In Belize we booked cave tubing with Major Tom and enjoyed it tremendously.  Our main guide was George and he had 4 other guides (Mark, Junior, Alfredo(?) and we never quite caught the 4th name - sorry!) and a driver with us for a busload of 20.  The bus was an old school bus - a little bumpy and it had some a/c but not full throttle.  The ride of about an hour was narrated by the guides - history, culture, jokes and what to expect at the river.    
We arrived at the park, got ready, gathered tubes and walked about 5 minutes to the river crossing - they told us to get completely wet and we did.  The water was definitely chilly but we were fine once we went under.  We then walked for about 1/2 an hour to the start of the tubing.  Lots of stops by George to talk about the jungle, native plants, etc.  We found that it added a lot to our experience.  Once at the river you lie in the tubes and link up foot under arms - our family of 4 were one group and so on and then each little group is led by a guide - sometimes pulled, sometimes pushed, sometimes just floating.  Alfredo would swim up to us and point out the formations along the way.    
The caves are dark and there is an echo so when all the guides are talking it can get a little noisy.  It's not a thrill ride where you are rushing over rapids and there are places where the water level is lower and you have to "lift butts" to avoid some rocks.  Other tour groups did not appear to be as organized as we were and in fact we witnessed an accident with a different group (no one was hurt).  After the caves we continued to float along looking up at the blue skies and trees and relaxing completely.    
Back on the bus after drying off and changing we headed to an outdoor restaurant for a delicious lunch with the option of buying beer.  The ride back was sleepy with a little narration as we headed back into Belize City.    
The whole excursion lasted about 5 hours and we had plenty of time to take a tender back to the ship.  We would definitely return to Belize - it had a very Caribbean flavor and everyone we met was friendly and interesting.  A great excursion.  

Belize City

Since the port only recently reopened we had not booked anything in advance on our own and ended up taking the RCCL excursion to the Chacchoben Mayan Ruins and thoroughly enjoyed it with an excellent guide - Diana - at just about 4 hours it was the perfect length and when we returned to the bus we were surprised with a bag lunch and beer, soda or water! I imagine it would be very hot and humid to tour in the summer but January was fine.

Back in port my daughter and I shopped a little and my son and husband spent a few hours at the bar and enjoyed themselves. We did not make it to the village, so I can't comment on that but we encountered only friendliness and courtesy on our tour and throughout the port.

We would definitely return and explore some more.

Costa Maya

This was our second visit to Cozumel and we absolutely love it! We pre-booked the day at Nachi Cocum beach resort because we had enjoyed it so much 18 months ago. Fully inclusive at $49/adult, $29/no alcohol. Beautiful beach, shade, hammocks, pool with swim up bar, hot tub, clean bathrooms, friendly service (they remembered my husband from the last time - he has one of those faces people recall), excellent full menu, full bar and limited to 100 people - probably had about half that on Thursday.    
It's the most relaxing day imaginable and the peace and quiet was greatly appreciated compared to the tumult on the ship. You can rent wave runners or snorkel or get a massage but there are no water park facilities and that means even the kids at the beach are relaxed and happy playing in the sand and water.    
Leaving the ship that morning we had a 5 minute shower but that was our only rain of the week.  The cab rides were a little hair-raising - the ride to the beach was probably the most exciting 15 minutes of the week!  

Cozumel

I booked online before the cruise so the need to run around on the first day to get the day and time we wanted have been eliminated - a nice improvement.The pools looked great lit up at night and my daughter wished she was a little younger so she could try-out the Water Park area.

Independence of the Seas Review

A Great Six Days on the Independence

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Superior Oceanview Stateroom with Balcony

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