By Boat & Ferry in The Cayes and Atolls

A variety of boats connect Belize City with Ambergris Caye and Caye Caulker. The cost to Ambergris Caye is BZ$20 one way for the 75-minute trip. The most dependable, operated by the Caye Caulker Water Taxi Association, leave from the Belize Marine Terminal on North Front Street. To San Pedro, the speedy open boats depart Belize City at 8, 9, 10:30 AM, noon, 1:30, 3, and 4:30 PM and return from San Pedro, from Shark's Pier, at 7, 8, 9:30, and 11:30 AM, and 1, 2:30, and 3:30 PM. There's an additional return boat at 4:30 pm on weekends and holidays.

Caye Caulker Water Taxi Association boats from Belize City take 45 minutes to reach Caye Caulker and cost BZ$15 each way. Departures are 8, 9, and 10:30 AM, noon, 1:30, 3, 4:30, and 5:30 PM, with return trips departing the public pier in Caye Caulker at 6:30, 7:30, 8:30, and 10 AM, noon, 1:30, 3, and 4 PM. There's an additional return boat at 5 PM on weekends and holidays. Boats can drop you at Caye Chapel as well.

To reach the more remote cayes, you're left to your own devices. You can charter boats in either San Pedro or Belize City, but they're not cheap. The resorts on the atolls run their own flights or boats, but these aren't available to the general public. Ask your hotel if it provides transportation. For the southern cayes, inquire about boats departing from Dangriga. Dangriga's Pelican Beach Hotel sends a boat to its resort on South Water Caye. If transportation to South Water Caye isn't included in your hotel package, you'll pay around BZ$110 per person.

Several boats make the run from Dangriga to Tobacco Caye for BZ$35 per person one way. Most boats leave Dangriga around 9:30 AM and return from Tobacco Caye midmorning. Check at the Riverside Restaurant in Dangriga or ask at your hotel on Tobacco Caye. Captain Buck is a dependable operator. Charter boats from Belize City, Dangriga, and elsewhere charge from BZ$500 to BZ$600, or more, one way to the atolls.