NEED ADVISE: Belize & Guatemala tours....

[JimVrhovac]

Thank you in advance for your help....

Ruth and I are booked on the Veendam for 2 weeks (back-to-back) out of Tampa Dec 4 and Dec 11. We would like to spend some time visiting the Mayan ruins in these area but there is a real problem. When we were there years ago we could both walk real well. Since that time Ruth had become more dependent on a wheelchair and that causes some problems.

Her mobility is restricted. When we go to St Thomas I wheel her into town in here wheelchair and she uses it as a shopping cart/walker while in town. She can get around with support but tires easily andit ets real painfull for her after a while.

Fourty years of being a registered nurse in the hospital has taken its toll on her.

ADVISE I NEED:
If you have visited either of these ports and have taken a tour of any of the ruins please advise me as to the quality of the walkways or paths. I am able to push her along when she gets tired but there are limits to distance and roughness of terrain.

TIKAL If anyone has taken this trip how far are the ruins from the bus parking area and what are the pathways like. It it possible to get golfcart type transportation there???

We are trying to get a realistic evaluation of these tours so that we don't go on one and be a burden on everyone on the tour by always being late and causing problems

Thank you for you time and assistance.

Jim & Ruth Vrhovac
JVrhovac@aol.com

[localady]

Jim- Wish I could help with your answers, but alas I've not been there. I did want to wish you and Rutch a most excellent BtoB!!! :D With the hurricane season you two have had, you deserve to that BtoB and more!:cool:

Bon Voyage! Clear skies and calms seas:):D

[Krazy Kruizers]

Hi Jim

We have been to Altun Ha if that is the Mayan city you want to visit.

We would not recommend that you take Ruth there if she is wheelchair-bound. The road there is strewn with potholes and ends at a "park" that has a refreshment area, a pavillion and a path through the jungle to the ruins. The path requires a person to navigate over roots and basaltic outcroppings to get to the major ruins, a daunting task for anyone. The ruins are very interesting. A guide will also take you to a hidden sacred lake where the dead were deposited. This trail is through dense jungle complete with insects, vines that make you walk over them as well as other obstacles. The view of the lake is nice but getting there is not worth the effort in our opinion. To view the best part of the ruins requires climbing shelves of granite and vine covered steps. Again, this path is not easy to navigate.

We enjoyed it - but - you need to be covered in DEET.

And seriously Jim - you do not want to try and push Ruth's wheelchair for a long distance over rough terrain.

[lipoppop]

Jim, the Dec 11th cruise has been changed back to its initial itinerary. Georgetown, montego Bay etc. No Belize, santo thomas or Key West.
:cool:

[Cracker Ken]

Jim,
We went to the Kohunlich Ruins out of Costa Maya (I don't know if you are stopping there or not). Those ruins weren't very spectacular. All walking, as I recall, is on firm dirt paths and on the grass. I don't recall our shoes getting messed up, or wet. There were no paved paths there, as I recall. I didn't see any golf carts for assistance.

We also went to the Xunantunich ruins on an excursion out of Belize City. Those ruins were impressive. First, after a long bus ride into the interior (beautiful countryside once you get out of the congested town), the bus will park on the shoulder of the road. As I recall, we walked down a paved roadway to the bank of the river. At that point, they have a small ferry that will hold a car at a time. It moves on a cable back and forth across the river with a guy using a hand crank to move it along. The floor of the ferry is flat and wooden, and would be easy with a wheel chair. Once on the other side, the roadway is paved. They have some vans to assist with people needing assistance. The roadway back to the ruins is paved, but quite steep. Once you get back to the parking area, there are covered picnic tables, and a little store. They will give assistance to people who need help to get on up to the main area where the ruins area. Once there, there were some steps that I climbed, but I think there may have been another way around that might be friendly to a wheel chair. Once you get to the main level, it's all walking on firm grass paths, and maybe some firm dirt walkways.

I have a lot of pictures of both of these ruins on my web site at Yahoo. Click on the Yahoo link in my signature, and you will find an album of pictures from the Veendam W. Caribbean cruise. Some of the pictures of the ruins show where people are walking. Of the two I mention above, Xunantunich would be the easier with a wheel chair, and they'll help you get to the top. Also, they take you to a neat little resort place on the return trip for an authentic Belizian meal (chicken, beans, rice) and we enjoyed it. They had some guys playing the Marimba during the meal. I didn't really like the Kohunlich tour.

Hope this helps.

Ken