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No Scuba excursion in Belize


airbusdrvr
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The only place I use the ships scuba excursion is in Belize due to logistical reasons. We are booked on Liberty of the Seas in May and RCCL is not showing any scuba excursion for Belize and they always have in the past. Does anyone know what may be going on?

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The one shop that the cruise lines used is no longer in business in Belize City. You have a few options but they are independent opp's. I personally dove with SeaSports Belize last year. They are the only shop that I know of that you can use in Belize city. All the other's are out at the Cay's which require either a ferry ride or plane ride to get to.

I was happy with the diving at SeaSports and would recommend them.

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Not true. Carnival still has scuba excursions in Belize with the dive op, Hugh Parkey's, which picks up directly at their ships to go out to Turneffe reef.

if you do an independent dive op, you'll have to take the tender boat to shore, then meet the dive op or ferry, and take their boat from there.

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  • 1 month later...

We dove through Carnival in Belize at the end of November 2017 and the operator used was Aqua Scuba, out of San Pedro. We did the Turneffe Atoll dive excursion.

 

I have noticed that Royal Caribbean doesn't have dive excursions in places where Carnival does and vice versa, I guess it depends whoever gets the contract where there are limited ops willing to do it.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Splash, Seahorse, and GoSea are all based out of Placencia. There is nothing on Harvest Caye other than NCL activities...and the ferry to Placencia.

 

I am on the Getaway in April. I plan to dive with Splash.

 

Good luck!

Kimberly

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  • 2 weeks later...
The only place I use the ships scuba excursion is in Belize due to logistical reasons. We are booked on Liberty of the Seas in May and RCCL is not showing any scuba excursion for Belize and they always have in the past. Does anyone know what may be going on?

 

 

You asked this in February. Have your cruise sailed yet? Royal has been terrible with scheduling scuba in many locations. I understand the reasoning for wanting to go with the cruise line. I felt the same way for my first visit in Bonaire. 6 months before my cruise there were scuba offerings. at 4months out I went to book and they were gone. They showed up again 2 weeks before my cruise, but I went ahead and booked private because of their poor offerings. Again, in Belieze I understand your sentiment. I hope something comes available again.

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  • 2 weeks later...
  • 3 weeks later...
  • 2 months later...
Splash, Seahorse, and GoSea are all based out of Placencia. There is nothing on Harvest Caye other than NCL activities...and the ferry to Placencia.

 

I am on the Getaway in April. I plan to dive with Splash.

 

Good luck!

Kimberly

 

we are on the getaway in August - can you please expand on your diving /snorkeling experiences for this itinerary?

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Sure, MickeyFreak. If you will forgive the long post, here is a review I posted on ScubaBoard. Cheers!

 

NCL Getaway 15 April 2018 -

I am not the biggest fan of cruising for a number of reasons, but there are worse ways to dive. I brought my own gear, rinsed it in the shower, and dried it on the balcony. My BCD was the only cumbersome part of bringing my own gear, but I would likely do it again to know I have something that fits just right and is what I am used to.

I decided to not do any ship excursions: I did not want large groups; I did not want 1x/year (or fewer) dive buddies; I feel like cruises take advantage of both the guests and the outfits. For the ports I was diving, I was very comfortable with my odds of returning on time.

I thought I had researched timing well and learned that "ship time" stayed in sync with the local time of the departure port. This was not the case; the ship recognized local time in all ports, changing from EDT to EST to CST and back.

 

Costa Maya -

I booked a lionfish hunt with Doctor Dive. Concerned that I may be an hour late due to time miscalculation, I hurried past the empty trolley at the port exit, figuring that it would be some time before it loaded up and made its way to Mahahual. The first taxi quoted me $8 USD. I walked further only to find the same result. They now charge by the car, not by the person, and the ride will be $8 regardless. Best would be to take the $3 trolley out and a taxi back (make new friends if you aren't there with some of your own).

Doctor Dive has a clean, comfortable shop with a nice spot to sit outside. I was the only one on my dive, which included an intro to using the Hawaiian sling spear. Costa Maya has done a great job eradicating their lionfish - we only saw two and I got a shot off on just one...and missed. No lunch for us. :-( My guide said they were about to stop doing lionfish dives due to the population decline. No regrets - it was still a good time and I look forward to trying it again elsewhere.

Being an early, 1-tank dive, I had plenty of extra time. I was not feeling beachy, so I walked down the sidewalk and bought some local art - cartoonish fish are created with multiple pieces of painted wood and re-used waste (think roll-on deodorant balls for eyes). They come attached to a wooden canvas to be hung on a wall. Mine has two fish bearing striking resemblances to my husband and to me...it will go above our headboard. clear.png

It was too early for others to be leaving the beach. For whatever reason, the trolley refuses to take you back to the ship even though it is going there anyhow. So I paid my $8 for a taxi and was able to meet Mom for lunch (she had gone on a glass-bottom boat ride).

 

Harvest Caye, Belize -

This is the private island for Norwegian Cruise Line. We opted to take a ferry off the island to Placencia at $25pp r/t. I decided not to dive here since the reef is 45-60 minutes away and it would be the riskiest port for timing. However, I saw that GoSea uses the same dock as the ferry and seemed very tuned into getting their guests back before that last ferry left.

 

Roatan -

I booked with Subway because: transportation was pre-arranged; their internship program has been on my radar for years; I wanted to dive Mary's Place. The dives were delightful - in addition to Mary's, we dove the Prince Albert and nearby airplane wreck...with a man who was on that plane when it crashed! I was surprised by a few things. No snacks were provided so we all had nothing between breakfast and 3:30pm. As each diver ran low on air (starting with our weakest), they were sent to surface alone - just four of us total and no buddies. This was the first time I experienced that, although the DM in Cozumel followed the same practice. Eye contact was often not made with the DM after entry to exchange 'OK' signals. I will be the first to admit that I am on the conservative end of the risk spectrum in all of my adventure pursuits but I thought it was worth noting.

The roads were a mess from a bad storm and traffic was a bit thick in places. There was still enough time for the unexpected, but had we been tendered from the ship as is sometimes done at that port, I probably would not have stayed for my second dive. Mind you, there are plenty of shops and sites much closer to port than I was and, as has been mentioned in this thread, it sounds like the op contracted through the cruise line does a nice job. BTW, we docked at Coxen Hole. Be aware that your line may dock at Mahogany.

 

Cozumel -

Mary's Place was the most enjoyable dive I had ever done...until we got here. I dove Cozumel once before but I think it was when I was quite new. This time was FAR more enjoyable than I had remembered. We went to San Francisco and Cedral (sp?). My GoPro had been getting stuck on the "Saving" screen, but I learned that it would record the first 14 seconds while in record mode, then I could force it to power down and reset for the next video op. I actually wound up with some decent shots but I must find out what is wrong with my camera.

This is the one place where time was an issue. They were expecting me an hour earlier. Fortunately, they needed to run some gear to the marina so I was able to hop on the truck and board fully clothed and with backpack. Thank you, Tres Pelicanos! I bumped into Mom on the street and we were on board in time for a late lunch.

There is a lot that I like about Tres Pelicanos, including their convenient location to Punta Langosta (ships also dock at the International Pier). I met divers as they got off their other boat and they are fans and repeat customers. Unfortunately, the timing does not work out unless you get off your ship by 7 or 7:15 local time.

 

I hope some of this will be helpful to someone. Cheers!

 

Kimberly

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