Western Carribean Must Dos

Sailing on the Carnival Splendor Dec. 13/15 with my two sons, daughter-in-laws, and three grandsons ages 8 to 12. We have fours stops - Cozumel, Belize, Mahogany Bay, and Grand Cayman. I was wondering if anyone could help with excursions, must dos, insider tips, or things to avoid. We are West Coasters and all of our cruising has been on the west coast Mexico and Alaska. Thanks.

There are NO 'must dos"! It's what YOU like and enjoy that's important! Read up on your ports, so you'll know ALL of the sights and activities available to you...then you can decide HOW to do them!

Most things are very easy to do on your own...and not booking excursions can save you a bundle! But...you have to have info on where you're going. Pick up a guidebook at your library...or buy one.....

We sailed the exact same itinerary on Splendor last year and had a great time. We didn't book any excursions but wish we would have in a few places. Here are some ideas. It all depends on what your interests are but here are thinks we like.

Cozumel: One of my favorite places to wander around. You'll most likely dock and Puerta Maya and will have to take an easy cab ride to your destination. On our first cruise we went to Paradise Beach which charges $3 for entry but they have a beautiful beach and pool area. For an additional charge, they have watersports available. There are also many All Inclusive Resorts that are affordable. A popular one is Nachi Cochem which requires a reservation as they have a 100 person limit each day. Downtown has a lot of shopping if you are interested in that and there is a lot of shopping available right at the port. Los cinco soles has a port and downtown location and they have a huge selection of souvenirs at reasonable prices.

Mahogany Bay is a great day to use as a beach day. You can walk right to the beach area and there are chairs available free of charge. They also have the "magical flying beach chair" which is an additional cost which takes you from the ship to the beach all day. We chose to just walk, about 5-10 minute easy stroll from the ship.

Belize: belize is one place where I would recommend booking an excursion. There is not much to do right at the port area with the exception of bars and the same shops that are at all of the other ports. We walked outside of the gated area to Belize City which made us feel a bit uneasy but I didn't feel like we were in danger. There are just a lot of people selling things outside of the gate and not many people walking around so we were kind of swarmed by them, but we said no thank you and kept going.

Grand Cayman: I would recommend going to seven mile beach or doing the stingray excursion. We just took a bus to the public beach for about $2 I believe. So far, our favorite beach that we have visited!

I hope you have a great time :)

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Belize is the perfect port for either visiting the Mayan ruin of Lamanai (ship excursion) or doing one of the water activities. You need to get out of the town for both.

Hi Molly's Dad, my husband and I will be on the Splendor that same week as well! It's getting close!!

We've never been to Western Carribean before so I am not sure if we picked the "must do" excursions, but from the reviews they sound pretty fun!

Cozumel: We reserved a day at Mr. Sanchos Beach Club, All inclusive ( mrsanchos dot com is the website). It was $50/person, but we only paid $5 each to reserve a spot, the rest is paid whenyou get there. We figured we'd reserve the spot, and see how it looks, that way, if see somewhere else we'd rather go, we are only on the hook for $10.

Belize: Altuan Ha and River Wallace excursion (this takes up the whole day in port, but we both really wanted to see some ruins, picked this one because you can climb to the top of the ruins, as opposed to others where you can only stand back and look at them.

Mohagany Bay/Isla Roatan: No plan here, we are going to wing it... maybe go to the beach or walk around, shop, eat/drink, etc...

Cayman Islands: Dolphin Encounter and Sting Ray City.... I've always wanted to "swim with dolphins", and this one sounded nice because it was in the ocean, not in a pool.

That is the plan, who knows if we picked good ones, but a bad day on vacation beats a good day at work any day of the week :)

Also, there is a thread here for all members who will be on the Splendor this week, If you go to Roll Calls > Carnival > Carnival Splendor. You might get a better feel for what other people have booked over there!

~Melissa

I don't know if you are into snorkeling but Roatan has some of the best we've ever encountered. Being from the west coast you might have visited Hawaii and Roatan matches if not exceeds the quality found in Hawaii. Take the Tabayana Beach Break excursion if one is offered. A great beach day with walk from shore snorkeling and a pretty good lunch.

