Cave Tubing 15' Jump

[like2cruise]

OK, I don't want to look like a big chicken when the time comes...how was the 15' jump into the water to go cave tubing? Was it scary? Any recommendations? I am not scared of heights per say, just scared of dying...if you know what I mean :-) We are booked with Marvin at Wet N Wild in March!

[cruisinhs]

Not to worry, you don't have to jump off the 15 foot cliff! If you decided to, I will tell you that it is an awesome experience! You are jumping into crystal clear water in the middle of the Belizean rain forrest! Does it get any better than that? I think two or three out of our group did not jump. There is another way to get in that involves only a couple of feet drop and the guide basically just has you turn around backward and sit into your tube. No big deal! Either way, cave tubing is amazing! Have fun!

[Reneek]

It's no biggie! The jump is really easy according to my daughter. I chose to "back down" a small rock formation utilizing a rope to lower myself into the tube. Marvin's guide, Junior, was really knowledgeable about his country, the rain forest and the cave systems. This was one of the best tours we have ever taken while cruising. We were on Princess 2/5 and they changed the itinerary without prior notice. We arrived a day later than our booking and at 6:30AM rather than 1PM as scheduled - no problem! Marvin knows when the ships are expected, whether they change schedules, etc. We were really close on time, but made it without problems. Left Marvin's at 7:30, back at 12:55 for l PM tender time! It takes approx. 1 hour to drive to caves - it was a wild ride, I would try to snag the seats in the middle of the van.

Wear GOOD shoes that withstand walking over stones and being immersed in water. Very little current during most of our trip which required lots of arm rowing. Water is very shallow in places, has rock formations sticking up here and there and I have the bruises to prove it. This trip does require some physical endurance as it is about a 45-60 minute walk thru the jungle (wide path) carrying a large tube and then 1 1/2 + hours on the river in the tube. Don't plan to take anything extra with you as it will only weigh you down. If you are taking a water camera, I would devise a neck strap so your hands/wrist are free. For our particular trip my 14 & 15 year old teens were the youngest - I'm not sure I would take anyone too young as you tend to get separated. The river levels and currents change frequently, so your trip could be totally different. There are changing rooms/bathrooms at the parking area.

The jungle scenery from a break in the cave walls is absolutely beautiful. Our camera did not have a flash,so unsure just yet how it came out. Look forward to an awesome time as this is one of those trips not to be missed.

[Canuck Cruzer]

It's no biggie! The jump is really easy according to my daughter. I chose to "back down" a small rock formation utilizing a rope to lower myself into the tube. Marvin's guide, Junior, was really knowledgeable about his country, the rain forest and the cave systems. This was one of the best tours we have ever taken while cruising. We were on Princess 2/5 and they changed the itinerary without prior notice. We arrived a day later than our booking and at 6:30AM rather than 1PM as scheduled - no problem! Marvin knows when the ships are expected, whether they change schedules, etc. We were really close on time, but made it without problems. Left Marvin's at 7:30, back at 12:55 for l PM tender time! It takes approx. 1 hour to drive to caves - it was a wild ride, I would try to snag the seats in the middle of the van.

Wear GOOD shoes that withstand walking over stones and being immersed in water. Very little current during most of our trip which required lots of arm rowing. Water is very shallow in places, has rock formations sticking up here and there and I have the bruises to prove it. This trip does require some physical endurance as it is about a 45-60 minute walk thru the jungle (wide path) carrying a large tube and then 1 1/2 + hours on the river in the tube. Don't plan to take anything extra with you as it will only weigh you down. If you are taking a water camera, I would devise a neck strap so your hands/wrist are free. For our particular trip my 14 & 15 year old teens were the youngest - I'm not sure I would take anyone too young as you tend to get separated. The river levels and currents change frequently, so your trip could be totally different. There are changing rooms/bathrooms at the parking area.

The jungle scenery from a break in the cave walls is absolutely beautiful. Our camera did not have a flash,so unsure just yet how it came out. Look forward to an awesome time as this is one of those trips not to be missed.

 

I am on the Grand in April. They have already advised of the change in itinerary...and I have booked the cave tubing with Princess. I have just emailed a couple of companies to see if they accomodate the early port time for the Grand. But I see here you did it with Wet n Wild. He had no problem with the port times? Does he charge less than the full day tours they offer?

[Reneek]

Wet and Wild Charged us $55 (no lunch-the tour takes all your time). We went thru 2 caves rather than just the one that the Princess tour does. In fact, there were other groups there that also only did the one cave. There were only 14 people on our tour versus the 50-60 people on some of the other tours we saw. I feel we received the "ultimate" tour, rather than just a taste.

[like2cruise]

No lunch? There website says lunch is included and the rate is $60.00. Just curious. Thanks!

[Canuck Cruzer]

I got an email back from Marvin yesterday.

 

For Grand cruisers, we are in port from 6:30am to 1:30pm. He charges $55 and meets at 8am and has you back by 12:30pm. No time for lunch.

 

If you book it through Princess, you pay $99 and you get the same times for the tour...and no lunch also. And as has been said by many, the cruise tours are huge..lots of people, less touring. Wet N Wild and others are much smaller groups.

 

I know for ships that are there for the full day, there is a full day tour, which involves lunch etc...but our port times mess that up.

 

I am completely happy paying $55 instead of $99.

 

Thanks for your help. I can't wait for this port.

[like2cruise]

That makes sense...we are on Norwegian and have time for lunch apparently...thanks!

[Reneek]

Like2cruise: Oh, you are so lucky! While our tubing trip was the greatest, we all were aware of the passing time and the need to be back promptly at 1PM. To have the whole day to leisurely take the trip then lunch would have been delightful.

[Reneek]

Canuck: If there was anyway to know who was going on your trip, it is a good idea to have them ready and waiting to take the first available tender from the Grand. We finally made a later tender and the group was already waiting along with Marvin by 7:30AM.

[like2cruise]

We are there from 7a-5p and plan to try to get the earliest tender available. We have had a delay in tendering (not our fault) in Grand Cayman and had the boat full of people want to go to Stingray City waiting for us; we apologized to everyone onboard, but I am afraid we didn't make any friends that way so we prefer not to repeat this if at all possible.

[Canuck Cruzer]

Canuck: If there was anyway to know who was going on your trip, it is a good idea to have them ready and waiting to take the first available tender from the Grand. We finally made a later tender and the group was already waiting along with Marvin by 7:30AM.

 

So even if he says the group starts at 8am, we should make sure we are there earlier? Was the tendering busy even at the early hour of 6:30am? I pretty much figured we would make sure we were ready to go even at 6:30am...we can always hang out on shore...but at least we would be on shore, and not stuck in a later rush.

[Reneek]

That's right! We were gathered, paid, and boarding the van before 8AM. I have heard other ships have more time and even lunch. That would be a luxury to have plenty of time and not "watch the watch".