Help me pick one....Altun Ha, Xunantunich, or Lamanai

[LBS1]

Please give me the pro's and con's of each.

 

Do any other ports on the NCL Sun's route, Roatan or Cozumel, have any better ruins?

[Toyz711]

you can get to tulum from cozumel. DH won't let me plan that excrusions, especially when he heard it would be another ALL day tour. i thought about Xunantunich, but liked the idea of breaking up the trip with a boat ride (river safari). as it turned out Xunantunich was canceled, i heard it was because of travel time, but can't be sure of that.

for lamanai, we were 1st tender off and 2nd to last tender back..the guide said it was the best timing of any of her tours in weeks. we had great tour, loved the fact that it wasn't just a bus ride or just a boat ride. kept things interesting. one of the other threads, below this one, has several posts with a lot of information .

[driftwood]

. . . the shortest answer is probably that Xunantunich is most likely to be canceled for time constraints, as it is virtually at the border with Guatemala; Altun Ha is at the end of the worst road, but does have a fascinating fellow who cares for snakes on the way, and if you or your kids are interested in the Belizean reptilia and your tour guide is willing to stop, you will see several very rare and beautiful species; the Lamanai boat dock is forty-nine miles north of Belize City, the total time on the boat is three hours and the site itself will wear you out unless you are in very good shape--I would say it is nearly impossible of access for those with knee or back problems--but you will see many species of birds and probably various sizes of crocodiles on the boat trip. This is undoubtedly the destination of choice for avid birders.

 

All three sites are beautiful and significant sites. Having seen all three, I can't really choose among them--all are extremely photogenic, and all of them have provision for climbing the major monuments (steps have been added subtly to ease the climbs and to protect the monuments themselves. Usually these are to one side or the other of the main face of the ruin, but of course Americans don't bother using them very often, as evidently we don't much care about Belize's heritage :().

[Toyz711]

regarding lamanai ....i have a bad back, hubby has bad knees... we had one lady/hubby in late 60s/early 70s... the man in his 70s, with replaced knees, climbed the site. his wife said he had dreamed about doing that for years. i had to watch where i stepped (fear of falling) but the only thing that hurt my back was the bus ride, the seats were terrible.

our tour guide paced the walk, no one got too tired and, all of us, were able to do the walk without problems. the one older lady did need help on a few steps, but we had a young man, assit guide(?), who helped her over uneven ground. even the rather large woman, had no problems.

another couple had their 3 year old with them. his daddy had a very good back-carrier for him. the toddler was great, never a problem..even on the final bus ride when everyone else was tired.

the path is very uneven and come be muddy, but the sites are very interesting and the area, surrounding them, is beautiful

our group was only allowed to climb the high temple, the one with the rope. the guide never said anything about steps on the sides. i walked around but didn't see them.

anyone with walking problems could not do this, strollers and wheelchairs won't be able to handle the roots, steps and muddy ground.

[driftwood]

I had mistakenly assumed that you had taken the Lamanai-New River Tour: admittedly the worst stresses on the back come during the boat ride down and up the New River, for the half-hour portions when the boats are run at high speed. The newer boats with chairs should be less stressful.

 

We found that the few steps on the concrete walkway leading to the ruins at Lamanai were significantly higher than any steps at either of the other sites, and inferred that it might be rather difficult for those with leg or knee problems--although clearly not impossible.

 

After two weeks of touring and climbing monuments in Belize and at Tikal in Guatemala, Lamanai was about the death of me--although I incautiously scampered up the side of the Jaguar Temple, not realizing that the was More to Come (the High Temple that you so bravely climbed, as I did not, having run out of steam). I think that that one has had its surfaces covered to protect it, so you wouldn't have to locate the supplementary "stairs" as I did at the Jaguar Temple (far side). The Mask Temple is also well worth seeing, although not climbing, and in general the variety of architecture at Lamanai is amazing.

[Toyz711]

i didn't climb it, DH did..i get dizzy, but reget not trying it. the bus ride was the killer for me, the bus as in awful condition, but ran well (the driver was a sweety). the seats had big dents in them and we were seating on the metal bar. otherwise, everything worked. i had been on the threadmill for the months before, even DH was surprised i made it without tripping.:D (i do that a lot) since the path loops around, it's hard to tell how far you have walked. we started at the mask, ended at the jaguar. did see a personal tour, with 2 people helping a person walk the path.

