Fun stuff to do (Cabo, PV, Maz) with three small kids?

Once again I need some help. I will be cruising to the Mexican Riviera this September for the first time. It will be myself and my two children (age 11 and 7) and my friend and her daughter (age 11). I am really having trouble deciding what kinds of things to do in port. Normally I travel with my husband who is a cop and speaks fluent Spanish so I don't worry to much about doing stuff on our own. I would really like some suggestions from some of the folks who have been to Cabo, PV, and Mazatlan. What kinds of things would you do with kids this age? Should I stick to organized tours through the ship? Are there any independent tour companies you can recommend? Thanks in advance for all the help.

Cabo San Lucas - Snorkel trip on a catamaran. Easy to book independently. Cost is about $35 - $50 per person. Duration is about 4 hours total. Lunch & drinks are provided (somewhat different depending upon the ship, each one is a little different). Pez Gato is our favorite. EcoCat is the newest cat in Cabo and is receiving good reviews. There are several other good companies - Rissalena, Tropicat, La Princesa.

Mazatlan - Randi's Happy Horses. More info can be found doing a simple search.

Puerto Vallarta - Marigalente Pirate Ship for pirate games, snorkeling, & day at the beach. May have to book this one through the ship (at a higher cost). Your ship may have an exclusive contract with the Marigalente.

Because of the time you are sailing (hurricane season). It is slightly possible that your ships itinerary could be altered and you could miss a port. The safest booking is through the ship because of this (but at a higher cost). The next best option is to book your excursions through a company vendor that offers a "no port, no pay" policy like Johann & Sandra who advertise here. You can also book directly through the company either through the web or when you get to the port you can check for availability. This would be easiest to do in Cabo for a catamaran snorkel/sailing excursion since there are several good companies I mentioned.

Other possibilities include the zip lines in Puerto Vallerta, Stone Island beach day in Mazatlan, and lastly, the Dolphin Encounter in either Cabo or Puerto Vallarta (but this is expensive)

Hello Everyone,

I'm a Newbie. My family and I are sailing on March 15th, 2014 to Cabo and PV. (kids ages 4, 5 and 7).

What can we do that’s inexpensive?

Any ideas?? ...Thank you!

Hey Rmmi2002! We are on that cruise as well (come join us on our roll call!)

Our group is also travelling with kids (3-8-13-15)

I would also love some ideas for Cabo! So far we just have a glass boat ride to Medano beach planned but other suggestions would be great!

Hi Island bound,

We will. 36 days away I'm so excited.

For the glass boat ride, did you book that through Carnival? May I have a little details on it.

Thank you

We have not booked anything for Cabo as I've been told by friends that live there (and read on these boards) that the glass boat operators are abundant. So our lose plan is to catch a ride to Medano beach day one and so far we have nothing set in stone for day 2! For PV we are doing the Pirate ship Adventure through Carnival (but you can book it privately for cheaper! We did get Carnival to price match but it was a lot of trouble!!!)

The Roll Call has be a wealth of information and we will be sharing our cruise with some very nice people! Can't wait 36 days!!!!

The Miracle is going to be a blast!

Hi,

I've been looking at this website and I was wondering if anyone has been with them on any events?

http://www.cabosanlucastours.net

Subbing :) We'll be in Cabo with three kids and looking for ideas! :D

Subbing :) We'll be in Cabo with three kids and looking for ideas! :D

It is often helpful to have some idea if cost is a significant factor in the things you might do when ashore.

The various dolphin interaction excursions seem to be very popular with children in your kids age group. Water/beach activities always seem to be a winner too. I offer the following for informational purposes only and know that these excursion are typically booked through the cruise line:

Cabo: http://www.cabo-adventures.com/tours/dolphins

Vallarta: http://www.vallarta-adventures.com/tours/dolphins

Vallarta: http://www.vallarta-adventures.com/tours/las-caletas-day-trip

Vallarta: http://pirateshipvallarta.com/pirate-ship-day-show.html

The links above take you to the actual excursion operators that the cruise industry contracts with most often. The info at their web sites tend to provide more/better information that you will get through the cruise line.

