Mystic Mountain Jamaica Trip Report

Mystic Mountain Jamaica Trip Report

Things to do in Ocho Rios: Mystic Mountain Jamaica – Trip Report

Mystic Mountain Jamaica Bobsled Ride

Mystic Mountain Jamaica is the closest thing to a theme park that Jamaica has. So, that makes it a unique experience on the island. We visited in August 2017 to see what the hype was all about.

You can’t get to Jamaica without seeing ads for Mystic Mountain all over Montego Bay’s airport. If you check top attractions in Jamaica, Mystic Mountain is always on the list. On TripAdvisor, Mystic Mountain has a rating of 4.5 out of 5. Eighty-nine percent of reviewers gave the attraction a 4 or 5-star review.

So what’s the big deal? Read on to find out.

In case you were wondering, we did not ask for, neither did we receive, any form of compensation for writing this post. If you want the full story of our travel review, keep reading. If you just want the highlights or the key tips, please scroll to the bottom.

The ride to Mystic Mountain took us just over 30 minutes from Mais Oui Villa. Coming from Discovery Bay, the attraction is on the right-hand side just past Dunn’s River Falls. Dolphin Cove is just across the street, a short walk to the left.

We got to Mystic Mountain around 11am. Fortunately, there were no cruise ships in port so the park was not very crowded. After getting our armbands, we were allowed entry.

There are four tour packages – the Sky Explorer, Sky Explorer and Bobsled, Sky Explorer and Zipline and the Tranopy. We did the Tranopy which included all three tours.

Mystic Mountain Jamaica Sky Explorer

The Sky Explorer is actually the chairlift that takes you from the entrance of the park to the main attractions at Mystic Mountain. You cannot get there otherwise so it is kind of a misnomer to call it a tour. When we went, it cost US$47 for adult and US$23 per child, between the age of 5 and 11.

I’m not sure why anyone would choose the Sky Explorer tour option alone. To do so means that one would pay $47 for, in essence, a ride up to the park just to see the exhibits and to use the pool. Unless you are going to do ziplining and or the bobsled, paying for the Sky Explorer alone makes no sense, to me anyway.

Hot Tip: If you are thinking of visiting Mystic Mountain to do only the Sky Explorer tour, save your money. You get better value hanging out at the pool where you are staying.

On the Sky Explorer, you are several hundred feet off the ground and you get an excellent view of the town of Ocho Rios. The view of the sea is gorgeous. You can get some great photos but do hold on tight to your camera.

The lift goes very slowly, which while not my cup of tea, makes sense from the standpoint of safety.

There is a camera at station #11 so get ready fonce you get to station #10. As a fluke, the camera flashed but our picture was not taken the first go around.

Mystic Mountain Jamaica Zipline

In an effort at crowd control, the staff directed us to do the zipline first.

There were five ziplines of a minute or so each. The zips were fairly tame. Only one person screamed the whole time and she was anxious before we even got to the first platform.  If you have zipped before you will be disappointed. These ziplines would be great for first-timers.

We were taken in a large group and we moved from station to station only after everyone in the group had zipped. This meant that there was a lot of waiting around for no good reason. We would have been able to get through faster if we were in smaller groups. It took well over an hour to get through the zips.

While we waited, the guides were quite entertaining. They were telling jokes and pointing out various tress and rock formations.

Hot Tip: Avoid doing the zipline first if at all possible.

Here’s why.

The zipline ends about half way down the mountain so we had to take the Sky Explorer all the way down to the entrance of the park then back up the mountain to get to the bobsled. Also, since we were halfway down the mountain, most of the chair lifts that came by were already occupied so it took us forever to be able to get on. The Sky Explorer was fine for our initial trip up the mountain but it isn’t a tour so we were bored the second go around. On top of that, it is slow.

Mystic Mountain Jamaica Bobsled

Mystic Mountain Jamaica Bobsled Ride

The bobsled ride was fun and was our favorite ride. For about 2 minutes you get to ride in a roller coaster where the car is designed like a bobsled. The fun part is that you get to control the speed. We would have bought more rides but by then we had wasted so much time that we decided not to.

