Belize/Guatamala/Costa Maya info needed

[KimberleyFL]

Hi Everyone. DH and I will be departing next Sunday on the Veendam heading for Belize/Guatamala/Costa Maya. Although we have been on 6 cruises, all three ports are new for us. Can you give any ideas for stuff to do in these ports. We usually like to head out on our own or tour guide by cab looking for markets, restaurants, and bars. We don't really see any shore excursions we want that are offered by HAL. Do these places have a downtown like Cozumel where you can shop around, eat, and have a few drinks? Any information will be helpful. Info on (non-HAL) private personal tours or tour guides is also appreciated. We would rather dictate or own schedule than go on a planned tour with schedules. Thank You.

[jhannah]

All of those ports are highlighted in the Ports of Call section of Cruise Critic. I'd suggest you visit there for port-specific information, tips and tricks.

Sounds like a great trip!

[AAL]

In Costa Maya, there is a large complex of shops, restaurants and a pool right at the cruise dock. A short cab ride away ($3) is the village of Mahahual. It is still recovering from Hurricane Dean in 2007, but shops and restaurants are open. The beach is nice and if you want, you can find a snorkel boat to take you out of the reef for about $25 for an hour, or rent jet-skis.

In Belize, the ship anchors a long tender ride from the port. We arranged for a cavetubing excursion on our own, and got a brief city tour on the way. It didn't look like the kind of downtown shopping area you have in mind.

Our cruise didn't stop in Guatamala.

Check the ports of call boards for more info on these ports.

[norcal2]

Belize has many things depending on your interests. If you are into snorkling or diving there is the Blue Hole you may want to look up. We opted to do the Cave Tubing in November of 07. The uphill trail to it carrying tubes was somewhat tiring. The water in the cave was very cold but worth it. One elderly tuber had problems with the cold. I am not sure how cold it will be in January/February.

I deleted this part because I was thinking Honduras. lol

[Sirdar]

Hi Everyone. DH and I will be departing next Sunday on the Veendam heading for Belize/Guatamala/Costa Maya. Although we have been on 6 cruises, all three ports are new for us. Can you give any ideas for stuff to do in these ports. We usually like to head out on our own or tour guide by cab looking for markets, restaurants, and bars. We don't really see any shore excursions we want that are offered by HAL. Do these places have a downtown like Cozumel where you can shop around, eat, and have a few drinks? Any information will be helpful. Info on (non-HAL) private personal tours or tour guides is also appreciated. We would rather dictate or own schedule than go on a planned tour with schedules. Thank You.

I return from the same cruise last week. We could not dock in Costa maya due to rough seas. I do not suggest that you wing it in Belize or Guatemala. The tender into Belize city leaves your in a prtected area where ther is some shopping. Belize City looked extremely poor and we did not notice any markets etc where you could roam on your own. We took a guided tour, thru HAL, to the Mayan site at Xuantunich which was very worthwhile.
Guatemala suffers from a high crime rate and you should consult the US Dept of State travel warnings before making any decisions. There are taxi drivers at the port (Santo Tomas de Castilla) who will take you on a personal tour including a large market in the next town (Puerto Barrios). I was told by a couple who did this that the charge was $160 for 6 hours. They shared a cab with another couple one of whom grew up in Guatemala and spoke Spanish fluently. She did not reccomend making this trip and interacting with the locals without a knowledge of the area or the ability to converse in Spanish. I would strongly consider a tour whether booked thru HAL or elsewise.

[Boytjie]

If you are into snorkling or diving there is the Blue Hole you may want to look up.

IIRC the Blue Hole is too far away for cruise ship excursions. There are other atolls (Turneffe?) and cays closer by where they offer diving and snorkeling oppurtunities. In Belize ships anchor quite far away from land so its a long tender ride in to town and ifor diving or snorkeling you may have to be on another long ride past the ships out to the diving area.

I scuba dived in Belize and it was great.

Check the Scuba and Snorkeling threads for more info, as well as the Ports of Call threads.

[KirkNC]

We are on the same cruise in mid-Feb. We opted to go through HAL for Belize and Guatamala (snorkeling and Mayan ruins). I traveled to Guatamala a few years ago for a sail fishing trip. While it is a very beautiful country, it has serious crime. We stopped at a grocery store traveling from the airport to the coast, they had six armed guards (with sawed off shotguns) in the store and parking lot :eek: :eek: :eek:. We never saw any crime but that speaks volumes.

