Destination: Labadee, Haiti

Labadee, Haiti is a portion of Haiti owned by Royal Caribbean. This location can only be visited by those traveling on a Royal Caribbean Cruise. Labadee is a tendered port, meaning you must board a smaller boat from the cruise ship that will take you to shore. Personally, I am not a fan of tendered ports. They generally require about 30 minutes in each direction as you must wait for the boat to fill before departure. Exhaust fumes tend to make you light headed and smell...well like exhaust. I recommend if you board a tender boat sit somewhere aside from the back, preferably on top if it is a 2 deck boat.

Labadee is a very pretty location, large mountains and great rock formations along the water. However, due to the severe danger present in what I refer to as "real Haiti" you are extremely limited as to where you can go. For anyone who has ever visited Coco Cay, another Royal Caribbean Island, this will be familiar. There are several "hiking" paths but once again, your limited on how far you can go. Jenny & I would have enjoyed the island far more had we been able to explore, but I certainly understand the safety issues.

If you're a drinker and like to hit the bars at port (such as ourselves) you'll likely be upset at the limited selection. A few select beers and a few liquors, but no mixers were available. No Margaritas either! We ended up tendering back to ship for a few Rum Runners before returning later in the day.

There is a "local" craft market in Labadee. Similar to the Bahamas, it seemed like every "store" had the exact same items as the previous. The locals are very involved and will hassle you as you walk and view what they have to offer. This can be ideal if you're looking for a bargain. There is a smaller craft market located inside (the others are outside) which has two stores. Both seemed to be operated by Royal Caribbean as the staff didn't hassle us as we browsed. The downfall of course is their prices were higher than the same items located outside.

Finally, we did want to mention that there is a ZIP line excursion in Labadee. Royal Caribbean offers it at $85/per person. I personally felt it was overpriced and did not do it, however we watched many people come flying in from the mountain top and they seemed to enjoy it. It appeared to be a quick ride, no more than 60 seconds from beginning to end but I'm sure zipping down at 45 MPH was an exhilarating experience. If you have the money to spare, this might be a worthy expenditure for you.

We Rate Labadee, Haiti