Wato

Wow……………I’ve been reading many of your posts and I am very impressed by the amount of information you have provided. So I thought, “What better place to get some help than here?” So…………..here goes.

My family and I (two daughters aged 19 and 16) have just booked a flight from Chicago to Belize City arriving on December 26, 2007. From what I’ve read, we don’t need to say in Belize City at all (correct?). Here is what we are thinking but we still need to figure out the route and logistics of it all:

1) We definitely want to get to Tikal. Since we can get there most easily from Belize City (rather than say Ambergris) doesn’t it make sense to make that our first stop? I’ve read that you can fly there, drive there, and take a tour bus from Belize City. What would you all recommend? It seems that the flying options would be the most costly so my husband asked me to investigate further. Any suggestions? We would probably stay in the Flores area 2 nights (or should we stay one night in San Ignacio?)

2) We definitely will be staying on Ambergris Caye for a few nights. From what I’ve read, it sounds more practical to stay in the southern section. Victoria House sounds lovely, but pricey. Any other suggestions? If coming right from Tikal, how would you suggest getting there?

3) What other areas would you suggest? It sounds like Placencia is nice, but wouldn’t that take a long time to get to? Caye Caulker sounds a little quiet??? Also, is it worth while to stay on Half Moon Caye in order to see Blue Hole?

4) What is the best way to get around these areas? Flying or water taxis?

5) Any suggestions for accommodations in all of these places are appreciated.

6) We are not certified divers so we would not be scuba diving (Darn). Only 3 of us would be snorkeling but probably only one day (19 year old is still scared of fish – HA!). Where is the very best snorkeling?

Ok, ok. I think I’ve asked you enough. Please, please, act like you are putting this trip together for yourself and guide me into forming the best itinerary ever! I’ll get lots of coodles from the family.

Thanks so very much,
Patti (Chicago)

kaneda

Few people stay in or even visit Belize Town. It would probably not be PC of me to say why.

Flores I found to be a delightful little town. For accommodation you could try :

http://www.world66.com/centralameric.../accommodation

At Tikal the guides have removed all the signs and the many different maps are hopeless but still it is not hard to find your way around which involves some walking through the jungle and a little climbing.

placencia

you can fly directly to flores out of the belize city airport. take a short busride to tikal. then go the beach. placencia, is of course my favorite, plenty of affordable places to stay, pick one with a full kitchen. caribbean tours in placencia is reliable. try placencia.com for information...have fun...but christmas is busy so, figure it out soon.

eyedigress

We loved Victoria House, but it was a bit more "romantic" in ambiance than "family friendly." Perhaps look at Ramon's ... nearby and a little closer to town than VH. We flew back to Belize City and had land transport to the lovely resort Chaa Creek, to see the jungle and enjoy some great excursions (one called "ATM" which stands for a long mayan word where you get to see incredible Mayan human remains in caves) and then onto Tikal (land transport ... not too long or difficult from chaa creek which is near san ignacio) and then down into Antigua (fly from Flores to Guatemala City and take 1 hr shuttle to Antigua). Great variety of culture, climates and activities. Loved Antigua so much that we are going for a 2nd time in a couple of months. Have fun!

msteacher

You are definitely on the right track... go to Ambergis Caye (aka San Pedro), work Tikal into your plans, and to avoid Belize City. It sounds like your family might also enjoy a few days in San Ignacio, especially since you're not too interested in scuba bnd snorkeling, which are the main beach activities in Belize. San Ignacio has many exciting adventure opportunities, including the ATM cave (amazing!) cave tubing, canoeing, hiking, Mayan ruins, etc. It would make sense to visit here directly before or after your trip to Flores. I'd suggest checking out belizeforums.com to get some ideas.

You will love Belize... have a great trip!

617amyc

We went to Belize on our honeymoon, so I can't speak for visiting there with teens... but we flew to Belize City and then a road transfer (about 2 hours?) to our hotel, Blancaneaux Lodge. There's a lot more to do in the pine forests of Belize than just Tikal. From Blancaneaux (and other lodges nearby) you can do plenty of day trips, including Tikal, cave rafting, horseback riding, hiking, and other Mayan ruins. I actually recommend a couple of days in the pine forest.

We then flew from Belize City to Ambergris. The flights seemed reasonably priced and were on time. We stayed at Victoria House, and it can seem a bit "romantic" but we did see plenty of families there as well. It's not right in town, to be sure, but we rented a golf cart and used that to get to/from town and around.

Snorkeling on Ambergris was great. There's a trip to "shark-ray alley where you can get up-close and personal (actualy touching and swimming! eek) with nurse sharks and sting rays who have basically been trained to stick around in one spot because they get fed. Also, even if you're not certified, you can go diving on what's called a "resort course", where you spend some time learning the basics of diving, and take a dive for about 45 minutes. We're not certified and we tried this and it was a really neat way to try scuba.

I can't answer your other questions. We heard great things about Placencia and found ourselves wishing we had gone there instead of Ambergris (it was supposed to be a little quieter...).

obslop

Just came back from Belize. All local people from different areas of Belize told us to avoid Belize City.

Defintely fly to Flores (near Tikal) if you want to save time. I drove to Tikal from Placencia which took about 6 hours or so. I flew from Flores to Belize City which was only a one hour flight that cost $100 one way on Maya Air. If you have more time a local bus would be much cheaper. Taxis are so expensive and wouldn't save you that much money to take a Taxi. It basically comes down to local bus or spluge and fly. Oh I guess travel with a tour group which may or may be somewhere in the middle in terms of costs.

I didn't go to Amergris but loved the cayes around Placencia. There is still a tourist infrastructure but not as touristy as Ambergris Caye. Sounds like AC will be impacted by Hurricane Dean.

Pausanias

Agree with those who suggest splitting your time between coast and the west. We stayed a Chaa Creek and took a day trip to Tikal. If I were to do it over I'd spend the night -- but on-site (there are, I think three hotels).

On Amergris one hotel that would probably suit you well is Banyan Bay. http://www.banyanbay.com/ It offers two bedroom suites, has a nice pool and a good beach.

In addition to the shark/ray alley, try the snorkeling at Mexico Rocks, which is much less crowded.