cavetubing. bz

[dabeers1]

I second the good review of cavetubing.bz. Used them a week ago!

 

Water shoes are your best bet, and the thicker the sole the better, as you are walking on rocks nearly the entire time. The walk through the jungle is approximately two miles on a dirt path filled in with rocks. It's very leisurely though. There are roots sticking up that you may have to avoid and once you get to the river there is a steep hill that you have to walk down about 10 feet. Also, there is a very steep ramp to get to the dock (about 3 feet on a 45 degree angle). The guide will help you down.

[BobH0775]

Is there a place to change clothes and store your gear after ziplining and prior to the hike to the river for cave-tubing? Wanted to bring tennis shoes for the ziplining then change to water shoes for the cave. Will also have towels. Is it possible or advisable to bring a camera to video during zipling & tubing?

[tlcs]

We used cavetubing.bz a few weeks ago and they were great. There is a bathroom/changing house located at the cave tubing site. It was clean and roomy enough to change in. If using cavetubing.bz they will store your items in a locked van which is also watched by park employees. We had no problems. Any small items like cameras and sunglasses were placed in a waterproof bag prior to getting into the water. Our guides Luis and Jose were fantastic. You won't need to carry a towel and a waterproof camera can be used while tubing. After exiting the water it is short walk back to the parking lot and changing rooms.

[DAP2]

Island2Girl & TarheelMJfan,

 

I'm back from cave tubing with Charlie Chan (charliescavetubing.com).

 

It was everything I'd hoped it would be!! :D Private tour with him is the WAY to Go! We were literally the 1st people to the cave tubing site!!!!! We got to see (and hear!) howler monkeys that were for sure gone by the time the crowds got there. He is an amazing jungle ecology guide!! We had the whole path to ourselves. We asked for a longer jungle hike to do more caves and boy was it worth it!!! We were the only people floating the top of the river...we went into this AWESOME bat filled cave that ALL the other tours missed.

 

I've got to work now but I'll try to post more later. (shoes, we passed .com and .bz sites on our way there & back, tendering, etc.)

[tarheelmjfan]

Island2Girl & TarheelMJfan,

 

I'm back from cave tubing with Charlie Chan (charliescavetubing.com).

 

It was everything I'd hoped it would be!! :D Private tour with him is the WAY to Go! We were literally the 1st people to the cave tubing site!!!!! We got to see (and hear!) howler monkeys that were for sure gone by the time the crowds got there. He is an amazing jungle ecology guide!! We had the whole path to ourselves. We asked for a longer jungle hike to do more caves and boy was it worth it!!! We were the only people floating the top of the river...we went into this AWESOME bat filled cave that ALL the other tours missed.

 

I've got to work now but I'll try to post more later. (shoes, we passed .com and .bz sites on our way there & back, tendering, etc.)

 

Thanks so much for getting back to us. :) I'm going to contact him to try to set up a tour for my family of 3. I hope he'll take us. This option is so much better for my situation. I'm looking forward to hearing more details, when you get around to it.

[DAP2]

A few more tips...

 

We packed and wore old tennis shoes that we could leave behind. We asked Charlie at the end where we could throw them away or donate them and he was very happy to have the donation himself. We were happy to have the tennis shoes versus water shoes or sandals...much more comfortable for walking.

 

Liberally coat with Deet bugspray. Mosquitos aren't bad right now but this is a forest like at home and there are ticks :eek:...yep, had a hitchiker back on the boat even though I HAD used bugspray...no big deal...we went on that VERY deep rustic longer hike under and over logs...not an issue on the wide open clear path I'm sure.

 

Be sure to get the 1st tender over. Be early to get your tender ticket if your ship does that.

 

There are canned and bottled beverages for sale when you are done. We bought Charlie a coke and drinks for ourselves to eat with the snacks we had packed to tide us over until getting back on the boat.

