Ship's Tour vs Private for snorkeling/SCUBA in Belize?

[the_dylaness]

Hello all! I posted a similar message in the Belize forum but no replies. Perhaps this is the better place to ask:

 

My mom and I will be aboard the Carnival Legend in September. I dive, she snorkels. In Grand Cayman I am shore diving and she is snorkeling at Eden Rock. For Belize, we are having a tough time choosing between these two options:

 

1. Going with the ship's tour (usually we don't do this.) I have heard good things about the outfit (Henry ___'s?) that they use for diving and I like the fact that they pick you up from the boat. My mom wants to do Goff's Caye or Turneffe snorkelling. Scuba is $165 w/ equip, snorkelling is $59 or $69 depending on which location. Do you recommend this option for use (so easy, boarding from the ship) and if so, should she do Goff's Caye or Turneffe?

 

2. going with ecotoursbelize; we take a Cessna to San Pedro and then get on separate boats for her to snorkel and me to dive. Her cost $105 mine is $159. Is it worth the extra $40 for her to go on this trip compared to the ship's tour? Has anyone done this? We arrive in port at 8am and leave at 5pm so I am assuming we should be okay on time.

 

Help us choose, please!

[jaguarprincess]

Greetings the dylaness,

Assuming the Legend calls at Belize City, as our ship did, I have a suggestion for you. My husband and I are both snorkelers and do not like ship's tours. We were looking for a private tour in Belize a few years ago, and I corresponded with a group snorkel outfit that sounded very regimented and with Linda, Sea Sports Belize [info@seasportsbelize.com], primarily a dive operation. Sho agreed with me that snorkelers and divers don't ordinarily mix well. We were considering paying for a private tour, but she had only two divers that day (also from our ship), and we followed her suggestion. A boat took all of us to a very small island, where one guide stayed to snorkel with my husband and me, while the other guide and two divers went off to dive. They picked us up later, and we all had a picnic on another island. A fun day, with fantastic snorkeling, and the divers were happy also. Seasports Belize even returned us directly to our ship. Linda was very responsive to our needs, and this sounds like a perfect arrangement for you and your mother. Good luck, and enjoy. Mary Sue

[the_dylaness]

Mary Sue,

 

Thank you for the suggestion. I have heard good things about SeaSports, but I did not realize that they could combine snorkeling/scuba tours. I will check with them- it sounds like a great time!