Mini Rhino Excursion

Before leaving for a cruise on the Glory we had reserved the ATV excursion and beach stop (2.5 hrs) and then after not hearing any reviews at all about it prior to going we canceled and decided to talk to the excursion desk once on board.

Once we boarded and the excursion desk opened we hoped in line and the gentleman was more then knowledgeable and friendly. He explained the the ATV's were lots of fun, but recommended the Mini Rhino instead. He explained it was 3.5 hours instead of just 2.5 hrs. and for the same price. He also said the beach the rhinos go to is much more beautiful then the ATV's and he was sure right.

Once in Costa Maya we boarded the rhinos and drove on winding roads, some dirt and a little off roading. Stopped for a quick view of a spider monkey high in the trees and made our way to the beach where we were treated to drinks, nachos (which were homemade and delicious), hammocks along the beach, clean restrooms and just a great atmosphere. After an hour at the beach, we got back on the rhinos for the 40 minute ride back to the port.

The tour guides (Juan & Francesco) were great. Looked after everyone. Warned people of the currents in the water and chatted with everyone.

The mini rhinos was a great tour and well worth it. We got back to the port with plenty of time to go into town and have a late lunch and an hour snorkel tour for only $15 per person out to the reef. We even saw a sea turtle and rock lobster!! Such a great day at a great port.

If you have any questions, please feel free to ask.

Got any pics from those trips? I'd love to see what the Rhinos and the beach looked like, along with pictures of the water you snorkeled in.

I am so glad to hear that you had a good time. This is an excursion that I have been looking at for our cruise in June.

I have lots of photos I could show you but I've never posted pictures before. Do you or anyone know how to share pictures on here??

I have lots of photos I could show you but I've never posted pictures before. Do you or anyone know how to share pictures on here??

Sure, you can go to a place like flickr.com, sign up for an account, upload your pics, and then send us the link to your album.

Let me know how that goes for ya.

Sure, you can go to a place like flickr.com, sign up for an account, upload your pics, and then send us the link to your album.

Let me know how that goes for ya.

I have an account with Photobucket.com so I'm goingto upload the pics there and then I'll send you the link in just a little bit.

Yeah, that'll work too.

You can post the pics directly by placing I think the image code into a response.

Like so:

OK lets see if this works:

http://s169.photobucket.com/albums/u212/amy2313/

OK lets see if this works:

 

http://s169.photobucket.com/albums/u212/amy2313/

No ma'am. That link goes directly to your album, for which a password is required.

how much is the rhino tour pp?

i don't know if that last link is working - I clicked on it myself to test and it didn't look like it so if it doesn't, you can try this one...

http://good-times.webshots.com/album/558417477ybZUAX

Thanks for the pics, the webshots worked great!

How deep would you say that the water was when snorkeling?

The rhino tour was $99 per person.

As for the snorkeling, we were in different depths. The guide had asked us our experience level so we went both to a shallow area where at certain points our fins could be touching the coral if not careful. At other areas it was probably 15 - 20 ft. tops

So worth the 99 per person and do you each get a rhino or share?

So worth the 99 per person and do you each get a rhino or share?

We definitely thought the $99 was well worth it. It's 2 people per rhino and of course everyone wants to drive but it's a farely easy decision, one person drives the 45 minutes to the beach and the second drives the 45 minutes back.

Did you see the sea turtle during the rhino excursion, or once you got back? I'm confused when you snorkled, was it at the beach you went to during the excursion, or after you got back from it? I want to snorkle where you did!!! I've never seen a sea turtle!!

Did you see the sea turtle during the rhino excursion, or once you got back? I'm confused when you snorkled, was it at the beach you went to during the excursion, or after you got back from it? I want to snorkle where you did!!! I've never seen a sea turtle!!

The beach club that you go to for the hour on the rhinos wasn't really for snorkeling. more for lounging around, hanging on the beach or in the hammocks and taking a quick dip. When we got back from the rhinos we went into Marahual and paid $15 from one of the guys right on the beach to bring us out to the reef on his boat. That is where we saw the sea turtle. It was amazing!! The guy we went with anchored the boat and came snorkeling with us. He kept finding different things to show us. He first found a rock lobster and pointed it out and then close to when it was time to head back he found the sea turtle. It was a highlight of snorkeling.