 

The road "courtesy of the Belize government" Charlie says is somewhat windy and FULL of pot holes just like you have read! My daughter who NEVER has had 1 minute of motion sickness in her life nor during the whole cruise got a bit woozy...the rest of us were fine cause we had already had the ear patch or been taking bonine.

 

We left a nice tip as we figured he couldhave had 8 people at $50 a pop. So even at $70pp we felt it was worth way more! Try to settle up with in the van before he drops you off...I didn't like trying to get my $ out in front of the other vendors.

[tarheelmjfan]

Thanks for the additional details. What did you do for shoes, while in the water? I was thinking of wearing water shoes, when tubing. Also, what was his deposit policy? Thanks again for your help. :)

[annadrc]

We did an excursion with Vitalino Reyes (cavetubing.bz) on March 10th and had a wonderful experience. If you review trip advisor, the reviews are overwhelmingly positive experiences.

 

When we departed the tender in Belize, Vitalino and his team were right at the terminal, easy to spot in their shirts and signs, and very well organized. We were grouped with three other couples, loaded into a comfy air conditioned van with our guide Manuel and a couple of assistants, provided ice cold bottled water, and off we went.

 

Be prepared that the drive is lengthy - I didn't have a watch but I am guessing it was 30-45 minutes. The last part of the drive is very bumpy, but was well worth it. Manuel and his team kept us informed all the way, sharing history about the country, landmarks, and culture.

 

Upon arriving at the caves, there were changing stations and restrooms. After changing all our possessions were locked in the van (officers watch it). We were given our tubes and 'miner hats', then began the 30-45 minute hike to get upstream of the caves. It was a leisurely stroll, with minimal incline and lots of pauses to learn about the vegetation of the rain forest, wildlife, and even an opportunity to taste a termite.

 

Once we reached the caves, Manuel and his assistant helped everyone get on their tubes, and we went through three amazing caves. I was amazed with how big the caves were - cavernous and long! Plenty big for my wife to be comfortable. It is truly fascinating and something everyone should experience if they are in Belize. After tubing the caves, Manuel enquired as to when we needed to be back to the ship and gave us an option to free float in the river for a bit, or to head back. We all chose to free float. Upon reaching the parking lot area and getting out of the river, everyone changed and we headed back toward the ship. But, there is one more stop! Vitalino has a building a few miles from the caves where you are served a suberb lunch consisting of rice, beans, and an amazing chicken, as well as sodas, water, and a really tasty rum punch. There are also some souvenirs available to purchase.

 

After lunch we returned to the ship, still with plenty of time left to shop, drink, or whatever you would want to do.

 

If you are stopping in Belize, I would highly recommend using this local outfit for your excursions (they offer more than cavetubing - there are several different tours on their website). The entire staff was genuine and authentic, and helped us not only experience the caves but also take home great memories of the people of Belize.

[Dallen*]

DAP2 -

Do you have any pictures of your excursion with Charlies? I looked at the reviews on TA and didn't see any on there either. I was hoping to see the tubes and equipment they currently are using.

 

Or if anyone else who has used Charlies has any pics, I'd very much appreciate seeing them. Thanks!!

[Island2Girl]

DAP2

Thank you so much for your information. I am hoping this will work out for our family of 5.

[mitsugirly]

We even got an excellent meal of chicken with rice, coleslaw and plantains, with incredible rum punch, all included in the price.

 

I've seen "plantains" mentioned several times. I was just wondering what this is?

 

 

Fabulouso placed us in two side by side rows of four and tied the tubes with a rope so he could pull us along through the caves. He warned us about BUTTS UP and joked about Crocologs and sticksnakes. He made it very clear to everyone that there were no dangers in the water... We didn't have any small children in our group so nobody was worried either way.

 

We were given life vests and helmets with LED lights on them. This was a major benefit compared to the other groups we saw that had regular lights on the helmets. Our lights were much brighter and we could see far better than the others.

 

 

Here's a link to our pics on Facebook. We did the Zip-Line / Cave-Tubing combo... This was everyone's favorite day of the cruise!

