volcanogirl

Hi, everyone. My husband and I have been to Costa Rica twice and are now interested in going to Belize. We're interested in either Chan Chich or Chaa Creek, but are having a hard time deciding which would be better for us. We stayed at Bosque del Cabo in CR and are looking for something similar.

We are really interested in seeing wildlife and like to have access to a lot of activities. Also like good food and good, friendly service. Are there any clear advantages to one property over the other? Do they both offer access to mayan ruins? What was your favorite or least favorite thing about these properties? We would love any guidance you can offer.

MarciaM

We liked both, but they are a little different. Chan Chich is more remote, with more wildlife. We went by car from the airport (4 hours), and flew out. It is actually built right on top of an unexcavated ruin. You can hike to see some excavated parts (not huge and developed). There's more wildlife there (some workers found a fer de lance when we were there, and boy was there excitement). Lots of howlers and beautiful birds. We loved their outdoor restaurant, bar and people that we met there. It has changed hands since we were there, so I don't know how it is now. I think it was my favorite. We stayed in a treehouse room in Chaa Creek, and it was beautiful. It had a jacuzzi on the deck, but I didn't like the noise when our neighbors had theirs on. There is a really nice spa on the property, but the restaurant wasn't as pretty. It is much closer to town for other activities, and there are developed ruins nearby. You can also arrange a side trip to Tikal from there, which we didn't do, but I really wish we had. It's on my wish list, but we keep going back to Costa Rica instead.

StanKase

Chan Chich is quite nice with good food and interesting tours based on a visit 2-3 years ago. I gave a senior guide $100 the morning after we arrived and let me tell you we spotted several large cats that usually are in a reserve or a zoo. I would just try to go when it is the dryer season. It rains but not much. We never visited Chaa Creek.

MarciaM

Have you thought about Morgan's Rock in Nicaragua? It's owned by the same people who own Lapa Rios. You can fly there from Costa Rica on Sansa. It's on my list, too.

volcanogirl

Well, now I really can't decide. They both sound pretty wonderful. I love the idea of seeing some large cats. There have been spottings of jaguars and jagarundi at Bosque del Cabo, but none while we were there. It sounds like Chan Chich has better animal sightings, but maybe Chaa Creek is better for outside activities because it's not as isolated. Marcia, Nicaragua is not on our radar yet, but I do hear great things about it. We're kind of focused on CR and Belize for now.

What are some of the outside activites you can do at Chaa Creek? Any specific ruins or tours you would recommend? Thanks again for the help.

atravelynn

Chan Chich was great. I think some of the cat spotting was luck, in addition to the tip. They are elusive and not easily seen. I saw no big cats at Chan Chich, but enjoyed the other smaller animals. I also saw Mayan paintings in caves and there were several mounds that were supposed to be excavated in the future in search of archaeological finds. Other than day and night walks, I do not recall any other activities.

Fra_Diavolo

At Chaa Creek, you can:

Paddle a canoe upstream for free or

Take one downstrean to San Ignacio for a nominal fee.

Horseback ride.

Take a number of walks on the property, including some guided for birds etc.

Tours to the ATM caves.

Canoe through Barton Creek caves.

Visit at least one other set of caves involving a bit of scrambling.

Visit Xunantunich ruins.

If you visit their website, I think they list and describe many of the activities.

We canoed, walked, visited Barton Creek, Xunantunich, Tikal. Wonderful place.

volcanogirl

Thanks, everyone - I am curious about the ATM caves - is that where you go innertubing through the caves?

Katie_Valk

River cave tubing on Caves Brnach River. ATM cave-45 min walk on flat well cut jungle trails, criss cross and wade thru the rivers 3 times, swim 50 ft into the mouth of the cave and spend the next 3 hrs inside, walking, wading and walking up a few large rocks (like steps) to a cahmber in the cave strewn with musuem quality pottery, human skull and intact human skeletal remains. Fascinating geology as well. Lifetime memory. About 45 mins from Chaa Creek. Chan Chich is wondrful, very remote and perfect for birders, hikers, wildlife, horses and canoeing. Lamanai site is about 1.5 hr drive. Chaa Creek is wonderful, close to Caracol, Tikal and many other sites, caves trips, waterfalls, river canoeing, Mtn Pine Ridge, horses, buttefly farm, spa, San Ignacio town for local culture. Both are excellant, but different. Chan Chich is a destination onto itself. Chaa Creek offers a more varied experiance.

volcanogirl

Thanks, Katie and everyone else. It look like Belize may be the place that can actually tear me away from Costa Rica. I appreciate your help.

