Harvest Caye

[hvsteve1]

Photo essay on Harvest Caye, the new private beach stop for Regent and others.

 

http://www.travelweekly.com/Media/Exploring-Harvest-Caye

[Travelcat2]

Thanks for posting that. I just heard about a port that was purchased by NCL - this may be it. It sounds as if will take a while to rebuild the area. It makes sense that this port "will be used irregularly by ships from Oceania and Regent Seven Seas". They would likely need to set it up so that NCL passengers and Oceania passengers could pay for drinks (any drinks for NCL including water, soda, juice) and Regent would have their all-inclusive drinks and some excursions. Perhaps the plan is to have the ships there separately.

 

In any case, while I understand that Belize City is not something that most passengers want to visit, the excursions that leave from Belize City are amazing (probably better than what can/will be built at the new port).

 

P.S. Just Googled this and learned that the article that I read is a couple of years old so ships must now be going there. Someone asked on this board about an island owned by NCL that Regent's Mariner (I think it was the Mariner) would be visiting. As far as I know, there has yet to be a port stop for Regent.

Edited December 28, 2016 by Travelcat2

[hvsteve1]

Article was posted today as recent news. Maybe they lie and it's recycled.

 

We're stopping there on Mariner on the April 18th Cuba cruisel

[Travelcat2]

Article was posted today as recent news. Maybe they lie and it's recycled.

 

We're stopping there on Mariner on the April 18th Cuba cruisel

 

It will be interesting to read your review.

 

P.S. Your article is current but the one I Googled was old.

[hvsteve1]

If anyone who reads this has been there on Regent, I'm wondering if you need cash? I know years ago we stopped at Princess Caye on Mariner and all the food and drink was included. With Celebrity's beach, food is included and you can use your beverage card. When reading about Harvest Caye on the Regent web site, there is a mention, in the private bungalow description, of food and drink at extra charge. Does Regent not provide food and drink on their private Island?

[fizzy]

There are lots of photos and comments on the Ncl board which are up to date.

[Mudhen]

We leave on Jan 4 on the Mariner. One of our stops is Harvest Caye. I'm guessing this could be Regent's first stop at HC. I'll report back how it goes! Looks lovely. Treating it as a beach day!

[Travelcat2]

There are lots of photos and comments on the Ncl board which are up to date.

 

Don't think the question can be answered on the NCL board because NCL passengers would have to pay - at least for drinks. There were some great pictures on the OP's link.

 

Mudhen: If food and drink have an extra charge, you will likely not be happy (nor would I). This could be a make-it or break-it deal for Regent passengers (in terms of whether "we" want to select an itinerary that includes Harvest Caye). I suspect that Regent will be looking closely at the comment cards on this one.

[Mailman055]

If anyone who reads this has been there on Regent, I'm wondering if you need cash? I know years ago we stopped at Princess Caye on Mariner and all the food and drink was included. With Celebrity's beach, food is included and you can use your beverage card. When reading about Harvest Caye on the Regent web site, there is a mention, in the private bungalow description, of food and drink at extra charge. Does Regent not provide food and drink on their private Island?

 

From what I can gather in my research for Harvest Caye, this is not a typical cruiseline private island in the sense that it is an extension of the ship and food and drinks are complimentary. Also, recognize that this is not a Regent private island like Motu Mahana, but an NCL contrived alternative to mainland Belize. The island is staffed by Belizian locals, not ships crew. The shops are run by locals, with the idea of trying to present a somewhat more upscale view of mainland Belize.

 

My understanding is that cash will be needed to purchase food and beverage and it is unclear if cabin key cards are accepted for payment. That appears to be a sore point from most of the reviews I have read. Menus that I have seen online show lunches in the $10-15 range and drinks in the $5 -$12 range.

 

The island itself looks beautiful, with an very nice looking and sizeable pool, plenty of loungers and beautiful landscaping. The walk from the pier to the main area is said to be 1/4 mile or so and very hot. I am sure Regent will provide water to guests going both ways.

 

We have reserved one of the beach Cabanas for the April 18th sailing. They look pretty nice and the price was quite a bit less than what the NCL ships charge. Hopefully a nice tip will lessen the heat strain on the butler fetching us bottles of Champagne and our lunch orders.

[Merly]

Article was posted today as recent news. Maybe they lie and it's recycled.

 

We're stopping there on Mariner on the April 18th Cuba cruisel

 

We stop there next week. On Mariner.

[Mudhen]

We may tote along a soft side, collapseable cooler with some beer and maybe a bottle of champers or wine. We have a "villa" as well, so I'm guessing we can scare up some ice and glasses. As for food, we may do a little snacking, but will leave the serious stuff to on board Regent.

[iguy]

We may tote along a soft side, collapseable cooler with some beer and maybe a bottle of champers or wine. We have a "villa" as well, so I'm guessing we can scare up some ice and glasses. As for food, we may do a little snacking, but will leave the serious stuff to on board Regent.

 

I admit that I am not a beach person, but I am curious. What is the attraction of leaving a luxury floating hotel with a pool and many bars and all the food you can possibly want to lounge around a villa near a pool or beach at a private resort island?

 

It seems like much of the same, to me.

