Placencia

On a sheltered half-moon bay with crystal-clear water and almost 3 mi (5 km) of palm-dotted white sand, this fishing village is straight out of a Robert Louis Stevenson novel. Founded by pirates, the community is now inhabited by an extraordinary mélange of people. To the west, the Cockscomb Range ruffles the tropical sky with its jagged peaks; to the east, a line of uninhabited cayes grazes the horizon. From here you can dive along the reef, hike into the jungle, look for Scarlet Macaws in Red Bank Village to the southwest (between December and February), explore the Mayan ruins at Mayflower or, on a day trip, at Lubaantun and Nim Li Punit, or treat yourself to some of the best sportfishing in the country. Once you arrive you'll probably just want to lie in a hammock with a good book, perhaps getting up long enough to cool off in the waves.

Sometimes billed as the world's narrowest street, a single concrete path through the village is just wide enough for two people. Setting off purposefully from the southern end of the village, the path meanders through everyone's backyard, passes wooden cottages on stilts overrun with bougainvillea and festooned with laundry, then, as if it had forgotten where it was headed in the first place, peters out abruptly in a little clearing filled with lovely white morning glories. Stroll along the sidewalk, and you've seen the village. If you don't mind it being a little rough around the edges, you'll be utterly enchanted by this rustic village, where the palm trees rustle, the waves lap the shore, and no one is in a hurry.

Along the path are most of the village's quaint guesthouses and palapa-covered cafés, which serve mainly burgers, rice and beans, and a bit of seafood. With the opening of more and more small resorts up the peninsula, Placencia's restaurants are beginning to compete with those in Ambergris Caye.