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Sunburns, Drownings and Other Tales From the Sea - Legend 9/4/11

vamartha

By vamartha,
in Carnival Cruise Lines

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vamartha

vamartha

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I like fish porn! :) Kinky... this thread has cracked me up already.... the anatomically correct towel animal was hilarious! I love "The Big C".... thats a great show.

 

We were thinking about doing Nachi Cocum in Cozumel because of the "all inclusive" aspect... but we really want to snorkel, and Chankanaab looks great. How much were the drinks and food there if I may ask????

It seems like the local beers were about $3 and I think we paid $12 - $15 for the Mexican Platter. If you are used to an American Mexican restaurant you might be a bit disappointed but I don't generally like Mexican (DH loves it) and I thought it was very good! Came on a paper plate wrapped in Aluminum Foil.

 

I've not considered Nachi because of the lack of snorkeling but if that wasn't our primary objective I'd be at Nachi in a heartbeat based upon the pics and reviews I've seen on CC. Something tells me that me and a gallon of sunscreen would have a hard time tearing ourselves away from that swim up bar! :D

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vamartha

vamartha

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We got off the ship under overcast skies and light rain and made our way through the port to the Hammerhead check in. We were early and waited for a while for others to be tendered in.

 

The Dream was also at anchor and we had people from both ships on our excursion. We had booked a reef snorkel, Bannister Island Beach Break and manatee watch through Coral Breeze and they contract it out to Hammerhead.

 

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It did take a bit longer to get started than I anticipated but soon enough we were bouncing through the water back out past the ships and to the reef. The storm overnight had really battered the coast of Belize and stirred up quite a mess offshore. The visibility underwater was almost nonexistent. Our guides took us to a shallow part just so that we could see something but honestly all we could see was the larger brain coral and healthy looking fans. I can guarantee that it was a beautiful reef and the coral was the most healthy I had seen and one day I hope to see it when it is clear but that wasn’t the fault of the tour operators and we made the best of it.

 

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Then we went to Bannister Island and while I am not a beach person this is a slice of paradise that cannot be equaled! An amazing place. Three acres of tropical bliss!

 

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There is a swimming beach, kayaks, volleyball, hammocks hanging in trees and tons of beach chairs. There is shade and a huge bar area with a shaded patio. Clean bathrooms and food. If you get the chance I can highly recommend a trip to Bannister Island. It is private and finding out how to get there is interesting – even on this website info is hard to get about Bannister. I was finally able to find this tour via Coral Breeze and the rumor was that Carnival used to use it for their beach break but I am pretty sure that they are using another island for their excursion now.

 

We had the most amazing bartender – a young woman named Perdita. She spent a lot of time talking with us – we were the only group on the island that day and there were maybe 20 of us along with the Hammerhead staff of 4. You heard that right – we were on a private tropical island with about a total of 35 other people – it was amazing! And remember, we are not beach people! There was a cool breeze and it was just the most refreshing afternoon!

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beachbum6264

beachbum6264

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There is a swimming beach, kayaks, volleyball, hammocks hanging in trees and tons of beach chairs. There is shade and a huge bar area with a shaded patio. Clean bathrooms and food. If you get the chance I can highly recommend a trip to Bannister Island. It is private and finding out how to get there is interesting – even on this website info is hard to get about Bannister. I was finally able to find this tour via Coral Breeze and the rumor was that Carnival used to use it for their beach break but I am pretty sure that they are using another island for their excursion now.

 

We were on the Legend on 8/28/11 and took the Barrier Reef snorkel and beach break excursion through Carnival (for the 2nd year in a row) and we went to Bannister Island both times. The best thing about this excursion is they pick you up right from the ship, you don't have to tender in to Belize City first, just right to the reef from the ship.

Loving your review - I'm almost finished writing mine, and it sounds like we have the same 'cruise style'!

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balcony bound

balcony bound

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We got off the ship under overcast skies and light rain and made our way through the port to the Hammerhead check in. We were early and waited for a while for others to be tendered in.

 

The Dream was also at anchor and we had people from both ships on our excursion. We had booked a reef snorkel, Bannister Island Beach Break and manatee watch through Coral Breeze and they contract it out to Hammerhead.

 

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Hey, that is us out there on the Dream!

Loving your review!

They cancelled out snorkeling to Geoffs Cay about an hour before we were to tender:( I was sorry not to be able to go, but sounds like the visibility was as bad as they said.

 

Those storms were something else! We were in Cozumel the day before you, and the water was really rough. We were at Nachi and there might have only been 40 people there. We were the only ones that had signed up for snorkeling... they took us out in 3 foot swells to the reef, and I spent the entire time asking myself what kind of idiot I am! We snorkeled about two miles in those swells... Yikes!

 

Looking forward to the rest of your review:)

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vamartha

vamartha

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That evening we had reservations in the ships Steakhouse, The Golden Fleece. Odd name isn’t it? Isn’t the definition of fleece, well, we won’t go there. It is located under the funnel and oddly enough people can peer in at you – I thought that was strange. Our reservation was for 6:30 and we arrived and were seated at a nice table for two with a beautiful view of the mangrove islands surrounding Belize as we sailed into the sunset. I had Lobster Bisque for an appetizer and it was amazing. We both had the Surf and Turf – a lobster tail with a Filet Mignon. The Lobster was good but I was not impressed with the Filet – it was tender and cooked right but I just didn’t like it. I can’t put my finger on exactly what it was – I love Filet Mignon! We had the Chocolate Sampler for desert and it was great. The presentation in the Steakhouse was immaculate, the service fabulous and the ambience was very nice. The food I wasn’t as impressed with but I am glad we did it and I’m positive we will visit again on our next cruise.

 

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There is an interesting set of stairs to get into the Golden Fleece and I think I went up them during the daylight hours but when it came time to leave we started to go down them and it turns out that they are transparent – like clear glass! EEK! I am deathly afraid of heights and through these stairs you can see the all the way to the main lobby – from deck 10 to deck 2. I don’t mean you can see over the banister down, I mean you can see past your foot – 8 floors! No way could I walk down them!

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