Our Belize Experience - Great!

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ZCruiseMan

Guest
Hello All,

I thought that, since I am new to this forum, I better contribute a little something...

We were on one of the last Carnival "Smoke-Free" Paradise cruises with a stop in Belize. We opted to book our own tour instead of the ship tours (much less expensive). Many people think, and the cruise tour people will encourage this, that, if you book a tour outside of their offers, you will not have as good a time as with theirs. IMHO, what this means is that you won't be able to spend twice as much for the same thing. <wink>

Anyway, we decided to book a tour ahead of time with Coral Breeze Limited. They offer all the tours that the ship does, Shark/Ray Alley, Cave tubing, etc., but at half the cost. They meet you at the flag pole in Belize City (our ship was late by two hours, and they made sure we still had out tour) at the tender dock. (If you arrive early there is an Internet cafe, stores and refreshments, so don't worry)

We had 12 people on the tour (families), and not all actually snorkeled. They have pricing discounts for those just taking the ride, as my mother did, and so everyone was happy.

After a quick ride out to Caye Caulker (pronounced "key") to drop off the lunch menus, we went to the Shark/Ray Alley and snorkeled. We had brand new equipment, plenty of cold drinks, and a covered boat. We swam with plenty of sharks and rays. A bit intimidating at times, but fun, and we had a grand old time.

We also snorkeled at the reef (forget the exact name), which was exciting, since the ocean floor at the reef drops away into what seems like oblivion. Very creepy at times, but, again, very exhilirating!

We then went to Caye Caulker for a wonderful lunch, and cold beers (get the Belizean beer if you like beer). The restaurant is right on the beach and very nice. Afterwards you can walk around Caye Caulker enjoying the local, and very laid back, way of life. The split is a must see, since this is where the island is actually split in two due to a hurricance or something.

We got back to the dock in plenty of time to catch the tender back to the ship, which ended a thoroughly enjoyable experience. Our hat is tipped to Coral Breeze. Check out their web site at http://www.coralbreezelimited.com. You can now book your tour online, so it is convenient as well.

Hope you enjoyed my rants and raves...

ZCruiseMan
 
M

Mbandy

Guest
Glad you had a great time and thanks for sharing. I completely agree and have posted here numerous times that you'll save a lot of cash if you book independantly of the ship. Thanks for reinforcing the point. I will bookmark the site you posted for future reference.

Happy Cruising,

Michael
 
T

tricktsm

Guest
In Belize does it cost money to tender into shore from the ship? How long did the excursion last?


Thank you
 
Z

ZCruiseMan

Guest
The tender ships don't cost anything from the ship. The way it worked on our cruise was that colored boarding passes were handed out. An announcement went out that this would be done at a particular time. We made sure we were there before so that we could get the first numbers (which would load onto the tender boats first).

Sometimes I've heard that the cruise ships favor those taking their tours, but, if you put up enough of a stink of how unfair this is, they'll probably fold.

Either way, there should not be a cost associated to the tender boats leaving the ship.

Best,

ZCruiseMan

P.S. BTW, I think Coral Breeze had tender boat status, which allowed them to drop you off at the ship if the tour ran late. This would have been included in the tour cost. Check their web site if you have any questions: http://www.coralbreezelimited.com
 
A

AF24

Guest
Thanks for the review. I was wondering about the lunch...was it like eating at a normal restaurant, where you get a menu, or did they have only certain things they were serving?

We are doing the cave tubing in Belize in less than 2 weeks...can't wait!! We are currently booked through the cruise line, but are open to switching to a private operation to save $$.
 
Z

ZCruiseMan

Guest
The restaurant is an open-air restaurant with a view to the water. In fact, it is right on the beach, off the dock where we tied the boat. Very easy process.

The lunch menu was pretty extensive. Basically, while on the ride out to Caye Caulker, we would all check off the food we wanted. This was handed out by the Coral Breeze staff. They would then take the menus to the restaurant once we arrived, and once we had finished snorkeling, and arrived back at Caye Caulker for lunch, they were preparing the food.

We had time to wash up, get a drink, and then our food was served. Obviously, there were a lot of people, but by our paying attention to our name being called, we had an easy time of it.

You can see the lunch menu on the Coral Breeze web site. The URL is http://www.coralbreezelimited.com/lunch_menu.html. It may change due to availability of certain items, but there was plenty of other choices. I had the grilled chicken with fries, and it was very good. If I can find the photo I took (yes, I did take a photo), I'll post it here.

Hope this helps,

ZCruiseMan
 
T

tricktsm

Guest
ZcruiseMan....we have taken your advise and I booked online with them...very quick and easy...they sent us instructions on when and where to meet.

Thank you for sharing your trip details with us.
 
A

AF24

Guest
ZCruiseMan, thanks so much for all the helpful information. Of course, now that's one more decision we have to make! LOL
 
N

Natalia

Guest
Awesome info!! Thanks for posting this. I was already planning to book with Coral Breeze anyways but its great to hear positive feedback and get some details.
 
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