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Belize

Central America

Countryside: A natural beauty
Country life: Piña coladas, getting caught in the rain

One of the world’s youngest countries, Belize has a landscape that shifts from Caribbean island paradise to jungle-clad mountain, and a culture that blends Mayan with Mennonite, European with Garifuna…

Inhabited by ancient Mayans migrating from Mexico, plundered by Spanish conquistadors, then colonised by European pirates, Belize has a chequered history. Since its independence in 1981, however, Central America’s most sparsely populated country has become known for the astonishing beauty of its landscape, the friendliness of its diverse people, and the incredible diving at the Barrier Reef, second only in size to its Australian counterpart. Lush rainforest, acres of pine reserves, white-water rivers, sacred stalactite caves and plunging waterfalls mark the inland Cayo region. Further south, manatee-filled mangrove swamps of the Placencia peninsula lie past vast inland prawn farms and a rapidly developing coastline, where the predominately Creole/Carribean population enjoy a slow-paced life of palm-fringed bars, lively street jump-ups and lobster festivals. In the oceans to the east, banana-shaped Ambergris Caye (Madonna’s ‘La Isla Bonita’), and its easygoing, easy-living town of San Pedro, attract travellers in search of fabulous fishing, diving, or whale-shark watching.

Pictured: Blancaneaux Lodge

Boutique hotels in Belize

Our round-up of the hippest hideaways and boutique hotels in Belize

Getting there

Planes, boats, automobiles, or maybe even chartered Cessna – we tell you the best way to go.

Worth getting out of bed for

Highlights the best Belize has to offer, from art and culture to fun-packed activities; we've even found the most inspiring place to enjoy the views from.

Eating, drinking & dancing

We've tracked down the best cafés for people-watching, the bars with the coolest cocktails, the most accomplished restaurants and the liveliest local nightlife in Belize. All you have to do is make sure you've packed your favourite threads…

Smith Maps

Here is the map of Belize; each Mr & Mrs Smith hotel is marked by a flag; click it for more details.

Taxis: Cabs are a cost-effective means of getting around – short trips within towns rarely cost more than a couple of dollars. Boat taxis travel regularly along the length of San Pedro in Ammbergris Caye and there’s a regular water bus that leaves from Fidos Bar at least once or twice an hour from the jetty. With a valid driver’s licence, you can also hire golf buggies for pootling around the town.
Tipping culture: More upmarket restaurants will automatically include a service charge, otherwise 10–15 per cent is the norm. Taxi drivers don’t usually expect a tip, but you can round up to the nearest dollar.
Siesta and Fiesta: Shops generally open from 8am to 8pm, depending on the season. Banks usually close for the day at 1pm, but you can also change money at one of the numerous ATMs.
Packing tips: Insect repellent is essential for jungle trips and visits to the mangroves. Take closed shoes for walking around the jungle at night as flip-flopped feet can fall victim to nibble-happy red ants. Soldier ants have such stubborn mandibles that they were once used by the Mayans to keep cuts closed instead of stitches.
Recommended reads: Birds of Belize by H. Lee Jones will help you identify the nation’s vast array of exotic avians; for fiction, try Belizean author Zee Edgell’s award-winning meditation on independence, Beka Lamb.
Cuisine: Taking their culinary cues from an assortment of neighbouring cuisines, Belizean dishes can exhibit influences from Mexico, Spain, the Caribbean and historic Mayan culture. Coastal delicacies such as conch fritters and grilled lobster vie for attention with mountain fare such as intensely flavoured mole chicken or light escabeche broth. Breakfast is often lavish and substantial; huevos rancheros (eggs served with refried beans, salsa and corn chips) is typical, as are deep-fried, doughnut-textured jacks (fritters) drizzled in syrup.
Currency: The Belizean dollar (BZ$) is currently pegged to the US dollar at a rate of 2:1. Always check whether you are being charged in Belize or US dollars before you agree to pay.
Time zone: GMT -6 hours.
Dialing codes: Country code for Belize: +501.
Do go/don't go: Belize normally sustains a subtropical, moderate climate all year round, but can be quite wet with brief but frequent showers and clouds outside of the dry months. January/February to the end of May is the best time to visit for uninterrupted sunshine. Spring and the winter months bring the most clement weather, as well as the most visitors. August to October is hurricane season in the Caribbean, so most travellers stay away ¬– you can benefit from reasonable rates if you don’t mind enduring some gusty squalls.

Getting there

Planes, boats, automobiles, or maybe even chartered Cessna – we tell you the best way to go.

