Belize: cave tubing, Maya temples and the second-largest reef on Earth
Belize City is a tender port: your ship anchors about 2 miles out and a 15 minute tender ride lands you at the Fort Street Tourism Village, a fenced pier complex of shops, bars and tour desks. Almost nobody stays in town; the day is about floating through limestone caves on an inner tube, climbing the Altun Ha or Lamanai temples, or snorkeling the barrier reef at Goff’s Caye or Hol Chan. SmartCruiser lists every cruise that calls here from every line, priced with taxes, fees and port expenses included, with the sailings that carry SmartCruiser bonus onboard credit or instant savings at the top.
Three ways to do Belize
Cave tubing in the jungle, a Maya temple, or a boat to the reef and the cayes; the buttons filter the list of sailings below.
Cave tubing and zipline
- Float on an inner tube through limestone caves on the Caves Branch River, headlamp on
- Add a jungle zipline for the full day; about 5 to 6 hours, about $95 to $150 a person
- About an hour each way by bus from the tender pier
Best for: families with older kids, adventurers, first-time visitors
Altun Ha or Lamanai temples
- Altun Ha is about an hour away and you can climb the Temple of the Masonry Altars; about 4 to 5 hours, about $90 to $100
- Lamanai pairs a river boat ride past crocodiles and howler monkeys with jungle temples; about 6 to 7 hours, about $140 to $180
- Both are long bus days, so book through the ship
Best for: history lovers, photographers, repeat Caribbean cruisers
Goff’s Caye or Hol Chan snorkel
- Goff’s Caye is a postcard sand island 30 minutes by boat, with reef snorkeling off the beach; about 4 hours, about $55 to $90
- Hol Chan and Shark Ray Alley means nurse sharks and rays in waist-deep water; about 5 to 7 hours, about $100 to $135
- Belize’s barrier reef is the second longest in the world
Best for: snorkelers, beach lovers, anyone who wants out of the city fast
Belize cruises: SmartCruiser picks first
Every cruise that calls at Belize City from every line, priced live with taxes, fees and port expenses included. The picks at the top are sailings where booking with SmartCruiser gets you something extra: instant savings or bonus onboard credit. Below them, every other sailing that stops here, with full sorting by home port, line, month, length and price.
SmartCruiser picks
Sorted by what you save, biggest firstEvery cruise that calls at Belize
Stack any filters, then pick a sortPrices are per person, double occupancy, in US dollars, and include cruise fare, taxes, fees and port expenses as published by the cruise line at the moment you load this page. Fares are capacity controlled and change daily; the fare is confirmed when you book. Flights, hotels and transfers are extra unless the line’s offer says otherwise. SmartCruiser instant savings and bonus onboard credit are provided by SmartCruiser on top of the cruise line’s price and are not available when booking direct; amounts are per stateroom, vary by stateroom category and are shown for the lowest category offered. Special SmartCruiser rates are pricing SmartCruiser holds on that sailing for its clients, with extra onboard credit; you book your own stateroom and travel on your own. Senior fares apply to guests 55 and over; resident fares need proof of residency in a listed state or province at check-in; police and fire fares apply to active or retired police, fire and EMT personnel with ID. Qualifier-fare savings are measured against the best fare the cruise line offers the general public for the same stateroom category on the day the list was pulled, updated weekly.
Home ports that sail to Belize
Pick a home port and the list above narrows to cruises leaving from there.
Things to do in Belize
Caves, temples, reef and jungle, all best done on an organized tour that gets you back to the tender on time.
Which lines call at Belize?
Belize City is a tender stop on most Western Caribbean loops from Texas and Florida; Norwegian uses its own pier at Harvest Caye in the south of the country instead.
When to go
Tropical and humid all year; November to April is the dry season and cruise high season, June to November is wet with hurricane risk.
Belize questions we answer every day
Do ships dock in Belize City?
No. The water is too shallow, so ships anchor about 2 miles offshore and run tenders to the Fort Street Tourism Village; the ride is about 15 minutes and ship-booked excursions get priority tender tickets. The long-planned Port Coral pier at Stake Bank has not opened as of 2026, so expect to tender. Norwegian is the exception: its ships dock at Harvest Caye, a private island 115 miles south.
How do I get around and what do taxis cost?
Licensed taxis (green license plates) wait at the Tourism Village exit; fares are not metered, so agree the price first. Figure about $10 to $30 for rides within the city and well over that for the ruins or the caves, which is why almost everyone takes an organized tour. The San Pedro Express water taxi runs to Caye Caulker and San Pedro, but the 30 to 90 minute ride each way eats a short port day.
What currency, language and time zone?
US dollars are accepted everywhere at a fixed 2 Belize dollars to $1, and most vendors quote in US dollars. English is the official language, which makes Belize the easiest stop in Central America. Belize stays on Central Standard Time all year with no daylight saving, so check the ship’s clock before you go ashore; US phones roam here on most plans.
Is Belize safe for cruise passengers?
The tourist areas are. The U.S. State Department advises increased caution for Belize, with the concern focused on the south side of Belize City, which no cruiser has reason to visit. Stay inside the Tourism Village or go straight onto your tour, use the licensed taxis, and skip public buses. The caves, ruins and cayes are relaxed and well policed.
What is the best excursion, and should I book it through the ship?
Cave tubing is the one everybody talks about, Lamanai is the one history lovers remember, and Goff’s Caye is the easy beach-and-reef day. All of them involve a bus or a boat and a tender at both ends, so book through the ship or a well-reviewed local operator with a back-to-ship guarantee; the ship will hold the last tender for its own tours, not for yours.
Do I need a passport?
On a round-trip cruise from a US port, US citizens can sail with a government photo ID plus an original birth certificate under the closed-loop rule, but we recommend a passport. Belize requires one to fly in or out, so if you miss the ship a passport is the only way home.
Are taxes and fees included in the prices here?
Yes. Every price on this page includes the cruise fare, taxes, fees and port expenses. Flights, hotels, shore excursions and gratuities are extra.
Talk to a Belize cruise specialist
We know which itineraries tender at Belize City, which call at Harvest Caye and which sailings carry bonus onboard credit, so call to check availability and book. Monday to Thursday 9 to 6, Friday 9 to 5, Saturday 10 to 6 ET.