Another option for Belize...

Coming into Belize end of June on the Carnival Glory. Mom and teenage son are going cave tubing and I will be hanging out with my younger daughters.

One of the thoughts is for my daughters and I would be to fly to one of the Cayes while we are in Belize and hang out at the beach.

The girls would get a great thrill from riding in a prop airplane and a day at the beach would be a lot of fun for three of us.

Can any one recommend a good way to do this for the day, and outline the costs.

We are in port from 8:00 – 5:00, and this sounds like a neat adventure for a 9 and 12 year old.

Smuniak,

I was in Belize for a week in '99. The little prop planes are a rush. The Airport you need to use is the "Belize City Municipal" airport. Goldstone airport is the big international airport further from the docks and tenders. Given that, the municipal airport is no more than a long driveway along the water front. I think planes fly hourly between there and either Caye Caulker or Ambergris Caye(San Pedro) for about $50 US roundtrip. We used Tropic Air ( [url="http://www.tropicair.com"]www.tropicair.com[/url] ) There is also another local airline called Maya Island Air. Tropic had very nice modern planes and as far as I could tell well trained professional crews.
About the beaches. This area of Belize does not have "beaches" in the strict sense of the word. The barrier reef, about a mile off shore from the cayes blocks the wave action from reaching the shoreline. There are sand areas along the water front lagoons to sit and enjoy the day, but it is more "lake like" than ocean like. San Pedro is a neat little town with Caribbean Charm. Caye Caulker even smaller with the associated charm. You could arrange for some snorkeling for your family while at either caye. I would avoid Shark/Ray alley because the ships excursions will overrunn the place and I understand the experience will be diluted. If you choose San Pedro and want to snorkel I would suggest Mexico Rocks as a destination North of town that will be away from the hordes. There are many operators in San Pedro who could take you there. We scuba dove with Amigos Del Mar, a quality local shop that also runs snorkeling trips. ( [url="http://www.amigosdive.com"]www.amigosdive.com[/url] )
There is also a local forum at ( [url="http://www.ambergriscaye.com"]www.ambergriscaye.com[/url] ) link at bottom of the page.
Be warned however that a lot of the locals are a little disenchanted with cruisers and the usual most of the money going into a few hands issues.

Have a great time
Rich

Smuniak:
Are you still on the boards? If so, I'm hoping you can tell me if you ended up taking the flight to San Pedro. We are planning to do this and just wanted to find out what your experience was like.