Worth getting out of bed for

Highlights the best Belize has to offer, from art and culture to fun-packed activities; we've even found the most inspiring place to enjoy the views from.

Beautifully Belize

Beach roulette with chickens. Yes, you read that right. Every Wednesday evening in San Pedro for the last 20 years has been ‘Chicken Drop’ night. A giant, 100-square bingo card in laid out on the beach and a wire mesh suspended on top. An inexplicably enthusiastic crowd each bet a dollar on a square and a chicken is set loose upon the ‘board’. The pot goes to the one who has selected the square upon which the chicken eventually chooses to ‘drop’, and the lucky winner also gets to clean the board for the next round.

Viewpoint: Climb Caana, the tallest temple structure in Belize, at Caracol. Buried deep in the Chiquibul Forest, is one of the most impressive Mayan sites in the country – look out for howler monkeys and colourful exotic birds in the trees above.
Arts and culture: The Mayans left their mark on Belize, and there are some awe-inducing sites ,from the sacrificial altars, capstones decorated with hieroglyphics and carved ball courts uncovered from the jungles of Caracol, to the pyramid temples and stucco friezes of Xunantunich. Contrast Cahal Pech, a small site on the Macal river with many buildings condensed into a unfeasibly modest area, or venture into Guatemala to take on the mammoth Tikal, capital of a vast Mayan empire and one of the greatest cities in the world during its heyday in 700AD.
Something for nothing: Belize is a bird-watcher’s paradise. With 300 square miles of unspoilt woodland to perch in, the Mountain Pine Ridge Forest Reserve attracts more than 500 species of feathered flutterer. Look out for keel-billed toucans (the national birds), orange-breasted falcons or rare king vultures. If the birds prove too flighty, there’s also brilliant butterflies and colourful bromeliads to feast your eyes on.
Shopping: Saturday’s popular open-air market in San Ignacio is ideal for stocking up on pepper sauce, local honeys and jam. Find skin-softening, natural glycerin soap and colourful embroidered huipiles textiles at Caesar’s Place (Western Highway, mile 60) that make great gifts and souvenirs. In Placencia, you can collect wooden handicrafts such as the distinctive ziricote animal masks, jaguar sculptures and coconut mermaids from little stalls along the sandy sidewalk. Ambergris Caye is the proud motherland of ‘Pantyripper’, an ominously named blend of pineapple juice and coconut liqueur – you can pick up a bottle at the Rum, Cigar and Coffee House on Pescador Drive (+501 226 2020). Try DandE’s on the same street for frozen custard on the hoof.
Daytripper: Tikal – one of the most astonishing sets of Mayan ruins in Central America – is a few miles into Guatemala from the border in northern Belize. The trip is as much worth it for the jungle trek to get there as it is for the colossal temples – the moment when you fist see the temple-tops towering over the mist-hugged forest canopy is unforgettable. You can organise trips from Belize City or San Ignacio – see www.tikalpark.com for details.
Best beach: Both San Pedro and Placencia have white-sand beaches and clear blue Caribbean seas galore, but for the most unspoilt coastal frolic, boat out to the Turneffe Islands for desert-island bliss.
Perfect Picnic: Take a packed lunch and head off to wallow in the natural granite waterhole of Rio on Pools in the Mountain Pine Ridge Forest Reserve. On the way back, pop into the Green Hills Butterfly Ranch, to admire some of striking specimens bred here.
Walks: Take a subterranean trek through the Chiquibul cave system, with 25 miles of caverns and tunnels, it’s the largest in Central America. If clambering over boulders and circumnavigating rock pools sounds too strenuous but you still have a taste for underground adventure, take a guided canoe trip into Barton Creek Cave – the dramatic stalactite-moulded interior was originally used as a sacrificial site and connection to the spirit world. Trips can be organised through Blancaneaux Lodge.
Activities: Belize has the second largest reef in the world, and the diving here is spectacular. Take a two-hour boat ride from San Pedro and dive the Blue Hole, a collapsed underwater limestone cave with an unbeatable view down to its unfathomable depths. Experienced divers can drop below the rim at 40 metres to explore the eerie stalactites and glimpse Caribbean reef sharks. Snorkel or scuba with Amigos del Mar (www.amigosdive.com; +501 226 2706), one of the most respected dive schools in San Pedro, or try your hand at catching a tricksy bonefish or glimmering tarpon in the shallow waters of the reef. The Tides Dive Shop, opposite Turtle Inn, can arrange for you to swim with whale sharks (+501 523 3244).