In Costa Maya we are going outside of HAL on The Native Choice. It comes very highly recommended from the "Port of Call" threads.

[pipedreams62]

We just did this trip a few weeks back. In Guatemala I would do the Go with Gus tour. This was the best shore excursion I've ever been on in 9 cruises. In Belize we went cavetubing. Book yourself it's less lines. In Costa Maya we got great massages on the beach for $30 for 1hr)

Have Fun

[English muffin]

Hi Everyone. DH and I will be departing next Sunday on the Veendam heading for Belize/Guatamala/Costa Maya. Although we have been on 6 cruises, all three ports are new for us. Can you give any ideas for stuff to do in these ports. We usually like to head out on our own or tour guide by cab looking for markets, restaurants, and bars. We don't really see any shore excursions we want that are offered by HAL. Do these places have a downtown like Cozumel where you can shop around, eat, and have a few drinks? Any information will be helpful. Info on (non-HAL) private personal tours or tour guides is also appreciated. We would rather dictate or own schedule than go on a planned tour with schedules. Thank You.
Hello Kimberley
We were on the Statendam b/b Christmas & New Year.
Not the best or ports Costa Maya apart from the shops around the port or unless you want to go to the ruins there is not much more, we have been before so I did not bother to get off the ship. We were in Belize Christmas Eve, I felt safe walking around but not much to see by way of shops, very local type of shop, plenty around the port but I thought the prices were a bit expensive. Most people went snorkelling but thats not us. Quatamala well thats not very nice, we walked around but its extremely poor and very dirty, some friends came around with us but she wanted to go back within a few yards of leaving the safe area of the port, we were pestered a lot, which does not bother us but besides that there is nothing to see I would not eat at any of the restauranst at either of the ports and we found no markets. There is a traditional market were you dock at Guatamala which is inside the port. Sorry to be a bit blunt about the places but they are not the best of ports. I cannot understand why they visit these places unless its because of the ships tours. We are experienced cruisers and normally we do our own thing and like to go around all the places, find local markets etc by ourselve . Besides all that we still had a lovely time. Happy Cruising. Is it the Statendam you are on?

[norcal2]

IIRC the Blue Hole is too far away for cruise ship excursions. There are other atolls (Turneffe?) and cays closer by where they offer diving and snorkeling oppurtunities. In Belize ships anchor quite far away from land so its a long tender ride in to town and ifor diving or snorkeling you may have to be on another long ride past the ships out to the diving area.

I scuba dived in Belize and it was great.

Check the Scuba and Snorkeling threads for more info, as well as the Ports of Call threads.

Thats too bad about the ocean Blue Hole being too far. We didn't get any snorkling in unfortunately and that above all is what Belize is known for in my snorkling circles. I think there are two Blue Holes. One in the Ocean and the second in the park but I don't know anything about the park version AND I don't know how far it is from the cruise ships either. Wish I knew more about them.

Lucky you. Next time we'll absolutely get some snorkling in. I will check the threads as we plan on getting some snorkling in on our next cruise in 2 weeks. Good to know. I wish I was brave enough to scuba but I just can't seem to do it. I am actually jealous because I bet you have some fantastic stories to tell about every destination.

[pipedreams62]

Don't cheat yourself Kimberly. Guatemala is stunning. I saw beauty for 7 hours on my trip. One must get away from the port to see the beauty. There's nothing at the port other than souvenirs and the same ole same ole

[KimberleyFL]

Thanks everyone for all the information. I will check out the Ports section on this website too. I wasn't aware of that section; I guess I should explore this website more.

Veendam 2/1/2009

[pipedreams62]

Thanks everyone for all the information. I will check out the Ports section on this website too. I wasn't aware of that section; I guess I should explore this website more.

Veendam 2/1/2009


I wrote a review on my cruise with the same itinerary which can be seen here.

http://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=50997

[Boytjie]

Thats too bad about the ocean Blue Hole being too far. We didn't get any snorkling in unfortunately and that above all is what Belize is known for in my snorkling circles. I think there are two Blue Holes. One in the Ocean and the second in the park but I don't know anything about the park version AND I don't know how far it is from the cruise ships either. Wish I knew more about them.

Lucky you. Next time we'll absolutely get some snorkling in. I will check the threads as we plan on getting some snorkling in on our next cruise in 2 weeks. Good to know. I wish I was brave enough to scuba but I just can't seem to do it. I am actually jealous because I bet you have some fantastic stories to tell about every destination.

