Belize
The reason we wanted to go: Friends Karen (originally from Belize) and Michael Windeler (Canadian) we knew in Singapore fell in love on vacation in Belize so I heard a lot about it. Mateo and kids are huge ‘Survivor’ fans and there have done a couple of seasons in Belize and it looked stunning. I consulted with my adventure travel friend Channing and she said her siblings were teenagers when their family went and loved it, so we booked Belize for Spring Break 2019.
We flew with American Airlines from Philly to Miami then connecting to Belize, Belize is only two hours south of Miami. There is a direct flight Newark to Belize too. I noticed at Belize airport that there was a Southwest check in counter, something I didn’t know about flights when I did online research for travel to Belize. After a dozen years in Asia and using Singapore Airlines regularly, well, AA was a totally different experience, I’ll leave it at that.
From the airport, we took a taxi (about 25 USD) for 20 minutes to the ferry pier for Belize Express. Boats are about once every hour or every 90 minutes. It stops at Caye Caulker (smaller island, more relaxed, less built up), but we kept going to Ambergris Caye (90 minute ride total). I had to look up Caye and it’s a low-lying island. We paid about 30 USD/person round trip for the boat. You could take a small aircraft for about 180 USD round trip, and I’m sure it’s probably a 30 min ride. We stayed at Ramon’s Village (recommendation from Belizean friend who said it’s great for families) which is about a 5 minute golf cart ride (complimentary with hotel). We chose this hotel because it’s on the beach and it has a pool, but it also is walking distance to San Pedro where we ate most of our meals. More upscale that friends recommended were Belizean Cove Estate and Coco Beach and Sun Breeze Hotel, but we wanted to be walking distance to San Pedro. For a more economical hotel, my Belizean friend suggested Sunbreeze Hotel. Something to note about the beaches in Belize is that there is a lot of sea grass in the water so even though hotels ‘clean up’ the sea grass daily, it’s still something you do have to deal with. I’m just glad I had a heads up. It’s all about the diving in Belize and the Blue Hole is world famous, but since only 3 out of 7 of us are certified scuba divers, we opted for a snorkelling trip instead. You can’t just snorkel from the beach because the Belize Barrier Reef (second longest in the world after Australia’s Great Barrier Reef) is a boat ride away. We went to Hol Chan and Shark Alley. We paid about $50 / per person for a half-day outing and it is so colourful and amazing and we felt like the staff from Ramon’s Village took good care of our kids and we felt safe and well instructed on where to go, how to handle the sharks, etc. Even if you don’t stay at Ramon’s you can book any of their day trips. We have dived in Maldives and we felt like Belize snorkelling was definitely as impressive. This was a highlight experience for the kids. Even our six year old was able to keep up (I helped her but a staff on the boat stayed right by her the whole time too), the older kids 10, 12, 14, 16 didn’t need assistance and were having a blast. It was very cool to have the GoPro to catch the footage. We saw sharks, manta rays, another type of ray, baraccudas, gorgeous coral reef and so much more. Another day we rented a golf cart for the day, it’s about 50 USD for a four-person golf cart for the day, we paid more for a six-person golf cart. It’s so fun to have one to discover the rest of the island. We went from north to south and spent the day just stopping when we wanted. We had lunch at another beach hotel X'tan Ha "The Waterfront" Resort, their beach was lovely.
Our favorite part of San Pedro was accessing local food. South of San Pedro we ate at the open BBQ kitchen called Robin’s Kitchen serving great jerk chicken with rice and beans. Next door is ‘Las Paletas’ that were basically fresh fruit organic ice bars. In San Pedro, we loved all the street food because the kids thought it would be fun and we saw lots of local families enjoying the food this way. We actually found a favorite place and ate a few times, an El Salvador family-run Pupuseria (purple shop front). We tried the shrimp burritos, shrimp and conch ceviche, pupusas (never had one before but it’s like corn maize and they grill it with meat inside), papaya smoothies, etc. Just a few blocks from the Pupuseria, is a dessert shop with an outdoor stand for churros and “marquesitas” which is a waffle cone looking crepe, filled with Nutella and cream cheese and shredded cheese, sounds unusual, but quite delicious. From tripadvisor, we also ate at Neru’s Taco Place, truly a local “hole in the wall”. We loved their burritos and their watermelon or melon or tamarind fresh juice and horchata served cold. My kids were amused that they have a sign for a man who has a record of eating 57 tacos.
