2) Is it better to book the excursions through Carnival or on my own?
3) Do you know any websites for such excursions?
4) What did you like best about these places and is a must see must do?
5) Is Xcaret family friendly to a toddler and could float in the river on the tube?
Thanks so much.Need advice on family friendly excursions on a cruise. Better to book myself or with the cruise line?
I would not do the Xcaret excursion except through the cruise line. It's a long trip to get there from Cozumel and it includes taking a potentially rough ferry ride over to the mainland. [Check out their website for more info.] Cozumel itself is easy and safe to do on your own. Just take a cab south to one of the beach resorts or to Chankanaab Park [see their website]. Go early [I think they open about 9:00 or 10:00 a.m.] and then leave before it gets crowded. Or try Paradise Beach. I've been to both and preferred CP. Make sure you know which pier you're docked at - there are three in Coz.
Belize is not an easy [or safe] port unless you do an excursion. You might want to do it through the ship, because this is a tender port with a long ride into shore and you don't want to miss the ship. The big thing to do there is the cave tubing excursion, and I know people who have done it independently and enjoyed it. I wouldn't take a toddler. Nothing to do at the port itself and it's not safe to walk around outside the gates from what I've heard. When we went there we did an excursion to Goff's Caye through the ship, because the excursion boat picked us up right at the ship - no tender. It was a snorkeling trip that visited a tiny island [think football-field-sized] beautiful island.
Cayman is an easy and safe port to do on your own. ';The'; thing to do there is to swim with the stingrays. It's easy to do on your own and you'll have a much better experience - fewer people. Captain Marvin and Nativeway are two outfits we've used and both were good. Cayman is also a tender port but the ride is short [15 minutes maybe?]. Or you can grab a cab or public bus to Seven Mile Beach and just hang out. If you do a search on ';Cayman Island tourism'; you'll get leads on info - I can't remember the URL off the top of my head - sorry.
Don't know about Roatan personally, but it sounds like it's also fairly easy to do on your own.
The key to these ports is to do some research ahead of time. Do a search on all the ports for their official sites. Or use a printed or on-line guidebook [at your library/bookstore], e.g. Frommer's or Fodor's. You also MUST be sure and allow enough time to get back to the ship, because they will not wait for you if you're late unless you are on one of their excursions. You may want to ';be prepared'; for this problem by having your passport and some money/credit card so that you could get off the island and to the next port if necessary. [Some people disagree about whether it's a good idea to have your passport with you.] Also be sure you take the name/number of the shore agent [found in the daily activity sheet].
A great source for info about port activities [and everything else about cruises] is CruiseCritic.com. Click on ';Boards';, then go to ';Ports of Call'; and find your ports.
Have fun with the research - I hope you have a great cruise.Need advice on family friendly excursions on a cruise. Better to book myself or with the cruise line?
Beach excursions are always nice for families, some combine shopping and visiting local landmarks. If you are a cruise newbie, I would recommend booking through the cruise line. Once you know your stuff and who to trust, you can book through independent operators. Isla Roatan is a good place for excursions because it is still very under-developed and there is not much to do there otherwise.
You can book shore excursions online at:
http://www.partner.viator.com/en/7402 for a lot less than the cruise lines charge.
Be safe, book through the cruise line. I always do.
in Feb of '08 i cruised on the Norwegian Sun and we stopped at Belize. my wife and i booked a combination tour through NCL to the ruins and the Belize River. the tour boat we were on developed engine trouble so they sent a rescue boat. after the 30 of us switched over to the new boat it too developed engine trouble. they then took us to shore and put us on a bus back to the tender dock. we got back onboard the Sun 45 minutes after the scheduled departure time. if it would not have been a tour booked through NCL the ship would have sailed and it would have costs us quite a bit to catch up with it at the next port of call......if were would have been able to at all since our passports were in the safe in our room onboard the ship. yes, it may cost a little extra to book through the cruise line but i consider it ';insurance'; and served us well.
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