Holland America Carribean Cruise

[ntubate]

Will be taking Holland America Cruise at the end of December 2009. Will visit Key West, Belize, City, Belize, Santo Tomas, Guatemala and Costa Maya, Mexico. Would like suggestions for shote excursion tours with Holland America. Would like to take fairly short tours to see the areas. What can you recommend?

[Marie321]

We went to the pyramids in Costa Maya with David and Ivan. They provided us with a wonderful tour! Both these men are locals with advanced college degrees who speak perfect English and know the history of the area. Here is a llink:

http://www.thenativechoice.com/costa_maya_excursions/costa_maya_shore_excursions.php

[alcpa1]

Welcome to Cruise Critic NTUBATE.
We are taking the same cruise next week but since we have been a member of Cruise Critic for quite a while, may I suggest that you do three things....
You will find information about excursions on the Ports of Call board. Click on Caribbean and you will see every stop except Guatemala. Our fellow CC members often book independent tours and their recommendations will be there.
Next, go to the Roll Call board. Click on HAL and then Ryndam and look for your sailing. You will join other cruisers on your sailing and they will also have recommendations for tours. Make a point of participating in the Roll Call, and if they have established a get together join in. These Meet and Mingles are either hosted by the cruise line for CC members or are organized by the good people on your cruise.
Third, when you log in to your HAL reservation you will find available excursions. The times are listed and if you wish to participate you can click a few buttons and your excursion reservations will be made. This must be done more than two weeks before sailing. You can also reserve when you board but availibility may be limited by then. Independently booked excursions are generally much less expensive than cruise line offerings. They are also geared to smaller groups so participants can often see more in the same amount of time.
I hope this has helped. If you have more questions, please do not hesitate to ask either here or on the Roll Call for your Ryndam sailing.

[kyriecat]

ntubate,

Are you an anesthesiologist? For Key West, there is a hop-on/off trolley that takes you on a tour of the island. You can get off and on as you wish. There is also a "train" (really it's more like a tram shuttle) that also gives a tour of the island but you can't get off and on. Both the troley and train are listed on the website for "Historic Tours of America" in the Key West section. Key West is also small enough that you can walk to most of the museums from the pier.

[tdk1938]

Hi ntubate,

Here is the link to a blog by someone just cruise the same itinerary that you're going. They just disembarked this morning.

http://pcaldwell5.tripod.com/westcarib_09_home.htm

Cheers,

[Golden Cat]

Hi ntubate,

Here is the link to a blog by someone just cruise the same itinerary that you're going. They just disembarked this morning.

http://pcaldwell5.tripod.com/westcarib_09_home.htm



Hey, that's me! Yes, we just got off this morning, so if you have any questions, please feel free to ask - I'm happy to answer them. And, as tdk1938 has mentioned, I did do a blog at the above link that might answer some of your questions. I also answered some folks' specific questions on our roll call board located at http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1091565

Ciao! Now I'm off to do all that accumulated laundry...

[Krazy Kruizers]

Welcome to Cruise Critic.

That is a wonderful cruise -- I think you will be on the Ryndam?