Darryn and I traveled to Belize in February of 2019. We picked this destination because like Nicaragua, we heard great things and knew it was becoming more and more touristy every year. It is also an English speaking country, which was really nice to not have any language barrier. We went for 8 days, which was perfect because it gave us 2 nights in each place. We flew with United and had a layover in Houston both ways. The layover wasn't too long, so it was kind of a nice break in between the flights. Before I go on with our itinerary, I want to say that the people of Belize are SO friendly, like weird friendly. We kept waiting for a sales pitch to come after many conversations, but it never did. They are so quick to help you if you need anything, and go out of their way just to say hi and ask how you are doing.
Our Itinerary:
Day 1- We landed in Belize and headed to pick up our rental car (FYI-the rental car offices are located outside of the airport but in the same parking lot). We had a few options to choose from, but in the end we ended up picking a really small car. We did regret that decision a few days in.
Our first destination was San Ignacio, a small town in the Cayo District which is really close to the Guatemala border, The drive from the airport took just over an hour to get there. We checked into Midas, our hotel for the next 2 nights, which was a cute little cottage with a private bathroom. The only down fall in the room was the bed (3 singles pushed together)., but other than that, everything was great! Midas has a restaurant, pool, and pool bar on site. The location was perfect and you could easily walk to the towns center.
After checking in and freshening up, we took a walk into town to find a restaurant for dinner. Our lonely planet book suggested "Guava Limb Cafe", which was unbelievable. Definitely in Darryn's and my top 5 best meals we have ever eaten. We sat around after watching people take their first bites of their food, just to see their reaction because it was that good! If you ever find yourself in San Ignacio PLEASE go here!! Guava Limb Cafe also operates a farm and makes/grows all of the bread, buns, cheeses, vegetables, fruits, and meat. You could definitely taste the freshness and quality in everything. I ordered the Hawaiian chicken burger with a salad and Darryn got the spicy chorizo & garlic shrimp burger with a salad. After dinner, we went back to our hotel for a couple of drinks by the pool before bed.
Day 2- We walked into town and had breakfast at a place right in the towns center called "Eva's". Vendors and shops are set around advertising the different things to do in the area. We saw a picture of a waterfall on one of the ads and decided we would go there. We packed our bags for the day and headed to Pine Ridge Mountain Reserve.
This is when we regretted our small car decision. Pine Ridge Mountain Reserve is literally climbing steep dirt mountain roads with pot holes the size of the car, I don't know how the poor car made it through that reserve, but it somehow managed. Every other vehicle was a truck, and they all were laughing at us when we would drive by. Although we had to drive VERY slowly, Pine Ridge Mountain Reserve was so beautiful and had so much to offer. We went and saw 1000 Foot Falls first before heading to Gaia resort to have lunch, and visit the Five Sister Falls.
Gaia Resort was really nice. The restaurants patio over looked the falls and kind of reminded me of a treehouse. The falls area is for the guests of the resort, or customers of the restaurant. You can use the stairs to go down or a very sketchy homemade elevator thing that goes up and down (I don't suggest it, I still have nightmares). The falls area is beautifully set up with cabanas, sun loungers and hammocks. We lucked out and had the whole thing to ourselves for the majority of our time there. The only thing it was missing was a bar, so if you plan to go here bring a cooler. After a couple of hours relaxing/swimming here we went to Big Rock Falls, another cool spot that offers swimming. If you are a strong swimmer you can even swim to a rock right beside the waterfall, and it makes a pretty awesome picture!
After our time at Big Rock Falls, we unfortunately had to head back to town. For anyone visiting Belize and heading to Pine Ridge Mountain Reserve I highly recommend heading out early and packing a cooler with a picnic. There are so many beautiful areas to stop and enjoy a cold beverage and a bite to eat. Its a big area with so much to see, so heading out earlier than later would definitely benefit you.
When we got back to town we quickly freshened up at our room and walked into town for some food and drinks. We decided to get tacos from a small stand on the road, and they were DELICIOUS! (and cost 50 cents a taco. 50 CENTS a taco!!) I officially found my happy place. They made the tortillas right in front of us, and even though these were considered street food, everything was so fresh. We even went back for more after we enjoyed some drinks at Tandoor.
Day 3- A few locals told us Popps was the place for breakfast, so that is where we went. It was super busy but I think we only waited about 5 minutes for a table. We ordered stuffed fry jacks and they were very good. After breaky we checked out of our hotel and started our drive to Placencia.
