Baby-Friendly things to do in Honduras, Belize and Cozumel?

[JordanLovesCruisin]

Hi all! My husband and I are taking our (will be 7 month old) baby on the Magic in 4 weeks. Our ports of call are Honduras, Belize and Cozumel.

 

We have a very good natured, happy baby boy. Before you lecture me about how it's not going to be a fun vacation and is going to be more work than it's worth, we have heard it all. It's not going to be any more work than it is at home, but we will be on a cruise with our babe, making our first of many family memories like I had growing up. :)

 

Basically, we would like to know if there are any good, shady beaches or non-scary beaches that we can go to or other activities? Scary to me is like Dunns river falls! So pushy! Obviously we can't do anything like that anyways, but are there any other activities that carnival offers that would be good, or anything that carnival doesn't offer that we could do by taking a taxi.

 

Thank you!

[keene state mom]

I just got off the Breeze and saw so many babies in strollers and all the moms I asked said it was going great so good for you ....

 

I went to Paradise beach in Cozumel it was awesome .... lots of shade by the pool , we shared a taxi with two other couples it was about 10 or 15 .00 each way per couple, and three dollars each for the chair with umbrella and free Wi-Fi for the day .... I had my ipad thinking I was going to get good photos and ended up chatting with my kids at home definitely would go back

[flcruiser08]

Don't listen to any nay sayers, you will have a great time! We took our 6 month in January and are sailing again with her in 13 days! :) Anyway the first time in Cozumel we jut stayed at the port and hung out in the sandy area with lounge chairs, walked around shopping, taking pictures and ate lunch. This time we have the same ports as you, and we plan on going to Playa Mia in Cozumel, Tropicante in Costa Maya, Roatan just going to the beach at the port and in Belize we are staying on the ship (don't get me wrong we love Belize but didn't find anything "baby friendly"). If you have any questions about anything else i'll try to help. Happy Cruising :D

[cb at sea]

A guidebook is what you need! Jeez...folks who live there have babies...it's obviously not "scary" to them ! Read up on where you're going to visit...it will totally enhance your time ashore!

 

There are NO places that don't have kids! No worries!

[cruisegirl06]

With your positive attitude, I think it will be great! We have cruised with our daughter with the same mentality - it's no harder than at home, it's easier - no cooking, less cleaning, no work and no commuting :-).

 

We sailed a similar itinerary when our daughter was 16 months.

 

We did a tour to the ruins in Belize city (booked on our own and the tour was in a large van /minibus instead of a huge tour bus). The ride to the ruins was a bit long, but DD was well behaved (I brought along some snacks and toys, but since your son is a but younger he may be more tolerant of the drive). After the tour we walked around the port and found a bar on the pier where we had some snacks/drinks before heading back to the ship.

 

For Honduras I we booked a island tour on our own that took us on a drive around the island, to a gorgeous lookout, a stop at one of the places where you can visit with monkeys, birds, lizards, etc (this freaked DD out a bit) and ended with a few hours at a nice beach (and return transit to ship). On this tour it wound up being us and another couple, but they also had the option of booking a private tour. DD loved hanging out at the beach here. We were docked in coxen hole, I think Mahogony bay has a beach close by.

 

Cozumel - we met up with friends at paradise beach. This requires a cab ride, the beach was nice but got very crowded later in the day and is more geared to older kids/teens vs. babies. They did have a in pool, changing facilities, etc. but I don't know if it is necessarily the best place with a baby, it was certainly fine and we had a great day, but there may be better options.

 

General cruising with baby tips - take lots of snacks and extra diapers, just in case. We loved having snacks in the room in case DD needed a snack right the. - those little fruit/applesauce pouches are awesome! You can also get Cheerios and whatnot at the buffet, don't forget snacks on your island adventures too. If your LO is still eating purees, you may need to bring those as well (I'm not sure as our DD was eating table food on both trips).

[mom_n_mi]

He maybe a bit young, but check out Playa Mia for Coz.

[JordanLovesCruisin]

Thank you all so so so much!!

