Rendezvous Caye - Snorkeling Wonders of the Barrier Reef

[mrs. z]

We will be in Belize in November on the Carnival Pride. We are interested in the Snorkeling Wonders of the Barrier Reef excursion. Has anyone done this excursion recently thru the cruise line and can you tell me if you went by a "fast scenic boat ride" or "catamaran". I have read on another website about going via catamaran but the cruise line states by a fast boat. We would much rather go by catamaran if possible and was just wondering which one the cruise line offers. Also, does anyone know if you can do this excursion privately rather than thru the ship? Any input would be great. Thanks.

[dna1990]

Just did same trip from RCCL, it was by powerboat. Essentially same as tender boats. Ride was about 25 mins each way.

 

These excursions leave right from the ship and both CCL and RCCL had what i would call transfer boats that dock to the ship and then provide the stairs to reach the tenders. I saw a fishing style boat or two but no catamarans.

 

 

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[OCruisers]

The powerboats are the best way to do this! Don't miss going to the Barrier Reef! :)

LuLu

[shay1]

Just did same trip from RCCL, it was by powerboat. Essentially same as tender boats. Ride was about 25 mins each way.

 

These excursions leave right from the ship and both CCL and RCCL had what i would call transfer boats that dock to the ship and then provide the stairs to reach the tenders. I saw a fishing style boat or two but no catamarans.

 

 

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Hi,

 

We will be going to Belize this November on RCCL and are looking at this tour. Can you tell me more about your trip and experience? How long were you allowed to be in the water? Did you have to stay with the group? We are experienced free divers and are hoping to be able to do are own thing.

[dna1990]

We are experienced free divers and are hoping to be able to do are own thing.

 

Book this trip thru RCCL for its ease of use. In my opinion, do not book it for a premier snorkel experience on the second great barrier reef.

 

Yes, there is a "advanced" group that takes a longer route around the caye, but I suspect the overall traffic to this spot still has limited what you will see. Time is very regimented, like most cruiseship tours.

 

But it does leave right from the ship without having to wait until tender tickets are called and then going to the mainland, just to find your operator and come all the way back out to the reef.

 

Trip overview: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2082290

Edited August 9, 2014 by dna1990

[lgbteacher]

If you book this through Carnival does everyone have to snorkel? We have a few in our group don't want to. Can they just get off the boat and sit on the beach or head to the pool?

[topspot]

Everyone does not have to snorkel. You can go and just enjoy the beach.

[lucigo]

 

We did this excursion through Carnival in July. We took a water taxi straight from the ship to the island, so never actually went to Belize. It looked like a tender.

[seashinesunshine]

I am looking to book this thru Carnival and am a little confused about the snorkeling. Do we have to go out in groups to snorkel? If we are on the island, can't we just go in the water as we wish? Or am I missing something? If I understand it right, we take the boat to the island, then we go off in groups for beginner or advanced snorkeling? So when we are done with our group, what do we do?

[soonertina]

How large are the groups? We're wanting to go in smaller groups

 

 

 

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[medsed]

There is no pool. There is a beach, there is volley ball in the sand. There is minimal shade and not a lot of chairs. They will give you beach mats to sit on. The groups, especially beginner and intermediate were pretty large...there were more than 200 people on the excursion when we were there. 223. I think. They do want you to snorkel in groups but afterward people went back in on their own for a bit. The guides do keep a watchful eye. The currents were pretty strong when we were there but the sea was not rough.

 

There was a snack shack...burgers, hot dogs, snacks...like bags of chips. Bottled water soda and beer I think. We did not eat there. They also sold a few trinket type souvenirs....

 

I did the beginner snorkel...hubby did the advanced. He wanted to do a lot more photography while in the water but they were on him to keep up with the group. It was interesting. We saw a good bit but not as much as you might think...more coral than fish...some snails, conch everywhere..

 

If there are any specific questions I can try to answer them....it was great to just leave right from the ship and go there rather than tender in and then boat back out again....

Edited September 10, 2014 by medsed

[GSRDPM]

There is no pool. There is a beach, there is volley ball in the sand. There is minimal shade and not a lot of chairs. They will give you beach mats to sit on. The groups, especially beginner and intermediate were pretty large...there were more than 200 people on the excursion when we were there. 223. I think. They do want you to snorkel in groups but afterward people went back in on their own for a bit. The guides do keep a watchful eye. The currents were pretty strong when we were there but the sea was not rough.

 

There was a snack shack...burgers, hot dogs, snacks...like bags of chips. Bottled water soda and beer I think. We did not eat there. They also sold a few trinket type souvenirs....

 

I did the beginner snorkel...hubby did the advanced. He wanted to do a lot more photography while in the water but they were on him to keep up with the group. It was interesting. We saw a good bit but not as much as you might think...more coral than fish...some snails, conch everywhere..

 

If there are any specific questions I can try to answer them....it was great to just leave right from the ship and go there rather than tender in and then boat back out again....

 

We are in a group of 12 with ages from 10 to the low 80s. We would like to go on this excursion but there is an age limit given the physical activity associated with the snorkeling. The grandparents are not interested in snorkeling but just want to spend the day out, enjoy a beach area and watch their grandkids. While I know you cant speak for policy matters (We have been told by RCL Reservations that we should ask at the excursion desk on board if they will allow the grandparents on the excursion), does it seem reasonable that if they were allowed to go, they could simply step off the boat/tender and camp out on the beach for the entire time at the site while others in our party participate in the snorkeling. If so, about how much time is actually spent at Rendezvous Caye?

 

Thanks for this and any other insight!

[medsed]

We did it with CCL but it appears to be the same excursion and it is run by the same people...I think the whole thing took about four hours including the ride over. As long as the grandparents can sit on a beach mat on the ground if there are no seats available they should be fine. There are some benches and picnic tables in the shade but they get taken quickly. As I need shade we simply asked until we found a group that let us join them, although several people still had to sit on the mats. They were fine with people not snorkeling and the guides were very good with timid people and kids in the water.

[GSRDPM]

We did it with CCL but it appears to be the same excursion and it is run by the same people...I think the whole thing took about four hours including the ride over. As long as the grandparents can sit on a beach mat on the ground if there are no seats available they should be fine. There are some benches and picnic tables in the shade but they get taken quickly. As I need shade we simply asked until we found a group that let us join them, although several people still had to sit on the mats. They were fine with people not snorkeling and the guides were very good with timid people and kids in the water.

 

So it seems that the total time there would run about 2-2.5 hours. Thanks for the insight!