The kids didn’t want to leave the beach but we did want to see another part of Belize so we had booked Macaw Bank Lodge and this was a great experience inland towards the Guatemalan border and only a two hour drive from Belize City (we rented a car from Crystal Rental). We were glad we had a four-wheel drive for the hillside and jungle. The kids said afterwards they are so glad we saw the jungle side of Belize and we wish we had given ourselves more time. It’s solar-powered, the water comes out with not much pressure, but we didn’t care, there was so much green and beauty and flowers. We enjoyed hiking, swimming in their private river area, relaxing on their hammocks, playing volleyball in their open field, and just soaking in the natural beauty of it all. The couple running the place (Raul and Leticia) were very sweet and kind, we loved their meals. The guest cabins or thatch-roof cottage are reasonably priced for Belize, but the meals did add up for our family of seven. You do not have to eat at the lodge, but you are 20-25 minutes away from San Ignacio. I believe it was about 14 USD/breakfast and 28 USD/dinner. But the simple food was delicious and a lot of the ingredients they grow themselves. A highlight for us was seeing the Mayan ruins. After seeing some amazing temples in Asia (Angkor Wat, My Son etc) we wondered how we would feel about seeing these Mayan ruins, well we were all very impressed! Coracal is the famous one that everyone goes to but that is about two hours from Macaw Lodge, we opted for Xunatuchil and even though we didn’t go to Caracol, we think that we would prefer X anyways b/c it was less crowded and beautifully maintained. If we had more time we would have explored some of the nearby waterfalls and another set of Mayan ruins right in San Ignacio. We did stop by a river and watched all these local families enjoying the day, we just ate from a road-side BBQ chicken place and a guy walking around selling donuts and another local delicacy with spices and sugar for Easter. Our hotel hostess Leticia said San Ignacio has a wonderful French bakery (called The French Bakery) but it was closed the entire three days we were there due to Easter. On the drive from Belize City to the lodge we did stop by the Mennonite community in Spanish Lookout for lunch, it’s not really a stop for everyone, we were just curious about the dairy farms and their ice cream which we tried at Western Dairies. We thought the farm land on this detour were so pretty.
NOTES FROM BELIZEAN FRIEND KAREN
In Ambergis Caye for food scene: Elvi’s Kitchen you have to order the Whole Fish - Snapper with Rice and Beans, potato salad and friend plantain. At the restaurant SunBreeze... The lobster is amazing and my favourite food is Conch Fritters. Oh and coconut shrimp.
For Diving, she recommends this company: https://belizeprodivecenter.com/
She said this tamale woman has an institution with the best tamales, but it wasn’t on our drive, but looks so fun!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8f94kvaxLvc
NOTES FROM CHANNING
Oh! I just remembered--you should see if you could visit the large Mennonite community in Belize. We stumbled upon one of their settlements while trekking and it was the funniest convergence of cultures. The fish market in Belize City is also worth walking through.
I thought I had a detailed itinerary but unfortunately this is all I have in my email. If you'd like one, I can ask my mom as I'm sure she has the actual doc somewhere. When we went, my younger sibs were still teenagers and it was the perfect trip for those ages.
Like she writes, we split our time between jungle and beach and it was the perfect balance of adventure, culture, and relaxation. Macaw Bank is delightful and the owner was a wonderful host, helping to arrange activities like tubing and hikes on his property. ATM was a big highlight for everyone...might be a challenge for Lulu but I think she's up to the task depending on the water levels (should be lower during Spring Break than when we went in Dec).
Definitely spend some time out on a Caye. We loved Ambergris but I've also had friends really enjoy Caulker. Both islands are a fun sea plan / boat ride away and don't allow cars. We all had a blast driving the golf carts / boats to dinner each night. Excited for your family to go!
NOTES FROM CHANNGING’S MOM
Our family loved our trip to Belize!