The drive from San Ignacio to Placencia is amazing. Its a mix of jungle and rainforest. Everything is so lush. Just when we would think it couldn't get more beautiful, we would come up to an orange orchard set in the middle of all of it. We even stopped at a small little roadside restaurant called "Yam Watts". It was the perfect location for lunch.
After lunch we stopped at the Blue Hole National Park (not thee Blue Hole) and St. Herman's Cave. Both stops were right off the highway and very close by. I was a bit of a baby and couldn't do St. Herman's Cave. I made it about 10 feet in and was literally shaking with fear, I thought I was going to cry. I think if there was other people there and not just the 2 of us I might of been a bit more brave, but I don't think I have ever been that scared in my life. The hike to it was nice regardless so it wasn't a complete waste of time.
Blue Hole National Park is a small natural swimming hole, and is a great spot to stop for a quick dip on you way to Placencia.
Placencia Village is such a laid back, relaxed beach town, at the end of a point. I would love to come back here every year. It was about 5 pm when we finished getting settled in our Villa and walked down to the pier. I will never forget standing there and all of sudden dolphins just started jumping in the water and playing. I was shocked. I started freaking out since I have never seen dolphins in the wild. A fisherman that was unloading his boat told us they come almost every night around that time. Isn't that crazy!?
After our little dolphin show, we decided we wanted tacos again (don't judge), so we headed to one of the street stands and ordered some tacos and Tostadas. They were equally as good as the ones from San Ignacio. We ended our night with drinks at the Barefoot Bar.
Day 4- We were staying at Placencia Villas (highly recommend) and we had a small kitchenette so we decided we wanted to make our own breakfast for the next 2 mornings. Right beside us was a small cafe, so we picked up coffee and homemade bagels from there, and across the street was a local market that we got eggs, fresh fruit, and fresh cheese from. We enjoyed our coffee and breakfast on our screened in porch before starting our 4th day.
This day was the perfect lazy day. We just spent it trying out the different hammocks at the beach bars and walking around the town. We ate street tacos for lunch and lazed around a little more. We watched the dolphins before heading for dinner at the "Tipsy Tuna", where we ended our day.
Day 5- We made our breakfast with our finds from yesterday before checking out. We were super sad to be leaving Placencia. It truly is paradise. We were heading to the Islands next so that made it a little easier saying goodbye.
We had a flight booked to San Pedro from Belize city, so we didn't make any stops on our drive from Placencia. Thank goodness we didn't because we almost missed our flight without any stops. Tip- If you book a flight in advance from Belize city to one of the islands, make sure you look which airport in Belize city your flight is leaving from. I just assumed it was Belize city's international airport, but no, it most definitely was not. There is a small municipal airport right in the city that also offers flights. After we returned our vehicle we tried to check in for our flight, which was leaving in 40 minutes and the lady couldn't find our booking. She asked for my paperwork and that's when we realized it was a totally different airport that we were suppose to be at. We had to take a 35 minute taxi ride to catch a flight that was scheduled to leave in 40 minutes. Thankfully it was delayed by a half hour when we arrived. I thought I was going to be scared on the small plane to San Pedro but it was super cool. The views were amazing. I loved it!
San Pedro was super overwhelming when we first arrived. I don't think coming from somewhere like Placencia helped either. It should be named golf cart capital of the world, you cant even cross a street without almost getting hit by one. We felt forced to rent one because its almost impossible to be a pedestrian there. Putting the whole golf cart thing aside, we didn't really care for San Pedro. It was super busy and kind of missing the island vibe thing. We aren't very picky people and don't need much to keep us happy but we were pretty miserable here. To top it off our accommodation was pretty rough. I mean it was partly my fault because I did go for a pretty cheap option, but the reviews were great. It was a hostel but a private room with a washroom. It was so dark and dungy and smelt awful. It kind of reminded me of a horror movie. The cleaning crew did half the job and left the garbage bag tied up on the table and our shower still dirty. If your heading to the Islands in Belize, I would suggest not staying here over night. Maybe just come for a day visit and don't book at Pedros Hostel.
We ate dinner at the parks BBQ stands and headed to bed early.
Day 6- After breakfast we picked up our golf cart and headed to a place called "Secret Beach". Its about a 30-40 minute ride in the golf cart but I was so happy we went. It was much more relaxed than San Pedro. There are a bunch of restaurants and bars but some offer picnic tables in the water where the servers come out to you. We managed to score one of these and that is where we spent our entire day.
We quickly freshened up in our room before going for dinner at Waraguma. We got the seafood platter for two. It was really good but we wish there was a little bit more. We stopped for a drink at a bar before heading back to our room for another early night.
