Kohunlich ruins or altun ha ruins

[brookeq]

We are on the Carnival Valor in may. We will be stopping in Belize, Roatan, Grand Cayman, and Costa Maya. We would like to do one ruin excursion. Since these generally are longer trips we don't want to book a private tour, we will be using the tours offered on the boat. Lamanai is not offered so it is between kohunlich or altun ha.

 

We have been to tulum and chichen itza before. We enjoyed both of these tours. Do you think these ruins compare and are worth the visit?

 

Or should we go to the ruins in Costa Maya (we were planning on a beach day in Majahual here). Carnival offers Chaccoben or Kohunlich?

 

Thanks for your help!

[sharecruises]

Hi, I have not been to either place yet LOL>> but have been doing a lot of research

 

From what I can see, Costa Maya is a port you can easily do on your own, no need for excurisions thru the ship, get a ticket take the bus to the "fishing village" and walk around til you find a beach bar you like

 

some favorites seem to be Cat's Meow and Pez Quadro

 

get cheap massages on beach, eat and drink, haggle with vendors, have fun

 

Tequila Beach is all you can drink deal, apparently available at port cheaper, gives you a locker too, can walk around the little village from there also

 

the port is pretty commercial, has a big salt water pool, does have some internet cafe and/or payphone deals etc...and some free folkloric shows

everyone says prices a bit higher in the port and also it is pretty "plastic" feeling...

 

Belize, on the other hand, is NOT an easy port to just jump off ship and walk around....it is a fairly long tender ride, and then there is a fenced in port area for cruisers, a few restaurants, little shops....and armed guards and a fence

 

Belize is very poor, and the city around the port run down, no easily reached beach

 

Most people take a tour here. Lots of them like the cave tubing and the ruins are also popular. For a ships tour, lots of people rave about the River Wallace/Altun Ha excursion.

 

I am planning to take a local private tour to Altun Ha, skipping river wallace as we have a boat and go boating all the time. (Also live in Florida where gators, manatees, iguanas are common LOL)

 

On the longer tours you are smart to take a ship tour I think. There are lots of reviews on River Wallace Altun Ha tour on here