Crystal Cave en Blue Hole National Park Dagtrip vanuit San Ignacio

Crystal Cave: 5/5. Highly recommended. It’s a strenuous cave climb but the views are absolutely worth it. We took our 10 year old with us and he did well. This is a tricky climb however so read up well and look up videos on you tube before you go. For our trip this was a highlight. Tour company: 3/5. Their communication was not very great. For a private tour of this difficulty I would expect more detailed information on things to carry from a safety perspective. We were only told to wear full pants and carry a bug spray. However after seeing several videos before the tour we decided to arrange additional items such as hiking gloves, knee guard etc to ensure we are fully equipped. Also this company only supplies limited quantity of water. You have to carry your own water bottle and they supply only up to a gallon of water. For a party of three, on an 8 hour day through a strenuous hike this is not enough. We learned about the water issue the morning of pickup and had to arrange the water last minute Guide: 1/5. His name was Rudy and he was extremely rude. So much that right before the start of the hike at the cave my husband and I had to ask him to cancel the tour and drop us back to the hotel because we felt scared and unwelcome by his comments and behavior. When you come on vacation for a tour it should not feel like a punishment, doesn’t matter if you booked a private or group tour. Rudy was extremely rude throughout the drive to the cave and only after my husband and I confronted him then did he apologize and had a complete change of behavior. After that he was fine and extremely careful with us. I gave him a 1 and not a zero because he was very supportive through the cave climb and he took excellent care of our safety while we were in the cave.

We had an amazing experience visiting Crystal Cave— two middle-aged adults, a 9-year old, and an 11-year old. It was almost too extreme for our 9-year old, so you definitely need to know your kids and their level of adventurousness and physical strength (eg hauling their body weight up a nearly vertical rock face with the aid of a rope). They did it and thought it was very exciting and challenging. I am grateful to our guide Jose for keeping us all safe and well-informed as we decided how far to venture into the cave, even allowing two of us to stay behind at one point while the rest of the group went all the way to Wonderland. It was a strenuous 3 hours in the cave plus 45 minutes each way hiking to/from the entrance through the jungle. Inside the cave is gorgeous with lots of different stalagmite and stalactite formations and tons of pottery.

Incredible, once in a lifetime experience. I’m sure other guides are great, but I highly recommend getting Selwyn if you can. I was unqualified, unprepared, and untrained, and he made it happen. I haven’t been physically and mentally pushed like that since I submitted Kilimanjaro a few years ago. THIS IS NOT FOR everybody, and many people don’t finish, and those that get to the end where you have to do a barefoot climb, many people can’t complete that, but it’s truly once in a lifetime. If you want to push yourself and experience something like nothing else you’ve ever done, do this. Tight spaces, high vertical climbs without ropes, you name it. If you’re tired of excessively safe, highly sanitized, tourista activities like me, this will satisfy your needs like it did me.

We originally had 2 members back out due to uncertainties and fear, last minute late the night before they decided they wanted to give it a go, they were very responsive and accommodating by last minute finding us another guide to accommodate our group size. Moderate hike due to heat and elevation, would say it’s probably not as bad when the weather is more cool, cave itself was amazing, challenging, only a few small crevices, never felt like we were going to be stuck within them so I can’t fully agree with the claustrophobia comments. We went during dry/hot season at end of May so cave was not muddy nor was it very cool down there, we did not wear long sleeves due to the heat, we were the only group in there. Selwyn and Jose from Belize Caving Expeditions were very patient with us as we had some anxious people in our group, took their time to ensure our safety, gave us very interesting history about the caves, took the time to re-evaluate and change our routes in the cave based off some of the hesitancy with members in the group but remained encouraging. Since we had some anxious members who needed more help and the cave took us longer then expected so we did not have enough time to do the inland blue hole. We came out to a well deserved lunch waiting for us, was delicious. We are proud to say we were part of the 20% of people who make it to wonderland! I recommend after getting that far to continue to the end, you’re almost there! Wonderland consists of some rock scrambling, bare feet no shoes allowed, was amazing too see and a once in a lifetime experience - remember this is the whole purpose of the hike! You also have to remember that the Mayans used to do this hike barefoot, with a single torch, and were much smaller then us- if they did it you can too!!!! This was an amazing and incredibly challenging once in a lifetime experience, our guides made it the experience that it was and were so grateful! Do not let the unknown scare you, challenge yourself! I will say if you are a larger person you may have some difficulty getting through some areas of the cave, and this is not for someone who is extremely out of shape. Bring plenty of water!!! We had about 3L each and with the heat we experienced it was barely enough.

Our tour guide Jose went above and beyond to make sure that we were safe, confident, and most importantly had a wonderful time. We will always remember the amazing scenery, the history presented, and the laughs we shared together.

Chrystal Cave was absolutely beautiful and I would recommend it 11 out of 10. HOWEVER THIS IS A DIFFICULT TOUR. Make sure to ask for Selwyn; he is so patient and encouraging and there was no way we would have made it out of there with out him. DO NOT DRINK THE NIGHT BEFORE!!!! This is going to be harder than the hardest workout experience you have ever done. All this being said, the beauty of 100xs worth the pain. Make sure you go slow, take lots of breaks, bring more water than you think you would ever need, wear long pants and closed toe shoes. AGAIN go slowly and get Selwyn if you want to survive

RECOMMENDED! This tour was amazing, one of the best experiences from our tour! Our guide Pedro was excellent. He knew a lot about the cave and the mayan culture. In the cave itself are hundreds of pots that were used by the Maya to collect water. There are also remains of human sacrifices in the cave. I would say and skip the ATM caves and do this one, we were the only tourists that day. While the ATM cave is visited daily by dozens of tourists. Afterwards refreshing dive in blue hole.

So I go hiking, climbing and sports regularly, but that here was just abnormal. Partially 3-4 meters free climbing. Everything slippery in the cave. There were no fuses, ropes or anything. Not only that it was exhausting but also extremely dangerous!!!! Guide annoyed and always ran ahead. Light Gabs only on the helmet. Sometimes also very small gaps through which you have to. I was really scared that I wouldn't get out of it alive and like I said I'm thin and athletic. Afterwards to the Blue Hole - yes quite nice, 40 minutes stop, then cold food from the plastic box, chicken was cold etc. Was okay but for the whole price also expected something else.... Really mad!!!

This was a great tour with our amazing guide Miguel. He really knew the caves and every loose rock of it as well as the Mayan culture. Lunch was also very nice and of course the rum punch at the end. Consider if you want to do it that it is a great experience but also quite challenging physically and a bit mentally as well (especially if a little claustrophobic).

We had a wonderful day caving and swimming the Crystal Cave! Our guide, Miguel, was patient, friendly, and made sure we had a great time. He picked us up promptly at 7AM, and we had a quick trip out to the start of the hike. We hiked up (fairly steep), and then began our descent into Crystal Cave. It is straight up climbing/bouldering - no ropes, no handrails, nothing. We are both very active and adventurous and loved it, but if you must be sure-footed and have endurance to enjoy this cave experience. About 2 hours in, he asked if we wanted to stop or go deeper in the cave. Of course we went deeper, and saw Wonderland, a beautiful secluded spot with crystals and formations all over. In total, we were in the cave for 3 hours, and it was quite strenuous. Miguel did a fantastic job of showing us how to climb up tricky 10+ft walls, and warned us when a piece of quartz was especially slippery. We then hiked back down, swam in the Blue Hole, and then had a quick lunch before heading back to our hotel. We got back at around 3PM. We would do again 100%!