 

But it’s possible I don’t get it.

[Travelcat2]

I admit that I am not a beach person, but I am curious. What is the attraction of leaving a luxury floating hotel with a pool and many bars and all the food you can possibly want to lounge around a villa near a pool or beach at a private resort island?

 

It seems like much of the same, to me.

 

But it’s possible I don’t get it.

 

Agree with you! While we like finding an out of the way spot in some ports to try "true" local food (generally at very low prices) and a local beer, this sounds like it is set up to make visitors believe that this is what Belize is like. IMO, Belize is an interesting country with some beautiful spots. One of our favorite excursions (that we booked on our own) while in port was river rafting - about an hour out of town -- rafting through totally black caves (we had flashlights) - it was better than it sounds. Afterwards we were served some food - it was delightful.

 

While the jury is still out on Harvest Caye, it doesn't sound like it will be on my bucket list.

[machotspur]

I admit that I am not a beach person, but I am curious. What is the attraction of leaving a luxury floating hotel with a pool and many bars and all the food you can possibly want to lounge around a villa near a pool or beach at a private resort island?

 

It seems like much of the same, to me.

 

But it’s possible I don’t get it.

 

Absolutely agree with you !

 

We are on Explorer in March, with Harvest Caye included in our B2B itinerary.

Initially we were planning to stay onboard for the reasons you state.

 

We were delighted when a mainland tour emerged, to the Mayan Ruins of Nim Li Punit.

So - we get to see a little of Belize, as well as another Mayan site. We are happy, as are people who want a beach day.

 

One thing that did surprise us was to see that on this cruise at least, the Luxury Beach Villas and the Private Canopy Pool Cabanas are both free of charge. Unsurprisingly they are all booked out, but i'm not sure why the significant charge has been dropped.

[Mudhen]

Keep an eye on your "villa". When we booked our shore excursions, it was free, only to find out about a month ago that we had been charged 300+$ for it. Our TA threw a hissy fit at Regent, and after a lot of back and forth, did get the charge deleted.

As far as the "getting off the luxury ship, etc", we're looking at it as a beach day. We live in the Northeast and the chance to put your feet in warm sand, paddle around in blue water and take a nap with the water lapping a few feet away, seems kinda nice, especially since right now, it's snowing! It gives me a chance to see something a little different, even if it is rife with common souvenirs and over priced drinks.....I still look at it as an adventure. If it's not good, then gosh, golly, we'll have to go back to the "luxury ship"......terrible dilema!

[iguy]

Keep an eye on your "villa". When we booked our shore excursions, it was free, only to find out about a month ago that we had been charged 300+$ for it. Our TA threw a hissy fit at Regent, and after a lot of back and forth, did get the charge deleted.

As far as the "getting off the luxury ship, etc", we're looking at it as a beach day. We live in the Northeast and the chance to put your feet in warm sand, paddle around in blue water and take a nap with the water lapping a few feet away, seems kinda nice, especially since right now, it's snowing! It gives me a chance to see something a little different, even if it is rife with common souvenirs and over priced drinks.....I still look at it as an adventure. If it's not good, then gosh, golly, we'll have to go back to the "luxury ship"......terrible dilema!

 

We did not book this itinerary until recently, but FYI the villas did have a $309 charge listed at that time, and they still do.

[RustyRollock]

We are very lucky already to live by a lovely ocean beach so the idea of spending the day on another one doesn't appeal. I'm sure we'd feel differently if we lived in Nebraska!

 

The whole concept of a "private island" ripe with add on sales opportunities is yet another worrisome example of the NCL business model that is insinuating itself into so many of Regent's operations now.

[Travelcat2]

IMO, the "NCL business model" has nothing to do with Regent's decision to dock at their island (similar to Princess stopping at the island owned by Carnival). As has been said repeatedly, The CEO of NCHL or NCLH (whichever you prefer) is the same person that was CEO of Oceania and Regent. He only has the best intentions for all three cruise lines and would not lessen the experience on Oceania or Regent simply because the company owns Harvest Caye. To me it sounds like something that NCL passenger might like since they would not be surprised to have to pay for everything. On the other hand, Regent customers are not used to paying $300 for a cabana that includes a butler but no food or drinks.

 

If Harvest Caye receives poor reviews from Regent passengers, it would likely be dropped from their itineraries. There are more than enough passengers from NCL that will be stopping at Harvest Caye...... if Regent didn't stop there it wouldn't affect the bottom line.

Edited December 31, 2016 by Travelcat2

[Mailman055]

IMO, the "NCL business model" has nothing to do with Regent's decision to dock at their island

 

Of course it does! Regent, being part of NCL, and NCL paying a pretty penny to build out this island is totally part of bringing attention and passengers to it. It remains to be seen how Regent will treat their guests at this stop, so it is much too early to write it off. It does not appear Regent frequents this area, but it makes sense for them to avail themselves of this stop when they do.

 

Additionally, were this a Regent private island, I can most assure you that the limited amount of beach cabanas would have a cost (like exclusive excursions), as there would not be nearly enough to go around and demand would be high!

 

Much like Nassau, get off if you want. Or don't. For many Harvest Caye will be a nice beach day.