Cave Tubing Footwear - Carnival Excursion only

[minnie76]

I have a question regarding the footwear/attire people wear on the cave tubing excursion through Carnival. I know we ride a bus/van to the site. We will hike about 45 minutes and then tube down the river through the caves. This leads me to wonder what footwear I should wear. I cannot wear water shoes to hike, but I don't really want to wear tennis shoes and get them wet when I tube. I cannot imagine there is a place to put them when you finish the hike and get into the river. If there is, please let me know. Otherwise, what have you worn to hike/tube?

[blusky558]

We wore water shoes for the hike and tubing portions and had no problems. The "hike" is more like a walk on a dirt path for the most part, with some rougher sections. I brought a pair of flip flops to wear on the bus there and back.

[cruisinhs]

If you can't wear water shoes, I would recommend trying to find a really comfortable pair of Teva style sandals. This is what my husband wore and was very comfortable.

[minnie76]

Thanks. I have Merrell sandals that I thought I might use. I cannot wear water shoes because I have high arches that need more support if I need to walk any distance at all. The other people I am travelling with were thinking they could wear tennis shoes to hike and then change before they got in the water. I am just trying to plan what I need to bring to make things the easiest for me. I would prefer not to take any more with me than necessary.

[mcgraiha]

you really can't bring any "extras" with you as you will need your hands free to paddle at times in the deeper water. i wore flip flops on the way there and back and hiked and tubed in water shoes. wear whatever shoes you're comfortable with as long as you don't mind them getting wet. have a great time....we were in belize last thursday and it was the highlight of our trip!

[gail811]

I ended up wearing my tennis shoes since my friend had forgotten her water shoes and I gave her my Teva's. They both worked well. I took my tennis shoes off when we got back to the van and they dried out on my balcony on our sea day. The walk is not that difficult; my 73 year old mom had no problems. :)

[KentuckyTam]

I don't have water shoes and I don't have a pair of tennis shoes that I want to get wet. Would flip flops work? I realize they are not the first choice, but is it doable?

[Oma24boys]

I bought some water shoes that are like tennis shoesfrom BackCountry.com which were rather pricey...received a catalog from Land's End which have similar to what I bought but less expensive. Link And...I did wear them cave tubing in Belize, walked around in them in Grand Cayman (wore them at Seven Mile Beach), wore them in Costa Maya and Cozumel. They were very comfortable!

[dixi12]

flip flops won't work, the river is very rocky and if you have to get out of the tube i guarantee they won't stay on. manuevering with flop flops won't work either

[cruisinhs]

I agree that flip flops won't work. You need something a little more secure than that. I got my water shoes at Walmart for about $3. It's worth the purchase and if you want to, toss them when you are done. Also, they do have water shoes you can rent when you get there if you don't want to mess with it. The only thing is that the price is still about $3, so for me I would rather wear something that hasn't been worn by who knows how many others.

[Cruising Bucks!]

I agree that flip flops won't work. You need something a little more secure than that. I got my water shoes at Walmart for about $3. It's worth the purchase and if you want to, toss them when you are done. Also, they do have water shoes you can rent when you get there if you don't want to mess with it. The only thing is that the price is still about $3, so for me I would rather wear something that hasn't been worn by who knows how many others.

 

To anyone who has been cave tubing. Did you carry a back pack or something while you were tubing (to carry your extra dry clothes,etc.)? If so, what did you do with while you were tubing? What did you wear while you were tubing - bathing suit, or shorts and t-shirt? Thanks. Tammy

[cruisinhs]

No, I would not recommend taking a backpack with you. It's hard to explain, but once you hike through the rainforrest and enter the water, you will tube the entire way back to where you started the hike. So, you don't need to take your dry clothes with you because you are only a couple minutes walk from the van which is where everybody left their dry clothes, towels, etc. Everyone is our group wore only their swimsuits. However, I have heard a lot of people on this board complain about getting chaffed under their arms while paddling and so they recommend wearing a t-shirt over the swimsuit. I didn't have any trouble with chaffing and only wore my swimsuit. When I left the ship I wore a swimsuit with a sundress style cover-up over it with my swim shoes so that I was ready to shed the cover-up and go. I left everything in the van to stay dry.

[dixi12]

If you are comfortable walking around in a bathing suit that would be just fine. I wore just my bathing suit but wished I would have had a pair of nylon shorts (very light) as it was the first time I had been in a suit since last year!

 

Anything you take with you will get wet, so leave it in a small backpack in the locked van. I would think a wet t-shirt would be very uncomfortable especially if time is limited and there is no time to change. We had to rush because a couple we were with had to get back to there ship earlier than we did. I ran to change out of my suit and had to take my $5 meal on the bus!! My kids and husband kept their suits on and had a relaxing lunch! We paddled backwards which eliminated chafing but my arms were sure sore from the workout!