Diary

February/March The whole of Belize celebrates Carnival, but nowhere throws its heart into the festivity quite like San Pedro. Elaborately costumed parades cross the city, and people celebrate by covering each other in coloured powder and lipstick. 9 March Baron Bliss Day: an original commemoration of one of Belize’s most philanthropic residents. . There are celebrations throughout the country, including a harbour regatta outside the Baron Bliss lighthouse in Belize City. The lighthouse forms the baron's tomb, erected in memory of his love of the sea. March/April Easter Fair in San Ignacio is a family-focused festival, with musical, games and sporting events. August Deer Dance Day in San Antonio is a fascinating hybrid of Christian and ancient Mayan culture, involving ritualistic dance, a staged ‘deer hunt’ and greased pole climbing. 21 September Independence Day is marked with cultural, religious and sporting events nationwide. A beauty pageant crowns Miss San Pedro. 12 October Pan-American Day or Columbus Day celebrates mestizo (Spanish/Mayan) culture with nationwide races, fiestas, regattas and beauty contests.

Eating, drinking and dancing

Restaurants

Wild Mangoes

If you’re visiting Ambergris, reservations at award-winning chef Amy Knox’s open-air seafront restaurant are essentials. Small, busy and relaxed, the eaterie’s innovative take on Mexican and Caribbean flavours has built up an army of local fans.

Barrier Reef Drive, San Pedro
(+501 226 2859)

Montagna Restaurant/Guatemalteca at Blancaneaux Lodge

Blancaneaux’s two open-air restaurants, one serving wood-fired pizzas and pasta, the other Guatemalan cusine, are both worth stopping by for a nibble.

Mountain Pine Ridge Forest Reserve, Cayo District
(+501 824 3878)

Five Sisters Lodge

This low-key lodge serves local dishes in a picturesque setting, with views of of five lovely waterfalls and a butterfly farm.

Mountain Pine Ridge Forest Reserve, Cayo District
(+501 820 4005)

Martha’s

Very casual but loved by locals, this downtown eaterie serves appealing pizzas, steaks and local specialities.

10 West Street, San Ignacio, Cayo District
(+501 804 3647)

De Tatch

On the seafront, and open on all sides, this laid-back but extremely popular beach restaurant serves Creole-style fresh fish and zesty home-made key lime pie.

Placencia, Stann Creek District
(+501 523 4011)

Wendy’s

An informal Mexican pueblo-style diner where you can eat filling Caribbean dishes and watch latin soap operas with the locals.

Placencia, Stann Creek District

Auntie Luba’s

The Caribbean restaurant at Turtle Inn serves expensive but delicious chicken stew, white rice and black bean with fried plantain and locally brewed Belikin beer.

Placencia, Stann Creek District
(+501 523 3244)

Mambo at Mata Chica

Five miles north of San Pedro, this Mexican-style seafood is the star at this colourful and laid-back hotel restaurant.

Ambergris Caye
(+501 220 5010)

Rojo Lounge at Azul Hotel

A stylish and relaxed beachside palapa where you can enjoy a fusion of Mexican, Caribbean, Cuban, and Asian cuisine.

San Pedro, Amebergris Caye
(+501 226 4012)

Palmilla Restaurant at Victoria House

Refined internatinal cuisine in classic colonial surroundings.

San Pedro, Ambergris Caye
(+501 226 2067)

Blue Water Grill at the Sunbreeze Hotel

This open-air eaterie set beside the sea is great for grilled lobster with drawn butter, and mojitos.

San Pedro, Ambergris Caye
(+501 226 3347)

Printable destination guide

Belize

Central America

One of the world’s youngest countries, Belize has a landscape that shifts from Caribbean island paradise to jungle-clad mountain, and a culture that blends Mayan with Mennonite, European with Garifuna…

Boutique hotels in Belize

Getting there

Worth getting out of bed for

Eating, drinking & dancing

Smith Maps

Local knowledge

Belize hotels

Blancaneaux Lodge

Cayo Espanto

Turtle Inn

Getting there

Worth getting out of bed for

Beautifully Belize

Diary

Eating, drinking and dancing

Restaurants

Wild Mangoes

Montagna Restaurant/Guatemalteca at Blancaneaux Lodge

Five Sisters Lodge

Martha’s

De Tatch

Wendy’s

Auntie Luba’s

Mambo at Mata Chica

Rojo Lounge at Azul Hotel

Palmilla Restaurant at Victoria House

Blue Water Grill at the Sunbreeze Hotel

Bars and clubs

Jungle Bar at Blancaneaux Lodge

Barefoot Beach Bar

Fidos