I only know about the Blue Hole in the ocean. :)

On our belize scuba excursoin there was also one person along for snorkeling - we dropped him and a snorkel buddy/guide at this spit of an island before heading out to our dive site. We joined then again for lunch on the island for lunch before heading out for our second dive.

This was on a 7 day cruise to Roatan, Belize and Cozumel - I dived in all three ports. It was great.

[norcal2]

I only know about the Blue Hole in the ocean. :)

On our belize scuba excursoin there was also one person along for snorkeling - we dropped him and a snorkel buddy/guide at this spit of an island before heading out to our dive site. We joined then again for lunch on the island for lunch before heading out for our second dive.

This was on a 7 day cruise to Roatan, Belize and Cozumel - I dived in all three ports. It was great.

I suspect the park version is not for the divers. :D

We did that cruise to Roatan, Belize and Cozumel and we were on the NCL Sun. Of the three stops I have only snorkled in Cozumel on open ocean and that was interesting (not that cruise though.) Best snorkling was near shore in another spot when we were surrounded by a thick wall of angel fish. I felt like I was part of the school and swam in circles with them.

So you dump the poor snorkler and head out for the dives? OK, I see how you divers roll. LOL

BTW thanks for that tip on the snorkling/scuba portion of this website. I found it and there is a lot of information. I didn't realise it existed.

[Boytjie]

So you dump the poor snorkler and head out for the dives? OK, I see how you divers roll. LOL

Hey, the snorkler had one-on-one attention; we were about 4-6 to a dive master. :eek:

BTW thanks for that tip on the snorkling/scuba portion of this website. I found it and there is a lot of information. I didn't realise it existed.

You're welcome. :)

[MissCruiser]

I enjoyed this itinerary better than any I have been on in the Caribbean.

In Guatemala we went on my favorite excursion of 7 Caribbean cruises. We privately booked the "Go With Gus" tour and had a memorable day taking school supplies to a one room schoolhouse in the rainforest that was only accessible by water.
In Belize we privately booked cavetubing and zip-lining. Nice day. Ate lunch on our own at the Jaguar Paw resort.
I have been to Costa Maya twice. Both times did the Native Choice tour. Once included lunch with a Mayan family. Very educational and well done.

[cccole]

A couple of years ago in Costa Maya we contacted a local "inn" on the beach and arranged to spend the day there. They arranged a trip to the ruins and we had plenty of time for lunch and time in the water. It was really a great day. My husband and sons had arranged a dive trip which they also enjoyed, but the diving was not as wonderful as some other ports. Have fun, Cherie

[MamaMicki]

Costa Maya is one of my favorite ports. Go outside of the complex and take the bus to the next village called Majual. It is very rustic and fun. Cheap drinks and good food. We went there for the first time in 2000 when it had just opened and Majual was basically a small village with no running water and electricity. There are no ATM's that I know of. We haven't been back since 2006. It had a bunch of people selling things, and it is still rustic, but they do have running water now. I really enjoy that place. Some people find it to rustic. Look on webshots and you can see some pictures.

[Sherry Baby]

As mentioned by "Sirdar" above, I am the person who went on a guided tour in Guatemala with a Spanish-speaking American as well. We had a good experience, since we saw an intimate view of Santo Tomas, Puerto Barrios, and the Waterfalls National Park (Las Escobas). The park is extremely beautiful, lush rainforest, and with a ship's tour, would be very safe.

The two cities are poor, poor, poor, and there's no restaurants or shopping I would trust, if we had not been escorted so well, we wouldn't have taken this chance. It's just not like polite American society.

The shopping portside is clean and desirable. Venturing past the gate alone is likely not safe. Hope this helps you.

[wyocruiser]

We were in Guatemala last month. I'm not sure where you are docking, but we took a tour to Antigua. It was one of our favorite tours. Antigua is beautiful (especially driving by the volcanoes), and we bought several souvenirs --- including jade.

Belize has a few shops by the port where you can pick up some souvenirs.

[Cruiseboomer]

I'll be sailing with you on the Veendam. I have been to Belize before and had the best excursion but it is no longer offered. This time I am doing the Lost Canopy and Repelling excursion. Fishing in Key West, ATVing in Costa Maya, and a local humanitarian tour in Guatemala. I have also heard that Belize City isn't the best place to wander around. Whatever you choose, it will be an experience! 3 more days!!! Woohoo!