I wish I could give it a 0. Out of 49 people on the bus, 9 of were black. They lumped us all together in 1 group, although we did now know each. But at that time thought, no big deal. We get to the spot and Speedy the tour guide announces that he needs to see our group for something special. That something special ending up being that they wanted all 9 Black people to pay before we even did the excursion, with the other 40 people being told that they could pay afterwards. We fought that, with the help of some other guests on the bus who stood up for us, while dealing with other people being frustrated at us. We still try to do the excursion. We go cave tubing first. My tube deflated and I ended up having to swim, hike, wade in the water with just a life jacket. No other tube was offered or provided. Then at the end. I asked about the food they said they were going to provide. Someone looked at me and said what food. I look at my reservation where it said lunch and pointed to it. We were then reluctanly given a tray with a tamale on it. At this point the bus we ride in on leaves with Speedy telling us it is crowded and the AC was malfuctioning. So we had separate transportation back to the boat. When it came time to pay, I had no problem paying for the Zip line (fun) atv (super short) but I felt there should have been somerthing taken off because, I didnt get the full cave tubing experience. Speedy aparantly leaves the bus and our van picks him up on the side of the road. He gets in the car stating that his job was on the line if we dont pay. We tell him we never stated we weren't going to pay but we would only pay for services rendered. Speedy was very disrespectul and condensing to our group. We get back on the boat and 2 girls from the bus asked us what happened. We told them what Speedy said and they looked at us with disbelief. She shared that the bus was partially empty and the AC work. Even more hurtful she shared that Speedy her group "thats why I wanted them to pay first because now they are not trying to pay". It is devastating to have to deal with racism at home, but to think that I have to deal with it while on vacation is heart breaking.
Was pleased with this tour. It does take up nearly your entire day if you are on a cruise with limited time in port. We did the cave tubing and ATV course. I wasn't happy with the ATV ride, but Speedy made it right and Chico and I did an exhilarating run through the course without non-riders ruining it for us. The only critique that I would give is that our tour guide for the cave tubing (don't remember his name) was walking ahead at the front of the group and talking during the hike, which made it difficult for us to hear when we were in the back, and even when we got to the middle.it would be much better to stop and speak from the middle of the group. Other than that, it was a great trip and worthwhile. Wish you all smooth floating.butts up!!
My group and I did cave tubing, ATVs, and zip lining with Big John and his crew They were INCREDIBLE! I literally can't say enough good things about the experience and the professionalism of the staff. We had a couple of young kids w us and they did a great job of making the kids feel very special. The cave tubing experience is absolutely magical and at no point did it feel unsafe.
It's about a 45 minute drive to the area, during which Big John shares stories and facts about the country of Belize. Big John is hilarious too! So the long bus ride feels way shorter bc he keeps you very engaged both their and back.
All three experiences were a lot of fun and you are catered to the entire time. Unlike the people who book through the cruise line, if you book through the locals they'll do everything for you.
They were very very appreciative of the fact that we booked directly through them as tourist dollars support the majority of their economy. However, I never once got the sense that they weren't focused on our experience. They seem to get that a great customer experience will support their business the best.
All tips, regardless of who you tip, get split evenly through the entire company (from the person cooking your free lunch to the person hooking up your zip lining equipment) so everyone is doing their best to be helpful and pleasant.
Will definitely book again!
We LOVE Butts Up and highly recommend them! Our family has booked excursions through them for years and have had nothing but awesome experiences and great things to say about them! In fact, Butts Up has been our deciding factor to travel to Belize several times! One of our favorite reasons to book through them is because we feel that we get an “authentic” Belizean experience. Another reason is because we feel like we have more fun with Butts Up than we do when we book through the cruise ships. While on the excursions we have always felt safe. We have never felt rushed and have always had plenty of time for the excursions, eating and shopping and have always made it back to the ship at least 1 to 2 hours early. Activity level: Light to moderate. I’ve had two back surgeries and two knee surgeries and was able to do their cave tubing excursion with no issues and zip lining with minimal issues. With zip lining, expect to have a little harder hike because you have to climb steps. I’ve never done their ATV excursion, but other family members have and rate it as a light to moderate activity level.
For an idea of how much fun their excursions are, search Butts Up/Belize on YouTube.
We traveled to Belize on the Royal Caribbean Rhapsody of the Seas. Instead of getting an excursion through the cruise ship, we found Butts Up. We had so much fun. Tubing through the ancient caves was stunning and our tour guide made it even better. We paid less than the excursions offered through the cruise ship and got more for our money. I'd love to visit these guys again.
Fernando was awesome! We spent the entire day there riding atv’s, zip-lining, and the cave tubing. If you have time do them all!
Had a fantastic experience with Butts Up. Charlie, Speedy and Evan got us to the park for cave tubing and made the journey on the bus (nearly 45 minutes) go by pretty fast.
When we got to the park, our river guide was Ednir. I had many questions about the area, the plants and animals. Ednir answered all my questions and was very knowledgeable about the area. He made sure the group stayed on course and on time.
