Hello...I'll be heading down in November. Interested in such places like Portofino and Capricorn where my girlfriend and I can have our own little cabana right on the beach. Any advice? Been to either of these? Thanks in advance!

I was at Mata Chica today with a friend and she and I checked out their cabana's. Super and the beach was great too. Great lounge there too.

Capricorn is about 4 miles closer to town if you plan on going in for dinner, etc. That could make a huge difference. 4 miles on Ambergris is about the same as 15 miles in the States.

In addition to those named above, other hotels with cabanas are Ramon's, Cap't Morgans, Salamander, Victoria House, PlayaBlanca, Tranquility Bay (not thatched roof). Prices, atmosphere, amenities, location vary quite a bit. What are you looking for?

? really? That is strange. The entire boat ride was 15 min total to Mata Chica. We left at 4:50 and were back at 5:05.

Cayo Espanto has a very nice cabana (cabin) as does Royal Caribbean Resort. I particularly like Hotel del Rio for the location and price.

Forget the boat ride (Island Ferry) what a drag to be on a two-hour schedule for your vacation. Not fun.

15 min in a boat = 30 min on the Island Ferry.

SIN

To town on a golf cart is about half hour from Capricorn (max, depending on road conditions), from Portofino you just need to forget about it. I took the Island Ferry from Portifino to town after having dinner one night, took us 45 minutes!

Phew! Y'all are "on it" at this website! Thanks very much! Just got the word back from Portofino...pricey! 1755.25 total for 5 nights! Place still sounds amazing, but with the distance from town I think I'll scratch it off the list. Maybe if we ever get married ;-)

So, to answer your question Barbara: I'm looking for my own cabana on the beach. Preferably with a little kitchenette. I'd like easy access to town yet the feel of exclusion and romance.

Thanks to everyone for the informative responses. VERY helpful!

Most of the cabanas do not have kitchenettes. Tranquility Bay has kitchens but they are FAR. Not sure about Hotel de Rio's cabanas...

Have a look at the private homes in the lodging section of this site. Caye Casa has a couple of cabana style units with kitchen facilities. With the money you save you can do some extra trips, eat out whenever you want, and with the town centre just half a mile away walk home down the beach.