 |
| Author | Post |
|---|
DotL
Charter Member
| Joined: | Sat Jul 29th, 2006 |
| Location: | Houston, Texas USA |
| Posts: | 13 |
| Status: |
Offline
|
back to top
|
Posted: Mon Aug 7th, 2006 03:55 am | 1st Post |
|
| Yhony is wonderful! He takes care of his groups,plus saves many people that took the ships tours,from crashing into walls or worse! I would NEVER book a cave tubing thru a ship! Dot
|
Catnip
Charter Member
back to top
|
Posted: Mon Aug 7th, 2006 10:37 am | 2nd Post |
|
Dot,
Can you post a review of your experiece? We would love to read it!!!
____________________
32 previous cruises..
Next up: Last Atlantic crossing on QE 2 10-08/Celebrity Solstice 1-09/Jewel of the Seas 3/09
**Triangles Are For Losers!**
Don't touch that triangle!
Adopt a pet from your local shelter & save a life!
|
DotL
Charter Member
| Joined: | Sat Jul 29th, 2006 |
| Location: | Houston, Texas USA |
| Posts: | 13 |
| Status: |
Offline
|
back to top
|
Posted: Mon Aug 7th, 2006 01:25 pm | 3rd Post |
|
 Cave tubing
I just returned from the Feb 4th saling of the Grand.So,I was a little apprehensive on doing the cave tubing after going thru this ordeal.
I booked my cave tubing thru Yhony after reading so many favorable reviews.I was a little worried that I should have booked thru the ship.I mean that should be the safest excursion..Once our ports were changed and we had more time,I started feeling a little bit better about going with a private excursion.
Well,to begin with,I had emailed Yhony a few times and expressed certain concerns,and he already had high marks with me for his quick replys.
Upon arriving,we expressed to him some of our concerns since we had been thru one ordeal,we didnt want to go thru another.It was raining and many were concerned about cave flooding.After talking with Yhony,we all "voted" on whether we felt comfortable going ahead with our excursion.We decided that it was a "Go".
Several ppl for whatever reasons,had cancelled or more than likely just didnt show up.Since Yhony doesnt require you to pay upfront (not even a deposit),that escape clause makes it easier to book thru him.
Since we were only a group of 8,we ended up with 6 guides! Pretty good odds for a group that was a little more "fragile" than most .I got very LUCKY,Yhony was MY persona guide  Thank you Yhony
We had a very wet hike thru the rain forest.I was a little nervous over this since I had left my "good" shoes (ones with more sole gripping) at home.But no problems here,I just walked in Yhonys foot prints.He made it a point the whole way pointing out the slippery parts,showing us the safer areas to walk.
It was a very pleasant (30-40 minutes,maybe a little longer) walk.We had opted the 2 cave tubing since we had more time.
When we got to the "rope" leading across the river,I started getting a little nervous.Since I have rods in my back from major back surgery,I had wondered if I should have even been doing this in the first place.But,I was eased down into the tube to cross.
It was a little chilly at first.But,not nearly as bad as I thought it would be.Im very cold natured,so I was pleasantly surprised Once on the other side,we hiked a little more.There are a few steps here and there,but also someone there to help you if you need it.
I would recommend taking bug spray.In Feb,there were probably not as many mosquitos as other times,but I did get about 3 or 4 bites in the hair line on the back of my neck.The only place I didnt spray!
The tubing was so much fun! We made 3 sets of "links". I was in the middle of my hubby and Yhony.Yhony did ALL of the arm paddling.We just sat back and enjoyed the ride! We were enjoying using our headlamps to explore the tops of the caves.
As far as creatures go,we did see some bats.ONLY because Yhony asked us if we wanted to see them.He took us into the opening of a care and pointed them out,then we left that cave.At NO time did I ever see any more bats,nor any spiders or SNAKES.Yhony explained to us that snakes dont like rushing water.Not sure thats true,but in our case it was,no snakes anywhere around!
I cant stressed this enough..I WOULD NEVER BOOK THIS EXCURSION THRU THE SHIP! They just do not have enough guides to go around.
While we were enjoying our tubing experience,the ships tubbers were going along the same route.At NO time,did I ever see a guide with the ship excursion.I know they had to have some,but I never saw any.