We focused on 2 places:
1. Cayo District (inland--near Guatemala)
lodging: Macaw Bank
rustic lodging in jungle near San Ignacio, Cayo District
beautiful property, tubing on river, home-cooked food, animals and birds, hammocks, palapa huts, archeological sites
charming hosts/owner: Ron Catabnera
http://www.macawbankjunglelodge.com/
key experience: Actun Tunichil Muknal Cave (Mayan)
about: http://travel.nationalgeographic.com/travel/top-10/sacred-caves/
tour: www.cavetubing.bz
guide: Vitalino Reyes Owner/Manager
2. Ambergris Caye
lodging: Belizean Cove Estates
luxurious home with small private pool, jacuzzi and beach; short boat/golf cart/bike from downtown of city; bikes, kayaks available plus use of big swimming at nearby sister resort
http://www.belizeancove.com/
key experiences: snorkeling, scuba diving, swimming, eating at nearby restaurants, relaxing
For us, this was the perfect blend of adventure/activity and relaxation; rustic jungle and luxury tourism. If you decide to go, it will be fun to hear what you decide to do!
Marguerite
Actun Tunichil Muknal
Belize
In myths, journeys to the underworld are never easy, and after visiting Actun Tunichil Muknal (Cave of the Stone Sepulchre), you may feel that you have been through your own epic test. Access to the Maya sacrificial site within the cave involves hiking, wading, and underwater swimming, but nearly a mile (1.6 kilometers) underground you will reach the resting place of the “crystal maiden,” a complete female skeleton that sparkles from eons of crystal calcification. The cave also contains Maya pottery shards, many showing the “kill hole” intended to allow spirits to escape.
NOTES FROM FACEBOOK GROUP
If you are looking for a driver, I highly recommend William Hofman
belizeshuttle@yahoo.com (belize 011 501) 620.3055. I have entrusted several families to him and he really goes above and beyond.
Also, yes. It is very easy to get into Guatemala for Tikal, just be aware that it is a long journey from the coast (maybe up to 5-6 hours each way). You might consider spending a day or two in San Ignacio. There is so much to do there for families and it would be a lot closer to Tikal.
There's a great Indian restaurant in San Ignacio, if you like.curry. also, the Trek Stop is very rustic but also a fun place to stay there. They have a frisbee golf course and a tiny butterfly museum. The composting toilets do not smell at all, nicest composting toilets I've ever seen, which is weird to say but true.
You won't need much Spanish unless you're up north, even in sartenaja it's mostly English speaking. I really enjoyed the cayes, plancencia, and Hopkins Village. No rental suggestions as we were camping last time we were there, sorry.
Actually, the kids might like the Parrots Nest Lodge, near bullet tree falls. Treehouses and communal meals, the owners and their daughters are all really great people.
Someone suggested – BIRD ISLAND.
I just remembered: you should see if you could visit the large Mennonite community in Belize. We stumbled upon one of their settlements while trekking and it was the funniest convergence of cultures—think horse-drawn carriages with sand dune tires. The fish market in Belize City is also worth walking through.
The Mennonite ice cream is amazing as well. Mostly up north, near sartenaja, but you see them selling ice cream all over the country.
Turns out most of the paved roads in north eastern Belize were paid for and paved by the Mennonites too. It's a really interesting history of them being there if you dig into it. But even if you skip the history lesson, try the ice cream. The best!!
Someone suggested this company:
Someone suggested this lodge:
Ian Anderson's Caves Branch Jungle Lodge for sure! Then hop over to San Pedro and check out Diablos—giant water slide into the ocean, zip line, and inflatables
ATM cave is a MUST. Also go see Mayan ruins (Xunantunich is great). There is a wonderful mountain pine ridge forest preserve with caves, waterfalls, hikes.
If you go to San Ignacio the ATM cave hike is a must. There are also many ruins around there that are incredible. The boys will love it. Look up the Banana Boat Lodge, you’re basically staying at a zoo.
We stayed on Ambergris Caye over Christmas with my 10 & 12 year old. We loved it...so much to do. We did the Shark Ray Alley snorkel day trip. So much fun. We went deep sea fishing one day. We rented golf carts and toured the island one day. Lots to do there.
Agree on ATM - it’s amazing! We split our time in Belize between the jungle and beach. Loved Chaa Creek in the jungle. Victoria House on Ambergris was great too. We had a long trip so did two days in Guatemala too (Tikal area - which wasn’t too far from Chaa Creek). Highly recommend if you have the time!
El Pescadore - it's on Ambergris Caye. Fishing lodge. Fantastic good time. Family owned, and excellent with kids. We're talking about going back with the extended family.
I am going to Amberguis
caye in Dec.
Staying at Xanadu! Great reviews!
caye in Dec.