SiteC_er

We really loved Chaa Creek. However, tours booked from there can be a bit pricy. I'd see about booking directly with the tour operators. As for lodging, we highly recommend the tree top cabins! Enjoy!

PS: They have an awesome spa!

volcanogirl

Thanks, siteC-er - what was the weather like when you were there? I assume they don't have air conditioning?

SiteC_er

No air, only ceiling fans. We went in June and the heat / humidity can be pretty unbearable during the day. However, the river is great for cooling off and playing (no pool which we found a plus). Enjoy!

DaveS

Our family has stayed at both Bosque del Cabo and Chan Chich, only drove into Chaa Creek for a look as we had considered it as an alternate to Chan Chich. BDC has more frequent wildlife sightings (especially monkeys) and of course the ocean. You'll see monkeys at CC, but not all the time like BDC. We did however see a jagarundi and lots of birds. Seems like at BDC we were tired by the end of the day with acivities, Chan Chich much more relaxing. I prefer being tired and would probably go back to BDC if I had a choice. Chan Chich more upscale, great food, great friendly service, sleep among Mayan ruins. Chaa Creek very different atmosphere, but more activities in the area like mentioned above (we stayed at Caves Branch while in that area). I don't think you'll get that jungle/wildlife experience at Chaa Creek though. It was a tough choice when we made it, but I'm glad we went to Chan Chich. Then again we did experiece the area activites while at Caves Branch (ATM was excellent). Why don't you split your time? Three nights at Chan Chich was plenty for us.

astein12

I went to both a couple of years ago.

While we liked Chaa Creek (2 nights), we loved Chan Chich.

Chaa Creek is much more polished (more of a resort), while Chan Chich is more like a remote safari lodge. The feeling of being out in the jungle, the personal attention of the staff, and the wildlife were just great.

For a week, I'd probably do the same split again... 2 days at Chaa Creek (going to Xunantunich and we really liked Vaca Plateau/Chumpiate Pottery Cave... had a great local lunch there as well) and 5 at Chan Chich.

volcanogirl

Thanks, guys, this is all good information. What we were interested in doing was splitting one of these locations with some beach time. I haven't even started pestering you all about that part yet - LOL!

SiteC_er

Volcano Girl, I think you're on the right track....splitting time. Katie V (from this site) helped us and I would recommend her if you need suggestions).

PS: read your threads on the CR board and are very much looking forward to our CR trip this summer!

astein12

We really liked Caye Caulker... not a ton of beaches but definitely a bit of a throwback.

Good places to eat, good snorkeling, very quaint.

volcanogirl

Hi, SiteC - I recognize you from the CR board - Arenal and Manuel Antonio, right? You will have so much fun. That's the combo we did for our first trip.

So, I've read about Placencia and Ambergris, would one of those be a good pairing for our trip? Or Caye Caulker? We really love beautiful beaches and like snorkeling, good restaurants (doesn't have to be fancy). We really like to be active, not much for just sitting around relaxing. Thanks you again for all your guidance.

Fra_Diavolo

Have only been to Ambergris of the three. We made two snorkeling trips, one to Shark/Ray Alley, the other to Mexico Rocks. Enjoyed both although the former is rather crowded and the guides put on a bit of a show with the sharks -- began to seem more like entertainment than diving.

Also spent a day light-tackle fishing on the flats. It was too windy for my fly-casting skills so we used spinning gear. Great morning making the aquaintance of the elusive bonefish.

The reef that makes so excellent snorkeling also breaks the waves. That means the flats have a coating of turtle grass (which is, of course, good for the bonefish) but some people don't like wading through it. Also the beaches themselves tend to be rather narrow.

The town of San Pedro has a number of good restaurants. Our favorite was the Blue Water Grill. North of town most accomodations seem to be the all-inclusive, or at least large, resorts. Around town and south there were smaller hotels, and that is what we preferred. You rent a golf cart and drive to town in a few minutes, or walk if your close in.