Isla Roatan--A true Paradise

 Just got off the ship and it is hot, hot, hot in Isla Roatan

 Better on the beach in the shade under an umbrella

 Jump right in and dig away

 Just perfect

 Can I live here at the Parrot Tree Resort?

 Daddy and Savannah cool off in the lagoon

 Seth chooses to stay put in the shade and the sand

 Sitting in the shade

 The swimmers

 Getting ready to kyack from the first time.

 And they are off and Daddy does all the work

 Put your feet up and relax while Daddy gets the job done

 Seth's turn.  At first he did not want to go, then threw a fit when Savannah went.

 Hooray for Daddy and Seth

 Finally Seth decided to go in the water

 My three favorite people in the world

 Back on the ship saying good by to Roatan way too early.  We were only there from 8-3.

 Reading is the thing to do on the deck of the ship

 Views of Roatan

 The have a chair lift to take you to the beach across the way

 Very welcoming

 We are here and are trying to stay cool.  90 plus degree day.

 Checking out the water right away

 Mommy loved the 5 interconnecting pools at the resort

 Seth actually went in the pool too

 Loved swimming with my babies

 There was nobody else in the pool and she could swim freely in her life jacket and shallow water

 Keep going daddy

Checking out the driver

When people say "What was your favorite port?" it is hard to answer, because I really loved each one and what we did there.  But there was something very special, very beautiful, and very relaxing about Isla Roatan, Mohagony Bay, Hondorus.  I really did not know what to expect from this port, except that as soon we docked you saw lush gardens and mountains and the beach in front of you.  It was 90 degrees at 7 a.m., but we fell in love with the clean, safe town, beautiful beaches, friendly people, and atmosphere of Roatan.  It may not be a place I return to with lots to do and see, but deefinitely the most relaxing and serene, get away from it all place we visited.  I enjoyed it very much and wished we stayed longer than 8-3.  I would have loved to walk around the town, but the tour got back 5 minutes before all aboard.  Felt very jipped, but had a fabulous day.

Again, I had changed my original plan of an excursion here in Roatan due to past guest reviews who raved about going to the all-inclusive Parrot Tree Resort.  This place was massive, gorgeous, relaxing, and top notch in every way.  The best thing was that it was two hours earlier in Roatan than ship time, so our 9:00 a.m. tour was really 7 a.m. in Roatan so there was nobody but us around.  We had the beach and the pool to ourselves.  This place was truly like a Sandals or Beaches resort.  They have all types of water sports, activities, restaurants, and entertainment.  My favorite were the five pools that all interconnected and looped around and had waterfalls and a small water slide at the end and a kiddie pool too, even though the pool never went over 5 feet.  The beach had all types of equipment to rent, including a kyack that Rich and the kids took out for the first time.  The nice thing was that the swimming area on the beach was protected by a break wall from the Caribbean Sea so the swimming area was wave free, shallow, and warm.  But you could go under the bridge for more of a challenge.  You could also snorkel.  We spent the day at the beach and pool and had lunch.  They played music and did line dancing and it was just a great day.  We totally relaxed and unwound.  It would be a nice weekend getaway to forget about everything.  Stress free for sure.

Our tour guide gave us the low down on Roatan.  He said the West End has lots of restaurants and night life.  There is even an Applebees (for Savannah), but he doesn't recommend it.  There is no Starbucks though.  But, we did sample Hondorian Coffee and it was quite good.  I loved visited Hondorus, again, so close to Guatemala, but a very different feel.  On Isla Roatan everyone speaks English and it is their first language and it is very upscale.  Even Tiger Woods has a place that he frequents on Isla Roatan, so it is more of a paradise for the rich and famous and we thoroughly enjoyed sampling it for a day.

Un-Belizeable Day

 Someone settled right in with her Cheerios on the beach chase.

 Give me a shovel and a bucket and everyone will have a nice day

 Welcome to Goff's Caye

 Yes, this is where we spent 3 hours in Belize

 My kids are happy and settled

 I was actually able to read a page of my book.  Miracle.

 Daddy going on the 45 minute snorkeling tour off the beach of the Great Barrier Reef of Belize

 We stayed here

 Two in on the digging action now

 Happy with our sand castle (not a lot of resources)

 Decorating it--Seth wants to add a crocodile to the moat.

 Perfect day at the beach

 Don't worry, be happy

 She definitely knows how to enjoy the good life

 Enjoying the beach--I think Seth is asking me about the guy on our tour going to the bathroom.  Ha, ha.  The things he notices.

 What a view.  The kids loved the pelican balancing on the rocks against the surf.

 Sharing snacks so nicely

 Time for a dip in the sea

 Loving swimming in one of the most beautiful places on Earth with my girl

 Loving Goff's Caye

 Got Seth to go in the water and he actually enjoyed it.  Love this moment that Rich captured.  Couldn't be happier.

 Seth wanted to get out of the water and Savannah and Rich stayed in and took some self portraits.  Love their smiles!

 So cute!

 Going to enjoy Belize City

 Someone was very excited to find her very own store in Belize.

 We had lunch at the Radisson Hotel in Belize City and this was the view

 Sushi Bar on the ship before dinner

 Face painting at Camp Carnival

 Me and my happy girl

Mexican Midnight Buffet with decorated fruits, ice sculptures and desserts.

Belize is a place that I have always wanted to go since being in Guatemala.  Even though Belize used to be part of Guatemala before the civil war, it is nothing like Guatemala in style or feel.  It is a caribbean island, own by the Commonwealth and everyone speaks English.   What Belize is famous for is being surrounded by all these beautiful cayes to snorkel the "great barrier reef of the Caribbean."  We chose to go to Goff's Caye which is unspoiled by civilization and is a beach the size of a football field with a batoom, a pavillion and two garbage cans.  It was our own Gilligan's Island for a 3 hour tour.  They had people come in to sell goods and food, but basically it was an incrowded, pristine beach with just our tour and tour guides. 

Our ship dropped anchor and our high speed ferry boat picked us up from the gangway and whisked us away to the caye located 12 miles from Belize.  The ride was fun and fast.  We arrived at the Caye in 20 minutes and were immediately taken with its beauty.  You had a choice to snorkel off another boat, the beach or just enjoy the beach and swimming.  Rich snorkeled with the guide off the beach for 45 minutes while the kids and I enjoyed the beach and the water.  Even though our weather was perfect, the water and sand were churned up due to a storm coming, so the coral and fish were not as vibrant and easy to see as usual, but Rich still enjoyed his snorkeling.  The kids and I had a great time building sand castles, finding hermit crabs, and wading in the shallow and calm part of the water.  When Rich came back we all enjoyed the beach, water and shell seeking for another hour and a half before were brought back to the ship.  We still had three hours to explore Belize City before all aboard, so we went to the city.  We found it dirty and the merchants pushy, so we browsed in a few shops  and then went to the Radisson Hotel for lunch and got some beautiful views and enjoyed a very elegant hotel and yummy cuisine in a safe and air conditioned environment.  We then went back to the ship, watched it sail away, swam, showered, had sushi as an appetizer before dinner and then both kids enjoyed a Disney movie and face painting at Camp Carnival as we had dinner.  The kids quickly figured out that Camp Carnival for 2 hours is WAY more fun than sitting at dinner in dining room. Savannah especially love Camp Carnival and participated in many activities and Seth went three times in the evening with Savannah and we were very impressed that he was brave and enjoyed interacting with the staff and other children.  Maybe there is hope that he will go to preschool next year, but if Savannah wasn't there with him I don't think he would have gone.  Remember that Savannah is the best thing since sliced bread and if she is doing it, it is alright.