Yhony would tell us when to lift our butts so that we didnt drag them on the rocks.He knew every point of that river.I was very impressed! I really felt sorry for the cruiseship passengers.If it wasnt for Yhony and his crew,many of them would have sore bottoms from scraping on the rocks.But,he went out of his way to tell them (the ones that were near us) when to left their bottoms.
At one point,he kept telling the ships people that they really needed to be prepared.He got out of his tube each time we got near a part that had a little stronger current,or where it was more shallow with rocks.
This is where my point of not booking thru the ships becomes SO important.There was a lady near us.She was going right for the shallow rock area.Yhony kept yelling to her to lift her bottom.She had NO one near her to help her.At this point,once you get past the shallow rocks,it makes a drop off into a swirling pool of water that is a little deeper.Once the lady entered this area,she had picked up speed,and she fell OUT of her tube! I was very scared for the lady,she didnt appear to be able to swim that well and seemed to be in trouble.Our guides were off their tubes in a flash and to the ladies rescue.I just wonder what would have happened to her if they had not been there.And,I must say,Yhony secured me before he left my side to help the lady.
Once we finished our two caves,we got out and walked the short walk back.If we needed assistance with our tube,the guides were right there to take it from us.
I can not relate how much fun we had! The guys were so much fun.We laughed and joked,had a great time,plus saw some interesting carving into the cave walls..
If you are thinking about cave tubing in Belize,DONT book with anyone else! Go to c a v e- t u b i n g . c o m .
Thank you Yhony! Thank you guys! You were all great! I will be back!
* Yhony did mention that the ratio is usually 5-6 ppl per guide.
Enjoy Belize! Dot
|
Catnip
Charter Member
back to top
|
Posted: Mon Aug 7th, 2006 06:43 pm | 4th Post |
|
That sounds like a fun excursion! A few questions:
1) Did you have to carry your own tube with you on the 40-min walk?
2) How "small" was the caves? I am claustrophobic, and don't do well underground in caverns, caves, etc, that are really tiny and tight.
3) When you got done, then how did you get back to the car/van? Another 40 min walk back?
4) How long was the entire excursion?
____________________
32 previous cruises..
Next up: Last Atlantic crossing on QE 2 10-08/Celebrity Solstice 1-09/Jewel of the Seas 3/09
**Triangles Are For Losers!**
Don't touch that triangle!
Adopt a pet from your local shelter & save a life!
|
DotL
Charter Member
| Joined: | Sat Jul 29th, 2006 |
| Location: | Houston, Texas USA |
| Posts: | 13 |
| Status: |
Offline
|
back to top
|
Posted: Mon Aug 7th, 2006 10:10 pm | 5th Post |
|
hmm..I thought I answered this question...but I dont see it..if it shows up,forgive my answering it again!
You carry your own tube,but if you need help at any time,or if you need someone to carry it the whole time,the guys will help you.They always took mine when I was going up or down an incline.It wasnt a bad walk at all,and I didnt notice that it was too much to carry.
The cave is pretty big and I dont think you will find it bothersome.They were pretty wide,and it doesnt take too long to get thru them and out into the daylight.
You finish up not too far from where Yhonys bus is parked.So,no,its not a long walk when your done.
You have an option for a one or two cave tubing.Also,your group gets to vote if you want to eat lunch.We took the 2 cave tubing and chose to eat and have a couple of hours to spare.We took a tour of the city and then doubled back to the point of pick up because one couple had not shown up yet,so tack on another 30 mins or so for us that you would not have.He asked us if we wanted the tour and to wait for the couple..everyone gets a vote..
One thing good about Yhony is,if you have any questions just shoot him an email and he will get back with you right away.He even sent me pictures so that I would have some idea of what we were going to be doing..Hes great! Dot
|
hstrybuf
Founders
| Joined: | Sat Jun 17th, 2006 |
| Location: | Kansas |
| Posts: | 19957 |
| Status: |
Offline
|
back to top
|
Posted: Mon Aug 7th, 2006 10:48 pm | 6th Post |
|
| We were considering Yhony for our cruise to Belize this fall, then DH decided he'd rather go see the manatees.
____________________
Deb - Research, research, research!
My pics: http://community.webshots.com/user/hstrycrsr
Liberty 10/07; Miracle 10/06; Navigator OTS 10/04; Legend 04/04; Grand Princess 09/03; Dawn Princess 01/03; Enchantment OTS 10/02; Destiny 01/02; Sensation 10/99
|
Current time is 02:43 am | |
|
|
|
|
