tenders in Belize with three cruise ships

[b_bay_girl]

We are cruising in less than four weeks and trying to finalize excursion / port plans. I want to do an excursion in Belize - as from other comments I have read - there is not much to do or see if you don't book an excursion and go "outside the fence". I know it is a long tender process and we are looking more towards booking with an independent tour operator but we are concerned about three cruise ships in Belize at the same time, and how that affects the tendering process.

 

Anyone have any experiences / comments to share to help me decide? Thanks.

[Sargent_Schultz]

Not a problem. They have larger tenders these days and many ship tours leave directly from the ships.

[just_us]

We were just there before xmas with 3 ships and everything was fine, but it was a bit crowded.

[nzdisneymom]

While we did an excursion through the cruiseline, so we were tendered off in an early group, the information we were given was that independent guests would not get to start going until quite a bit later (as in 10:30 or so while the CCL excursions started leaving the ship at 8 a.m.). There were only two ships in port that day and each ship had its own designated tenders. There was apparently a big delay with the tenders in the afternoon with the other ship (we ported with them the next day and were talking to some of their passengers).

[bcaha]

We struggled to figure out what to do when our cruise stopped in Belize and changed our minds several times. By the time we made a decision, the ship’s excursion to Goff’s Caye was sold out. My daughters and I had no interest in snorkeling, but we wanted to be on a beach. I first contacted Katie Valk who put me in touch with Kimberlee Chanona of Upclose Belize (kim@upclosebelize.com).

 

Kim arranged for us to be part of a group tour to Goff’s Caye that left from the Tourism Village. That tour was run by http://www.belizeshoretours.com or Eco Tours Belize. Kim was extremely responsive to my many emails and questions. She would have arranged for any type of tour that we wanted, but felt that this one met our needs.

 

Goff’s Caye is magnificent with crystal clear water. It is tiny, with a porta-potty type changing structure and a stand for snacks, beer and some jewelry for sale. The tour operators (including one EMT) took everyone to the island first to get settled. Then anyone who wished to snorkel went back out on the boat. To my complete shock both of my daughters opted to join my husband and son snorkeling. They LOVED it. They went in a slower moving group, snorkeling from the boat offshore to the island over a 45 minute period. I could not snorkel (health reasons), but I did put on a face mask and look around under water. What gorgeous fish!!! I am so glad we did not miss out on this opportunity. We spent the remainder of the day relaxing on the beach. We also had 3 ships in port that day, not an issue.

[Upshaw]

We struggled to figure out what to do when our cruise stopped in Belize and changed our minds several times. By the time we made a decision, the ship’s excursion to Goff’s Caye was sold out. My daughters and I had no interest in snorkeling, but we wanted to be on a beach. I first contacted Katie Valk who put me in touch with Kimberlee Chanona of Upclose Belize (kim@upclosebelize.com).

 

Kim arranged for us to be part of a group tour to Goff’s Caye that left from the Tourism Village. That tour was run by http://www.belizeshoretours.com or Eco Tours Belize. Kim was extremely responsive to my many emails and questions. She would have arranged for any type of tour that we wanted, but felt that this one met our needs.

 

Goff’s Caye is magnificent with crystal clear water. It is tiny, with a porta-potty type changing structure and a stand for snacks, beer and some jewelry for sale. The tour operators (including one EMT) took everyone to the island first to get settled. Then anyone who wished to snorkel went back out on the boat. To my complete shock both of my daughters opted to join my husband and son snorkeling. They LOVED it. They went in a slower moving group, snorkeling from the boat offshore to the island over a 45 minute period. I could not snorkel (health reasons), but I did put on a face mask and look around under water. What gorgeous fish!!! I am so glad we did not miss out on this opportunity. We spent the remainder of the day relaxing on the beach. We also had 3 ships in port that day, not an issue.

 

What cruise line were you on & were you delayed by booking a private tour?