Staying at Xanadu! Great reviews!
we loved Xanadu!!! Granted it’s been 10 years but it was fantastic 😊
Also second the zip lining and fishing charter suggestions!!
Also second the zip lining and fishing charter suggestions!!
If you are looking for something a little different:
https://www.islandexpeditions.com/.../glovers-reef-atoll
We just did this with our 6, 8 yo who loved it!
https://www.islandexpeditions.com/.../glovers-reef-atoll
We just did this with our 6, 8 yo who loved it!
yes he was 5. Cha Creek was also excellent for kids. They need to be 16 yo go to the ATM though, I believe.
If you go to San Pedro, rent a golf cart and drive to the secret beach. It’s breathtaking. And have lunch down the road a bit at the Blue Bayou. It makes for the most wonderful day.
you will eat well. Really well. Elvi’s, hungry grouper & Blue River were great. And countless Belizean spots that were inexpensive and insanely delicious. I’m so excited for you and your family.
Snorkeling hol chan reserve was amazing. So many fish, turtles, rays and even small sharks.
The Blue hole was cool but did not have as much marine life.
The Blue hole was cool but did not have as much marine life.
I second ATM and Shark Ray Alley! Kids loved it!
I'm in Belize now and just want to give u heads up that the sagassum sea weed is in full effect. Its smells like dead fish and make access of swimming in the water from the beach impossible.
where r u exactly? Is it seasonal?
I'm in ambergris caye. There is a lot, I mean, a lot of sargassum seaweed on the east side of the island. There is no seaweed on the west side and calm water. I dont know if its seasonal, I get the impression it's hard to predict but not sure
Look up secret beach it is paradise in spite of the horrible algae
Hotel suggestion – tranquillity beach resort.
Go to Ambergris Caye. The Grand Caribe is great. My experience was so amazing there, I went back a second time. I rarely ever repeats trips, but this one I did
I love caye caulker, placencia, and Hopkins Village.
caulker is awesome we stayed in condos near the split make sure to take the ragamuffin snorkel day trip
The place we stayed at was called caye reef super clean and centrally located plus having the kitchen really helps. No cars allowed on caye caulker it’s very charming.
my family stayed on Caye Caulker for years since it was mellow. I took a tour to cave tube on the mainland from there and it was amazing!
We went to Belize 2 years ago and loved it! We stayed on Ambergris Caye. We felt very unsafe passing through Belize City but the caye was amazing. There is a restaurant called Estels Dine By The Sea in San Pedro. I highly recommend. Their fry jacks are delicious. We did a day trip excursion to the Mayan Ruins and hiked up the temple. Then we went cave tubing and zip lining. The cave tubing was probably my favorite part! Also if you are into smell good stuff there is a store in San Pedro called Belezian Breezs Soap Company. I love their monkey fart soap and their charcoal scrubs.
Also we did a snorkel trip to shark ray alley and hol chan marine reserve. The best snorkeling site I've been to!
Stayed at Belizean Shores on Ambergis Caye a few years ago. Very nice. Lots of nice hotels on the island, and a cute “Town center” on the island with restaurants, etc. We took a hopper plane from the mainland over. Snorkelling is a must! Great trip!
Victoria house (suggestion for hotel in Ambergris Caye).
Regarding San Pedro: I think it’s more fun to be walking distance to downtown Ambergris Cage, Victoria house looks amazing but we stayed at the Blue Tang Inn and had a blast! So close to everything! And Chuck and Robbie’s is a great smaller dive shop right nearby. Blue tang has some bigger rooms and you could probably rent a couple and take an entire floor.
Yes love Belize we have been twice. Fly into Belize city but don’t stay there we took a boat ferry to caye caulker and also rented a car and drove to Hopkins and placencia we also stayed up near Guatemala in San ingacio to check out all the mayan ruins
I have no hotel recommendations as it’s been years and I have no idea where we stayed but placentia and ambergris caye were perfect and amazing and still the best snorkeling I’ve had in my life! Do a night snorkel it’s amazing! And then just get on the reef the whole time. Also visit Altun ha via a river boat if you can. Mayan ruin that’s amazing! Loved it there!
Is there any where u can snorkel the reef from shore or do u have to take a boat out? I don’t mind a tour but our kids are young enough they are only going to last so long in open waters snorkeling.
