help Carnival valor what to do..roatan,belize,cozumel,grand cayman

[spongiebob]

hello all:

we are traveling in a large group of 14 to western caribbean next month on carnival valor, going to cozumel (which most of us have been before), grand cayman, roatan and belize

we were looking for tips and ideas about low cost options for our group to do/visit while in these islands. our main interest is nice beaches .thanks and happy travels:)

[trace2010]

Okay just off this cruise in August -- sooo much fun!! Here is my advice :)

Grand Cayman -- DO NOT DO the Seven Mile Beach Break -- holy moly... they get you there and each 'ship' has a designated area of chairs which are on this steep hill and the chairs are so tightly together you cant even get one leg in between - it was just ridiculous. The picture they show on the carnival page is exactly how the chairs will be just tighter! You are not allowed to move the chairs at all -- it was so uncomfortable my husband and I couldnt even get to our chairs half the time. Grab a taxi and go to another beach! The water is beautiful but with that many people its like putting 50 people into a small pool - everyone was right on top of everyone! Worth the taxi ride!

 

Roatan -- Tabayana Beach Break -- by far our favorite! Its just beautiful! White sand, palm trees -- lots of area to walk... you can even rent snorkle gear for like $10 and snorkle on the coral reef there. They have bathrooms and a resturant -- worth every penny!! FYI -- if you do the snorkle but sunscreen on your back and butt :) we learned the hard way... lol!

 

Belize -- we did a snorkle trip with beach break to Bannister Island.. the snorkling was awesome (take the early departure) it gets hot even in the morning :) Bannister Island was not so great -- the water was slimy, rocky and gross... Im a water bug but couldnt deal with all the slimy stuff touching my legs so I opted for a nice massage on the beach for like $20 while the hubby drank the day away!

 

Im sure you will LOVE your trip... hope this helped!! We leave for Eastern Carib in Sept!

 

Cozumel -- we always go to Isla of Passion .. last year they started offering it by 'Twister' which is a lot of fun! Its open bar and buffet with great mexican food and the freshes fruit around! Lots to do there - chairs and float rentals and even a giant water tramperline!

[ffmikey]

We were on the Valor last month. I SCUBA so that was my main focus. However, while in Roatan we went to West End, as did some of our friends. We went separately. That part of the island was a fun. Very rustic and not a lot of "buy this" pressure. It is about a 30 minute cab ride. DON'T use the cabs at Mahogany Bay. Walk outside the gate and down the hill and get a cab there. Our friends paid $30 for the cab including tip. We got a cab in MB and paid $70 w/ tip for the cab. They wanted $100 RT. Having said that, West End was great. Here are a couple of pictures... Have fun what ever you do!

 

http://i858.photobucket.com/albums/ab141/ffmikey-CS/Valor%20Cruise%20Feb%202010/pic173.jpg

http://i858.photobucket.com/albums/ab141/ffmikey-CS/Valor%20Cruise%20Feb%202010/pic175.jpg

[RoadTripFanatic]

Grand Cayman- My two favorite options are 1. Go pay the $$ and swim with the Sting Rays!

#2-Rent a car for the day! We went to the Turtle Farm and had a great time. If they ask what ship you are on tell them you are a tourist. :) They tried to charge us extra because we were on a ship!! I'm not kidding! We then drove to Seven Mile beach and had a nice quiet spot to ourselves! Just be careful because they drive on the "wrong" side of the beach.

 

Roatan- If you like to snorkel rent a taxi for the day and go to West Bay! The best snorkeling is there!!

 

Belize- I would either take the excursion to Goff's Cay or take one of the city tours that go to the Zoo. :)

 

Cozumel- My least favorite port in the world. :) I have finally found a place that I can enjoy there besides the long trek to Talum. It's called

Chakanaab. I'd just take a taxi there for the day. There were plenty of taxis coming and going.

[khop]

Belize - do the cave tubing. Most beautiful scenery and fun!

 

Cozumel - We did a 4x4 jeep tour and had a BLAST! Guides were fun, trip was relaxing, and the lunch and beach time was the BEST.

[MistyRo76]

We just did this cruise in Oct. Here's what we did:

Grand Caymen - We took a cab to 7 Mile Beach and just picked a nice little spot (I think the Beach Club was called Royal something??). It was really nice and relaxing. Had a nice lunch, the ocean was great and we had a great time. This was our more relaxing day. Didn't do much but hang out in the ocean and on the beach.

 

Roatan - We did the Birds, Monkeys and Pirates tour. It was really fun. Loved playing with the bird and monkeys. The park is also really nice. We had lunch after the tour, hung out at the pool and got a really cheap massage on the beach (it wasn't the best, but it was nice for the price).

 

Belize - We did the Raiders of the Lost Mayan Ruins tour. LONG BUMPY BUS RIDE to the rainforest for the tour. But the tour itself was really neat. Need to be a little more on the active side for this one! There were parts that might be a little strenuous for some.

 

Cozumel - My fave port....we always take a cab to Playa Mia. It's a great beach club. Their all inclusive package is like $45 and includes the buffet, drinks and some of the more basic water activities (think paddle boats, kayaks, water trampoline, etc.). I love this beach. Their facilities are really nice and we always have a blast. It's big enough to accommodate large groups without feeling to crowded. Also, ask your taxi driver about deals on the beach packages. He got us a great deal!

 

Misty

[debster818]

We are going in April and still have not made our minds up.