[bcaha]

Upshaw, We were on the Crown Princess and there were 2 other ships in port that day (NCL I think). I thought my original review was too long to post here. Here are the portions that I had cut out, it explains any "delays" that we experienced. We used that time to meet people and explore the Tourism Village:

 

We were told to get on an early tender to the Tourism Village and find the representative that would be waiting for us. Somehow we missed the person with our name, but when we mentioned Kim’s name (or Upclose Belize?) we were quickly and easily directed to the right place.

 

Even the short wait for the tour to begin was pleasant. We sat and talked with a couple of men from Belize who turned out to be our tour guides. Such friendly guys! Once the group of about 25 people was assembled we boarded a boat to Goff’s Caye.

 

The only upsetting part of the day was that many people on the tour did not tip the tour operators. The staff all worked very hard to make sure that we had a great day and were quite friendly. They deserved to be tipped! At one point on the island we asked about returning to shore and they told us that on vacation there should be no worries and they would get us back in time. We did, in fact, return with plenty of time to do a little shopping in the Tourism Village. Best day of the cruise!!!

[b_bay_girl]

I don't have to worry about this as we received email this morning that we are not going to Belize due to tendering issues. So much time wasted in researching what to do there! Oh well, I know such things can happen. I have been on three cruises and itineraries changed on two..one we didn't know of until we boarded the ship so there was no time to do any research on it. Of to research Costa Maya!........

[Upshaw]

Upshaw, We were on the Crown Princess and there were 2 other ships in port that day (NCL I think). I thought my original review was too long to post here. Here are the portions that I had cut out, it explains any "delays" that we experienced. We used that time to meet people and explore the Tourism Village:

 

We were told to get on an early tender to the Tourism Village and find the representative that would be waiting for us. Somehow we missed the person with our name, but when we mentioned Kim’s name (or Upclose Belize?) we were quickly and easily directed to the right place.

 

Even the short wait for the tour to begin was pleasant. We sat and talked with a couple of men from Belize who turned out to be our tour guides. Such friendly guys! Once the group of about 25 people was assembled we boarded a boat to Goff’s Caye.

 

The only upsetting part of the day was that many people on the tour did not tip the tour operators. The staff all worked very hard to make sure that we had a great day and were quite friendly. They deserved to be tipped! At one point on the island we asked about returning to shore and they told us that on vacation there should be no worries and they would get us back in time. We did, in fact, return with plenty of time to do a little shopping in the Tourism Village. Best day of the cruise!!!

 

 

 

Thanks for the info

[moet's sister]

We were on the Liberty last month and if you take a cruise tour, our tour boat came right up to the ship and there was no need for tenders at all. Hopefully this will be the same for you =D

[PreciousCruiser]

I believe that only happens when you book a tour thru the cruiseline that you are on. If you book a tour thru a tour company, you have to tender in to the port, then take your tour from there. If I'm wrong, pls. let me know... Thanks, :)

[Banditswife]

We were in Belize in dec 2011. There were at least 3 ships in port that day. We were on Carnival Legend. The people booking independent tours got on the same tender boat as those booking thru Carnival. Yes some Carnival tours left directly from the ship. There was a long line for the tenders, but we managed to get on 1st one even though we booked independent. The tender boats are of a larger variety Hold up to 150 peo. Be prepared for about 1/2 hour boat ride to tourism village & then back again to ship. All reputable tour operators are aware of ships time and get you back to tourism village with time to look around the shops. We had a great day in Belize. Going back next Nov 2012.

[larkwind]

I don't have to worry about this as we received email this morning that we are not going to Belize due to tendering issues. So much time wasted in researching what to do there! Oh well, I know such things can happen. I have been on three cruises and itineraries changed on two..one we didn't know of until we boarded the ship so there was no time to do any research on it. Of to research Costa Maya!........

We did a private tour to Mayan ruins from Costa Maya and our teenagers enthusiastically agreed that CM was their favorite port (swam w/stingrays in GC; skipped Coz; toured Truman's southern White House in Key West). A hurricane hit CM a year after we were there so I don't know how things have changed, but those ruins were amazing (about an hour's van ride away). Enjoy!