CDNJehn

I have read the other threads and would rather not rent a car or scooter or use a cab. Is there any other tour company that offers bar hops? I really am having a tough time finding one.

We were in the same predicament (thankfully a few people signed up last minute and our bar hop is a go). I didn't want to deal with haggling a can at the port and, with just two of us, the private driver options were coming back too costly. While researching an alternate option a poster suggested the custom jeep tour through cozumelcruiseexcursions.net. It's $69/pp and includes beer, water, soda, snacks, lunch and entrance to Punta Sur (if you choose to go there). The owner was quick to respond to my emails. It appears that it a self drive tour, BUT they said the guide could drive for us...since we want to have some cocktails along the way. It shows as 5-6 hours and they'll pretty much go wherever you want. I would have booked it in a second if our bar hop fell through.

Hope that helps. They have a tripadvisor page, just make sure you find the right one ... there's a .com AND a .net.

So if we want to go to Caye Caulker? do we only need to take a water taxi there? And is that just beach and snorkeling or is there sites to see, a good place to eat? Is this something we (hubby, self and 17 yr old son) can do ourselves and is it safe. We will be there Christmas week. We don't like ship excursions, but want to be safe and there is so much talk about Belize being unsafe. Our favorite thing to do in port is to see points of interest and do some beach and snorkeling time. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

We will be taking the water taxi for the first time to Caye Caulker in just over two weeks. We stopped at Caye Caulker on a snorkel tour last time we cruised to Belize. I'll report back afterwards if you're interested.

Hey Jehn, www.cayecaulkerwatertaxi.com Good reviews on trip advisor:)

SOOOO...how was your time? Any issues getting to/from Caye Caulker?

crusinpsychRN - I like your GC bar hop idea! I might have to retire early to start one of those. :)

Previous cruisers have reported that you can arrive early and buy day pass but that drinks and snacks are not available until posted time. You can search in the search engine of this forum for more reports. We have looked round the resort to visit in the future and I did ask if we were able to buy drinks earlier but they are not set up for cash sales unlike El Cid so everything is all-inclusive for guests at the hotel and you have to purchase a day pass to stay. You need to watch for time share people and be prepared to say "no" if you are not interested, although if you have time and are willing to sit through presentation you can get a discounted price.

 

The entrance and lobby to the hotel are on the opposite side of the road to the piers but there is a booth offering cheaper passes on the ocean side that I believe are timeshare reps. The beach is accessed via underpass from hotel and gardens which includes pool, more pools on beach side.

Thanks! Good to know about the 'no cash sales' thing at Park Royal, that's not something I've not seen before. I think that'll be ok for us, we'll just eat on the ship. We always have a couple of granola bars and a bottle of water with us, so we will be good to wait until 11.

I love anything by Augusten Burroughs or David Sedaris for a cruise. They both write in a short story style, where every chapter stands alone. I like that style for vacation because I can put the book down for a while and when I return I don't have to think about what happened when I was last reading.

Also love that this thread is so old that people were talking about brining CASSETTE players with them. :)

Thank you all for your replies. I would also be interested in knowing what your total out of pocket cost was.

 

I did hear back from Park Royal and the cost is still $40 for adults - with the time frame being 11 AM - 6 PM to include all food/drink and use of the facilities. (Internet is not included)

Love this thread, thanks for everyone's input. I think I've decided to try Park Royal for our October cruise. I read a bunch of reviews for both places on TripAdvisor and the photos for Park Royal look like what we want. I like that there is an actual (albeit small) beach at Park Royal and the pool areas look nicer than El Cid.

I did email Park Royal to see about using the facilities earlier than their 11am start time. We basically want to snorkel earlier in the day, so a chair is pretty much all we need. We have done the day pass at Sabor twice and they had no issue with us showing up early. Hopefully Park Royal is the same. Will report back if I hear from them ... or, at the least, after our cruise.

Rainbow in Miami

Funky clouds over South Beach

We booked Bananarama a few weeks ago for our cruise in December. Once I saw I didn't have to plan transportation, fight for a chair, look for facilities, search for a bar and it comes with a free drink.....i was sold!! I absolutely can't wait for December!

Be careful with their rum punches...I don't recall the trip back to the port. ;)

You can book the cruisers package from Bananarama Resort. Its on West Bay Beach 5 minute walk from Tabayana. They provide transportation to and from the port. Not as crowded as Tabayana. They have snorkel gear for rent if you don't have your own. You can book the tour through their web page.

 

http://www.bananaramadive.com/cruise-shippers/index.html

This is what we did last time...and then we snorkeled up and down the beach, with Bananarama being our 'home base'.

We were told similar information by Carnival last year. We were planning to marry in Grand Cayman and wanted to cruise with our Mothers, then they would carry on with the ship after the ceremony during our port stop, and we would stay in GC. We were told this was not permitted.

 

These two guys were mugging at us as we were having our photos taken. I waved them in and this was the result. Best picture of the cruise!

