Altun Ha and Cave Tubing Tour from Belize City
Cutting it close: back about 3:01 pm, inside your 1 h safety margin. Only book a departure that starts by 8:52 am.
Safety margin
- 8:00 amShip anchors in Belize City45 min to get a tender and reach the pier
- 8:45 amLeave the pierThis tour meets at the pier
- 8:53 amEarliest tour startTour runs 6 h. Latest sensible start: 8:52 am.
- 2:53 pmTour ends8 min back to the pier
- 3:01 pmBack at the tender pier59 min before the last tender
- 4:30 pmAll aboardLast tender usually leaves about 4:00 pm
Estimates based on the tour's longest published duration, our researched travel times and typical pier queues. Confirm the departure time on the booking page and keep your watch on ship's time.
Our verdict
Cutting it close on a typical Belize City call (8:00 am–4:30 pm). The tour runs 6 h; with the trip from Fort Street Tourism Village (tender landing) and back you would reach the gangway around 3:01 pm, inside the 1 h safety margin we recommend. Book it only if your ship stays later than 4:31 pm, or if the operator confirms an earlier start.
The meeting point is at the cruise pier or a short walk from it — the operator's own directions are written from Fort Street Tourism Village (tender landing). We allow 8 min to walk off and find them; usually no taxi and no transfer eating into your day.
Among the 100 Belize City shore excursions we track, this is about average in length (the median runs 5 h); 59% of them fit a typical call. Belize City is a tender port: we add 45 minutes to get ashore and keep you back 30 minutes before all aboard for the last tender.
Computed from the tour's published duration, the distance from the cruise pier to its start point and the typical Belize City call. Adjust your ship's times above to recheck.
About this tour
This 6-hour tour will take you to Altun Ha, the ruins of an ancient Mayan city in Belize. You will also have the opportunity to go cave tubing along the Branch Rivera Caves.
Private tour English, Spanish
What's included
- Bottled water
- GST (Goods and Services Tax)
- Driver/guide
- Local taxes
- Fuel surcharge
- All activities
Not included
- Lunch
- Gratuities
- Alcoholic drinks (available to purchase)
Itinerary
- 1Belize CityThis tour will take you to visit a Mayan ruin where you can learn about a great civilization that inhabited Belize over 3,000 years ago. Journey through the Mayan underworld, tubing through underground caves over 175,000 years old as your headlights reveal many untouched crystal formations below the surface of the earth. Altun Ha was first settled somewhere around 250 BC, with construction of the buildings beginning in 100 AD and continuing throughout the Classic Period that ended in the 10th century. Some 10,000 Mayans lived in and around Altun Ha, which was a significant trading center as evidenced by the large amounts of jade and obsidian excavated here in the early sixties and seventies.
- 2Altun HaAltun Ha Tour: spanning a 25 square mile area roughly an hour from Belize City, Altun Ha is made up of two central plazas surrounded by towering temples that enclose the palm strewn land. The larger of the two plazas, Plaza A, is the site of a mysterious tomb discovered beneath one of the temples called Temple of the Green Tomb. Jade, jewelry, flints and skins are among the three hundred remnants that were unearthed here. Cave tubing provides thrills to suit nearly any age and fitness level. After a brief 30-minute hike to the entrance of the cave, inner tubes are used to float along the Caves Branch River. Hear the echo of your own voice bounce off the distant walls. Listen to the water dripping from the ceiling, creating spectacular formations in the stunning chambers. And while you might be expecting dark and claustrophobic passageways, you are likely to find enormous chambers and cathedral-sized rooms. You will be driven back to your hotel or cruise port at the end of the tour.
- 3Franks EddyAt Nohoch Che’en near Frank’s Eddy, receive a helmet, headlamp, life vest, tube, and safety briefing. Walk through the forest to the Caves Branch River, then spend approximately 1 hour 30 minutes cave tubing through the limestone cave system and open-river section with your guide.
Meeting point and getting there
Start point
Cruise ship passengers are advised to try to get off the ship as soon as possible.
When you get off your tender please go to Terminal # 1 and exit from the glass door. As you exit you will see a representative holding a sign showing your individual or group name.
Cruise ship passengers are advised to try to get off the ship as soon as possible.
When you get off your tender please go to Terminal # 1 and exit from the glass door. As you exit you will see a representative holding a sign showing your individual or group name.
From the cruise pier
Meets at the pier
Allow 45 min to tender ashore first. Taxi fares and pier details.
Returns
Back to the start point
Good to know
Free cancellation up to 24 hours before. For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time. If the operator cancels for bad weather, you can rebook or get a full refund.
- Not recommended for travelers with spinal injuries
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
- Child rate applies only when sharing with 2 paying adults
- At time of booking, cruise ship passengers must provide the following information at time of booking: ship name, docking time, disembarkation time and re-boarding time
- Vegetarian option is available, please advise at time of booking if required
- A minimum of 2 people per booking is required
- Please dress appropriately for this tour
Traveler reviews
Operated by Private Belize Adventure. Prices, availability and tour details come from the booking partner and can change; the booking page is authoritative.
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