Beth on a snorkeling tour in BelizeAaron and I spent the morning repacking our bags and saying our goodbyes to Vicki and Ray and the rest of the Pook's staff. The staff surprised me with a hat and t-shirt for my birthday items which Aaron has now taken over as his own. I assured Pook's we would be back again soon. Ben drove us back to Belize City (I slept during the drive; it had been a long night!!) where we were to catch our water taxi to San Pedro on Ambergris Caye. I gave Ben a great hug and Aaron and I thanked him for giving us a handful of "firsts."
Aaron and I bought our tickets for the water taxi at the marina. It was US$30 for two people from Belize City to San Pedro the money conversion is two Belize dollars for one US dollar, and US dollars are accepted pretty much everywhere. Note: any change you receive will be in Belize currency.
It takes an hour and 45 minutes to take a water taxi to Ambergris from Belize City. While more affordable than taking a small charter flight, it was raining that afternoon, and the water taxis are open-air. And someone on the boat suggested that we cover in a large blue tarp to keep dry. It whipped and flapped in my face the entire ride. The stinging rain in my face might have only slightly been worse. Anyway, we made it to the island in one piece and dry.
I had made previous reservations for us at Ruby's Inn. This is not a common hostel that we work with, but it was affordable and right on the beach -- literally a two-minute walk from were the water taxi docked. When I told Vicki we were going to be staying at Ruby's, she was very excited. Turns out it is her favorite place to stay while visiting San Pedro. Accommodations are very basic, but you have clean sheets, a large osculating fan (an absolute necessity -- it was hot hot hot), a good-sized room and a private bath with hot water. The staff of Ruby's is also incredibly sweet and excellent hosts. I was particularly fond of a girl named Tiffany who helped me with the reservations. To give you an example of their wonderful service: Aaron had contacted Ruby's before our trip to surprise me with a birthday cake upon our arrival. The staff supplied us with a HUGE home-baked cake that could have served twenty hungry people, easy. They brought it to our room, candle lit and all. Aaron and I had two plate-sized pieces, then shared the rest with the gals at Ruby's.
We spent the afternoon reading and playing cards and found a nice nearby restaurant for dinner. That night a storm rocked the island and took out the power across all of Ambergris. Aaron and I stood on the balcony and watched a terrific lighting show. A little scary -- a lot romantic.
The holiday of a lifetime. The company is Alaksa-owned and thhat makes a big difference to the experineces you get i.e. meet genuine First Nations tribes people. The amount of wildlife was beyond my expectation, and seeing everything on sucha small, intimate boat made it even more spoecial and unique.
Liz O
1 day ago
Adventure Life covered all the details in planning our trip to Ireland. Any questions we had were answered immediately. Any trip glitches, which always happen when traveling, were resolved immediately. There were no worries, just fun!
Kathleen Weller
1 day ago
It was an outstanding, up-close, educational vacation of nature, culture, history, animals and geology! It was everything they promised! Binoculars were plentiful on the boat, but I'm glad I brought my own. Food was excellent. Rooms had black-out shades. Pack/wear multiple layers of clothing (I carried a small backpack when off the ship). Crew were delightful and very accommodating! Remember to jump FEET FIRST first when taking the optional polar plunge! Spend as much time outdoors as you are able and ENJOY!!!
Janet Dutton
6 days ago
Excellent travel advice and service
This is my second experience working with Adventure Life. I’m sold. Jess Heuermann is an experienced traveler and provides a lot of useful information when planning a trip. These are the questions I like to ask at the outset - What’s it like to go here, there, what would you suggest, what do people report, can we add any additional side trips? Jess took the time to answer my questions and seek additional information to share with me. Petchie Colina is outstanding in helping with travel logistics and final preparations. Adventure Life has excellent guides and offers private guides and small group adventures. We enjoyed the opportunity to talk with the guides and drivers to learn more about their countries, cultures and histories. A highlight was having the guides pick local restaurants where we could share meals together. Highly recommend.
Claire Cordon
1 week ago
Our six-day tour in Iceland went smoothly with one exception. We had asked for two rooms each night. Somehow we were booked with one room with three beds. It could not be fixed at the first hotel in Reykjavik because the hotel was fully booked. Once informed of the problem, however, Adventure Life rebooked for two rooms for the remainder of the trip. As an 85-year-old traveler, I appreciated that one could participate at different physical levels at many of the stops. Iceland is a great place to visit but on the expensive side.