Janellybean

are you food pics from free main dining? they look a little to elegant to be served in main dining.. I heard food in main dining is really substandard? please clarify

We have never found the food in the main dining room to be substandard. If you don't care for something, you can always send it back or request another selection.

Doug & Janel Holt

Godley, Texas

Awesome pics! Do you think it would be ok to expand to pics of the menu selections, too?

Once we get back in May, we'll be sure to post lots of pics.

Thanks!

It depends on how long you're in port, but you should contact Native Choice to see about their tour that day.

Doug & Janel Holt

Godley, Texas

We did Tulum and Dzibanche last January, and both had their merits. Tulum was more of a tourist stop, though structurally impressive. Very crowded and touristy.

Dzibanche with Native Choice was completely different. It was like having a couple of local friends take you exploring into the jungle to show you their cultural treasures. The structures were also impressive, but this is more of a working site, with some areas still being uncovered. We were the only group there, and there were only six of us, not counting the two guides. I can't describe the feeling of climbing to the top of a remote, long deserted city and hearing the howler monkeys screaming from the nearby encroaching jungle. It even rained and I'd still say it was the best excursion of the cruise.

In short, if Tulum is on your bucket list, and in my opinion it should be, then make a point of seeing it. That's all you're doing though, seeing it from the sidewalk. If climbing a Mayan ruin (and I don't just mean a small platform) and exploring a lost city is something you want to do before they are all closed, then DO NOT MISS Dzibanche. Or do like we did, and hit them both!

Now a word on food. At Tulum we did not get a box lunch, but we're told about the Dairy Queen on site. They did stop at a tourist stop for a bathroom and shopping break on the way, though there was no food. On the way to Dzibanche, we stopped at a gas station to grab snacks both ways. And I mean a gas station, not a "travel center". Several older and wiser members of our group had packed a snack from the buffet, and as we were buying chicken salad sandwiches from a run down gas station with questionable refrigeration, limited English, and no way to break a $20 without a pocketful if pesos, I questioned our sanity. The sandwiches were great, though, and this wound up being our most memorable and adventurous day.

Either way, I hope you have a great time!

Doug & Janel Holt

Godley, Texas

We did an all day ship sponsored excursion to Mt. St. Helens - it is a long (but very scenic) bus ride and once you get inside the blast zone the scenery on the miles and miles long ride to the visitors center is other-worldly. Make sure you see the movie in the visitors center - it is informative and touching and the end isn't to be missed. Being old enough to remember the eruption (we are:D) made it really special.

We are considering the Mt. St. Helen's excursion. Anyone have any tips or suggestions on this?