 

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=183359&id=1350317120&l=046c8df589

 

Thanks for your great review. I think I have decided to use .biz at this point. They sound wonderful from what everyone has said.

 

So you didn't have to do the rows of people with everyone's feet under the arm pits? This sounds a little uncomfortable to me because in every video that I've seen, people are using their hands and arms to "paddle" along. That would be hard to do with someones feet under your arm.

 

Also glad to hear about the LED helmets. That's wonderful. I just wanted to ask, are there absolutely NO lights anywhere in the caves? Is it completely pitch black? How do you know if you are about to hit a rock or the side or something?

 

THANKS SO MUCH for the facebook link. I loved all of your pictures. We are also doing the Victor Bodden in Roatan.

 

 

One last questions for anyone that can answer... Am I understanding that ALL of the tubing companies go to the same place? Am I reading this correctly? We all take the same tour in the water to the caves?

[*love2travel*]

We booked the zipline/cave tubing combination with cavetubing.bz and I was very impressed with the company and we had a great time.

 

We were a little late getting off the ship due to tendering taking a while. We didn't get off until 9:30 AM and we had to be back by 4:15 PM. The trip had an hours drive each way. So it was going to be a bit tight for both activities plus lunch.

 

We had a group of 18 people and they took us there in a nice air conditioned bus. David, our tour guide, was excellant. He was very informative and told us a lot of neat stuff about the country and the whole way on the bus. Zip lining was a lot of fun. The staff was excellant. Cave tubing was also really neat and the water was very refreshing.

 

We had a great day and really liked the company we used. We even got to ride with the owner, Vitaly on the way back and he was an extremely nice man.

 

We are planning on doing the combo tour. When did you make it back to the tender? Just thinking about the time frame. We are in port from 8am to 5pm.

[TwoSue]

We just used cavetubing.bz last week.

 

Yes, you are hooked together with your feet under the person in front of you. You don't need to paddle... your guide does it for you. In our group, they were mostly hooking up two groups of four with two guides. For some reason, our family of four got our own guide and just us on our little train. So our guide could pull us out of traffic and over to some nooks and crannies.

 

It is NOT pitch black in the caves. Plus, you are in there with hundreds of other people. Think "Pirates of the Caribbean" at Disneyland. Not scary at all.

 

We only did the tubing, not the ziplining, but everyone in the group who tubed and/or zipped was back to the port 45 minutes before the last tender.

 

It was a great trip. The guides were awesome, the lunch was delicious, and the service outstanding. I'd highly recommend Vitalino's group.

[mitsugirly]

When I first emailed .bz about wanting to book with them, they immediately emailed me back with info. I emailed them again about booking and asking if it was safe for a 3 year old and also about the water levels during September. They emailed me back with the link of how to find them and so on and said to "print out the link" then email them back letting them know that I printed it and that would be my "confirmation" that we were booked. They answered the question about the 3 yr old and the water.

 

I emailed them again asking about small life vest for the 3 year old and I've yet to hear back from them. I emailed again...still no answer.

 

I'm just wondering what's going on at this point. They were keeping in contact with me quickly before. Now no answers for about a week. :confused:

[TBOTZON]

I found a post over in Trip Advisor forums on Belize that as of June they are limiting kids to a certain height for the cave tubing. That might be why they have not responded yet. They may not be able too...

[mitsugirly]

I found a post over in Trip Advisor forums on Belize that as of June they are limiting kids to a certain height for the cave tubing. That might be why they have not responded yet. They may not be able too...

 

They responded with just that. New height requirement is 48" starting in June.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1404465

[cjrs]

hight requirment is probably a good thing. primary issue is the the kids have issues interlocking the feet of the person behind them under thier arms. my 6 year old Dd was having issues holding on espcialy in the faster watter.

 

smaller tubs and life vests are available. be prepared to carry you child's tube as the walk is an issues for small kids.