Good ideas. We want to see the ruins and do the stingray excursion. My concern is the time factor. I have been told that the ship will not sell the Cozumel ruins tour because of the time factor. In Cabo a group got left behind (their table mates told us) so not interested in having that happen.

Any ruins anybody would recommend?

Good ideas. We want to see the ruins and do the stingray excursion. My concern is the time factor. I have been told that the ship will not sell the Cozumel ruins tour because of the time factor. In Cabo a group got left behind (their table mates told us) so not interested in having that happen.

 

Any ruins anybody would recommend?

For ruins, as MuffyJones123 recommended above, I also recommend Altun Ha at Belize. You want to be on an excursion if you leave the gated compound at the port in Belize.

Good ideas. We want to see the ruins and do the stingray excursion. My concern is the time factor. I have been told that the ship will not sell the Cozumel ruins tour because of the time factor. In Cabo a group got left behind (their table mates told us) so not interested in having that happen.

Any ruins anybody would recommend?

Since the ship feels there is not enough time to offer an excursion to the ruins' date=' it would probable be best not to try to do it on your own.

The must do for your ports of call is to book some sort of excursion in Belize. ;)

LuLu [/size']

I will suggest Shark Ray Alley and Caye Caulker in Belize.

There is a small ruins area on Cozumel, I believe. I've not been to ruins in Belize.

I have been to Tulum, which is on the mainland in Mexico south of Playa del Carmen. We went while we were staying at an all-inclusive in Riviera Maya. From Cozumel, you'd take the ferry over to Playa and then go south. I'm surprised there are no Tulum excursions offered for your sailing, but it is dependent on your time in port. On our Dec. sailing, we are in Cozumel for 12 hours, and there is an excursion to Chichen Itza offered. It's a 10-hour excursion and most of that time is spent getting to/from the ruins. As much as I'd like to see Chichen Itza, I wouldn't do it from Cozumel.

Cave tubing in Belize is a great experience. Go to the ports of call board for excursion advice, as there are better and cheaper excursions than those through the ship. I think your grandchildren may like that.

Stingray city in Grand Cayman is also a really fun experience.

If you're interested in dolphins, sea lions, or manatees, take a look at Chankannab park in Cozumel.

Belize: Altuan Ha and River Wallace excursion (this takes up the whole day in port, but we both really wanted to see some ruins, picked this one because you can climb to the top of the ruins, as opposed to others where you can only stand back and look at them.

 

You can climb the Lamanai highest pyramid. It's in Chichen Itza, Mexico that they won't let you climb any more. Too many tourists.

My DH and I thoroughly enjoyed a swim with the stingrays excursion in the Caymans....it was awesome!

Gr. Cayman--yes, beaches, beaches, beaches & cheap (to get in...nothing else is cheap!)

Cozumel--I would NOT pay $50 for AI with children. We did Nachi Cocum 2 years ago (and will be again this spring) & LOVE it. But as a couple. It is quiet & peaceful. There was 1 child there when we were there. He was about 6 & just wanted to play in the pool.

I recommend Paradise Beach. Inexpensive to get in (do get chairs)--like $5-8 with a chair. $15 wristband gets the kids all the inflatables in the water, if they are into that. They need to be strong swimmers as they have to swim out a bit to get to them. We bought it for our 3 teens & frankly it wasn't worth it for them. I think only the youngest got his moneys worth.

I recommend Paradise Beach. Inexpensive to get in (do get chairs)--like $5-8 with a chair. $15 wristband gets the kids all the inflatables in the water, if they are into that. They need to be strong swimmers as they have to swim out a bit to get to them. We bought it for our 3 teens & frankly it wasn't worth it for them. I think only the youngest got his moneys worth.

It's $3 pp entry fee (+$15 for inflatables, kayaks, etc if you want). They only ask that you spend $10 pp in food/drink. It's about a $17 taxi ride each way for 4 persons. I HIGHLY recommend this. They have fantastic facilities, great service, and a fantastic pool.

At Mahogany Bay, it's not a very long walk from the ship to the beach. It's up to you if you want to take the chair lift. It's not a "must-do", but you can get some great aerial view pictures from there while riding along. ;)