Review of Barrier Reef Snorkel at Rendezvous Key

[Love to vacation]

This tour was the highlight of my cruise! We took the 1:00pm excursion, so we were able to relax on the ship all morning. The meeting place for this excursion is the Amber Palace. We didn't leave until 1:20. The excursion boat is right at the ship, so no extra tendering takes place. The boat ride was 45 minutes, but it went pretty fast. The main deck is covered while the upper deck is for sunlovers. The crew was great. They passed out all the snorkel equipment while boating over to Rendezvous Key. We take all of our own equipment, but their equipment looked good. The music was on and Coke, water and punch were available (no alcohol served before snorkeling). The snorkeling was awesome. The water is so clear. The coral and fish were wonderful. My favorite part was were the reef dropped off. Wow, that was amazing! We had to wear the blow-up life vests. My son and I prefer to snorkel without a vest, but we weren't allowed. It made us feel a little restricted. After snorkeling there is time to go onto the island. The island itself is VERY small, but so beautiful. There were floating mats and kayaks available to use. There was a Coke and water station on the island. The shells were HUGE! I pulled one up out of the water that was bigger than my hand. I wish I could have brought it home. I sure wish we could have stayed longer!! The crew did offer a few things to buy on the ride back. There was a small selection of t-shirts and key rings. The quality didn't look the best, so I passed. We arrived back to the ship at 4:30. I highly reccomend this excursion. We had a great time!

Michelle

[dukecruiser]

Michelle,

 

 

Thanks for the review....My wife and I will be on the Glory leaving 10/09/04, and this excursion is one that we are very interested in, and based on your review we will mostly likely do. I have only one question, if you don't mind me asking. How much did this excursion cost? And, was it worth the money you paid while going thru the Carnival excursions?

 

Thanks Again!

Mike

[Love to vacation]

The cost for the Barrier Reef Snorkel at Rendezvous Key is $75/person. Was is worth it, you ask? I think that depends on the person. As for my family and I ~ we thought so. Great snorkeling and no worries with transportation.

Have a great cruise!

Michelle

[bluesaab22]

Yes, thanks for your review. We booked the same excursion during our September cruise and can't wait.

[simkoreb]

If the excursion went from 1-4:30, with a 45 minutes boat ride, am I reading this right that you were in the water for 2 hours (but you even said you left 20 minutes late)...is it normal to pay 75 dollars for this?? You had fun, but is seems expensive for just snorkling...IMO

I'm interested in this excursion, but it seems like such a short time frame...

[Deb C.]

What is so strenuous with this excursion?? It has the highest rating of all the excursions on difficulty. :confused:

 

By the way, Celebrity has it listed at $69.00. I am thinking about taking it next week. Sounds good. :D It says you get right on the catamaran from the cruise ship; then go snorkeling and to an island to swim or lay on the sand, etc. 8:30am for 3 1/2 hours.

 

But those of you that have done it, what is so strenuous about it???:eek:

 

Thanks for any info you can give me. Deb C.

[Kaya]

The snorkel at Randezvous Caye is good but why pay US$75 when you can get a great snorkeling experience at Goff's Caye for only US$40. Both of these locations are on the Barrier Reef and only a short distance from each other. The difference is that the Randezvous snorkel is sold on the ship and the Goff's Caye snorkel is sold on the Tourism Dock. Two tour operators on the Tourism Dock offer snorkeling to Goff's Caye. They are Snorkel Belize and Belize Rays. Last month I signed up with Belize Rays and the experience was great! These guys operate an executive catamaran with all amenities. You can save US$35 if you wait until you get to shore to buy your snorkel tour. The Cruise Ship kept discouraging us from buying tours on shore but what they were really doing is trying to get us to buy the tours they sell which are twice the cost on shore. Check this out! :cool:

[MartiniMama]

Kaya -- I'm not sure why you keep posting that it's only $40 for the trip to Goff's Caye. I checked their website and it's $57 per person. The cruise ship is charging $62 per person so it's not a huge difference in price. The only real differences are that one goes to Goff's Caye and the other goes to Rendezvous Key. The only concern I have with a non-cruise ship operator is what happens if the engine breaks down and we miss our return to the ship? The tour company will not pay for us to fly to the next destination. At least if it's a cruise ship tour, they are responsible for getting us back to the ship....whereever it may be ... :)

[Kaya]

Martini Mama, You seem to object to my posting that the tour costed me US$40. I thought that this forum was to share our experinces and provide tips for others who may not know better. The fact is that the tours on the ship are more expensive and many times guests are discouraged from buying on shore. I am saying to readers that I found a great service provider in the name of Belize Rays who offered me a snorkel tour to Goff's for US$40. What is wrong with that? If you do not think that this is worth mentioning then so be it. Others may find it interesting.

