Since it was our 4th anniversary & I didn’t want to spend hours on a boat to go diving at the Blue Hole, we decided to take a catamaran day trip to Caye Caulker that included snorkeling at Hol Chan and Shark Ray alley. The boat picked us up the weather was looking a bit stormy back towards the mainland as I caught this plane taking off.
Our hotel had booked us with SEArious Adventures & we went down to their dock and hopped on a catamaran with about 12 other people & 2 guides.
The reef is very close to the shore & many people go out to the edge where it is shallow enough to snorkel & they can see tons of fish at the two specific spots we were headed to on our trip.
This is what Caye Caulker looked like waaay off in the distance. You can get there faster on a speed boat, but we really enjoyed the slow pace & peacefulness of just sailing on the catamaran, visiting with others & soaking up the sun.
Our guides were awesome- very fun, entertaining, knowledgeable & hospitable (lots of food & drinks!) throughout the tour. Here he was blowing the conch shell at other boats to let them know we had arrived at the snorkel area.
Several people on the boat wanted to give it a try, but they discovered you need to be a professional to really give a good blow. Yes, there were lots of old people on our cruise, but one other young couple we enjoyed hanging out with. All in all, we found the crowd to be very different than the typical Mexico crowd because it was more expensive.
Hubby decided he’d stick with drinking & swimming. This is after our first stop at Shark Ray Alley, and the photos will get a bit out of order from here since I was switching back and forth with my good camera & my underwater camera.
Our first scheduled stop was at Hol Chan Marine Reserve, but it was quite crowded when we arrived. Our laid back guides decided to proceed on to Shark Ray Alley & come back to Hol Chan on our return from Caye Caulker.
GOOD NEWS OF THE DAY: The tiny corner of Missouri that I am in is beautiful, but I’m not braving a 20 degree windchill to run my 14 miler- it will just have to wait till tomorrow.
Your photos are incredible – they definitely capture the beauty of where you were. I love looking at all of the photos and wish I had an eye for photography like you do!
Just re-reading your Belize trip review. My hubby and I are thinking about taking a trip there for our 5 yr anniversary in January. We’ll probably stay inland for a few days and in San Pedro for a few more. This snorkeling tour seems right up our alley! A nice way to check out another island. Plus, I need to find that dog you took a picture of on Caye Caulker. He looks just like my dog! His brother from another mother maybe? I might have to check out the tarpoon restaurant too…and I want my picture taken on that tree that’s hanging over the water just like you! Thanks for all the info!
It’s such a great place! I wished we’d had more than a long weekend & could have also visited the mainland. Let me know if you have any questions or I can help with anything- happy planning!