Need help First Trip to in Belize.
 

Hi, My boyfriend and I are planning to go to Belize on March 16-23. We want to do both beach/snorkel as well as explore jungle/ruins. We're planning to go to Ambergris Cayes first then to Cayo District, and here are my questions:
1. Do we need to buy tickets in advance for either TropicAir and MayaAir from Belize City to San Pedro (vice versa). Any preference bet. them?

2. Any recommendations for hotels in Ambergris Cayes? I'm looking for a mid-price hotel ($100-$200), nice & clean, maybe w/pool, walking distance to town. I was looking into Xanadu, Belize Yacht Club, the Palms. I also like Ramon's, do you know what's the price range?

3. Do I get the best rates when book accommodation directly w/ the hotel? Any recommendations in terms of good websites to book hotels?

4. For the jungle/ruins experience, I'm planning to go to Cayo District and maybe to Tikal. Is 2-days, 1-night enough time? Would it be easier to go there from Belize City or San Pedro? Should we change our itinerary to head to Cayo/Tikal the day we arrive instead? Our flight back to NY from Belize City leaves at 1 pm.

5. Should I stay overnight in Cayo (chaa creek) or in Tikal?

6. Can you please recommend any tour guide for our Cayo district portion of the trip?

Thanks in advance for all your help! Any suggestions are greatly appreciated. Any must-do or must-see lists?

I have been to Belize a couple of times. Ramon's is a great property, but just be aware that it is almost directly across from the airport, so you will get airport noise from the small planes during daylight hours. Ramon's is great because it is a short walk from town. Ramon's has a website and an 800# here in the US - www.ramons.com. You might also want to look at Journey's End. It's a great property (especially the pool and beach bungalows), but you have to take a water taxi into town if you don't want to eat at Journey's End. They used to have a free water taxi from the hotel, but the lat time it goes into town is about 3 or 4pm. The public water taxis cost about $5 pp each way so you need to plan to add about $10-20 to the cost of your dinner in town.

You probably will get the best rates if you book directly with the resorts.

With regard to Tropic Air/Maya Air tickets, I think you need to buy them in advance especially in March. Most of the hotels or tour operators can arrange for the tickets for you. The airplanes from both companies look the same (Small!!) and I think the cost is about the same.

My husband and I stayed in the Cayo District and took a day trip to Tikal which worked out fine. You leave at like 6 am and get back really late. Tikal was absolutely worth it - it was one of the highlights of our trip. It is easier to get to Tikal from the Cayo District. If you go from Ambergris or Belize City, you need to fly which adds a lot of money to the cost of the excursion. I have not been to Chaa Creek, but I booked several clients there when I was a travel agent and everyone loved it. You might also look at Windy Hill resort.

Hope this was helpful

We've been to Belize three times, planning a third visit for May. We've always prebooked our flights from BZE to San Pedro on Tropic Air. The reservations have always gone off without any problems. They didn't charge our credit card until we were actually in Belize and checking in for our first flight. I don't think there is much difference between Tropic and Maya either, but if you fly Tropic and stay on the south end of town, you don't even need to take a cab to your hotel. Sunbreeze is right across the street, Belizean Reef, The Palms and Ramon's are really close.

Our last two vists we've stayed at Belizean Reef, lovely condos, significant price break if you stay five nights. Only five condos to rent so not much availability. Also no pool, which is certainly a major drawback to many. If we can't get a room at the Reef, our next option would be the Palms. We looked at one of their condos on our last visit, and it was very nice. I don't know what Ramon's costs, but there are a fair number of people who don't think it's worth the money. Those beach front cabanas really do look neat though.

We've also stayed at Blue Tang, which is on the northern edge of town. It was a nice place too, with a small pool, but the room itself wasn't nearly as nice as Belizean Reef for close to the same money. Close to there is Paradise Villas, which also look great. Same with Aquamarina Suites.

I honestly don't know about getting the best rates, you might contact Barb at Barbsbelize.com. She's very knowledgeable about Belize, but since we tend to end up at smaller properties, she hasn't been able to help us with rates.

The Cayo district is on our agenda for the next trip, so can't help you much there. Tikal is said to be a 'must', I doubt we'll go this coming trip, when I go I want to spend the night there and there won't be time this trip. Once again I would contact Barb, she works with a guide named Patrick (I think) who sounds wonderful. Jean

Thanks alot for your help. I'll look into the websites.

Also, What's the best way to get to Cayo district from Ambergris Caye?

If you plan to visit Ambergris first, it makes sense to book your air from Belize Intl to San Pedro beforehand Ambergris will be less active than the mainland portion, so just figure out where you want to conclude and book your trip accordingly I prefer Maya, but Tropic is just as fine. Maybe you'll like Sun Breeze or Banana Beach, take a look at those. BB is about 1.5 miles from town. Overnight at Chaa Creek and take the day trip to Tikal from there. Use the guides at Chaa Creek, they are licensed and reliable and miuch easier than essing around with getting to town, especially if you only have one full day there.

If we have a car, can we do Tikal without the guided tour? We are staying at Chaa Creek and are making a day trip out of it.

Most car rental agencies don't allow their vehicles to be taken into Guatemala. Crystal is an exception, and I think one of the rental places in Cayo also allows it. But you won't have insurance in Guatemala and can't buy it at the border.