[MartiniMama]

Kaya -- I have no problems with anyone posting their experiences....that's what these boards are for....what concerns me is misleading information or posts that are actually advertising disguised as a cruiser's "experience" which has been happening here alot in the past few weeks. Please don't take offense but when one has only posted a few times and all the posts read exactly the same...."buy your excursion from X company", suspicions are raised.

 

P.S. Having said that, I do appreciate you informing everyone of another tour operator and I will :) check them out because it may be a better excursion....

[Sir]

Martini Mama, Thanks for understanding. Misleading information helps nobody. That I agree with you fully; however, do not jump to conclusions or make attacks on postings simply because you think, feel or get the impression that something may be wrong. That is not nice. It will scare participants from sharing their experience. If I post on several threads the same experience, it is because it is my experience and it can not be different with each response. I am not promoting any specifc agenda except sharing my experiences so others may benefit.

[MartiniMama]

Sir/Kaya -- I know that you are new to posting here so I want to tell you, please don't take anything that anyone posts here personally. No one is attacking you ... the purpose of these boards is to share stories and provide accurate information especially for those new to cruising. You can expect that inaccurate information in any posting, on any topic, will almost always be corrected by other cruisers. You should not take offense to this or think of it as a personal attack --- it happens to all of us. After all, we are all in the same "boat" so to speak! :D If my tone was offensive to you, I do apologize and I appreciate you sharing the information about this alternative ... wish I had heard of it sooner as I am leaving today for my cruise...oh well, always next year! :)

[PelicanBill]

I am an experienced snorkeler, and to answer the previous poster's question, snorkeling can be either easy or strenuous, or both, depending on many factors.

 

Snorkeling will be EASY if you are a good swimmer, wear a flotation vest, have calm, flat water with no current, your mask and flippers fit well, and you figure out how to slowly kick your flippers and not wear yourself out. You should be able to snorkel for hours like this without feeling the least bit tired out.

 

Snorkeling will be HARD if you are not a good swimmer, do not wear a vest, have a swell or current, your mask leaks or your flippers hurt your feet, and you kick harder than you need to or try to swim too fast.

 

Most people's experiences are somewhere between these two, and on any day all these factors can come into play. Good snorkel tour operators have a lot of training to do for new snorkelers and keep a sharp eye on their group.

 

Do yourself a favor and take time to learn how and ask questions, and pair up with someone experienced if you can. Make sure your mask and fins fits well, learn how to defog, and make sure there is no hair trapped along the mask seal. Don't jump in if you can avoid it for your first time, or try to get your fins on in the water. Sit on a platform or the side of the boat to get ready. In the water, relax, and kick slowly. Don't fight the swell or current. Learn where it takes you and gradually angle across ot to avoid being driven in a wrong direction. Swim AGAINST the current or swell first - then drift back toward your boat or beach. I've seen a lot of people tired out by a surprisingly hard return swim. Use the buddy system if not doing follow the leader. And then have fun!

[happytogoing]

Question for Kaya, which ship were you on (when the ship tour cost $75)?

 

Who on the cruise ship discouraged you from buying tours on shore?

 

I am new to cruising, and curious....

[PelicanBill]

Does anyone recall a Carnival ship tour or tourism village snorkel tour to Goff or Rendezvous that was good for children? I have an adventurous 5 year old but I get vibes that organized tours want to do "follow the leader" with adults or older kids only. I need someone who is more patient and family oriented.

Suggestions?

 

Oh, and I don't think shark ray alley is a good way to introduce her to snorkeling! :eek:

[Zeta3]

We took our 1 yr old on Carnival's Goff's Caye excursion last year and she loved it. You can snorkel right from the beach and see plenty of fish and coral since the island sits right on top of the reef. The tour guides also did a follow-the-leader style snorkel on the reef side of the island then came back and took me out with another mom while our DHs played wth the kids on the beach, they were really very accomodating.

[marshabear]

we did this excursion too...part of the reason for the higher price than some excursions is that they serve unlimited rum punch after snorkeling is finished....and believe me, it was plentiful.....they even topped off each cup with more rum!!! :)

 

i'm sure that is why it is more expensive.....they advertise "free" but you pay one way or another.....

 

 

 

Marsha