Needing a few western caribbean excursion suggestions

[cruising mickey]

Hello and please help,

 

Had to cancel my previous cruise to KW, Cayman and Cozumel (my fiance and I have separated). Not wanting to lose any $$$ and having already been bitten by the cruising bug, I wanted to book a differnt cruise. Now, I"m on the Sunshine out of Port Canaveral, over Halloween, going to Belize, Costa Maya, Roatan and Cozumel. I'm getting frustrated trying to find any excursions which I would enjoy as I'm not particularly athletic. If there is ANYONE who has visited these ports and make some suggestions, I would GREATLY appreciate it.

 

Thanks

[shepp]

Really, the very best thing to do in Belize, Roatan, and Cozumel is get in the water. Since you've said you're "not athletic," I'm assuming you're not a certified scuba diver, but you should at least snorkel if you can.

 

Costa Maya is a Disneyland-style port constructed for cruise ships, but there are nearby ruins - Chacchoben - that can be interesting if you have a good guide, particularly if you haven't been to more major Mayan sites.

[CntPAcruiser]

We used and were very pleased with The Native Choice in Costa Maya to see the ruins at Chacchoben. thenativechoice.com

 

It was more reasonable than the ship's tour, we were in smaller vans with guides who gave us history on the drive there, and we got there earlier and avoided the crowds pouring off of the buses.

[Rick02809]

Hello and please help,

 

Had to cancel my previous cruise to KW, Cayman and Cozumel (my fiance and I have separated). Not wanting to lose any $$$ and having already been bitten by the cruising bug, I wanted to book a differnt cruise. Now, I"m on the Sunshine out of Port Canaveral, over Halloween, going to Belize, Costa Maya, Roatan and Cozumel. I'm getting frustrated trying to find any excursions which I would enjoy as I'm not particularly athletic. If there is ANYONE who has visited these ports and make some suggestions, I would GREATLY appreciate it.

 

Thanks

 

I went to the Western in '09 on the Liberty, and I really wasn't impressed with Costa Maya. It had been destroyed by a hurricane the year before and it was like stopping in Afghanistan on a Mediterranean Cruise, total waste land.

 

However I understand that if the cruise lines abandon a port it sends the local economy into a bigger mess.

 

If you are going to Costa Maya, you should definitely hit up the Resort Maya Chan. I have a few friends (straight) who religiously go to Maya Chan whenever they go to Costa Maya. You can get a cab out to the resort for a day pass and you are treated like royalty.

 

When we were in Cozumel, the weather was horrible, torrential soaking rain and thunder so we found a bar and started drinking.

 

Belize, I hated it. We took a tender in, walked the port and then went back to the ship. It is unlike me to just abandon a port, but all in all, I didn't like Belize at all.

 

I might do a western again, but I'll go southern out of San Juan first. :)

 

 

Again, look up Maya Chan on google or trip advisor.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1087631

 

-Rick

[pxn748]

Several years ago my husband and I stopped in Costa Maya and saw the ruins at Cohunlich. They are quite a ways south (almost to Belize) but you get to see a good bit of Mexico. The ruins are big and at the time our group of about 20 people were almost the only ones there. On the return trip we had a meal at a restaurant overlooking a very pretty lake. That tour was our highlight of the cruise.

[CruisinMaterial]

Hello and please help,

 

Had to cancel my previous cruise to KW, Cayman and Cozumel (my fiance and I have separated). Not wanting to lose any $$$ and having already been bitten by the cruising bug, I wanted to book a differnt cruise. Now, I"m on the Sunshine out of Port Canaveral, over Halloween, going to Belize, Costa Maya, Roatan and Cozumel. I'm getting frustrated trying to find any excursions which I would enjoy as I'm not particularly athletic. If there is ANYONE who has visited these ports and make some suggestions, I would GREATLY appreciate it.

 

Thanks

 

Sorry to read about your plight but glad you didn't let it get you completely down and you are still going somewhere! :)

 

Belize - Definitely do the cave tubing excursion. It's not really athleticism but more of just relaxing. The climb going to the river location is on uneven surfaces and does require some stairs but if mobility isn't an issue then I would definitely suggest you do this in Belize. It's a ton of fun and relaxing!

 

Roatan - If you want to go to the beach I would suggest going out of the pier area and ask for a van or taxi to take you to Sundowner's Beach Bar on the other side of the island. It's on the beach and you can leave your stuff there and go for a swim when you want and then just chill at the bar. Make sure you tell the driver when to come back and pick you up and agree with the driver on a price and don't pay the driver until he has returned to retrieve you in the PM. It's a great system and doing it this way saves you the cost of trying to get a cab back!

 

Cozumel - There's tons of things to do in Cozumel from ruins to just chilling out at the beach. I might suggest going to Carlos N Charlies and Senor Frogs in the PM before returning to the ship. It's usually a grand ole time watching cruisers get drunk and do stupid things. :D

 

Costa Maya - Rent a go-cart and go over to the beach you can see from the ship. The strip of places there are wonderful and I would recommend Pez Quadro which is the furthest from the ships. This one tends to fill up less and the staff are super friendly. You just have to buy a drink or two and you get free access to a lounger and an umbrella. :)

 

Bon voyage and happy sailing.

[neilrr]

Sorry about the break-up. I understand how difficult it can be.

 

As for the W. Caribbean - the best part of our trip was Stingray City in Grand Cayman. It is a lot of fun - you can feed the stingrays calamari and it is off a sandbar so you don't have to be athletic.

 

In the future, I suggest you go Southern or Eastern Caribbean.

 

Have a great time...:)

[cruzeluver]

While I agree the stingrays in Grand Cayman are amazing, the OP isn't going there.;)

 

We too love cave tubing in Belize. Its a unique experience. The walk to the site through the rain forest is very cool! My parents (in their mid 60s at the time) had no problem doing this.

 

Roatan has gorgeous beaches on the west side. Beautiful island not yet totally ruined by Americanization.

 

Cozumel has a little of everything: good beaches (we have done the all-inclusive beach club Mt. Sanchos and really enjoyed it) swimming with dolphins (so cool!), good snorkeling, good shopping and we always make our way to Palmeras for a great Mexican lunch.

[Gmanfl]

Last year my partner and I did this cruise, and had a blast. We went to Gumbalimba Park in Roatan. It is a nature preserve with parrots and Monkeys that come down from the trees to greet you. Then we went to Tabyana beach for a few hours..all in the sane excursion. In Belize we went cave tubing and Zip lining. Fun but kind of strenuous. it was a long wet day. Cozumel was a shopping day. We took a cab downtown, all of a 5 minute ride, but it poured like crazy so we went in to a bar and had lunch and drinks. Hope this helps...

[tigtoo30]

On my last cruise, Roatan was basically "closed" due to a storm that had blown through. Didn't see any of it really other than an amazing sunset as we sailed away. In Cozumel, I went to Tulum, and it was a Wow experience. Totally was a bucket list item for me, and the weather was gorgeous. It's an all day affair though. You have to take a water taxi to Playa del Carmen, and then it's a 1 hour bus ride to the site. It's a definite "book an excursion" adventure.