Best Excursion with 7 year old and 4 year old???

[radsailor]

Hello. Leaving for our cruise over Thanksgiving on RC. What would be the best excursion in Belize with a 4 and 7 year old? Advice please!

[cruisergrandma]

We love the zoo. It is not like a zoo in the US. It is more primitive and the animals are all native to Belize. We have been more than once with people from 4 to 63 and everyone loved it.

[Abear2]

How far is the zoo from the cruise port? My 5 year old grandson will be with us, so I really don't want a long taxi ride! Thanks

[askimdog]

One of the biggest joys we get cruising is how our 7 year old daughter has fun playing with locals. This past January we were on the Legend.

 

Cozumel she wandered the far beaches for hours collecting "sea stuff" We only came across 5 people, all adults, but she played with a dog for 1/2 an hour as we chatted with the owners.

 

Grand Cayman she chatted with the daughter of a man who owned a local jerk shop.

 

Roatan she played with children at a local orphanange for 2 hours

 

BELIZE she had the most fun, we wandered town for hours, all over, eating local foods going into stores far away from the tourism village, and we chatted with a local on her porch, the neighbor kids came over and my daughter had a blast with them for the longest time. Kids are great and nothing stops them from playing, not race, or economic standing.

[World Gallery]

How far is the zoo from the cruise port? My 5 year old grandson will be with us, so I really don't want a long taxi ride! Thanks

 

It is about 45 min. to an hour ride. We did it with our kids but it was a stop on the way back from Cave Tubing. Personally for our family, it would not have been worth the long drive just for the zoo. Also, it would cost a lot in transportation if you did not have a prearranged trip. Not even sure how easy it is to get a taxi outside of the port. There is no organized taxi system like in other ports.

Everyone has their own opinion about Belize, especially with kids. Knowledge is power in my opinion. You really need a plan before arriving in Belize. We walked outside of the gates to get to the water taxi (to go to Caye Caulker, which is a 45 min water taxi ride. Everything is a far drive in Belize.), and it was so overwhelming we have decided never to leave the gated tourism village again without a planned tour. For us, I can't even imagine wondering around the town. We were hounded and followed by people asking us to buy things, so much so we could not focus on where we were walking. Just our experience. We have kids so we know it is important to share info with those with kids also.

Just to add another thought - This is coming from a family that does love to interact with locals. We have vistited orphanages in ports (in Roatan and Guatemala) and played with local kids in Costa Maya. I wish there would have been that opportunity in Belize.