Cozumel, Roatan and Belize Recommendations!

[NHgirl2012]

My husband and I (in our late 20's) are going on the Norwegian Jewel to Cozumel, Belize and Roatan in a few weeks! Completely confused on which shore excursions to book/do and at which ports! Some things we were interested in are:

 

Submarine Ride (I want to see the coral reefs but my husband isn't a fan of swimming so thinking this instead of snorkeling) - is the submarine ride worth it and do you see a lot? Which port is the best for coral reefs/underwater life?

Dune buggy ride

Victor Bodden tour / Monkeys / West Bay Beach

Cave Tubing / Zip Lining

 

Any other ideas or places/companies to book with? I also thought it would be nice to have some extra time to explore and do some shopping. Which port would be the best to explore and shop on our own? Thanks! :o

[thehams]

My fiance and I will be doing the same ports, but on RCI. We are also so confused as what excursions to do. Snorkeling, cave tubing, zip lining, doone buggy and maybe a beach club are things that sound fun to us. But no idea which places or where.

[OCruisers]

My husband and I (in our late 20's) are going on the Norwegian Jewel to Cozumel, Belize and Roatan in a few weeks! Which port would be the best to explore and shop on our own? Thanks! :o

 

Cozumel would by far be the best place of the three to explore and shop OnYourOwn. :)

LuLu

[BrotherCraig]

My favorite place out of those is Roatan, then Cozumel, and then Belize.

 

First off, Roatan Mahogany Bay is a really nice port if you are coming into that one. New and a lot of things to do and see. If you want to do a tour, go with Bodden and do the Monkey and the West Bay stops. You DON'T want to miss West Bay. Beautiful beach and one of the best in the world. You will have plenty of time for shopping on the way back.

 

As for Cozumel, my favorite place is Nachi Cocum All-Inclusive but it is a quiet and relaxing beach. Great food and drinks -- beautiful beach. If you want a more party atmosphere, you have Mr Sanchos or Carlos n Charlies Resort. If you just want to shop, plenty to do around the port there.

 

Finally, Belize. I would go with an excursion to Goff's Caye but that is me. I did spend some time at Caye Caulker and took the water taxi over there. That was great. The last time I stopped in Belize, we just got some beer and food at the Wet Lizard at port. Didn't even leave the gates.

[Kung Fu Panda]

Hey BrotherCraig, regarding the Victor Boden tours in Roatan, what are your thoughts on private tour vs. group Zip and Dip tour? There are 3 of us and the private tour including Zip line, Money place, and Bananarama is $20 more pp.

[zqvol]

OP - you are basically asking us to do your research for you. Grab some guides, read some forums and then come back and ask some questions. All of us who have been to that side of the Caribbean have things we like and things we avoid.

 

Lots of people like Victor Boden in Roatan, I don't, nothing that he offers interests me. Others like LFK, again I don't.

 

You need to figure out what you want and then ask us specifics so that we can give meaningful responses.

[BrotherCraig]

Hey BrotherCraig, regarding the Victor Boden tours in Roatan, what are your thoughts on private tour vs. group Zip and Dip tour? There are 3 of us and the private tour including Zip line, Money place, and Bananarama is $20 more pp.

 

If you want to do the zip lines, then definitely worth it. For us, we like to do our own thing... go where we want and when we want. It just depends on you and your party. Bananarama is right on West Bay and a great place to go.

[cruise2paradise]

My family did these stops last week. We went with roatan trips and tours. Steve, the guide, was amazing. I let him know what types of activities my group was interested in, and he took care of the rest. He took us to his home, the butterfly farm, the monkey park, and a resort at west bay beach. There were many other activities to choose from as well!

[Jaco5NC]

We did Little French Key in Roatan and it was amazing! We did Goff's Caye in Belize and wasn't thrilled (enclosed boat to and from was awful, snorkeling gear was broken but the Caye was gorgeous) and Paradise Beach in Cozumel. PB in Coz was an awesome day including a beautiful pool, inflatables, kayaks, paddleboards, chairs, umbrellas all at a great price. We love the ports you are visiting and will miss them on our next cruise! Have fun!

[sellwingri]

We did a private island tour in Honduras with Roatantripsandtours.com last week and it was outstanding. Our guide, Jonathan, was willing to take us anywhere we wanted to go. He took us all over the island and was able to answer every question we asked.

 

They're a family run tour company and very capable. I highly recommend them.

[lexanna02]

OP - you are basically asking us to do your research for you. Grab some guides, read some forums and then come back and ask some questions. All of us who have been to that side of the Caribbean have things we like and things we avoid.

 

Lots of people like Victor Boden in Roatan, I don't, nothing that he offers interests me. Others like LFK, again I don't.

 

You need to figure out what you want and then ask us specifics so that we can give meaningful responses.

 

zqvol, we've done a tour of Roatan with Victor Bodden twice and loved it both times. We leave in 11 days and would like to do something different this time. I've considered LFK, but we aren't sure it's for us. What do you like to do in Roatan?