Mystic Mountain Jamaica Waterslide

There is an infinity edge pool with a waterslide which is included in the price. The pool is small for an attraction. The slide is an aluminium slide so it can get hot. There is a nice view of Ocho Rios from the pool area.

Mystic Mountain Jamaica Exhibits

There is a restaurant and of course the obligatory gift shop; however, there are some interesting educational exhibits about athletics in Jamaica, Appleton Rum production, and Jamaica’s maritime history.

There is also a very small hummingbird garden, which was very educational. If you have ever wanted to attract hummingbirds to your yard, you will find some useful tips. The birds come right up to you, which is kind of cool.

Overall …

We spent about 4 hours at Mystic Mountain. It was after we left that we realized that we got very little done in that time – the zipline tour and one twirl on the bobsled ride. We spent quite a bit of time on the Sky Explorer going between the entrance to the park and the zipline. 

Pros … There is no other attraction like it on the island

Cons … This is one of the pricier attractions on the island.

Just so you know …

  • The name of the attraction is Mystic Mountain … not Misty Mountain, or Magic Mountain, or Majestic Mountain.
  • Prices are in US dollars unless noted otherwise. If you are Jamaican, you will need local ID to get the local rate which is significantly less than the posted rates. You will not get the local rates unless you can prove that you are a local resident.
  • Expect excessive wait times which will be worse if cruise ships are in port.
  • If you are afraid of heights, you might not like the Sky Explorer since you are high above the treetops.
  • After you have had the one bobsled ride that comes with the ticket, you have the opportunity to buy more rides. Two extra rides cost $22, 3 rides for $29 and 5 rides for $44.
  • At the entrance is a bathroom that doesn’t use water. There is hand sanitizer at the sink. It is part of their water conservation efforts but I think someone missed the mark on this one. As far as I am aware, hand sanitizer does not kill coliform bacteria and so is not used in bathrooms. But what do I know? There are regular bathrooms inside the park so I suggest you use those instead.
  • If you have a shuttle to catch at a set time, factor in the time on the Sky Explorer to get out of the park.
  • There are two options to get down from Mystic Mountain. You either take the Sky Explorer back down or you take the nature trail which is about a 30-minute walk then catch the Sky Explorer at the end of the Zip Line.
  • You are able to buy pictures that are taken on the Sky Explorer and on the bobsled ride for JA1900 each or about US$20. The pictures are not available digitally.
  • Unless you will be using the pool, there is no need for a swimsuit or water shoes.
  • If you plan on going ziplining, don’t wear flip-flops, high heels, dress, skirt or bathing suit.

Mystic Mountain Jamaica is just outside of Ocho Rios, St. Ann and is about a 30 to 35-minute drive from Mais Oui Tennis and Spa Villa in Discovery Bay, Jamaica.

Contact them via:

Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/MysticMountainBobsledJamaica/

Website: http://www.rainforestadventure.com

Have you visited Mystic Mountain Jamaica? How was your experience? Let us know. Leave a comment below.

‘Til next time.

Think and dream Jamaica!

Sherry, Darrell, and Darrian

Considering a visit to Jamaica with a group? Contact us today for more information about, Mais Oui Tennis & Spa Villa, our boutique 8-BR ocean view Jamaica villa rental experience in beautiful Discovery Bay, Jamaica. Perfect for multi-generational families and groups, retreats, and intimate destination weddings and vow renewals.

Visit our website: http://www.MakeItJamaica.com

Give us a call: 866.624.7684 (toll free) or 914.709.0457

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About the Author Sherry

Sherry & Darrell, owners of Mais Oui Tennis & Spa Villa in Discovery Bay, Jamaica, consider themselves unofficial ambassadors for Jamaica. They look forward to using their insider knowledge to help guests create priceless vacation memories. Feel free to say hi!

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About the Author Sherry

Sherry & Darrell, owners of Mais Oui Tennis & Spa Villa in Discovery Bay, Jamaica, consider themselves unofficial ambassadors for Jamaica. They look forward to using their insider knowledge to help guests create priceless vacation memories. Feel free to say hi!