[mferris77]

When we went to Roatan we went to Fins & Flipper's... which apparently has now been renamed to Maya Key. It was probably the best deal of our whole trip. I think it was like 20 or 30 bucks for the whole day and included snorkel gear. It's a small private island right by the cruise ship docks. Clean facilities, very pretty beach, a large heated pool if that's your thing, very clean and large bathroom facilities, affordable bar fare, nice little gift shop. Couldn't think of anything bad to say about it, other than the beach is on the small side. That's not to say it's crowded, as I think they limit the number of people they allow on the island at any given time.

 

From the cruise ship to the beach chair will probably take 15 minutes.. very easy to get there..walk outside of the cruise line area to the first or second dock, hop on their shuttle boat and they take you across.

[yogimax]

Cozumel - One of our favorite ports. Take taxis downtown (very cheap) and enjoy strolling and shopping.

[The Klev]

You can read my daily blog by clicking the link down by my signature.

 

Same ship, itinerary.

 

Amazing week.

[alabamaprincess]

In Cozumel plan your own beach day and go to either to Nachi Cocum for an all inclusive beach day (book through Island Marketing in advance) or take a taxi to Paradise Beach.

In Grand Cayman we have booked Sting Ray City and Rum Point Beach through Carnival

[MistyRo76]

When we went to Roatan we went to Fins & Flipper's... which apparently has now been renamed to Maya Key. It was probably the best deal of our whole trip. I think it was like 20 or 30 bucks for the whole day and included snorkel gear. It's a small private island right by the cruise ship docks. Clean facilities, very pretty beach, a large heated pool if that's your thing, very clean and large bathroom facilities, affordable bar fare, nice little gift shop. Couldn't think of anything bad to say about it, other than the beach is on the small side. That's not to say it's crowded, as I think they limit the number of people they allow on the island at any given time.

 

From the cruise ship to the beach chair will probably take 15 minutes.. very easy to get there..walk outside of the cruise line area to the first or second dock, hop on their shuttle boat and they take you across.

 

 

Prices went up at Fins & Flippers. She below for excerpt from our Oct Valor Roll Call.

 

"As for Roatan, we are going to Maya Key (fka Fins n' Flippers). Luckily we reserved when it was $20/person. They raised the price though to $50/person. I have read that Tabyana beach is beautiful there but is only offered through the ship. Also, there are folks that go to Mayan Princess resort or Bananarama."

 

We were going to book it too...until we read about the price hike. Luckily they honored the previous price for those already reserved in our roll call. I wish we could have gone...i have heard nothing but wonderful things about the place.

 

Misty

[mferris77]

Prices went up at Fins & Flippers. She below for excerpt from our Oct Valor Roll Call.

 

"As for Roatan, we are going to Maya Key (fka Fins n' Flippers). Luckily we reserved when it was $20/person. They raised the price though to $50/person. I have read that Tabyana beach is beautiful there but is only offered through the ship. Also, there are folks that go to Mayan Princess resort or Bananarama."

 

We were going to book it too...until we read about the price hike. Luckily they honored the previous price for those already reserved in our roll call. I wish we could have gone...i have heard nothing but wonderful things about the place.

 

Misty

 

Good grief! That's quite the price hike. As nice as the place is, I don't know if that is worth it - unless for some reason that is an all-inclusive price.

[kmacdonald]

We are doing Major Tom's ziplining and cave tubing on our Western Caribbean cruise next month in Belize. Everyone raves about the excursion, so we figured we would give it a shot. :)

[sallymomo]

How do you book Major Tom's ziplining and cave tubing? Is it through the Carnival website??

[ram30286]

You already have a lot of good advice, so I'll be quick. No need to use Carnival for any of these:

Gr Cayman - rent a van for easy drive to Rum Point and take the Singray City boat tour with Red Sail Sports.

Roatan - use Vic Bodden Tours for guided full day tour. They will know where to take you [$25 pp].

Belize - cave tubing with Vitalino Reyes. Add ziplining for addl charge.

Cozumel - taxi or rental car [jeep] to Chankanaab for beach and drinx. If you rent car, go to 'other side' of the island for unspoiled beauty.

Enjoy and Google if you're interested in any of the above.

[bumbles]

Prices went up at Fins & Flippers. She below for excerpt from our Oct Valor Roll Call.

 

"As for Roatan, we are going to Maya Key (fka Fins n' Flippers). Luckily we reserved when it was $20/person. They raised the price though to $50/person. I have read that Tabyana beach is beautiful there but is only offered through the ship. Also, there are folks that go to Mayan Princess resort or Bananarama."

 

We were going to book it too...until we read about the price hike. Luckily they honored the previous price for those already reserved in our roll call. I wish we could have gone...i have heard nothing but wonderful things about the place.

 

Misty

 

They reduced these prices back down to $30 per person (we have it booked for April.) If your ship docks at Mahogany Bay, there's also a $10 per person transportation charge. Carnival now offers an excursion there for $60 per person, which includes lunch, transportation and the entrance fee.

[kmacdonald]

http://www.****************

You can make reservations on the website. You can also pay when you go to the excursion, you do not have to use PayPal ahead of time to pay. Hope this helps!

[kmacdonald]

How do you book Major Tom's ziplining and cave tubing? Is it through the Carnival website??

 

http://www.****************

You can make reservations on the website. You can also pay when you go to the excursion, you do not have to use PayPal ahead of time to pay. Hope this helps!

 

I can't get the link to post correctly in here. Google Belize Major Tom. The address should be cave - tubing.net... just squish all that together :)