on your own, and snorkeling question

[jschafer6161]

How do you take a taxi to one of the caye's? Are the taxis lined up at the port to transport people? We want to do much in Cayman, Costa Maya and Cozumel, so want to limit the money we spend on excusions, etc. Where can we go cheap to just be on the beach with our kids, and how do we get there?

 

Also, we've never been snorkeling (my husband and 2 kids, 5 and 7). Is it hard? How deep do we go? I'd love to do the ray/shark excursion, but I am absolutely terrified of sharks. How do they make sure we don't become shark bait?

[clackey]

How do you take a taxi to one of the caye's? Are the taxis lined up at the port to transport people? We want to do much in Cayman, Costa Maya and Cozumel, so want to limit the money we spend on excusions, etc. Where can we go cheap to just be on the beach with our kids, and how do we get there?

 

Also, we've never been snorkeling (my husband and 2 kids, 5 and 7). Is it hard? How deep do we go? I'd love to do the ray/shark excursion, but I am absolutely terrified of sharks. How do they make sure we don't become shark bait?

Do a google on the water taxis and you can find the fees and schedules. There are several good tours in the Caymans for the Rays.

 

Costa Maya is more of a party stop. My favorite place there is Choc chi Resort next to the pier but you have to walk through the hole-in-the-fence. It is about a 10 minute walk but you have the place to yourself. Check out the thread on the Costa Maya board.

 

Coz is great because you can do most things by taxi. Paradise Beach is great for kids because there is no entrance fee and a nominal fee for the water toys. Access to the water is easy and the place is clean, service is good and the food is exceptional.

 

I wouldn't worry much about the sharks. Most of them are nurse sharks. Bulls are a different story.

 

Check out all of the destination boards. Research is half of the fun.

[perplemule]

I booked cave-tubing thru coralbreeze tours and it was FANTASTIC! Lots cheaper than thru your ship. Ivar was the best guide I've seen . Very informative, helpful and funny. The caves were awesome. I think it might be easier to snorkel on you own in other places. We walked left in Grand Cayman to the first dive shop and rented snorkel stuff for $10.00 and there's a sunken ship straight out from their pier. The snorkel tours stop there!! Very easy to do...

[OttoCal]

At first when I read that I thought 'oh, they have to know that a taxi can't drive to an island...' but you do know that of course (I hope!)

 

Anyway, the water taxis are like a small passenger ferry. The terminal is to the left as you arrive off the tender and outside of the fenced in 'cruise ship village'. You will need to get in line at the terminal and purchase a ticket for each person. Check the times of the departing and returning ferries. Pick which Caye you are going to- Caye Caulker and Ambergris Caye are both popular. Get in line, get on the ferry (water taxi), and get off when it arrives at the caye you are going to. Then wander around and have a great visit!

 

Be sure to be at the right spot on the dock for your return trip, as there may be several water taxi companies running and you need to get on the proper boat, and allow enough time to get back or in case the ferry is more crowded on your return. You might want to take the earlier ferry back to make sure you make it back in time.

 

If your kids are adventurous and love the water, they will proabalby have fun snorkeling. But if they are a little more skittish, it might be miserable for all of you and you might just have more fun wandering around. The beaches are not large, it is probably going to be very different from what you are expecting.

[jschafer6161]

Thanks for all your help!! I'm almost thinking we'll stay on the ship in Belize. It sounds very scary to try to do this all on our own. Maybe our next cruise I'll be more comfortable. I guess I'll wing it, and see what feels right, at the time.

[clackey]

Thanks for all your help!! I'm almost thinking we'll stay on the ship in Belize. It sounds very scary to try to do this all on our own. Maybe our next cruise I'll be more comfortable. I guess I'll wing it, and see what feels right, at the time.

If you stay onboard you are going to miss a neat stop. The city is a poor and not very inviting, but the cayes are really nice. Bannister Island was gorgeous and I've seen good reviews on Ambergris Caye and Caye Caulker, and if you have never rode an innertube through a cave, this is the place to do it. Do your research here on the boards and google all of your stops. Everyone here will try to help.