Belize

[CAG5563]

I am just starting to research Belize for our cruise next February. We will be traveling with our two teenagers. Does anyone have any suggestions of what to do other than scuba diving? Could you recommend a tour/guide?

 

Thanks for your help!

[gaylenhazel]

Hi,

We were there last Feb. We did the snorkel and trip to Caye Caulker with Coral Breeze. It was awesome! You get to swim with the stingrays and nurse sharks (no they don't bite). Caye Caulker is the most beautiful tropical island. The boat ride over is so relaxing. They give you lunch at Caye Caulker. We had the local chicken and rice dish. It was really good. We bought fresh banannas there also. Yum. Belize was the highlight of our cruise. We also bought some nice local wood items near the dock. Have fun!

[KentuckyTam]

It seems as though the hot topic for Belize excursions is cave tubing. There have been a lot of great reviews with several differnent tour operators. I am going through X Stream at the end of this month. I will let everyone know my thoughts when I return.

[Mike2131]

I am just starting to research Belize for our cruise next February. We will be traveling with our two teenagers. Does anyone have any suggestions of what to do other than scuba diving? Could you recommend a tour/guide?

 

Thanks for your help!

 

Hi!

 

We booked this tour through the ship and it was terrific. You take a coach to a small dock area on the river. Then there is a boat ride on the river to the Mayan ruins with frequent stops to see interesting wildlife (bats, waterfowl, crocs, etc.) and plant life.

 

There is a tasty lunch at the site. The small on-site museum is interesting and then you tour the ruins with your guide. It is in the jungle so you have that Indiana Jones meets the Discovery Channel atmosphere. There were also two very vocal and active groups of howler monkeys to add to the effect. The boat ride back to the dock is quicker with fewer stops. You then reboard the coach and return to the tender dock for the ride back to the ship.

 

Definitely recommended!

[cellgirl99]

I just got back from the Miracle & we did cave tubing through X-treme. We really liked it. They were easy to locate once you got to Belize from the boat & answered any questions you had.

[Jeanniec]

To cellgirl99

 

I saw that you did the X-tream and loved it my daughter in law said that we have to walk 6 miles to get to the cave is that true? I want to do the cave in the tube but am worried about the 6 mile walk what do they do with us older people over 65?:confused:

[CAG5563]

Thanks for all the replies. I was not looking forward to Belize, but now you all have me second thinking that...

 

I, too, am curious about the river tubing. I've read some reviews about the river being all dried up and also one horrifying story about a snake bite.

 

Does anyone have any river tubing experience they want to share?

 

Thanks again everyone...

[LMS]

It was awesome. I never thought about snakes or anything, but am used to walking in the woods. The river was low in spots, but it was warm and clear. We went through Coral Breeze and had a guide named Carlos who was fantastic. There were only 9 in our group. The walk through the jungle was hot, but very interesting. At first I didn't want to go because I am slightly claustrophobic and not fond of caves, but my son really wanted to try it. It was awesome! I did not feel unsafe at any time. The meal after was delicious and we learned a lot about Belize on the ride to the jungle. It is a unique experience -not to be missed!

[BoatGirl]

I was just in Belize on April 8th, and did cave tubing through Wet n Wild. Charile was our guide. It was absolutely amazing! The walk is NOT 6 miles. (The drive down the unpaved road is 6 miles.) It is about 1 and 3/4 miles, takes about 45 minutes, not difficult at all. It is a very well defined path, no snakes!

 

The water is cool, but refreshing. There was nothing in the water except a few leaves here and there. The scenery is absolutely breath taking. Don't let a few uncertainties keep you from experiencing this amazing sight.

 

Go have fun!

[ICCmom]

I did much research prior to booking our cave tubing with Coral Breeze during our Elation cruise the week of 4/3. We (husband and 11-year-old daughter) were extremely pleased with our selection of Coral Breezes, and with our tour guide, Ivar, and his father who was our driver. We were a group of 7, we stopped at the restaurant (Amigos) on the way to the river for a quick beer, then had a great experience overall with the trip. Ivar related lots of history, showed us maps and pictures, was attentive to 2 other children in our group, and made the trip both fun and educational. We walked through a dry cave in the forest, then walked further along the river than the other tours did before we entered the river, thus giving us a longer trip in the tubes, including one more cave than other groups did.