 

my advice. find some old socks to wear in your watter shoes

[cjrs]

thumbs up on the cavetubing.bz lunch. great overall experience

 

only big difference i could see between the vendors was that the cavetubing.bz team went thru one extra cave and used smaller VAN's for transport instead of a bus

 

it seemed llike their was quite a rivalry between the vendors

[airwick]

It's long!

 

We traveled to Belize on the Carnival Legend on April 22nd. We went on the cave tubing trip with Cavetubing.bz. Here is my review.

 

My party of 6 (ages 55,40,26,9,6,6) were greeted outside of terminal 1 as expected. We were quickly walked over to the cavetubing.bz vans that were waiting off of the side of the terminal. There were 5 or 6 different vans waiting for us; and there were plenty of other cruisers that were going on the cavetubing.bz tour. We were all greeted by Vitalino, the owner of cavetubing.bz.

 

The guides quickly greeted us and split groups off into the vans. There was another family of six that shared our van with us. 12 of us comfortable fit into the fan, and we could’ve easily fit 2 more people. Everyone was given a bottle of cold water for the drive. One concern a parent had, was that there was not any seat belts in the van; but having read up on the trips prior, I knew this was the case in most third world countries. And we were on our way. Our main guide’s name was Miguel; I think the 2nd guides name was Junior.

 

There was a brief stop at a security check point close to port, which didn’t hold us up at all.

As the fan weaved through the City of Belize, Miguel pointed out different things to us. Being that it was Good Friday, most everything was closed. But you could get a real sense of the poverty of the city; nothing scary, just run down.

 

Once outside the city, the van ride sped up down the highway. Both guides were very informative about everything we passed, and they were more than happy to answer questions. The van did stop at another check point along the highway. This one Miguel explained was to try and stop Guatemalan’s from trying to get to America. Guatemala’s boarder is only 37 miles from where the cruise ships dock!

 

The guides told us that we would be turning off of the highway soon, and we’d have to travel 5 or 6 miles down a bumpy road. Once we turned off, they weren’t kidding! It was VERY bumpy! Potholes the size of small cars! But Miguel weaved in and out, off on the shoulder and over to the other side of the road to get us there with very little major bumps. The total van ride took about 45 minutes to an hour.

 

Once we arrived at the park, the fan was parked along the others and we were able to use the restrooms, apply sunscreen and to get changed. All of our belongings were locked in the van for when we returned. We than went over to the tube pickup area. We were all fitted with helmets with lights on them, a life jacket, and our tubes. The guides, and the cavetubing.bz employees at the tube pick up area attached our life jackets to the tube to make it easier to carry. We were on our way. We started to hike down the path. Along the way the guides pointed out many different fascinating things to us. Different plants; such as cashews, palm, all spice, some sort of stick plant that glue comes from; it was very interesting. Plus the stops made the hike easier. Other tubing companies rushed passed us in a hurry to get there. The hike was not difficult, in a couple of places there were stairs with railings along the way. We were able to walk into a couple of caves and see the bats hanging above our heads! We had the opportunity to hold a tarantula! I of course didn’t do it, because I had to take a picture of my 9 year old hold it! The guides helped carry tubes for the little ones, which was definitely a blessing!

 

We reached a spot in the trail that the other cave tubing company was going down, our guides explained that we would continue on for another Belizean 5 minutes so we could go through an additional cave. We arrived at the river and I was amazed at how beautiful and clear it was! We were all helped into our tubes, each party of six was linked together with our own guide. One of the 6 year olds in our group was scared to be up front, so the guide tied her tube next to her mother’s tube, and away we went!

 

The caves were amazing! It would’ve been a little scary to someone who’s scared of the dark or enclosed places. We were linked together by holding the feet of the person behind you, and someone in front of you held your feet. We were in a chain. The guide linked his feet under the 1st tube and paddled us through and down the river. At some spots, he got out of his tube and maneuvered us through spots of low water, saying “butts up!” The 1st cave was wonderful, especially because there were not any other tubing tours there! When we arrived at the 2nd cave, we started to see others from the other company.

