CaribbeanBound

Simply call them to clear this up.

Agree, a trade from Select to Late "should" be easy. Select isn't bad if a "late" seating is preferred --- just go later. Select is generally most full from opening to 730 pm.

Getting a bus or shuttle from Airport to cruise terminal is actually difficult as almost all go to Waikiki and the port is in downtown Honolulu, unless you pay for Celebrity's transfers. Taxi is easiest and will cost ballpark $30 to pier. If you don't have much luggage (like just carry ons), the bus is also an option. $2.50 per person. Take bus #20 from departures deck at airport. 30 minutes.

Why bother if you don't go all the way?

No, it's not worth doing only for 50% of the drive.

We had coupons on a Summit 7-day Eastern Caribbean out of San Juan last October. Had no use for them at that time as we were given the bev package promotion.

I have the same error and I've reported it (over a month ago) with no success.

Yes, use a different browser.

We very much appreciated the shade provided by the overhang.

We took this tour with Celebrity.

Once at the Belize pier we were greeted with a nice Welcome sign. There are only a handful of shops at the pier. I am guessing there were about 90 folks on this tour. We were herded onto 1 of 3 air conditioned buses. Whatever bus you get becomes your tour group, and included a guide that not only narrated the bus tour and answered our questions but also drove our boat on the jungle cruise and lead our excursion of the ruins. Our experienced guide was Vel, and he was breaking in a very pretty young guide-in-training that joined us for the duration of the tour. Our guides were very friendly, knowledgeable, and proud of their country.

Belize is a poor country with great natural and historical assets. One idiot on the bus asked "Why are there bars on the windows of houses?" during an otherwise interesting Q&A about the country. (Answer: they have a crime problem related to a "crack" problem). The housing and habitat reminded us a lot of Waimanalo on Oahu (sans the bars). We learned a lot about the city and country on our 1.25 hour bus tour over a paved 2-lane road to the boat dock. [side note: from visible signage along the road it appears Pepsi "controls" the less populated part of the country while Coca-Cola "owns" Belize City itself]. Each bus unloaded their groups into a large thatched roof building sporting restrooms and a couple of artisans. Within a few minutes we were loaded onto covered boats with comfortable seats and two powerful outboard motors.

We snaked South down the river to the Lamanai Ruin site. Our guide plying us with information and pointing out numerous birds (including King Fisher, Blue Herrin, Vultures, and Snow Egrets), baby crocodiles, and a huge green iguana, as well as various flora and fauna. We also found the huge termite nests in the trees to be of interest to all. One of the 3 boats experienced engine trouble which slowed us down a bit, but that boat was never abandoned. Our boat held back each time to make sure they were not stranded.

Once we arrived at Lamanai, we ate a hearty lunch of Mayan chicken, rice, coleslaw, coconut tarts, and bottled Pepsi and water. We started our tour in a small museum with interesting Mayan artifacts and continued on by foot through an impressive jungle featuring vines, "Jurassic Park"-sized palm fronds, medicinal trees, and Howler Monkeys. We spent about 1.5 hours exploring 3 large Mayan temples and the remains of a small Mayan town. Our guides provided an enormous amount of insight and kept us moving at a reasonable clip.

We returned to the boats, sped back up the river, and returned to the buses just before nightfall. We arrived back at the docks about an hour after the final tender was suppose to leave for the ship. Our guides, to their credit, had made the decision to give us the full tour --- not an abridged tour --- even though we had arrived late. After all, we were paying the full price of the tour and they weren't going to let us get anything less. It was clear, back in Lamanai, that we were not going to make the tender cutoff time. This began to cause great distress among some tour passengers. Just remember, that if you are on a cruise-sponsored tour, there are "no worries!" They were not going to strand any of their passengers in Belize if they are on a cruise-sponsored excursion. Sure enough, we were met at the pier with a nice large boat that easily and comfortably sped all of us back to the ship, which was beautifully illuminated out on the sea. Bottom line: take this tour.

More "Secrets of the Caribbean": http://www.lavasurfer.com/info/caribbean-secrets.html

First-hand information on excursions in over 20 Caribbean ports.

Wow, they left a ton of great beaches off that list. Here are a few of our favorites not listed...

Tortola: Brewers Bay

St. John: Trunk Bay and Cinnamon Bay

St. Maarten / St. Martin: Orient Beach

Virgin Gorda: The Baths

More "Secrets of the Caribbean": http://www.lavasurfer.com/info/caribbean-secrets.html

First-hand information on excursions in over 20 Caribbean ports.

Our guide was telling us that Honolulu has the worst traffic as anywhere in the US, it beat LA and NYC last year. 1 million people on the island and 900,000 working in Honolulu.:D

I wouldn't say it's as bad as LA. No such thing as a 2-hour commute in Honolulu. Besides, if you stay off the roads between 5:00 am and 11:00 pm, you shouldn't have any problems.:rolleyes:

Yes, make sure the insurance is PRIMARY, meaning they take care of the claim --- period. No having to first claim on any other insurance you may have.

On Summit it was for first night only and only in Normande. I negotiated for a 2-for-1 on a different night however. All you have to do is ask. I chose an early time (6pm) on a slow night.

Most of the coffees and teas at Cafe Al Bacio are included. The only ones I recall that are not are the alcoholic ones.

I don't recall seeing anywhere else to order premium coffees although some have said you can order them in the main dining room.

