Native Choice - Ruins Tour

[ellenb23]

We did the Chacchoben Extreme tour with David as our tour guide a couple weeks ago, and I give him and the company the highest recommendation. It was a truly wonderful day, especially with David's excellent commentary on the ruins and Mayan history. Lunch and swimming in Bacalar Lagoon was the perfect conclusion after walking around the ruins.

 

One major bit of advice, though... bring water shoes for the Lagoon! The shore is very rocky, and our friends who did not have water shoes definitely regretted it. (Flipflops were not sufficient.)

 

Again, my highest recommendation for David and his team!

[burm]

One major bit of advice, though... bring water shoes for the Lagoon! The shore is very rocky, and our friends who did not have water shoes definitely regretted it. (Flipflops were not sufficient.)

 

 

 

I purchased Keen's water sandals for our recent cruise. They took me everywhere but the dining room at night.

 

 

Because they have closed toes (most water sandals don't), they are perfect for rocky beaches, climbing ruins, wading out to boats, etc.

 

They are also so comfortable that you can walk for miles with them.

 

Because I take a ladies' size 7, I was able to buy childrens' 5 and pay half - and also get cooler colours. :D

 

http://www.keenfootwear.com/product/ss11/shoes/kids/youth/newport%20h2/pinecone

[Gala]

We did the Chacchoben Extreme tour with David as our tour guide a couple weeks ago, and I give him and the company the highest recommendation. It was a truly wonderful day, especially with David's excellent commentary on the ruins and Mayan history. Lunch and swimming in Bacalar Lagoon was the perfect conclusion after walking around the ruins.

 

One major bit of advice, though... bring water shoes for the Lagoon! The shore is very rocky, and our friends who did not have water shoes definitely regretted it.

Again, my highest recommendation for David and his team!

 

I second this opinion! We did the same tour with David and Israel and enjoyed every minute of it. It was an excellent choice, and a perfect combination of the 2 parts - the ruins and the lagoon, complementing each other in the best way. David was so knowledgeable and passionate about Mayan culture, history and traditions. It was very inspiring and impressive! The Lagoon resort was actually amazing, I never expected to find such a slice of paradise in the middle of the jungle! We had a delicious lunch and a choice of drinks there and then had time to relax, swim or even kayak on the turquoise lake... It was so perfect!

 

Enjoy,

Gala

(last cruise Celebrity Equinox, West Caribbean and Central America, Mar 21-Apr 1 2011)

[dyjack]

Glad to hear the guys are still providing excellent service. We toured with them in 2006 and it was by far the best excursion we've ever had (Phil in Ocho Rios being a close second).

 

I've been singing their praises ever since and would take the tour again if ever in Costa Maya. They were very informative and handled our group as if it were only 5 of us (full bus). My son still speaks of this excursion and their knowledge. His favorite part was the knowledge they had of the different flora and the medicinal uses.

 

Top notch guys, top notch excursion!!!

[adventuregrrl]

We went on Native Choice's Chacchoben Tour in March 2010. It was really awesome. Ivan, David, Noelle and the whole team were knowledgeable. We enjoyed learning about the culture, as well as about the plants and animals.

 

In addition to the ruins, we saw a monkey, some bats and lots of different birds. On the way back to Costa Maya, we bought pineapple spiced with chili pepper... I know it sounds kinda gross, but it is delicious. (We subsequently found it at our local Trader Joe's.)

 

Our friends from the cruise who went with the ship excursion to the same ruins only had a mediocre experience. The real difference for us was the outstanding guides. We would go with Native Choice again if ever stop in Costa Maya again.

 

If you're interested, here's the link to our pics:

[mtb242]

Based on all the recommendations on this forum, I switched my May 2nd Costa Maya excursion from the NCL to the Native Choice Chacchoben Ruins tour. I have a question I hope someone can answer. The NCL Epic docks at 8am and my tour is slated for 9am. I am guessing we will need to try and be one of the first off the ship in order to make our way to their tour office in time. Does anyone have a recommendation or comment on this tactic? Do we need to be lining up first thing that morning?

[Gala]

Based on all the recommendations on this forum, I switched my May 2nd Costa Maya excursion from the NCL to the Native Choice Chacchoben Ruins tour. I have a question I hope someone can answer. The NCL Epic docks at 8am and my tour is slated for 9am. I am guessing we will need to try and be one of the first off the ship in order to make our way to their tour office in time. Does anyone have a recommendation or comment on this tactic? Do we need to be lining up first thing that morning?

 

No, you don't - at least we did not (our ship was also there at 8am). We got out of the ship around 8:20am or so, went through the shopping area, exited it and found ourselves on a plaza with a few taxis. Do approach the little kiosk with the taxi coordinator and show him/her your tour confirmation. If you are the only ones for the transfer to the Native Choice office, they (the taxi people) might keep you there, waiting for any other passengers to join. That is what happened to us but we also kept track of time, and at 8:45am told them that we did need to be in the office before 9am, at which point they gave us a ride. The ride is short, within 5 min, I believe.

 

Enjoy your tour, I believe you made a right choice! It was definitely one of the most impressive and enjoyable tours of the whole cruise for us.

 

Good luck,

Gala in FL

[TXFrank]

I join all of the others that have commented so positively on the Native Choice excursion options. They have really mastered their business and I look forward to touring with them again in the future. We last used their services in January 2010 and everything about our day with Noelle was top notch. Their responses to me when pre-ordering prior to ever leaving home were very reassuring (and emails were returned promptly). I would also like to tell you about absent minded me leaving the receipt on the ship when we started the day. There was not enough time to return and retrieve the receipt, and while David (who checked us in) did not immediately locate me on his manifest, he recalled emailing with me. His response was, "No problem ... it will show up." He was so calming that it immediately set the tone for the rest of a very enjoyable day. I have shared their website with several who sought alternatives for the Costa Maya stop and have received nothing but thank yous from those who chose to tour with NC. I wish them continued success.