Review of the Norwegian Jewel 10/13-10/20/13

[RobinSie]

I had started on Ports and Excursions and then moved on without finishing...ADD alive and well!

 

Belize - This is the only port we had to tender from. Since the excursion we booked was not ship related, we had to get in line for the tender tickets. I'm an early riser, so I took my coffee to Topsiders at 5:30am to read and wait. Funny thing is I wasn't the first one there. Another lady had been there since 5:00am. They were scheduled to start handing out tickets at 7am, but started about 10 minutes early. The line was starting to get fairly long at that point.

 

Several of us from roll call booked a cavetubing expedition. They had a nice, air-conditioned vehicle waiting for us when we arrived. Once all of our group arrived we left for our hour-long ride. Our guides gave us a lot of information about the history, geography and economy of Belize. They were entertaining and informative. During the ride we had to go through a number of "checkpoints" which were men standing along the road with really BIG guns. There are 7 traffic lights in all of Belize. Because the cost of gas is outrageous, they don't have many police in patrol cars, which leads to the speed limits being more of a suggestion. They haven't given out a speeding ticket in like 7 years. Speed bumps or "sleeping policemen" are the most widely used enforcement method. As we were pulling up to our destination, our van pulled over to the side of the road...flat tire. We were within sight distance so many of us walked the few feet. Families with children waited for another van to pick them up. Once we arrived, we changed our clothes. Our belongings were locked and attended, by the driver, during our tubing.

 

We were give life jackets and hard hats with lights on them. We then had to walk about half an hour through the jungle, through the river, and through a dry cave to our destination. After an assisted drop into our tubes, we where hooked together and then pulled through the river by our guides. I don't know exactly how long the tubing was, but it was fascinating.

 

At the end of the trip, as we got ready to board the bus, the rain started coming down in buckets. After a brief ride, we stopped for a lunch of chicken, rice & beans, coleslaw and rum punch/sodas. We were given 2 gallons of rum punch for the ride back. I don't drink, but by the time the van ride was over, the punch was all but gone.

 

This was a great experience that we would like to repeat with our children when they are a bit older. I would love to share the name of the company we toured with...is it permissible to do that here?

[kchiumento]

Oh Robin, I have been waiting for someone to review the cave tubing in Belize. The only reason we didn't was because Ethan is 6. We thought it would be too much for him. We will definitely do it next time.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

[terrydtx]

Robin, I know on roll calls we discuss the names of tour operators so I think here would be ok too. Your shore excursion reviews are so good you should also post them in the Ports of Call threads on CC. They would help so many looking for more specific port information. I can not wait for our Jewel cruise:D

[realtorlady42]

Robin, I know on roll calls we discuss the names of tour operators so I think here would be ok too. Your shore excursion reviews are so good you should also post them in the Ports of Call threads on CC. They would help so many looking for more specific port information. I can not wait for our Jewel cruise:D

 

Yes you can post tour operator names ...they can't promote themselves, but those who have done tours with them can. You can also post a link to their website.

 

I agree, please copy and paste your port reviews in each correspopnding forum. There are lots of people on those forums always looking for more info prior to booking a particular excursion.

If you are not familiar with those forums...on the Forum main page..where you go to click on NCL or Roll calls etc scroll down and you will see a Port category. In that category you click on the region (carribean) then in there each of the carribean ports are listed alphabetically.

 

A lot of people would be very happy if you posted your port reviews as they are well written with what to expect and as was previously mentioned...there is little specific info on the cave tubing and people are always asking about it.

[RobinSie]

Yes you can post tour operator names ...they can't promote themselves, but those who have done tours with them can. You can also post a link to their website.

 

I agree, please copy and paste your port reviews in each correspopnding forum. There are lots of people on those forums always looking for more info prior to booking a particular excursion.

If you are not familiar with those forums...on the Forum main page..where you go to click on NCL or Roll calls etc scroll down and you will see a Port category. In that category you click on the region (carribean) then in there each of the carribean ports are listed alphabetically.

 

A lot of people would be very happy if you posted your port reviews as they are well written with what to expect and as was previously mentioned...there is little specific info on the cave tubing and people are always asking about it.

 

Thanks to both you and terrydtx for the compliment. We used Vitalino's cavetubing.bz (not the same as cavetubing.com). I would highly recommend them. I will try to post the info in the port section as well. I'm sure I could just copy and paste... Thanks for the suggestion as I had not thought about doing that.

[realtorlady42]

Thanks to both you and terrydtx for the compliment. We used Vitalino's cavetubing.bz (not the same as cavetubing.com). I would highly recommend them. I will try to post the info in the port section as well. I'm sure I could just copy and paste... Thanks for the suggestion as I had not thought about doing that.

 

:) your welcome!

Looking forward to the next installment of your review :D