Smoothies were included with Blu. Don't know if they come with package too.

Here's a complete, very detailed, review of the Summit and ports:

http://www.lavasurfer.com/info/summit.html

We didn't upgrade either. The regular alcoholic bev package was plenty for us. It's really a matter of how much you drink and how refined a drinker you are.

Way to go DMRick. See folks, it's not that daunting and it is enjoyable.

That's the first accident I've seen in 5 years of watching this port. I'm sorry to hear of your scary experience. It's not the norm. We definitely didn't remotely "speed" down the river.

Cheap alternative: buy a pork chop and throw it on the grill.

Okay, maybe not.

Thanks. I was simply suggesting this would be something he would miss if he stayed on the boat. Would not consider it a problem with a bad back.

We were under the pool deck, near where the pool area transitions to the Spa. Heard no noise from above, except party music one night we kept our balcony door open.

Lamanai is worth getting off the ship.

Belize City, Belize

This will be one of your favorite ports IF you book an excursion. You'll hate the place if you do not. This fact has been chronicled time and again. Do yourself a favor and book an excursion! The two most popular excursions are the Cave Tubing and the Lamanai Ruins / Jungle River Cruise. Both get rave reviews. Our selection of the Lamanai tour was no exception.

Once at the Belize pier we were greeted with a nice Welcome sign. There are only a handful of shops at the pier. I am guessing there were about 90 folks on this tour. We were herded onto 1 of 3 air conditioned buses. Whatever bus you get becomes your tour group, and included a guide that not only narrated the bus tour and answered our questions but also drove our boat on the jungle cruise and lead our excursion of the ruins. Our experienced guide was Vel, and he was breaking in a very pretty young guide-in-training that joined us for the duration of the tour. Our guides were very friendly, knowledgeable, and proud of their country.

Belize is a poor country with great natural and historical assets. One idiot on the bus asked "Why are there bars on the windows of houses?" during an otherwise interesting Q&A about the country. (Answer: they have a crime problem related to a "crack" problem). The housing and habitat reminded us a lot of Waimanalo on Oahu (sans the bars). We learned a lot about the city and country on our 1.25 hour bus tour over a paved 2-lane road to the boat dock. [side note: from visible signage along the road it appears Pepsi "controls" the less populated part of the country while Coca-Cola "owns" Belize City itself]. Each bus unloaded their groups into a large thatched roof building sporting restrooms and a couple of artisans. Within a few minutes we were loaded onto covered boats with comfortable seats and two powerful outboard motors.

We snaked South down the river to the Lamanai Ruin site. Our guide plying us with information and pointing out numerous birds (including King Fisher, Blue Herrin, Vultures, and Snow Egrets), baby crocodiles, and a huge green iguana, as well as various flora and fauna. We also found the huge termite nests in the trees to be of interest to all. One of the 3 boats experienced engine trouble which slowed us down a bit, but that boat was never abandoned. Our boat held back each time to make sure they were not stranded.

Once we arrived at Lamanai, we ate a hearty lunch of Mayan chicken, rice, coleslaw, coconut tarts, and bottled Pepsi and water. We started our tour in a small museum with interesting Mayan artifacts and continued on by foot through an impressive jungle featuring vines, "Jurassic Park"-sized palm fronds, medicinal trees, and Howler Monkeys. We spent about 1.5 hours exploring 3 large Mayan temples and the remains of a small Mayan town. Our guides provided an enormous amount of insight and kept us moving at a reasonable clip.

We returned to the boats, sped back up the river, and returned to the buses just before nightfall. We arrived back at the docks about an hour after the final tender was suppose to leave for the ship. Our guides, to their credit, had made the decision to give us the full tour --- not an abridged tour --- even though we had arrived late. After all, we were paying the full price of the tour and they weren't going to let us get anything less. It was clear, back in Lamanai, that we were not going to make the tender cutoff time. This began to cause great distress among some tour passengers. Just remember, that if you are on a cruise-sponsored tour, there are "no worries!" They were not going to strand any of their passengers in Belize if they are on a cruise-sponsored excursion. Sure enough, we were met at the pier with a nice large boat that easily and comfortably sped all of us back to the ship, which was beautifully illuminated out on the sea. Bottom line: take this tour.

More "Secrets of the Caribbean": http://www.lavasurfer.com/info/caribbean-secrets.html

First-hand information on excursions in over 20 Caribbean ports.

It's because if a shark takes a bite out of you they will need to bring equipment and a medic back with you.

Celebrity offers: Barrier Reef Snorkel and Beach (BEB2) and Snorkeling Wonders of the Barrier Reef (BE31). Anyone take these? What did you think?

Widebay's advice is good.

I've done direct flights to/from Honolulu utilizing Denver, San Fran, Los Angeles, St. Lake City, Seattle, Houston, Dallas, Minneapolis, Chicago, Charlotte, Cincinnati, Newark, and Atlanta.

Frankly Houston is my favorite.

None are fun in coach class since most airlines treat you so poorly and really don't give a hoot about you. Hawaiian Air is one of the better airlines.

Have paid for upgrade to coach plus and it makes it more bearable. I much prefer no-stop to 1-stop, and 1-stop to 2-stops. Each time you add a stop you increase the likelihood of lost luggage, missed connections, plane problems, schedule changes, and other discomforts.

We arrived at 1pm, waited in line about 30 minutes to drop off bags and boarded immediately after check-in.