There are a whole host of family friendly activities that can be booked or done on your own. It often depends on how "worry free"/"all-inclusive" you want the activities to be.

Enjoy!

For those who want inexpensive activities, the following may interest you.

Cabo -- Glass bottom boat booked onshore will be from 7 to 10 dollars per person. they will take you to Lands End and back or will let you off at Lovers Beach and return to pick you up. They will also take you to Medano Beach if you arrange for that when you book them. It may cost a dollar or two more. From Medano, you can either walk back to the marina or take a land or water taxi. All the prices are flexible.

Mazatlan -- The water taxi stand is about three blocks from the port and a round trip to Stone Island is about 3 dollars per person round trip. The water is shallow for quite a ways, so it is pretty safe for kids. Also -- They have pulmonia taxis that you can hire for a good price to take you on a city tour. If you want they will let you off at the water taxiso you can go to Stone Island after the tour.

PV -- We like to take the blue and white city bus downtown and walk the malecon. The price is around 7.50 pesos (about 50 cents US but they don't take US coins). There are lots of shops and sculptures along the malecon and the Rio Cuale has an island with lots of trees and shops plus you are likely to see iguanas. Further South on the malecon you will find a beach and restaurants with tables on the sand. A good place to have refreshments and play if the surf isn't too bad. We like the Sea Monkey for the beer and margaritas for one dollar.

To catch a bus back to the port, you go away from the ocean until you see buses going North and look for the blue and white one. You will want to get off just before you get to WalMart and the ship will be across the street.

I hope this helps you have a great trip !!

We did a cruise a couple of years ago with a larger group, and had a great time! We had our DD (then 2) and cousins who were 10 and 11.

We booked our tours in Cabo through a company down there, and had a really great experience. It was cabosanlucastours.net. We did an ATV trip through a village and on the beach one day, and then the second day we did whale watching on a catamaran. Both were wonderful! They were also very reasonably priced.

The ATVs were cheaper if you rode together, which is perfect when you are with kids. I believe it was around $60 for a single, $40 per person for a double. The guides were great and really helped us all make sure we knew what we were doing, since we'd never ridden before. The head guide even took my daughter on his ATV with him because he could tell I was having a hard time focusing on driving while holding her. She had a great time, and she must have felt safe, because on the way back she fell asleep ;)

The whale watching was my favorite. Very good for the kids, and we saw several whales and got fairly close. They also took us by El Arco and to see the sea lions, so that was nice. And on the way back, they served chips and guacamole, soda and beer. This one was a little weird because you had to take a water taxi across the marina to the meeting point, but that was very easy and they had great directions. I believe this was only about $35 per adult, so it was a great value. It was only a couple of hours, so we had time to explore the port a bit afterward.

Anyway, those might be worth looking into! I would totally do them both again, and we are actually using the company again for our trip next year. In PV we just took the bus to Mismayola (I'm sure I'm spelling that wrong), but that would have been tough to do if we didn't have my husband and his fluent Spanish along.

Hope you have fun no matter what you decide!

For those who want inexpensive activities, the following may interest you.

 

 

 

PV -- We like to take the blue and white city bus downtown and walk the malecon. The price is around 7.50 pesos (about 50 cents US but they don't take US coins). There are lots of shops and sculptures along the malecon and the Rio Cuale has an island with lots of trees and shops plus you are likely to see iguanas. Further South on the malecon you will find a beach and restaurants with tables on the sand. A good place to have refreshments and play if the surf isn't too bad. We like the Sea Monkey for the beer and margaritas for one dollar.

 

To catch a bus back to the port, you go away from the ocean until you see buses going North and look for the blue and white one. You will want to get off just before you get to WalMart and the ship will be across the street.

 

I hope this helps you have a great trip !!

Sorry if this sounds daft :o but do you get Mexican Pesos before you arrive or is there some other way to pay?

