Drinking Water in Belize?

[vox]

Headed to Belize at the end of July.

Given all of the usual "don't drink the water" advice for Central America in general, I'm looking for tips on staying hydrated.

Bottled water is preferred, I'm sure.

Any other tips?

Has anyone ever brought their own bottled water in? I would think that would be cost-prohibitive because of weight restrictions on most carriers.

Thanks!

 

[Damselfish]

I think Belize City is fairly safe but I'd stick with bottled water most other areas. Getting bottled water is not a problem, I can't see hauling it there.

 

[DandyDon]

I think Belize City is fairly safe but I'd stick with bottled water most other areas. Getting bottled water is not a problem, I can't see hauling it there.

I wouldn't drink it there either. Different culture, different programs.

Hauling it in would be impossible. You need 2-3 quarts a day = 4 to 6 pounds a day. For a week, that's 28 to 42 pounds of luggage in addition to dive gear? I bought a 5 gallon bottle the first day on Ambergris and went thru is alone, buying more at the end. Got to love a city with dirt streets and a mini John Deere tractor that pulls the wagon to deliver water & beer.

But always carry the diarrhea meds anyway, and wash your hands with soap & water often. Travel exposes you to problems. I had severe diarrhea the last day of a trip last month in northern New Mexico after drinking bottled water and eating in a nice restaurant. :11:

The bottled water has no minerals, so salt your food well and eat/drink potassium sources. I just add Morton Lite Salt to my Kool-Aide.

 

[Irene]

The dive charter I took in Belize (http://seasportsbelize.com) gave us "bottled" water that you drink out of a bag. It was sort of like a zip-lock bag without the zip. An ingenious way to have lots of water in your cooler without the rigid bottles taking up so much space. They fed us too...A nice lunch on a secluded island for our surface interval.

 

[hopefulist]

We always pack a good quality backpacking-type water purification pump with us to Central America, including Belize.

 

[H2ODoc]

Some anecdotal feedback: neither my wife nor I nor anyone that we talked to on Ambergris Caye had any issues with drinking water. We drank "bagged" water on the dives, some bottled water, ice in mixed drinks, and some tap water (as well as a few Belikins!) and nobody had issues.

Have a great trip! Give our best to ProTech (Peter, Ana, Sara, Orlando (?))!

 

[peterbj7]

I can't speak for Belize in general, but on Ambergris Caye the piped water is heavily chlorinated and safe to drink. You won't want to though, as it's full of impurities and is brackish. Bottled water is cheap and universally available, though as it's produced by reverse osmosis it doesn't have any natural salts and has no taste. You may want to bring some powdered gatorade with you to give the water a bit of "zip". In fact, if you do please bring us at Protech a carton!

 

[Hank49]

I've lived in southern Belize for over 5 years and drink the water straight out of wells. There is nothing around here to pollute the water and the soil is really sandy and a good natural filter. ....however, 11 years in the Philippines may have toughened my gastro intestinal flora and fauna...
but Peter is right....at night when I was real thirsty I would drink from our faucet in San Pedro. Nothing can live in that much chlorine so you're safe. but it tastes bad..

 

[hunter991]

When in Belize I preferred orange fanta in a glass bottle.

Brent

 

[Hank49]

When in Belize I preferred orange fanta in a glass bottle.

Brent

You're right. For some reason the glass bottle Fantas seem to be sweeter than the plastic. Especially the "fruit punch", which was cream soda when I was young.