Has anyone taken a water taxi on their own?

[DM]

It looks like there are water taxis available to Caye Cauker for $15. round trip. There are 5 in my family and I am looking for an economical way to do a beach day. I would like to hear of other's experiences with the water taxis.

[Travel Angel]

It looks like there are water taxis available to Caye Cauker for $15. round trip. There are 5 in my family and I am looking for an economical way to do a beach day. I would like to hear of other's experiences with the water taxis.

 

 

You are correct regarding economical way to Cay Caulker, but after just returning from there for a 6 day adventure looking at properties for retirement/investment, I would not be going there for the beaches. Best Beaches will be around San Pedro at Ambergirs Cay and you can take a water taxi there as well, but it is a much longer boat ride and you will actually stop at Cay Caulker during the ride before getting to San Pedro. If you have any questions, feel free to email me at fun2cruiz@aol.com

[DM]

Thanks for your reply. I'm a bit nervous about the water taxi because of the distance so the thought of going even further makes me think we should just explore the port area.

[Travel Angel]

Thanks for your reply. I'm a bit nervous about the water taxi because of the distance so the thought of going even further makes me think we should just explore the port area.

 

 

Why not go cave tubing... the ride to that area is beautiful and to walk thru a true rainforest before the cave tubing is breathtaking of the Belizian History. I can give suggestions regarding tours, or you can always do a snorkelling tour of the area thru the cruiseline or other suggested suppliers offering similiar tours as the cruiseline for substantially less costs !

 

Belize is a beautiful country with beautiful mountain ranges and forests that can only be seen if getting out of the downtown area, and staying in the port area will not give you the true feeling of what Belize has to offer. Belize City will probably leave you with a bad taste in your mouth as it is not the cleanest area once outside the port area.....But many that I have read comments on felt Belize City was a great area... just not for me unless you like to see alot of poverty.

[murphysmum]

I'm not sure how old the members of your family are and what would interest you, but I would highly recommend that you NOT just plan on wandering around Belize City. There is nothing there to see except a couple of mildly interesting buildings and it's not really set up for tourists...as much as it's used for a port. Having said that, I'll tell you that I haven't been there in two years so the town may have improved. Perhaps someone will comment on this.

 

If the ship's excursions seem a bit steep, you will find a lot of tour guides with various destination offerings right outside of the debarkation area. The dollar really goes quite far in Belize. If you do a little research to see what activities (pyramids, jungle, zoo, etc.) would appeal to your family, you can have a nice little tour and see some beautiful countryside. Speaking a little Spanish or having a good Spanish phrase book with you may be helpful. I don't think our guide spoke any English...but he knew Belize and that was what counted.

 

I hope that you enjoy your trip, whatever you decide to do.

 

murphysmum;)

[DM]

Thanks for the input. We actually did the cave tubing a couple of years ago which my family really enjoyed. For this trip, I'm trying to find something that my family will enjoy without spending several hundred dollars. As beautiful or educational a tour of belize may be, five minutes in the heat with no water in which to cool off and my kids will be moaning up a storm. These are not young children either so they can moan quite loudly! This is why I thought a beach day would make everyone happy. Problem is, the least expensive beach tour I could find was $40. per person. Multiply that by 5 and you can see why the $15 round trip water taxi to Caye Cauker sounded so appealing.

 

If we wander around the port area, we will do just that and not venture outside the gates since it seems that there is not much within walking distance there. I had also looked into Cucumber Beach which is apparently a cab ride from the port but the reviews of that beach were not favorable.

 

I guess another option is to see if there are any better rates for tours to one of the beaches once we get to the port.

 

If you have any other ideas for me, I would love to hear them! Thanks again!

[nyc1234]

Thanks for the input. We actually did the cave tubing a couple of years ago which my family really enjoyed. For this trip, I'm trying to find something that my family will enjoy without spending several hundred dollars. As beautiful or educational a tour of belize may be, five minutes in the heat with no water in which to cool off and my kids will be moaning up a storm. These are not young children either so they can moan quite loudly! This is why I thought a beach day would make everyone happy. Problem is, the least expensive beach tour I could find was $40. per person. Multiply that by 5 and you can see why the $15 round trip water taxi to Caye Cauker sounded so appealing.

 

If we wander around the port area, we will do just that and not venture outside the gates since it seems that there is not much within walking distance there. I had also looked into Cucumber Beach which is apparently a cab ride from the port but the reviews of that beach were not favorable.

 

I guess another option is to see if there are any better rates for tours to one of the beaches once we get to the port.

 

If you have any other ideas for me, I would love to hear them! Thanks again!

 

How about horseback riding or captain your own boat? The boat thing costs $65 for adult and $40 for kids, the horseback riding cost $50 or $35 if you opt for wagon trail. From what I hear, there's not much to do around port area if you don't join any tour.

 

Visit this site to see if the other tours there are of any interest to you:

http://www.coralbreezetours.com/belize/caye/caulker/scuba/cruise/snorkeling/tours.html

[DM]

Hi NYC,

 

Thanks for the info. My issue is not finding something that we would enjoy doing, my issue if finding something that won't end up costing a bundle. My kids are older so they are in the "adult" price range. I had looked at Coral Breeze's tours and noticed that they had one that goes to Caye Cauker for $39. Paying $200. for a 4 to 5 hour beach trip is a bit steep for me. Then I noticed that we could also take the water taxi there for $15. round trip. Big difference in price.

 

We normally do things on our own rather than take ship tours. Problem is here, I am a bit nervous about going so far on a water taxi. I don't want to take the chance of missing the ship. I had been reading that most people who planned on taking the water taxi did not make the first one because they could not tender over early enough (the ship gives preference to those booked on ship tours) As a result, they were forced to wait for the next water taxi, an hour later. Then, on the return trip, it looks like you need to shoot for the one prior to your final option, just in case they are filled and you have to wait for the next taxi. Bottom line, my time on Cay Cauker would be quite limited. I had wanted to hear from people who actually made the trip to see how they felt about it but it seems that there are not alot of people who attempted it. We will probably just take the tender over and wander around the port area for a bit. Maybe stop and have a drink in the "Lizard bar". My kids probably will not even want to come along and just stay on the ship. Not to worry...they are plenty old enough to stay by themselves.

[OttoCal]

Yes! I have taken the water taxi on my own to Caye Caulker- painless, cheap, had a BLAST there. We were staying overnight in Belize City after a week's stay in Placencia.

 

The water taxi was easy. There are a couple of taxi lines to choose from, go w/ the one that is closer to where you will tender in. Look at the times posted on the board. Triple check the return times! Buy your return /round trip tickets. Get on the boat. Get off the boat. Have fun in Caye Caulker. Take whatever return boat back you want- but give yourself enough time to get back to the tender!

 

We actually came back an hour or 2 before we had planned- the sunshine and beers wore us out pretty good!

 

Much cuter shops than we found in Belize City.