Kohunlich & Dzibanche Mayan Ruins Combo

Has anyone done the Kohunlich & Dzibanche Mayan Ruins Combo Tour, offered as a ship's excursion through RCCL?

We loved Lamanai in Belize, and DH wanted to see more Mayan Ruins on this trip. My only concerns are that it's an 8-hour tour (2.5 hours each way on the bus), with only a box lunch and cold soda for the whole day. The ruins themselves sound amazing, but is it worth enduring the bus ride to get there?

Oh, and I know that there are good private operators offering Mayan ruins tours. But traveling that far on anything but a ship's excursion is just a little out of my comfort zone. I would just worry about being one flat tire away from watching the ship sail without me! :eek:

We did them but with an independent company not the cruise line so I really can't tell you what your experience will be like. Ours however was fantastic.

Thanks for the feedback. If the ruins themselves are as fabulous as the ones at Lamanai, then the 2+ hour each way bus trip will probably be worth it. We weren't planning to do anything else that day in Costa Maya. We alternatively had considered doing another ruins tour in Belize -- but that's a long bus ride after a very long tender ride from the ship. I guess if something's really worth seeing, you just sometimes have to put up with a bit of a schlep to get there. :p

Just got back today from the Celebrity Eclipse and did the Dzibanche / Kochunlich tour with Native Choice. Left at 8:30 am and got back to the port at 4:30pm. It is a long ride - but it's soooo worth it. Amazing ruins! Both sites ! So glad to have visited 2 sites as they are different and you learn so much. Just loved the tour. Worth so much more than they charge !!

I expected to see maybe 3 or 4 ruins at each site - but was blown away by seeing maybe 10 - 15. The grounds are extensive and really well done by the restoration people . Francisco was a super nice tour-guy and went out of his way to add information whenever he could.

Dzibanche had several tall pyramids and interesting residential ruins as well. Kochunilch was like a city where you walk between these buildings that must have been out of this world at the time they were occupied.

If you are at Costa Maya - do the Maya Tours! The port itself didn't look like it had much there - but the ruins make the stop well worth being on the list of ports to stop at.

Also - doing a tour with only 6 people vs a bus load is a lot more satisfying. When we got to Dzibanche - we were the only people there! About a half hour later a bus showed up and they herded around the site in a big heap. They also waste a lot of time at bathroom stops. We were in and out in a flash.

I'm glad I went with Native Choice - I'd do it again in a heartbeat.

We did the excursion through Celebrity also. I have never been to other ruins so I have nothing to compare it to. For me it was totally worth the ride. Our tour guide was very entertaining telling us about Mayan history and Mexican Culture on the way there. The box lunch was underwhelming (which was a surprise considering how great the rest of the food was) I consisted of a tuna "lunchable" with crackers, a roll and cookie from the ship and a juice box. The bus driver had some soda and beer for sale. I brought some packaged snacks from home and was glad I did. Although we were with a busload of people it did not feel crowded to me. The ruins are huge and there was nobody else there except us and a private tour group of about 8. I had the same concern about the flat tire type of thing and although the private tour looked very nice I would have been nervous the whole time.

I tried to include a couple pictures which give you a sense of the crowd as well as the grandeur of these places (although the photos do not do it justice in that sense.) Overall, I would highly recommend the excursion.

BPutnam -- Thank you for the review and photos! RC probably uses the same tour operators as X -- so, it should be a good day. BTW -- if you are ever in Belize, RC's New River and Lamanai ruins tour is great! :cool:

Thanks for the Lamania recommendation. It sounds fantastic. Belize is definitely on my list.

Glad I could help. Have a great cruise!

Since I started this thread, I thought I should report back on our experience with this tour (RC's combo Kohunlich & Dzibanche ruins). It was a long, but very enjoyable day. The ruins at both sites were amazing. There were not many other groups at either one, and we were allowed ample time to explore, climb, and photograph the ruins. At Dzibanche, we saw (and heard!) howler monkeys. The tour operators provided water and a box lunch (which we ate on the bus in between ruins sites. Nothing fancy, but we didn't starve. I would recommend hats, sunscreen and bug spray. Also, be advised that this tour takes up the whole day, so there is no time to shop or eat in Costa Maya. DH and I thought this tour was well worth the money.

Has anyone done this tour lately?

Has anyone done this tour lately?

Replying to an old thread [emoji41]. Gstonelake - did you by chance take this tour? I’m thinking about booking it for our upcoming cruise and just trying to decide between Chacchoben or this one! Thx!!

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Replying to an old thread [emoji41]. Gstonelake - did you by chance take this tour? I’m thinking about booking it for our upcoming cruise and just trying to decide between Chacchoben or this one! Thx!!

 

 

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We leave in two weeks, but booked the Chacchoben Extreme with Native Choice. I will post when We return.

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We leave in two weeks, but booked the Chacchoben Extreme with Native Choice. I will post when We return.

 

 

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Awesome!! Thank you for replying [emoji3]. What ship are you sailing on? We’ll be on the oasis leaving Nov 5th. Here’s to a great time on the excursion!!

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Following - I'm thinking of booking this in April.

Following - I'm thinking of booking this in April.

Well, it’s been months since our Oct trip on Oasis but I did go ahead and take the Kohunlich tour.

I booked thru Royal Caribbean just because of the length of time to get to the ruins. I felt it was too risky time-wise going with a third party.

The excursion was awesome though. A little less then 4 hours each way and we stayed at the ruins for about 2.5 hours (if I remember correctly). It was more then enough time there! First we did a guided tour around the complex and then we had a good 45 minutes to explore on our own. It was a hot exhausting day but totally worth the experience!

Bring some spray-on insect repellent and a good application of sunscreen. It was hot out there!

Any other questions just let me know and I’ll try to answer...

Glen

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Has anyone taken the Kohunlich & Dzibanche Mayan Ruins Combo tour through Royal Caribbean?  Was it worth the long bus ride?  We’re on the Oasis Feb 26th sailing and we’re considering this excursion.