 

i am posting a photo, if you look closely you can see the older man on the 2nd level, he did make the climb..with the help of our young assistant guide. at the 1st step is the family with the toddlers. it was a mixed group of about 29...but the best ran group tour i have even been on. the tour guide was amazing.

we didn't see much wildlife, but loved the speed boats..the ride was amazing.

next time i will try to find the step at the jaguar, i would like to get up high to take better photos. i envy your recent adventures, i dream of that...but would be very sore from all that walking and rough roads...how many sites have you climbed recently?

[driftwood]

I see now that I am not so young as I used to be, and that a camera and a tripod--although lighter in fact than they were in the old days--are yet but heavy traveling companions--tripods have three legs, but they cannot walk or climb on their own! Even neatly folded they remain--as I--rather clumsy!

 

At least both are steadier than I when they get to the top.

 

For fellow enthusiasts I feel it only fair to mention that the view from the top at most sites in the Belize is--as at Coba in Quintana Roo--much impeded by jungle growth, so that the far vista reveals much green and few structures so impressive as to exceed the height of the present trees and jungle--and of course none so stupendous as the one you have conquered or been conquered by. The view is of course splendid, but mostly a study in green, sky blue and cloud white--and the sun is often so intense that you wish you had not left your Polarizing filter (should you be so zealous as to own one) in your camera bag at the base of whatever you have managed to scramble up. Kinich Ahau rules here, and there will be no question in your mind about it, even in a matter of seconds or less. Readiness is all at the top of a Mayan temple. Tripod? Check. Camera? Check. Spare batteries? Gee, I hope so! Cable release? Oops! Darn! Polarizing filter? Boy, it's HOT up here! Maybe in my pocket? Will it make things any better? Which pocket? What AM I doing up here? HOW DO I GET DOWN? Boy, it's HOT up here! HOW DO I GET DOWN!!!!!! HOW DID I GET UP?

Slowly, slowly, catchee monkey! No broken bones allowed! Death is both certain and unwelcome! Also a nuisance for survivors. :D:rolleyes: No matter what happens, your much more intelligent DW/DH/SO will be waiting for you at the base, grinning like the Cheshire Cat, NOT winded, not quite so hot, probably in some shady spot, drinking the bottle of water that you also may have forgotten to haul up with you!--Perhaps having recorded the whole comic sequence on his/her camera! Who will come home with the better pictures? Who, indeed? :eek::rolleyes: Yes they always get the last laugh! :o:D

[sarahsema]

TOYZ711, who did you book the excursion with? We want to do the same one, but belizecruiseexcursions.com posts that their minimum age is 6 and we have a 3 year old too!

We actually went out and bought that cool backpack for our daughter today!

HELP! I need an excursion company that will let us take her!

[Toyz711]

we did our through the ship...just too much to worry about. (tendering and the all day tour).

[obxer]

So, if you could summarize for me...I am a first timer as well. We signed up for Xunantunich from Carneval Legend. Are you saying that is the best ruins (someone else told me that) but it probably wont happen because it gets cancelled because it takes too long? Any other advice on ruins

[driftwood]

Carnival is probably the most experienced cruise line entering Belize, and if they have scheduled the Xunantunich excursion the odds are excellent that you will see--and enjoy--Xunantunich. IN THE UNLIKELY EVENT that that tour IS cancelled, it has been my experience (in six cruises) that the Shore Excursions Office will notify you as soon as they learn of a "problem," and will offer you alternative sites, probably Lamanai or Altun Ha, and will book an additional bus for those sites if necessary. Of course if you don't WANT an alternative, your shore excursion prepaid money will immediately be credited to your shipboard account.

 

But having seen all three sites on different days only three or four weeks ago now, I can assure you that all three are fascinating, and you should not worry. If you do not know which you would prefer, flip a coin! Lamanai IS the most strenuous to visit on many counts, but all three are worth seeing.

[obxer]

Thanks Driftwood, I'm calm