--Lan Sluder
www.belizefirst.com

If you're driving yourself to Tikal, note that you can arrange a guide at the visitor center there once you arrive. We arranged a guide for just the two of us (my husband and I) once we arrived and really felt that the information we received from him added to the experience. He was extremely knowledgeable and adjusted the pace and content to our interests. It was priced per person, so it doesn't matter if you have only a small group. If you do decide to stay overnight on site at Tikal, we stayed at the Jaguar Inn and really enjoyed it - very secluded and quiet, though very simple accommodations.

My husband and I were married on Ambergris Caye at Captain Morgan's. Fantastic thatched huts on the beach and great food (especially the snapper)! It is a bit of a hike from San Pedro but we rented golf carts (although not a smart idea in Nov during the rainy season since we ended up pushing them more than riding them). You can also take a water taxi. We also had dinner (and looked into staying) at Capricorn. It is adorable resort with some of the best food we had in Belize!

In the Cayo district we stayed at Hidden Valley Inn. It is an amazing location and there are tons of waterfalls on their property (you can only see them if you stay there). We had our own waterfall for the day where they had set up lunch for us! Talk about great! Instead of going to Tikal we went to Caracol. It is not as well known as Tikal (although they think that Caracol conquered Tikal). It is breath taking! One of the workers there gave us a personal tour. It was fantastic! The road to get to Caracol leaves a lot to be desired but it is well worth the trip!

How far is Caracol from Chaa Creek? We are also staying at Blancaneaux. It is closer for us to take the day trip from there? Is it possible to drive and do an unguided tour of Caracol (I am the type of person who would rather do it on my own)? If so, how long is the drive?

Also, has anyone been to both Tikal and Caracol? Can you give me a comparison of the two?

Advice to my millions of questions would be greatly appreciated!!! :)

Blancaneaux is about an hour closer to Caracol than Chaa Creek. Yes, you can drive it. The road has recently been improved and a few areas paved. Blancaneaux is maybe 2 hours from Caracol. It's a lovely drive. Take a picnic lunch and eat it on the way. There's a nice little visitor center at Caracol, and you can either walk around on your own or get a guide.

Tikal is more impressive, in that much more of it has been excavated. Caracol is much quieter -- it only gets an average of 30 or so visitors a day (though the number is increasing.) I think they're both wonderful, in different ways.

--Lan Sluder

Help!! All the hotels I'm interested in are all booked (Xanadu, Banyan Bay, Banana Beach, Sunbreeze, Mata Rocks, Ramons) for 3/16-3/21. Can anyone please recommend any other hotels? I prefer South of town rather than North (water taxi and golf cart seem to be a bit of hassle). If I can't find anything, I might go to Cayo first then to Ambergris Caye. What's the best way to Cayo (debating to stay bet. Crystal paradise and Chaa Creek) from Belize city? How long does it take? Is it easier to go to Ambergris Caye from Cayo or Tikal? I'm thinking to go to Tikal for 1 day. I still dont know whether to stay overnight in Tikal or take a day trip from Cayo.
Thanks alot for any suggestions!!

tsepe - We debated on staying at Blancaneaux and decided on Hidden Valley Inn (which was amazing and has some of the best coffee...they grow the beans themselves), they are only a few miles from each other. We talked to some people at Turtle Inn who had just come from Blancaneaux and they were disappointed, apparently there was a lot of construction and they weren't able to use part of the resort. Maybe Lan has some more recent updates on the resort, just thought I would share what we heard. We drove to Caracol from HVI, it took about 3 hours but that was in November and before they regraded (or paved) the roads. Regardless, it was SO worth the drive. We enjoyed it because it was less touristy. Have a great time!

ktny333, Try looking for something on the north side of town, (not north of the cut). Paradise Villas are nice. Seven Seas is older, but the ocean front building would be ok. We stayed at Blue Tang on our first visit, perhaps a bit overpriced for what you get, but nice. Also Aquamarina Suites, or Mayan Princes, (if you don't mind not having a pool.) There's also Exotic Caye south of town. Jean

JeanH's suggestions are good. I'd also suggest checking with The Tides (just north of town, in the same general area as Seven Seas), SunBreeze (at the south edge of town). Caribbean Villas south of town. Also, farther south, Caribe Island and Sunset Beach. There also are some fairly new small condos that might not be booked -- Oasis just north of town, next to Seven Seas, Perla Escondida near Coconuts south.

--Lan Sluder

Thanks mark_n_marci!!

I appreciate your help!

Having stayed at both Blancaneaux and Hidden Valley Inn several times each (Turtle Inn, too), I think they're all great. I like some things about Hidden Valley better than Blancaneaux -- the many waterfalls on the property for example -- but I like other things about Blancaneaux better -- the grounds, the villas and in some ways the restaurant.

By the way, both Blancaneaux and Hidden Valley grow their own coffee beans.

I really think you'd have to be pretty jaded to be disappointed in any of these properties.

--Lan Sluder

tsepe- I would be happy to share the photos that we have from our trip (they are online). Just send me an email and I will send you the link [email protected]

Lan - all of your advice has been wonderful! Thank you!

JeanH - What's considered North of the town, but not north of the cut? I'm sorry, but I'm a little confused.