The lunch that was prepared for us after tubing and zip-lining was very good. It was a chicken tamale and it was delicious.
I went with 2 teenage boys and we all enjoyed the trip.
When I'm back in Belize, I will be looking to Butts Up for another tour.
My family and I went cave-tubing with these guys, they were great. We met the whole crew but dealt mostly with Speedy and Ivan and they were great. Ivan was a great guide taking us thru to the cave tubing launch site, very knowledgeable about the rainforest and stayed with us the whole time. Wished that I could have tipped him more, a great tour for myself and my family.
Great way to spend some time in Belize! We went tubing with "Speedy" and "Chico". Two of the best guides we've ever had. Knowledgeable, funny and entertaining. Would recommend this trip to anyone!
Went with my family last week it was so much fun John and his crew were awsome. The tamale was delicious the cave tubbing was beautiful and the zip line was so much fun.. Would recommend this excursion to everyone
The tubing was fun and adventurous. Our guide was Roberto Jr., he was funny and knew a lot about the city and could answer all the questions you asked him.
Had a wonderful time! Yohny and Kenny were brilliant.. constantly entertaining us the whole time. Did cave tubing and ATV.. definitely look them up! Best rates. 😊
I used Butt's Up last week while I was on a cruise. It was a great experience walking through the forest and "refreshing" as they called them streams ( the water was cold but a nice contrast to the Belize heat). The ride up was nice with out guide John giving up some history and facts about the country. They also let us try some cashew wine (who knew cashews were a fruit!) The rest of the staff Big Mac and Chico were very nice as well. Overall it was a great time and for the price it really can't be beat!!!!! Also they got us back to the port with a hour to spare before the last tender left for our cruise ship! They were very aware of time!
We rented quads to do an employee holiday.they gave us a price per quad and then when we arrived wanted to charge for 2 under 4 year olds. The clerk changed the price about 4 different times; I feel there was personal interest involved. The fellows in care of the quads at the location made a great effort to make sure everyone enjoyed. Keep the guys and watch your clerk is my advice.
We just got home from our cruise, Butts Up cave tubing was so much fun! They were so friendly and the cave was nice and cool and relaxing
This tubing excursion was an experience of a lifetime! Our cruise group was particularly lucky to have two very experienced guides, Lionel, aka "Dirty Harry", and Chico. They led us to through three separate caves during our tubing afternoon. The two guides shared their knowledge of the dry caverns, mythology and history they contained, as well as identifying surrounding fauna and flora during our walk to the tubing caves. We all had a lot of fun, laughs and great memories. Be sure to ask for "Dirty Harry" and Chico for a great tubing expedition.
Cave tubing was fun. Butts up was OK, a bit unorganized. The bus ride to the place is about an hour and you have people on the bus that have bought a variety of packages. The guide yelled instructions and info the entire time, no microphone, which was a bit annoying, especially if he was standing next to you. Regardless if you do one thing or three (Tubing, zip line, ATV), it will take you the same amount of time at the place since they only have a couple of buses. For the tubing part you walk through the rainforest to get to the place to put in. Nice walk and the guide was informative as to what you can see along the way. Once we arrived at the put in, they didn't have enough tubes blown up so they had to inflate tubes. Once we got going it was fine. The ATV was just OK. We had a person in front of us that had NO IDEA how to steer an ATV and she was in the front, so all we did was stop and start the entire time. They should have put her in back. The place you stop for the ATV and Lunch is a nice place with food, snacks and drinks. Buses are fine, and you get to see a bit of Belize City along the way.
Great price for the trip and the guides were informative and funny. Everyone was nice and efficient. Would book with them over the cruise line any day
excellent tour operator. Speedy and Jerry were knowledgeable, and fun. Took very good of our group and made sure everyone had a safe and fun experience. lenient reservation with no deposit required. Great price .
I recently went to Belize on a cruise & we went cave tubing it was a fabulous time they were all very attentive which I appreciated so much . I was assigned a young man named France & let me tell you he was wonderful, I was a little slow going but he stayed behind with me he also allowed me rest several times until we reached the place of our tubing to begin. after i got on the tube & was on the water France stayed by my tube he kept asking me if I was okay from the time I boarded the shuttle Jerry started calling me Poppa , & France called me Mr Terry . I will tell you France had a kind heart, compassion & determination to get me to point A to point B he made sure I had cold water by the time I finished & when we stopped to eat he bought me two coke. I stayed on the buss & he sat with me until the driver was back on the bus. I had never had that much personal help or concern from anyone, being on a cane not being able to walk very far . France made it seem easy, so if you need a good Tour Guides be sure and check these guys out. i felt very safe on the trip out to the cave & back to the boat.Thank you France for going the we extra mile for me, & May God Bless you. Terry Leek
Had a fantastic time with this company. We did the cave tubing and zip lining. They were really good about understanding different athletic abilities and making you feel comfortable. The team on the bus, hamster and speedy, were very entertaining. They made sure we understood everything and knew that our items would be secure. We had absolutely no problem getting back to the ship with more than enough time.