Please be my travel advisor.

[racedude1984]

My soon to be wife and I would like to travel. Belize is really high on our list of places to possibly go. We have never traveled out of the country and this would be our first. We really like the sound of Belize with the history of the Mayans and the jungles we can see. Plus we want to go diving. We are not much into going to clubs and such. We would be happy in a really sucluded place next to the beach. I looked at Belizes website about places to go but I'm confused as to the regions and not very good and guesstimating possible distance to different areas. I have a few questions. Do we have to take a taxi or can we rent a car and drive our selfs? Do we have to worry a bunch about scams? This trip would kinda be a diving honeymoon but be able to see lots of the beauty/history of Belize. We are thinking of staying 2 weeks and may think about spending 1 week 1 place and another place the other week. I seen a place called Cap N' rons kind of a dive resort and they do jungle tours and such. Anyone have any info on it. Here is a link to his website.

Cap'n Ron's Condos at Paradise Villas

Thanks for reading I'll check back after bit and answer any questions you guys might have to help.

 

[peterbj7]

Hi Josh

Congratulations! If this is a honeymoon trip you're talking about, I'd certainly look into Thatch Caye (The Thatch Caye). You could dive there and easily do land trips from there, with them. Quiet but very far from dead.

I've heard of Cap'n Ron's but don't know much about it. Paradise Villas is a rather nice quiet condo development in the northern part of San Pedro. Lots of people love to stay there, though I'm not sure it's ideal for this trip.

Inland trips to see ruins etc can be done from San Pedro (on Ambergris Caye), but of course you have to travel each way. You could perhaps consider staying somewhere like San Ignacio area (lots of lovely resorts around there. Have a look at "Black Rock", beautifully located in the jungle. You couldn't dive from there, but you'd be well placed for all sorts of jungle trips.

I'd countenance against renting a car. You couldn't if you were on the cayes anyway - they're not used. Car rental is expensive and you'll find navigating and managing the unmade roads a bit of an ordeal. Better to use vehicles driven by others!

Have a look at Belize Vacations, Tours, Resorts, News, Hotels, Travels, Flights, Weather, Maps, Real Estate. You'll find a lot of information about the whole of Belize, not just Ambergris Caye and Caye Caulker, the two northern cayes. Lots of useful maps, articles of all sorts about Belize, and detailed summaries of places to stay. On Pelican Properties Ltd. Belize real estate, Belize properties San Pedro Ambergris Caye, Belize. you'll find a lot of recently taken aerial photos of Ambergris Caye, so you can see what any hotel you're interested in actually looks like now.

You didn't say whether you are already certified divers or want to learn. You'll find Belize a great place for either, helped by the fact that we all (well, most of us!) speak English.

 

[peterbj7]

Duplicate post - tho' I only hit the button once!

 

[DeputyDan]

In July we did one week on a liveaboard and one week inland doing the Mayan scene

http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/belize/266148-san-ignacio-where-stay.html


http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/cr...-report-sun-dancer-ii-belize-july-2009-a.html

 

[reefduffer]

It's going on two years old now, but your goals are similar enough that you might want to read my trip report at http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/belize/226065-trip-report-san-pedro-belize-2-25-3-1-08-a.html for ideas.
I would recommend Barb's Belize for smoothing out the arrangements if you're looking at a "surf 'n turf" trip, and strongly recommend the Moon book.

That report doesn't discuss the inland part of our trip, which it sounds like you're also after. The thread http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/belize/266148-san-ignacio-where-stay.html had an inquiry, to which I and several others responded with ideas. And just generally, browse this forum back a year or two - there's a wealth of information ready to reap. A few hours spent reading is a small investment compared to the time and money you'll be spending on this trip.

 

[Caxy Diver]

Capt Ron's is a a booking agent for Paradise Villa and he has some ownership in Reef Avenrtures as small dive center north of town. There is not much written about reef Adventures.
Tradewinds paradise villas might be a better option to book with same location , i have heard very good things about them. they actually own several condos there.
You can stay virtually at any resort and they will set up you dive package or you can go online to choose from any dive center here they ALL will pick you up at your resort.
Other resorts to look at south of town might be Xanadu or Caribbean Villas.
Spending 1/2 of you time in San Pedro and the other 1/2 on the mainland is a good idea as you will get a full flavor of the country.

 

[Ralph Capeling]

You may want to consider Placencia in southern Belize. Splash Dive Shop does honeymoon packages as well as diving and inland tour packages (Maya temples, Cockscombe Jaguar preserve, Monkey River, etc). For most of these you do not need a car as Placencia is on the mainland, but you can rent a car in Placencia or in Belize City if that is what you prefer. If you decide to not rent a car, Splash can pick you up at the airport. Splash offers a range of accomodation in partnership with resorts and hotels ranging from high to low end that will fit any budget. Check Splash out at Belize by Splash Dive Shop located on the Placencia peninsula in southern Belize.

 

[ecologic diver]

hey there , well ambergris caye is awesome because you can get any where on a rental golf cart or a bike. if you are looking for somthing special for a honeymoon we have two 50ft catamarans which come fully crewed. on board you will be treated to the best vacation with as much diving as your private dms nitrogen levels will allow. so if you need anymore info or just a hand to arrange your trip contact us at ecologic divers.

 

[Caxy Diver]

Great idea to go on a large Boat , BUT you would be stuck aboard the vessel for the majority of time. It might be difficult to do any mainland trips from a catamaran unless you go into old Belize and tie up there for a few days, and if the weather gets bad you don't have very many options.
Belize is not the ideal area for large cats such as the BVI. There are two good companies who do charter out sailboat the moorings in Placencia and TMM in San Pedro.
Take a look also at Victoria House they are considered one of the better resorts.
Congratulations

 

[Downing]

Don't know how I missed this thread before as I check in on this page practically every day.

I'd suggest two things:

First, buy a copy of the best travel guide I've ever seen (and it's a bonus that it covers my favorite vacation destination): Insight Guide Belize, $24 list but you can get it for less at Amazon. Chock full of information and superb color photographs covering the history and culture, places to see, things to do, etc. in each district. Has some diving info but you'd be better off buying a Belize dive guide, too.

As far as places to stay, all of the above suggestions are great but I'd like to suggest spending a week at Turneffe Island Resort. TIR's the only entity on a 14 acre island 30 miles off the coast of Belize at the southern tip of the Turneffe Atoll. It definitely fits the bill for a secluded spot on the beach with great diving. We were there for two weeks summer before last and are going back for a week in July after we spend a few days inland. By far it was the best diving vacation we ever had. There was a newlywed couple there during our second week. They were spending a week at TIR to be followed by a week on Ambergris Caye, and I remember they were a little nervious that after enjoying themselves so much the first week that the second week might be a bit of a letdown (which I doubt as AC's a pretty cool place to kick it as well).

Whatever you decide to do, best wishes for a great trip. Belize is a fantastic country, and I'm sure you'll love it. We're pretty jazzed about going back.