Sorry if this sounds daft :o but do you get Mexican Pesos before you arrive or is there some other way to pay?

Those of us who vacation regularly in Mexico arrive with a pocket full of pesos. Cruisers really don't need to get them. If you do want to get & use pesos, then get them from an ATM at your first port stop.

US dollars are readily accepted in Mexican tourist destinations. swedish weave is telling you that US "coins" are not accepted. It has been reported that bus drivers will accept $1 USD per person as payment for the 7.5 pesos. Do not "expect" to get change back because most bus drivers has no idea what the daily exchange rate is. If you do encounter a bus driver that speaks English AND does currency exchange in his head, then you might get change back in the form of pesos.

(Note: For Vallarta, set taxi rates are in pesos for yellow city cabs. The drivers do a simple 10:1 conversion. A 70 pesos cab ride will cost $7 USDs. The cabbie isn't trying to rip you off, it's what their education level allows. There is a board in every resort/hotel lobby that lists, in pesos, the established taxi rates from that point to popular destinations.)

Enjoy!

thank you. that is very helpful :)

For those who want inexpensive activities, the following may interest you.

 

Cabo -- Glass bottom boat booked onshore will be from 7 to 10 dollars per person. they will take you to Lands End and back or will let you off at Lovers Beach and return to pick you up. They will also take you to Medano Beach if you arrange for that when you book them. It may cost a dollar or two more. From Medano, you can either walk back to the marina or take a land or water taxi. All the prices are flexible.

 

Mazatlan -- The water taxi stand is about three blocks from the port and a round trip to Stone Island is about 3 dollars per person round trip. The water is shallow for quite a ways, so it is pretty safe for kids. Also -- They have pulmonia taxis that you can hire for a good price to take you on a city tour. If you want they will let you off at the water taxiso you can go to Stone Island after the tour.

 

PV -- We like to take the blue and white city bus downtown and walk the malecon. The price is around 7.50 pesos (about 50 cents US but they don't take US coins). There are lots of shops and sculptures along the malecon and the Rio Cuale has an island with lots of trees and shops plus you are likely to see iguanas. Further South on the malecon you will find a beach and restaurants with tables on the sand. A good place to have refreshments and play if the surf isn't too bad. We like the Sea Monkey for the beer and margaritas for one dollar.

 

To catch a bus back to the port, you go away from the ocean until you see buses going North and look for the blue and white one. You will want to get off just before you get to WalMart and the ship will be across the street.

 

I hope this helps you have a great trip !!

Swedish Weave is spot on! The only thing that I might add, is when in Cabo, do not fear walking down the Marina. Great people viewing, and lots of great places to stop and "snack"...too, while in Cabo, wander over (just to your left) from the cruise docks to the flea market....yes, the prices might be a bit more, but they are not pushy, and you can, on occasion, find some real treasures. Just outside the flea market (towards the cruise docks) is a lotte stand.....they use real chocolate, real vanilla, and real sugar....some of the best lattes that you will ever have.

Once again I need some help. I will be cruising to the Mexican Riviera this September for the first time. It will be myself and my two children (age 11 and 7) and my friend and her daughter (age 11). I am really having trouble deciding what kinds of things to do in port. Normally I travel with my husband who is a cop and speaks fluent Spanish so I don't worry to much about doing stuff on our own. I would really like some suggestions from some of the folks who have been to Cabo, PV, and Mazatlan. What kinds of things would you do with kids this age? Should I stick to organized tours through the ship? Are there any independent tour companies you can recommend? Thanks in advance for all the help.

RANDI'S HAPPY HORSEs REINCARNATED!

Just found out that the people who use provide the horses and guides for randis happy horses have bee reincarnated into "Maria's Happy Horses"....maria is the daughter of Danielle who owns the horses....they are on Facebook and have a website...it looks like they will pick you up at the terminal like the old days...Nice real nice...http://mariashappyhorses.weebly.com/