 

The lunch at Amigos after tubing was a traditional Belizean one, and was practically waiting on plates at the table when we arrived! No issues with time getting back to the pier or anything else. All in all, it was a great choice and once-in-a-lifetime experience. :) :) :) Only wish the water level was higher - but none of the tour operators can control that one.:rolleyes:

[cruisekim]

Hi CAG5563, below is the post I just posted last pm on another thread but am not computer savy enough to send you the link so I just copied it! I also read out the snake bite and ended up asking our tour guide if he heard about snakes in the area and he but me at ease by saying that since there are so many people tubing the snakes hear the vibrations from the all people stomping by and stay well off the walking path and that if by some small chance there was a snake he would let me know in plenty of time for me to run the other direction :) I'm terrified of snakes and did keep an eye out for them but assure you that I didn't see any or hear of anyone who did so you'll be fine as long as you stay on the path! And as far as the water levels go, we did have a couple shallow areas but our tour guide pulled me through them (made the boyfriend walk ;) but there areas were few and far between and were only several feet long to walk. April is the hottest season in belize ( it was only 65 when we were there last friday so we lucked out) and the month with the most rain are in the summer.

 

 

This is my first time posting a message and had to do it only because I feel that cruisecritic had a direct hand in making our cruise the most memorable! We just got back today. :( We researched every port before we left through the message boards. For belize we used Wet N' Wild Cave tubing and LOVED LOVED LOVED it. Our dinner table on the ship all used different companies, one being the cruise line, and we seemed to have the best time by far. First off Marvin met us off the pier and quickly escorted the 2 of us to his tour office where we were introduced to Carlos and Charlie- our tour guides. As luck would have it we were the only 2 on the tour, so we go our own personalized tour, GREAT!! Carlos drove the hour to the caves while Charlie narrated and educated us about the interesting facts of Belize. Charlie knew more about Belize than I could ever hope to know about any one country. Any question we asked, he knew the answer to!! He told us about the cashew plant and informed us that the nut actually grows on a fruit (I had no idea it grew on a fruit) so he pulled over near the caves and he and Carlos found two near the tree and we all ate them. Pretty cool. When we arrived at the Caves there were 4-5 large tour buses from the cruise ship passengers (each carrying 50 or so people) there. We went to the clean bathrooms and changed then got our tubes and head lamps, charlie stayed behind to order lunch so it would be ready when we were done and Carlos and my boyfriend and I were off. We quickly passed several cruise ship groups and Carlos started the info tour on the jungle- so much to learn and see. He asked if we wanted to do cave 4 (cruise ship's tour started only cave 3) and jump off the cliffs there into the water and start our tour there. I think there was only 1 other group of 3 that got to do cave 4 so that was pretty neat. All 3 of us linked tubes and carlos had grabbed and large flashlight prior so we could get a good look at the caves since it can get pretty dark in there. We passed 2 groups ( of about 20 each) in cave 3 and continued on our way. A couple stragglers from the cruise group actually left their group and started with ours since they couldn't hear their guide or see much. Carlos welcomed them and kept us all together. When we finished our tour we changed and dried off and went to the hut where we had homemade food waiting for us. I'm a pretty picky eater and this food is probably some of the best "home cooking" that I have ever had which was good because I was starving. After lunch we got back into the car and headed home, I slept most of the way (full stomach :) and Charlie continued with his tour info on the way home with my boyfriend. They got us back to the pier in plenty of time. I would HIGHLY recommend Wet N' Wild!!! I feel I have pretty high standards when it comes to customer service and this tour far surpassed my expectations!! It was worth every penny of the $60, since the cave tubing tour through the ship was $100 and their lunch was apparently some hole in the wall restaurant with sub par food, not as memorable as our experience. Sorry for the length but I can not express in so few words how this tour was the highlight of our whole trip!!!!