn's River Falls in Jamaica.

Oh Jamaica. Lush green vegetation. Beautiful turquoise water. Pina coladas and pouring down rain. Jamaica was Bunny and I's least-favorite port of call because of the weather. We visited Jamaica in early February 2016 via Celebrity Cruises.

Our excursion had us awake early and down at the pier at 8:45 a.m. This was WAY too early to be off the ship. We had signed up for the Dunn's River Falls waterfall climb and VIP Bamboo Beach Club break. It was a true full-day experience and we had to be up early to fit it all in.

The port shopping area at the pier was the nicest we encountered. Shops were new and salespeople didn't hard sell us as we walked through. It felt safe and calm.

We checked in at our meeting point and hopped in an air-conditioned van. We met Olivia, our guide and hostess for the day who treated us to general information and some lesser-known facts about Jamaica as we drove one full hour to Dunn's River Falls. She taught us how to say "Ya Man" and my new adopted life philosophy: If we ain't be screamin, you ain't be screamin.

The long drive through two parishes allowed us to see quite a bit of Jamaica. The swanky resorts were mostly tucked away and the few dilapidated homes with jagged shards of  glass set on fences as burglar protection made my heart ache.

We arrived at Dunn's River Falls and changed into swimsuits. Olivia warned us that we would be drenched from head to toe, and we needed closed-toe shoes, but not our sunglasses. I wore my Keds sneakers, planning to trash them afterward, and Bunny miraculously brought a pair of Aquasox. Flip flops would not work for this. Little stands did have waterfall shoes to rent. You could go barefoot and one gal in our group did.

There were multiple places to stop for photos while climbing the waterfall. No one rushed us. We enjoyed the high energy guide and focus on safety.

Climbing up the waterfall was amazing. We had one guide and one videographer and multiple photo opportunities. You don't climb up the side as I had thought, you jump in the waterfall at the bottom and climb up through the middle.

There are hidden rocks in the water, slippery rocks and some parts that were physically challenging. There was the option for folks to go up to the observation deck and watch family members climb. I almost turned around and went up the observation deck when I saw "the slide" where the guide was helping people down a waterslide-like drop deep into the falls. Bunny was brave and participated. I actually had on a light long sleeve top and managed to keep my top half totally dry through the climb.

It took us about an hour to climb the waterfall, but it felt like 20 minutes it was so fun. Our guide was wonderful and was very concerned about safety during the climb. As soon as Bunny and I climbed out of the water (me still half-dry) it began to pour tropical rain. In an instant, we were drenched and shivering under a cover. When our group was ready, we hopped in the van, still damp, for a 20-minute ride to the Bamboo Beach Club. We were there for 2 hours, 20 minutes and it rained for the first hour.

We would have loved Jamaica even more - if it had actually been sunny most of the time. Here is the lovely beach at the Bamboo Beach Club.

The club was lovely with cushy chairs and a constant stream of drinks and food (included). A small dance troupe entertained us. Bunny loved the pina coladas. I was wary of any food served from the little huts. And we sat there, damp and shivering. Finally, the rain stopped and I think we enjoyed some warm-ish weather for about 30 minutes and it was time to go. The restroom at the club was the worst we encountered on our trip, so you're warned.

Our van ride back to the port included one hour of pouring rain and some scary drivers, which Olivia called CJs, Crazy Jamaicans.

As soon as our ride was over, we booked it through the storm back to the ship. We were never so happy to be back on the ship. The rest of the night I was singing: "If you like pina coladas, and getting caught in the rain ... you're in Jamaica!"

Verdict: Jamaica is beautiful. I would not sign up for such a long excursion again. Spending 2+ hours in the van was no fun. But, I'm so glad we climbed the falls. It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience. The beach club would have been great if it was sunny. And much to my surprise, neither Bunny nor I got food poisoning from lunch that day!