Day 7- We woke up early and anxious. We knew we would be checking out of Pedros and getting on a ferry to Caye Caulker. We got stuffed fry jacks from a street stand after returning our golf cart and getting on our 40 minute ferry ride to Caye Caulker.
Ok. Caye Caulker could not be anymore different than San Pedro. I don't even know how they are so close; I don't even know how they are part of the same country. Caye Caulker is paradise and the absolute best way to end a vacation. Soon as we jumped off the ferry we both let out a huge sigh of relief.
The island is small and laid back. The islands slogan is "go slow" and they really do live by it. Everywhere you go your reminded by the Rasta people to go slow and enjoy the island.
We checked into our accommodation, "Dream Cabanas". They were these little cabanas that were super cute, and I think they were pretty much brand new. They were a little far from all the restaurants and bars, but the island is so small that nothing can really be too far. Dream Cabanas offered bicycles you can rent, so we decided we would tour on those for a couple of hours to get to know the island, and go for lunch. On the main road there is a bunch of street BBQs. We were there right before the end of lobster season so everyone of them had tons of lobster that was so fresh, they were pretty much pulling them out of the ocean beside us. For $10 each we got lobster, rice, coleslaw and a beer. It was as delicious as it sounds. It could come with a little more food but I don't think you can really complain for that price.
After riding around and checking the island out for a couple more hours, we went back to our room to get ready for dinner.
Side note- I don't think I have mentioned this before but I use the Lonely Planet guidebook for every destination we travel to. It is awesome and has amazing recommendations. It even puts a star beside their personal favorite activity's, accommodations and restaurants. They have never steered us wrong.
That night we decided to look for one of there recommended restaurants and came across "Wish Willy's". I cant remember what it said exactly, and I am too lazy to pull it out right now, but we were convinced and made our way there.
Wish Willy's is in a local persons front/side yard. There is no signs and no one to greet you. The furniture is made out of whatever he can find and use. There is a cooler in the corner filled with beer that you help yourself to and keep track of how many you drink. There is also no menu you order from, but regardless of all of that it was packed! I think we got the last table because 2 groups in front of us were I think to afraid to even walk through the gate.
I am so happy we decided to walk through the gate and stay. Shortly after we sat down, the table next to us informed us about the beer in the cooler and a very loud Rasta man came out of the house singing. He noticed us almost immediately and kindly asked us what we wanted to eat. Darryn and I are not very picky eaters so we decided to let him surprise us. While we waited for our food we just enjoyed the atmosphere around us. It was actually really enjoyable to eat and drink in a restaurant without taking ourselves and everyone else so seriously. It was a really nice change. Everyone was so relaxed. Willy brought us both out lobster dinners. They were so good and when went to pay, the price made it that much better. $30 for 2 lobster dinners and 4 beers. The experience alone was worth the money. I highly recommend enjoying a meal here. Its a little intimidating at first but it is a pretty cool spot and somewhere I know the both of us will always remember.
After our dinner at Willy's, we went to the sports bar that had some live Rasta music and dancing. I think it was the only place on the island with something going on. The Live music was awesome and when that place shut down we went to the reggae bar for some more dancing. Before leaving and heading to bed, we met two locals that gave us some great excursion suggestions for the next day.
Day 8- We woke up and nursed our mild hangover with some stuffed fry jacks from "Erolyns House of Fry Jacks". We decided on a Snorkeling tour one of the guys had mentioned the night before. This tour was insane. They took us to an area to feed the Tarpons from the boat and then out to the barrier reef where we snorkeled in 2 different locations. On our way back, they stopped at a spot where we could go in the water with nurse sharks and sting rays. It was cool because it wasn't in a controlled area and they weren't in any cages, it was just a random spot in the ocean. They told us they come when they hear boat motors now because it use to be a popular spot where fishermen cleaned there fish. I thought I was going to be terrified but I surprised myself when we arrived and felt how excited I was. It was seriously amazing. They brush up against you and swim in between your legs. It truly was an experience I will never forget.
We ended our day with jerk chicken and drinks at one of the restaurants on the main street. Unfortunately we had to have an early night because we were getting on a plane home the next day.
Day 9- Quick breakfast and then we took a ferry across to Belize city. Tip- If you need to do any shopping, do it here. The shops at the ferry docks in Belize city had so much to offer and were surprisingly cheaper than anywhere else.
We took a taxi to the proper airport and flew home to our kiddos.
Accomodation links-
Midas in San Ignacio
Placencia Villas in Placencia
Pedros Hotel in San Pedro
Dream Cabanas in Caye Caulker
Authentic Adventures
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