Kirra wrote:
I'm going on a cruise with family at end of June. Will be leaving out of New Orleans and stops in Belize, Roatan and Cozumel.
I'm thinking about getting to NO a day early to look around.
Anyone have any suggestions about what to see, where to eat? I think I will be staying at a hotel on Royal street, so lots of stuff seems within walking distance.
Belize is one of my favorite stops.
A few notes:
Belize is dirt poor. Arrange a tour, don't go wandering. (However, it's the only country south of the USA in North or South America where English is everyone's native language, so you won't have any trouble communicating.) I highly recommend the "Cave Tubing." Do it. Don't hesitate, just do it. If you want to do a cave tubing/zip-line package, it's pretty spectacular.
Roatan has incredible beaches. And you will feel itchy for a few days if you lay on them. There are "sand mites" that love human blood there. Supposedly they have some cactus-juice mite repellant that works, but ... I'm skeptical.
Cozumel is a good stop. Things I have done at the Cozumel Cruise stop:
(1) See the Mayan Ruins at Tulum. (This is actually on the mainland, you need to catch a tender to Playa del Carmen.)
(2) Swim with dolphins. Don't arrange this through the cruise's excursion desk, it will be three times more expensive and you won't see as much. Head on your own over to Chankanaab National Park and arrange it yourself.
(3) Drink Margaritas. They're always better in Mexico.
As a side point:
Willemstad, Curaçao (Netherlands Antilles) may be the most beautiful city on the planet.
I was looking at the cave tubing in Belize or going on a tour of Altun Ha, not sure which to choose.
In Roatan I found a Kayak/Snorkle tour that sounds awesome.
Cozumel...I will check out the ruin you mentioned, the only one I thought looked interesting was a Rhino/snorkle excursion.