Tours

TIDE Tours, a subsidiary of the Toledo Institute for Development and Environment, a nonprofit organization promoting ecotourism in Toledo, does not itself run tours but instead acts as a clearinghouse for several good tour operators. It can arrange fishing, kayaking, snorkeling, trips to Mayan ruins, and cultural tours. Bruno Kuppinger at Sun Creek Lodge and IBTM Tours specializes in adventure tours, some definitely not for couch potatoes, including the weeklong Maya Divide hiking trip and trips to Doyle's Delight, the highest peak in Belize. Garbutts Marine offers dependable boat trips to the Snake Cayes. Another sizable tour operator is TASTEE Tours, associated with Requena's Water Taxi Service. Romero's Charters and Tours, while not a tour operator, has a driver service that can take you to any of the inland destinations. For birding, it's hard to beat George Alford, who can be contacted through TIDE. Several of the hotels, including Hickatee Cottages, offer kayaking on the Moho River.

During the Cacao Festival in May, and by advance arrangement at other times, the Toledo Cacao Growers Association (TCGA), which represents over 200 cacao growers in southern Belize, offers tours of working cacao farms.

New for 2010 are "ranger patrol hikes," organized by the Ya'axche Conservation Trust, a nongovernmental organization that among other things owns and manages the 15,000-acre Golden Stream corridor preserve north of Punta Gorda. These hikes will start at the field station at Golden Stream, with a climb of the fire tower for a bird's-eye view of the area, and then "ranger work" such as wildlife logs, patrols, and biodiversity transects. This is something of an adventure in an area not normally accessible to visitors. Check with Hickatee Cottages for details.

The Toledo Tour Guide Association has about 20 members. All are licensed by the Belize government. Some of these tour guides work for the larger tour operators, and others work independently.

Contacts

Bruno Kuppinger, Sun Creek Lodge and IBTM Tours (Sun Creek Lodge, off Mile 86, Southern Hwy. 604/2124. www.suncreeklodge.de/englisch/home.html.)

Garbutt's Marine (Joe Taylor Creek, Punta Gorda. 722/0070. garbuttsmarine@yahoo.com.)

Hickatee Cottages (Ex-Servicemen Rd., Punta Gorda. 662/4475. www.hickatee.com.)

Romero's Charter and Tours (Forest Home. 722/2625. rcharters@btl.net.)

TIDE Tours (14 Front St., Punta Gorda. 722/2129. www.tidetours.org.)

Toledo Cacao Growers Association (Main St., Punta Gorda. 722/2992. tcga@btl.net.)

Blue Belize Tours and Charters (139 Front St., Punta Gorda. 722/2678. www.bluebelize.com.)

Barranco Village Tour by Alvin Loredo (Barranco. 709/2010 Barranco community telephone.)