I think this is the island I was looking at over water bungalow. Did u have to take boats out. Wondering if we can just stay on st Padaro island for the week-I guess u can rent golf cars if h wabt
And now I’m like oh boy this seems a little more daunting then I wanted for a beach get away lol. Drive to nyc fly to Belize with a layover in fll-ok not so bad then fly or take a ferry to San padro island but if u choose ferry pretty sure u need cab to ferry port ferry tonisland then cab-included by hotel to hotel. Sounds like an awesome trip but not sure it’s right for a relaxing quick get away- thoigh it would be a week.
We stayed on Caye Caulker island 🌴twice for a week. No cars on island. Easy walking everywhere and the bike rentals, kayaks & life vests were include in our hotel. My nieces loved the trip. It nice not dealing with cars on vacation. Groceries stores within 5 mins, farmers markets, and several restaurants. We did one day ferry ⛴ boat ride back to the main land to do the zoo, Altan Ha & caves. A lot of hotels in Belize don’t have air conditioning so make sure you check that off in your filters. Good luck.
We stayed in Caye Caulker. More of a rocky beach than a sandy beach but we loved it.
I have a friend who manages some properties there. I only personally know her properties in Cartagena (they are nice medium budget). Her name is Barb if you write to her
https://www.vacation-rentals-belize.com/contact/
https://www.vacation-rentals-belize.com/contact/
I just planned a trip there for April. We are staying in San Ignacio and Placencia.
From my research, the beaches are nicer in Placencia. Ambergis Caye is for snorkeling and diving so you can't wade in the water like in Placencia because of the reef bottom and the sand is also not as nice. So, it depends what you are looking for. We are going to go snorkeling when in Placencia. Placencia is quieter and Ambergis Caye is more built up and touristy with more people and resorts.
yes this is what I’ve been hearing and I was trying to find a place with real beaches we can wade in the water from shore with our younger kids. So placencja seems like a good option. Please post he review if plaxencia wheb you go where u stayed would love to see photos of the beaches and how snorkeling was
sure! When are you planning to go?
we aren’t sure we have a week this summer we can go and also a week in the fall but I think summer isn’t rainy season right? I would love to go in July
I think rainy season is June to November.
rain can affect such activities ATM, caving, tubing activities in the jungle.
Would love to hear about the trip when you get back!
We go in 3 weeks! Dividing our time between San Ignacio and Ambergis Caye. A friend of mine travelled around Belize and recommended this. I guess it depends what you are looking for. We love the idea of travelling around the island on golf carts and we like to snorkel and dive. Plan to take the boat over to Caye Caulker too.
Have a great trip! I’d love to hear what you think after!
Ambergris Caye is super laidback and lovely. If you stay out of the center of town it doesn’t feel too touristy.
We’re going in exactly one month! Splitting between Belmopan and Ambergris Caye only because of the snorkeling and fishing that we wanted to do...but interested to see how other areas are as well!!
Thanks, everyone! I can’t go on boats due to major motion issues so if diving /snorkeling was not in the equation does Ambergris Caye still make sense? Leaning towards Placencia maybe? I’d love to hear from those who are going soon.
Dive the Blue Hole, hike in the rain forests, cave tubing. Love staying on Ambergris Cay - particularly love the seclusion of Tranquility Bay Resort https://tranquilitybayresort.com/
It was the most amazing trip we went twice. Definitely safe just stay out of Belize city. Check out caye caulker, hopkins, placencia!! And I’m sure there are ton more great spots!
My least favorite country in Central America, Belize City is the only time I've locked my car door driving around during the day. The cayes are nice, as is Hopkins Village and Placentia but I'm mostly meh about it. There are more interesting places to visit but it's an easy vacation for sure, they use usd so no need to convert currency, English is spoken everywhere.
Other hotel suggestions: Balancaneaux, chabil Mar, Grand Caribe.
My husband and I spent two weeks in Belize on our honeymoon and loved it. Our first week we stayed on caye caulker, which is a small island, no cars and not a ton going on, but perfect for us. We rented a tiny house on the water. They don’t really have beaches on caye caulker though, so we did a bunch of boat rides. Snorkeling was amazing! We took the ferry to ambergris caye for a night and there was more action there, plus big resorts and nice looking beaches. Our second week we stayed in a resort in the jungle and did a bunch of excursions to Mayan ruins. This was almost 7 years ago, but I can look up exact locations if you want more info.
