Cozumel

Jodi and Aaron relaxing at Chankanaab

Our good friends Ryan and Heather at the ruins in Cozumel

I have been to Cozumel twice. The first time we had the kids with us and we went to Chankanaab which is a National Park. Very clean and very nice. We took a taxi there and I found some coupons online that got us in for cheaper. They have a nice area with chairs and a fresh water pool. You can also see the people swim with the dolphins. A great family place to go.

The second time we went we were going to go to Tulum. These are ruins on the mainland. So you have to take a hour ferry over to the mainland, 1 1/2 hour bus ride to Tulum and then back again. I have heard they are awesome, but we docked a little late and got a little spooked by our time limit. We decided to go the to ruins on Cozumel and went to take a taxi. The taxi was $100 round trip. I noticed that there were car rental companies across from the taxi's so we checked them out first. We were able to rent a Jeep for the day for $60! We were able to go to the ruins--which were small and hot, but interesting and then we found a beach for the rest of the day. The funnest part was the jeep which was very "rustic." It didn't always start and the seat had a hard time staying in place. But we had fun.

We rent a jeep again when we have the kids with us in Oct 2010!

Belize

By far this is one of may favorite excursions. We booked this on our own after some online research. We booked through cavetubing.com. We had to take a tender to the city once we arrived in Belize. We then met our bus at a certain pier. We took about a 45 minute bus ride to the caves. We hiked up to the caves through a rain forest which was incredible. They then hooked about 10 of us together and took us through caves which were sometime pitch dark. (which is why we have head lights on) Water was cool but if felt good. They then drove us back to a picnic area where they fed us lunch. They entertained us the entire time.

Some are probably fearful of booking outside the ship. I was too at first. But this is their job. They know what time they have to have you back to the ship. I have never had a problem with an outside excursion.

Freeport, Bahamas

Lucayan National Park

Roger and David walking to the Beach

Ben's Cave

I have been to Freeport Twice. Once you dock, you either have to rent a car or take a taxi. There is nothing at the port. The first time we took a taxi to the main part of town, did a little shopping and played on the beach. It was okay.

The second time, we did a little more research and found a place called Lucayan National Park. It was quite aways from the ship so we decided to rent a car. It is always good to travel with someone so we could share the expense. The are was bout $100 for the day but we were able to split it. The rental company picked us up from the port and took us to our car. We drove about 45 minutes out to the Park. The first thing we saw were the bat caves. They are closed at time when the bats are in them.

We then took a little hike to get to the beach. It was a trail about a mile long through pine trees, mangrove swamps and caves which opened up onto to the most beautiful beach. Not many people there since you really had to know about it before you left. Water was crystal clear and warm! We stayed there for a few hours and then headed back. We ate at the local burger king before getting back on the ship.

A funny note--in Freeport they drive on the opposite side so it took all of us to keep our car on track! Be prepared for that if you rent a car!

Nassau Bahamas

My best friend Heather on our girls cruise. We took a moment to relax at the "One & Only" hotel in Nassau

The Pier at Love Beach

Eating at Compass Point

David showing off the Bus Stop at Love Beach

Excursions--They can be really fun but kinda pricey--especially if you have a big group with you. I have had a few people ask what we have done on the islands. So I will break it down for each Island.

On our first cruise, we did not do any excursions. We were a bit overwhelmed! Sometimes I like to book through the boat and sometimes I like to do it on my own. Whatever you decide be prepared to do a little research.

I have been to Nassau several times. I have done something different each time. I have been to the Straw Market. A lot of cheap knock-offs. Be prepared to be haggled. Kinda fun but everything starts looking the same.

I have also been to the Atlantis Hotel and into the Aquarium. The first time we went there, our ship stayed overnight at this port. We had heard if you go after 7:00 pm you can walk through the Aquarium for free. This usually runs about $40 per person. This is exactly what we did! We took a car-taxi over there and we had plenty of time to walk through.

When we were on the island again, we took a tour through the ship. It was defiantly not worth the $50 we paid.

On a different occasion I was with my friend Heather and we had heard that Cabbage Beach was great! So we decided to head over there. We took a water taxi over to Atlantis and walked to Cabbage beach from there. It was a nice beach but the drawback is that 4 other ships had docked that day and that is were everyone went. It was very crowded. If you go there walk a little further down the beach and it will get less crowded. If you stop in front of "One & Only" hotel you can use their bathrooms.

Our last time in Nassau, we wanted to do something different. We researched beaches that were not so popular. Love Beach was were we wanted to go this time. Once you get off the ship, there a tons of taxi drivers trying to get you into their cars. They charge quite a bit. And their answer to everything is "yes." I wanted to talk to someone who was not trying to make money off of me. We went into the Hilton hotel and spoke with the man at the concierge desk. He told us the Taxi's would charge us up to $100 to take us to love beach, wait for us and then take us back. He suggested we take the city bus out there. It would be about $2 per person each way. He showed us were to pick it up. Once we arrived at the bus station we spoke with one of the locals to make sure we were in the right place. We told him what we wanted to do. When the bus came, he spoke with the bus driver letting him know where we wanted to go. We would be his last stop as it was very far north on the island. He dropped us off right in front of Compass Point hotel which opened up to Love Beach. It was a private beach, but I had read that if you eat at the restaurant, they will let you use their beach. When we asked, they were more than happy to let us through! We ate lunch there and had a great time. By the way--we were the only ones on the beach! The bus driver told us were to catch to bus back and we made it in plenty of time!

By far, this was the funnest adventure I have done on Nassau!