Fantastic!!!

Cozumel got the best of me...

Seriously, this is on Carnival Valor...did NOBODY on the design team step in and say 'Does anyone else think these tiles look like something???'

Definitely the time we rented a car and drove all over the island. Small enough to see it all with some beach/restaurant stops along the way. Love being on my own schedule.

So aside from the Split, is there anywhere else we should see? Are there any other public "beach" areas to relax?

I read a reveiw where someone claims they were assaulted outside the washrooms at Lazy Lizard, others have had their hotel rooms broken into, some having items stolen from their purse/bags. I've also done a good amount of reading about people's experience leaving the tourism village and making their way to the taxi. Anyone have feedback on the do's and don'ts of making your way TO Caye Caulker and hanging out ON Caye Caulker?

I think hubby and I are smart, alert travellers ... but I like to be armed with as much information as I can and be prepared for the day.

It is UNTHINKABLE that someone would go on a cruise that stops in Grand Cayman and chooses to stay on the ship?! Are you kidding me?!

Agreed, one of my favourite locations. To each their own I guess. :(

Not a problem, looking forward to this new adventure! Shelly at the water taxi company seems very nice and informative, even told me that you can bring beer on the boat for the ride over!! Count me in!

Which water taxi company were you dealing with?

Well, 6 days to go for my ice cold 10.00 buckets of beer on Caye Caulker!! Weather does not look great, but rain and 90 degrees, on a beach is just fine with me!!:p

Please come back and post your water taxi experience afterwards. :)

Have only used them for all-inclusive resort day in Cozumel (twice now). No complaints, although our interaction with them has been purely administrative.

Depends on when you're cruising. Belize is on Central Standard Time but does not observe daylight savings time. You can check the current time at http://www.thetimenow.com/belize/belize_city

Thats about right. 10 minutes if you take your time

I thought you HAD to take your time...isn't that the island motto? ;)

This is our third time in Roatan and we'd really like to snorkel some different areas (already done West Bay twice). I started looking at Subway Watersports, but then came across some posts about Christopher Tours.

Their Snorkel Adventure says you start at Sandy Bay and end at West Bay with lots of snorkel stops along the way. It also says you'll have your own guide, so when you're done you can choose to stay at the beach, go to the ship, or anywhere else you might want.

Just wondering if anyone has done this tour and ...

1. How many snorkel sites did you visit?
   
2. How long did you stay at each?
   
3. How many people were in your group? A private guide insinuates it's just you ... but then do you have your own boat as well?
   
4. How long did you snorkel for before getting to West Bay?
   
5. If we choose them, can you suggest a specific guide to book?
   

Thanks!

I'd be fine taking an excursion with them that I knew I'd be back in time for.

The snorkel was good, the service was not great. A bus arrived to port and us and another two couples got on, along with some other folks. They started counting heads and apparently we got on a bus for cruise excursion folks (not sure how we'd know that.) The chick was super rude and made a huge spectacle telling us to wait for the OTHER bus and not to just be getting on whatever bus we felt like. They said pink bus, in front of the fountain. Excuse us.

We did an afternoon snorkel and they assured me multiple times by email beforehand (and then again in person the day of our stop) that we'd be back at the ship in time. 'We do this EVERY DAY ma'am' they said snootily. We had to constantly remind the staff on the boat of our ship departure time, as they seemed content to keep us out there all night. There were other ships in port, but ours left 2 hours before the others. One staff on the boat learned of this and said as soon as we get back to the dock I was to go tell the office we're ready to go. I think the chick's name started with a G. Glenda maybe? This girl was a total NIGHTMARE (and believe me, I have MANY others words to use for her). I was sitting waiting for the shuttle in a spot that was apparently close to the entry gate. It was in the shade, but she came by and rolled her eyes and said 'Staring at the street isn't going to make the bus come faster.' And rolled her eyes. Yeah, I was in the shade lady!!! Finally the buses came. It was do disorganized. They moved us from bus to another, then back again. We finally left and they stopped at what seemed like every resort along the way, even driving around the fish fry looking for the stand the girl wanted. While we offloading people at a hotel we saw the other bus (the one we'd been pulled off of) PASS US. I thought I was going to vomit. My mom was on the ship alone, and we were going to be left behind. Our all aboard was 5pm. I scanned my card at the gangway at 4:58.

Never again will I use them or recommend them. I know you take a risk when you book outside of the ship excursions, I can take that. But we were given the WORST attitudes from everyone there.

And I get that they're not hurting for my business and I'm just a cruiser...but I'm still bitter YEARS later. That's all, I feel better now. ;)

Has anyone done this excursion recently? Wondering how often they run late getting back to the port?

The timing indicates you'd be back by noon and our ship is in port until 6. Hoping to have some afternoon beach time...

Does anyone know where the water taxi drops you off in reference to the split?

From Google Maps, it looks as though it's about a 10 minute walk from the water taxi stop to the split. Not sure how accurate that is.