We definitely thought the $99 was well worth it. It's 2 people per rhino and of course everyone wants to drive but it's a farely easy decision, one person drives the 45 minutes to the beach and the second drives the 45 minutes back.

Can anyone from any shio do this or is it ship specfic?

Thanks

Can I ask... What kind of camera were you using for the underwater shots?

Where did you find the guy with the boat?

Was he an independant tour guide or just a guy with a boat?

Were you worried that he'd drop you off and not come back for you?

Can anyone from any shio do this or is it ship specfic?

 

Thanks

We were on the Carnival Glory and I'd assume any Carnival ship would offer this excrusion as we booked directly thru the cruise line. As for another cruise line offering this excursion... that I am unsure of. It seemed as though all the people with us on the rhinos were from Carnival and there was other ships in port at the same time so I just dont know the answer to that for sure.

Can I ask... What kind of camera were you using for the underwater shots?

I have a canon powershot 410 and have the underwater housing for it made by canon. It's a bit pricey but I bought it used on ebay and it's just great. it gives you access to all the buttons. This was the first time I had used it and it came in handy. Pictures as you can tell came out great; very clear.

Where did you find the guy with the boat?

Was he an independant tour guide or just a guy with a boat?

Were you worried that he'd drop you off and not come back for you?

He was an independent tour guide. We made our way down the beach in Marahual and plopped ourselves down at one of the restuarant/bars. If you are having drinks or eating they let you use their tables and chairs without paying the rental fees. I told our waiter that we wanted to snorkel too and he came back with a guide who took us to his boat. The guy that went with us spoke very little english but he could not have been any nicer. Never once worried about getting left out there as once we made it to the reef, the guide put on his snorkel and fins and jumped in with us! Never once left our side. At one point my sister got a little tired and was lagging behind a bit as it was a little rough out that day and he swim back and basically pulled her (it's kinda hard to explain but it was very nice of him and made it easier and less strenuous for her for a little while).

If anyone has other questions, I'd be happy to answer. If you want I can also look through our other pictures to see if I can spot the name of the restuarant that we stayed at that hooked us up with the great snorkel guide. Just let me know.

I just have to thank you for the great information! DH and I are debating on the Mini Rhino vs the Off Road Kart adventure and I'm now leaning towards the Mini Rhino!!!

Thank you very much for the great info! I will give it a try while we are there at the end of the month after our excursion.

thanks again

I just have to thank you for the great information! DH and I are debating on the Mini Rhino vs the Off Road Kart adventure and I'm now leaning towards the Mini Rhino!!!

Thank you very much for the great info! I will give it a try while we are there at the end of the month after our excursion.

thanks again

You are both very welcome. I'm glad I could help the cruisecritic members after all the informative info I've gotten in the past!!

Just have fun and keep an eye out in the trees along the road to the beach... we saw the spider monkey and the guides said you never know what you'll see! And one other tip... leave a little space between your rhino and the person in front of you, once you have a bit of room you can rev up that engine and floor it!! :p Oh and I almost forgot, make sure you have your helmet tied on real well! Mine flew right off and into the trunk of the rhino!! I hadn't laughed that hard in some time. For some reason we just thought it was the funniest thing... there I was sitting there with no helmet!

HAve a great time.

HEY THERE, I BOOKED THIS EXCURSION TODAY...SOUNDS LIKE YOU HAD FUN. QUESTION IS THIS,,,AT THE BEACH THEY TOOK YOU TO...ANY SHOPPING? WHAT TYPE OF DRINKS? FROZEN DRINKS, BEER? FAMILY OF FOUR BUT A NICE REFRESHING DRINK WOULD BE NICE. ANY OTHER SUGGESTION ABOUT THIS EXCURSION????? WE WERE GOING TO DO THE DUNE BUGGY BUT WHEN I WENT TO BOOK IT, IT WAS ALREADY FULL. THANKS FOR YOU GREAT POST, MAKES ME FEEL LIKE I MADE A GOOD CHOICE....WHAT ALL WAS THERE TO DO AT THE BEACH? ROCKY SHORE OR SAND??? THANK YOU SOOOOO MUCH....;)