Is cave tubing safe for 4 and 6 year olds?

[ginger123snaps]

From the pictures posted in previous reviews it looks like the water is not deep at all. I am taking a 4 year old and 5 year twins to Belize and was thinking about cave tubing…but only if its shallow. My guys don't know how to swim yet. Any feedback would be helpful! Also, just how bad is the hike to the caves?

[ginger123snaps]

Well never mind…I just read some older posts that answered my question. Someone said the water can be as much as 40 ft deep in some places and the current is strong. We will wait until they are older.

[Forensicmom]

I also read that you can be in total darkness for up to 20 minutes. My daughters were terrified when they read that and they're teenagers :)

[Liltx31]

I don't know what cave they were in? I took my girls 3 and 5 (3 year old rode in my tube) and it was one of the coolest experiences of their young lives. Super safe and calm water. The only time it was dark is for the 1 minute everyone turned off their headlamps on purpose to appreciate the darkness. I don't know where it was 40 ft deep because some of the time the guide actually had to stand and pull us the water was so calm. WE used VIV and the tubes had bottoms, plus like jackets, plus we were linked by clips, plus the guide kept us in the front so the kids could see better. We go tubbing in Texas and that can be rough, this was nothing like that.

[ata1976]

I don't know what cave they were in? I took my girls 3 and 5 (3 year old rode in my tube) and it was one of the coolest experiences of their young lives. Super safe and calm water. The only time it was dark is for the 1 minute everyone turned off their headlamps on purpose to appreciate the darkness. I don't know where it was 40 ft deep because some of the time the guide actually had to stand and pull us the water was so calm. WE used VIV and the tubes had bottoms, plus like jackets, plus we were linked by clips, plus the guide kept us in the front so the kids could see better. We go tubbing in Texas and that can be rough, this was nothing like that.

 

 

This was our experience too. DS was 3 when he went. He rode with DH. DS did get tired of walking, so we had to carry him some, but he loved the caves .

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Cruise Critic Forums mobile app

[vacruizer]

The problem is that you won't know water levels until you get there. It could be shallow and calm or could be deeper and running swift depending on how much rain they've had recently. The water inside the caves is very deep and people have drowned in there.

 

It's a great tour, but I personally wouldn't take any child who wasn't a strong swimmer and old enough to quickly follow safety instructions should the need arise.:)

[TDCRose]

Would not recommend for young children-walk to the cave is 30 to 40 minutes on uneven terrain. Cave is dark most of the time, water can be deep in spots.

[Cruise, J.D.]

We took our son last year when he was 6. The water went from shallow to deep, but as a previous poster said, the water levels change depending on recent rain. For the most part, it was well over the head of a child.

 

There were only 5 total in our group (4 adults, one child) with the guide, so the guide was able to stay close to our son. We felt comfortable doing it, but having to watch another little one would make me think twice, especially if the group happened to be large.