 

I'm sorry if my post originally came off a little rude! I originally posted it in Carnival's forum and it was moved. I figured people there would tell me all about how I shouldn't do it, because that's ALL I read when I used the search forum.:)

[OCruisers]

You should be totally fine :) with all except Belize which could be a problem finding something to do with such a young child.

LuLu

~~~

[MamaWals]

I just got back from a similar cruise with a 6 1/2 month old on NCL. Cozumel paradise island is good (beautiful water, lots of umbrellas and cabanas). We did a beach day on an island in Belize and honestly I wouldn't recommend it because there wasn't enough shade, it was loud (blasting island music), and we were stuck there for 4 hours. Trying to prevent my super-pale baby from burning was quite a task under the circumstances. So you might want to stay on the boat for Belize - it's a long tender to the mainland. For Honduras, look at short sightseeing tours if your child is good in a car seat (my son wasn't feeling well that day so we didn't end up doing anything there). The biggest advice I can give is get really good SPF 50 hats/clothing/sunblock. DS actually got a little burnt being strolled around Costa Maya for an hour under an enormous SPF 50 umbrella cover, with sunblock and SPF 50 clothing/hat.

[Waterloomarc]

Tagging along. Leaving on a similar itinerary on NCL in 3 weeks.

 

OP We took our daughter on her first cruise (on carnival) in January when she just turned 7 months. It was great, I'm sure you'll have a blast!

 

I agree with others here. I am a big fan of Belize when it was just the 2 of us. But now with what will be 9 month old I think we're just going to stay on the ship. There's not enough in the port area to make the tender trip worth it to us and I'm just not ready to take her on a long, possibly hot, bus ride to do an excursion.

 

Don't worry about the carnival board btw. There's some pretty hateful folks on there an they seem to be getting worse lately and not just about family topics!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[rjm11]

Check out Maya Key in Roatan- it's only available as a cruise ship excursion, but it's really nice. The beach has tons of shade, and is nice and calm. There's also a pool- and fantastic snorkeling that is from the pier, so the adults could take turns doing it. There's also an animal rescue on sight with lots of different animals, which might be interesting for baby. Lunch is included and was excellent- the bathrooms are some of the cleanest I've ever seen.... all in all it's a great option for lots of ages.

[Mack2]

Cozumel has Chankunaab...

 

They have a Dolphin Discover thing there... swim with dolphins.

We took a cab there, and booked a dolphin swim online (where it was cheaper than the cruise price at the time)

 

http://www.dolphin discovery. com/cozumel/cozumel-activities-dolphin-encounter.asp <--- URL to the Dolphin Discover page without spaces.

 

In the past, children under 2 were free... not that you stuck the kids in the water, but one parent could go in, the other watch the baby, and everyone take a picture with the dolphin... because the company gets their money on the photos.

How cool would it be to get a picture with the baby and a dolphin?

 

 

If they don't do that anymore, there is a fresh water pool at Chankanaab as well as a little lagoon with a slightly rocky beach.

Edited March 17, 2014 by Mack2

[Waterloomarc]

Yes plenty of shade at Chankanaab as well.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Mack2]

 

 

This was at Chankanaab in 2007. My daughter was 3 at the time. There was another kid in our group who was about a year younger, kid didn't want to go into the water... just stayed on the dock behind his parents.

 

Back then, he was free... Today? Not sure.

Edited March 17, 2014 by Mack2

[Gail & Marty sailing away]

How do you get to Chankanaab from the ship ??? we will be 10 plus 6 kids =16..

Edited March 18, 2014 by we're sailing away....

[Mack2]

How do you get to Chankanaab from the ship ??? we will be 10 plus 6 kids =16..

 

Unfortunately, by cab.

 

Fortunately, they do post cab fares online.

 

http://www.travelnotes.cc/cozumel/links/taxifares.php

 

There is also a taxi stand at Chankanaab at the entrance, so during peak times, there are a good amount of cabs.

[KalamityJane]

How do you all handle the car seat situation with cabs? Bring your own?

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[Waterloomarc]

Some people do, they supposedly fit in the closet.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Heartfruit]

One word of warning with regards to car seats. We were recently in both Cozumel and Belize. In both ports the vehicles we were in (cab in Cozumel, van in Belize) were older and had very dodgy seat belts. It may be difficult to install a car seat depending on what you find.

 