 

Here is where another major difference in tubing companies came in! The dot com tubers did not have helmets on, just lights, most of their tubes were old truck tires, not the brightly colored ones with built in handles. They were also not linked together, and were not being pulled and guided down the river. In several low water spots, while we were being pulled through, the dot com-ers had to get up and walk themselves down the river. I’m not saying I’m lazy, but I didn’t have to worry about the kids slipping on anything! Also, along the way, we were surprised to see Vitalino in the river himself pulling along 2 people, that I assume got off the ship later than the rest of us, and he personally took them through the caves!

 

We reached the end of the tubing, and got out and took our short walk back to the main entrance where the restrooms were. We turned in our gear, had a few moments to change and back in the van to head towards lunch.

 

We arrived at the cavetubing.bz headquarters for lunch. We were seated at plastic resin table and chairs. We were offered Cokes, Fantas, water, or rum punch at no additional charge. (Beer was available for a fee) We all had sodas, and were a little surprised they came in the old fashioned glass bottles. Lunch was a homemade chicken and rice with coleslaw. It was very yummy. My non-picky son asked for seconds! There were a couple of tables set up selling some handmade items, or tee shirts and key chains. My two kids each picked out the Belizean key chain they had to have! And they were only $4 combined.

 

We than paid for the tour at lunch. That’s right, not BEFORE the trip, after! We were more than please with the trip, but I assume if you were totally not pleased you could’ve talked to the boss Vitalino. At no point were we pressured to tip anyone; not on the van ride or at lunch. We tried to watch to see if anyone else was tipping, and it didn’t seem like they were, so we did not as well.

 

We than hopped back in the vans for the ride back to the ship. We were back with nearly an hour to spare before the last tender.

 

I would HIGHLY recommend cave tubing in Belize with cavetubing.bz. They entire trip was amazing, and my kids haven’t stopped talking about all of the fun they had! We will definitely us them again if we make it back to Belize!

 

To some up my experience:

 

1. Plan ahead! Pre-book with vitalino thru his website
   
2. GET OFF the ship as early as possible! We were on the 1st tender, and were not worried about getting back at all!
   
3. .bz seemed safer than .com
   
4. .bz seemed to spend time on the hick to show you different things. (I for on did not taste the termites!)
   
5. If your expecting cruise ship quality food, ask your driver not to stop! Remember your in a 3rd world country! The food was good, no one got sick, but its local traditional foods.
   
6. I really could ask for a better trip!
   

[3prettykidz]

I could have written the above post. We went with bz. on March 29th. 4 adults and 5 kids, ages 15, 13, 11, 8, and 7! We had a wonderful time. We had Junior and Martin as our guides! Everything was just as the previous poster described ! Just wonderful!!

 

We did tip our guides at the end of the day- Ended up being most of our groups favorite day on the cruise!

[tennisfanusa]

Thanks for the great review. Belize is the only port I haven't booked an excursion for so every little bit helps. :)

[lauren0309]

Loved reading your detailed review. Our cruise isnt until December so how far in advance should we reserve a space with them. We're a group of 4.

[airwick]

Loved reading your detailed review. Our cruise isnt until December so how far in advance should we reserve a space with them. We're a group of 4.

 

 

We booked our only 4 or 5 weeks out. I gotta feeling that Vitalino will do just about anything to accommodate everyone. As he said to me; "no cruise ship passengers, no food on his table"

[JenMJM]

Thanks for the review! I was in charge of booking our excursions and hoped I made good choices, .bz included. Sounds like I made the right decision! We'll be there in two weeks on the Legend:)

[airwick]

Thanks for the review! I was in charge of booking our excursions and hoped I made good choices, .bz included. Sounds like I made the right decision! We'll be there in two weeks on the Legend:)

 

 

LOVE The Legend!

 

Been on it twice, not to big, not too small! If you ask John Heald he'll set up a formal M&G for you the 1st sea day in the bar. Wee Jimmy and the captain came! I messaged him thru Facebook. It was worth it!