[mtsnd1900]

I have been to Roatan a few times - I highly recommend CHANNIN BODDEN TOURS. go on google, FB, etc. to find him. He will pick you up at the port, take you around the island to anywhere you want to go, and make recommendations you may not have thought of. Best stop this past trip - Daniels monkey and sloth habitat! Also spent a while on the water on his boat, snorkeling the great reef! Channin is rated #2 on trip advisor for Sandy Bay, Roatan and #1 on TA for other things. Channin is personable, honest and passionate about the island and its heritage.

[Bluemlynn]

Went on the NCL Jewel in Dec. We really liked the crew esp. Jaime the Cruise Dir. Little French Key in Roatan was our fav place!! Absolutely beautiful!!!

[AloeVera]

We used Shore Excursioneer that last 2 times. Check them out, great prices and if you book in multiple port, there is an add discount

[cruiserfan007]

We just got back last week and in Rotan we used Rony's tours. There were three couples and Karla met us outside the terminal and we had her for the day. I would highly recommend them. We just told her what we wanted to do and she made it happen. We zip lined saw the monkeys, went snorkling ate at a local ladies house saw the old part of town where the tourist don't go. Karla was a pro and I would call her again.....They are as good as it gets if you want to see the real Rotan.

[mitsugirly]

We have been on the Jewel (which will NOT dock at Mahogany Bay in Roatan as BrotherCraig mentioned). NCL ships dock at Coxenhole. Mahogany is a Carnival dock made by them for their cruisers.

 

As for things to do and places to go. We have been to these places plenty of times and try to experience something different most times.

 

I have a huge list of reviews in my signature line and they all have tons of pictures in the reviews. You could check some out and see what interest you. If you have any questions, feel free to ask. :)

[Curisin Newbie]

Roatan is beautiful. My favorite port maybe even better than Grand Cayman. Carnival has their own free beach right off the boat so that is an option. We didn't know about that and booked a Beach stay with Island Marketing at Fantasy Island. It was serene, private and nice. We got kayaks and snorkled. Tons of fish!!! GREAT DAY

 

Cave Tubing in Belize- my review, my opinion

Once off the ship, we found cavetubing.bz. Got into an overpacked van (both tour guides stood along the doors) and we were whisked away. The driver drove between 80 and 100 mph on a 2 lane highway passing anything slower. On the way home we nearly missed a dump truck by 30 yards. Everyone sighed with relief once we got through it. It is about a 45 minute drive both ways. (way too long for me)

Once there, we got changed and got a life vest and helmet with head lamp. We then hiked for 45 minutes at a swift pace. We got to the site to get in the water, grabbed our tubes and they connected them all together. We then got pulled through the stream. There really isn't any current to keep you moving. The water was so shallow that a lot of times we had to lift up our butt as to avoid the rocks on the bottom of the stream. The cave was interesting but extremely crowded with other groups.

 

On the way back, we stopped for rice, beans and chicken with some rum punch. Then after 15-20 minutes, we piled back in the van for an adventurous ride. I was never so happy to see the ship as I was that day.

 

Cozumel- We rented a jeep with Mar y Mar and was not impressed. HTL had nice jeeps. We drove around the island and ended up at Sunset Beach Club. Restaurant, spa and snorkeling. Free to enter. Great stop and very close to port.

 

Good Luck!

[BrotherCraig]

Yes, the Jewel will dock at Coxen Hole. I have never docked there but I have been through there. My comments on West Bay and a tour would be best... monkeys, ziplining, and West Bay / West End. I am ready to go back!

[off2wdw]

Hi,

 

We just got back this past Saturday from a cruise that included a stop in Roatan. We have taken 6 cruises and done some sort of tour in each port and none compares to the wonderful experience we had with Victor Bodden's Tours. Our guide Kenny was beyond amazing. No matter what crazy things we asked him though out our day, our request was met with a smile and quickly met.

 

Our family really got a chance to understand what it is like to live on Roatan with a visit to a local grocery store, the open air street markets to purchase local fruits, and a stop at a local area on the Caribbean Sea to eat lunch. Just amazing!

 

In addition to our tour and requests, Kenny made sure we had time to visit Victor Bodden's Monkey Business and for 5 people in our party to zip line. My 74 year old mom had never had the opportunity to zip line and loved it! This is the way to go with 18 different zip lines over the jungle.

 

If you are going to Roatan, I highly recommend Bodden Tours. You will love every minute. Also, if Kenny is available on the day you are in town, we highly recommend requesting him for your tour. This is a don't miss experience!

[Prisc777]

With SEE we had additional discounts for booking other port excursions at the same time.

[blue_water]

For Roatan we'd suggest hiring a private guide and being dropped in West End for some shopping. Take the $2 - 4pp water taxi over to West Bay and have the driver meet you there. Enjoy the beach then tour the island on the return. There are smaller guides that are more personal.

 

For Belize if you want to snorkel take the excursion to Goff's Caye, beautiful little spit witha reef. Head into port and enjoy a fun lunch at Wet Lizard.

Our favorite day is to take a water taxi to Caye Caulker and relax at the Lazy Lizard.

 

For Cozumel enjoy shopping and then ask a driver to drop you at one of the quieter beaches where you can still get a drink and a massage.