Chankanaab was great and would be fun with a baby especially if he is old enough to have fun with sand.

 

In Belize we took a private tour, which would have been fine if your baby likes bumpy car trips but the roads there are very very bad and if your baby isn't likely to sleep though it, It might make for a very very long day for both you and everyone else on your tour. I've read good reviews of the zoo in Belize, it might be worth considering.

[jaasb0808]

We have been to all these ports twice with our kids 7,4,1. Here is what I would recommend.

 

Belize: Don't let people talk you out of this one, it is my favorite port! We took our kids on ruins tours both times. Especially with an infant I think this is a great choice. I would probably recommend Altun Ha as it is the closer ruins site and not such a long commute. We booked a private tour which allowed us more flexibility and was cheaper than the ship tour. It is about an hour drive but hopefully at that age he might nap? Otherwise bring snacks and a few toys. Then bring a hiking backpack or carrier along and away you go, if he is anything like my kids at that age he will be super happy to be outside and mom and dad can enjoy the ruins.

 

Roatan: Maya Key is good, especially if mom and dad want a chance to snorkel. Great beach with shade to hang out with baby and take turns snorkeling. Also they serve lunch and have animals also, on Carnival you board a small boat right off the ship that takes you there and then when we were there they had multiple boats going back throughout the day so you only had to stay as long as you wanted to and not the entire time.

 

Cozumel: On one trip we rented a car for the day and went exploring on our own, the other time we did a beach day at Playa Palancar. If you are looking for another beach day I would highly recommend it but if you want to explore a car rental was pretty cheap and it is pretty hard to get lost there.

 

Hope you have a great time, we love cruising with our kids!

[wagzz21]

We did that itin (plus grand cayman) with our oldest son in Dec 2012 when he was 12 months old. My biggest recommendation if you haven't been there before is to keep your child hydrated & shaded. The sun (especially in Belize) is seriously seriously intense!

 

As for things to do: in Cozumel, we went to an all-inclusive resort (I think it was Mr. Sancho's)... we paid the higher amount for a cabana, which was like a hanging bed w/ sheets all the way around to block the sun. It was PERFECT. It stayed cool the entire time & my son was able to play on the large bed and nap there -- and we were able to enjoy a few beverages comfortably ;-) The water was only 20 feet away, so we'd go there & back easily. It was pricey - I think $80 or $85 each (not the baby, who was free), but it includes everything. Take a cab over & back - it's close to the port & is a nice, stress-free day. (When we were there, there were literally only 10-15 people TOTAL there, so it was very relaxing).

 

in Honduras, we did an island tour... I'll have to check to see if I can figure out who it was through - I want to say Victor Bodden, but I could be wrong.... on that one, we walked about 3/4 to 1 mile from the port to meet our driver & he took us all over the island, to see and hold monkeys & birds, and to a beach at the end. He was incredibly nice & we had a very nice day. It was about $35 a person - I THINK?? The other option there (we've been twice) is Maya Key. We went there before they changed over to ship-only excursions, but it was amazing & if the price hadn't been so much higher, we would've gone there again w/ our son. It's a resort - snorkeling, beach, fresh (chlorinated!!) pool, bar, food, etc. AND an animal sanctuary which was amazing!!! Very nice place & definitely child/baby friendly.

 

in Belize - the second time (the first was without a baby), we took a water taxi to Caye Caulker & walked to "the split" (basically just the end of the caye where it splits into the ocean. The snorkeling is good there - but they also have a very shallow, rocked/sectioned off area for babies/toddlers. It's honestly a little dirty in there (water isn't very clear!!), but we got over it & let our son play. He had a great time. It was REALLY hot though - even in December. The water taxi is a LONG ride, so if your baby moves a lot, it's hard to do! (Ours, fortunately, fell asleep!!) The wait for the water taxi was a little iffy (Belize City is sketchy), but we never felt intimidated or scared. It cost us about $7 each for this excursion. The drinks in Caye Caulker - HUGE bottles of water - were only $1! :) It's a walking-only caye, so pretty neat to see.