AmbergrisCaye.com Home Forums Belize by District Stann Creek Placencia Trip

5 days in Placencia--took water taxi to BZE City, taxi to bus terminal and then boarded a bus for Dangriga. It was interesting passing thru the little towns (?), the bus stops any place there is someone waiting for it--Dangriga was not very pleasant compared to what I am used to in Belize--guess it's just a somewhat smaller version of BZE City in some ways. This was my 1st trip anywhere on the mainland except the airport and I've been to Belize 8 times. The drive out of Belmopan thru the mountains/citrus groves is beautiful (but a little scarey at 1st--the bus goes pretty fast on the mountain roads...but after all they drive it every day right?) After 1 hr in Dangriga, we caught the bus to Placencia, and ended up in Placencia, hot, dusty & tired! It was almost 4:30 when we got there--we spent less for 2 people RT by bus than 1 person 1 way flying--however it does take the whole day to get down there that way, and 1/2 day to get back by bus. But it was great to get to see so much of the rest of the country! Stayed at Crabboo Landing (across from Kitty's Place)--Ronnie is so nice! I didn't see Placencia b/4 the hurricane--but I thought it was beautiful, lots of flowers, birds (orange hummingbirds, parrots and choca-lacas woke us up every morning! The beach is really nice, cool sidewalk thru the town (a little broken up in some places). Ate Maloo's BBQ at Sugar Reef where you can actually buy a flask and then mix your drinks with whatever. Cozy Corner was fun place to hang and watch the ocean, drink and eat. Daisy's for breakfast, we bought stuff for sandwiches as we had a kitchen at Crabboo and also stopped at the Tipsy Tuna one nite for Belikens. Would I go again? Definitely! It's building, rebuilding, still a beautiful place and the people were wonderful!

Hi

We are planning to return to Belize in November and this time we are thinking of spending about 4 days in Placencia. I read somewhere that there was still alot of damage from last years storm. How did you find the beachs? Did you happen to see the Inn at Roberts Grove? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Ah, my hubby and I just got back from a week in San Pedro, and now I'm REALLY regretting not stopping by Placencia, like we did our two previous years....ouch! Placencia has the most beautiful beach in Belize, bar none. Those palm trees along the curving shoreline, ,,,just can't be beat. I'm just curious, were a lot of the palm trees knocked down, or the tops torn off in the hurricane?

I was in Placencia last week. I stayed at Robert's Grove (in one of their delicious two-bedroom condo suites, which are fantastic). It's as good as ever, or better.

Frankly, though, it's depressing to go into Placencia village. Everybody is working hard to rebuild, and I know they need business from tourists, but it is sad to see so many trees gone and debris still not removed, and in general so much of the village changed. It's just taking longer than anyone thought to get things back to normal. Most of the wood homes on the sea side of Seine Bight are gone, too, with still only a few having been rebuilt.

North on the peninsula, however, it's pretty much as it was. There's a lot of building going on, especially at The Plantation -- some big new houses under construction, and new roads.

--Lan Sluder www.belizefirst.com

My stateside home is in Biloxi, Mississippi

My Belizean home is in Placencia.

Living on the uS Gulf Coast we have experienced numerous hurricanes over the years. In 1968 we had a particularly bad hurricane named Camille.

Even now in 2002 there is still evidence of that storm in the form of bare foundations, empty lots were houses used to be, a tug boat on the opposite side of highway 90 that has since been turned into a souvernier shop, etc, etc.

Placencia is and will be much the same. There will be evidence of Iris for years...that does not mean that it is unsuitable for its main industry which is tourism.

The most visible signs of Iris in Placencia proper is the damaged sidewalk, several houses that are still not repaired and damaged foliage.

A fund raising has been going on for the last two months to raise money to replace the side walk...I understand that they are just about there.

Rebuilding of these damaged houses is ongoing and the less fortunite who did not have insurance or other means to finance their rebuilding are going slowly. As they get a few dollars ahead they do as much work as that little money will allow.

The damaged foliage is being replaced. Thousands of trees, bushes, etc. were donated by a local source to be planted to replace the lost and damaged greenery. With the tropical climate of Belize and the current rainey season these should be really growing.

Everyone is working very hard to get the village ready for the upcoming season and in lots of respects it is already much better than before the storm.

Moorings has opened their office in the village, Olga's grocery has done a little remodeling to try and keep up with Wallen's
airconditioned market, Serenade Guest house has replaced the thatch roof juice bar with a nice big bar, restaurant, new private construction is underway everywhere you look, etc, etc, etc.

There are lots of hotel / motel / cabanas, etc available, 3 grocery stores, 2 hardware stores, restaurants, beach bar's, dinners, ice cream shop, tour operators, dive shops, etc. And..,there are still lots and lots of palm trees on the still beautiful beach.

There is no reason not to visit PLACENCIA.

Sorry it has taken me so long to get back to this post..no job yet...using friend's computer..etc. Having never been to Placencia before, I cannot say how many trees are gone now, but I still found it to be a beautiful place. The beach is great, there are still alot of trees,...we walked the beach from Kitty's Place into town and it was great! I was surprized at how clean that beach is, especially compared to the beach north of San Pedro. And yes there is still some debris in town, the sidewalk is ruined in some places, but there are still some great places to hang out and I would definitely recommend visiting and will return on my next trip. The people are wonderful, and having visited some of the other 'jewels' of the Carribean, they are what really made me fall in love with this country!

Govikes, I COMPLETELY agree about the people one meets, and how that really "makes" the vacation.

Hi

Thanks for the info.

We are going to book today.........

On this past trip (third year in a row), we only went to San Pedro. I have to say honestly now, I regret not going to Placencia. It has a flavor, a mood, a feeling that is uniquely it's own. All those little family run restaurants and shops really give it a small town feel. And you can go to so many things from there...Cockscomb Jaguar Reserve, Laughing Bird Caye, Monkey River, etc.

We just got back from Placencia and had a great time. We especially liked our three days at Barnacle Bills. We also stayed at Singing Sands the pace was beautiful but when we checked out we found a couple of hidden charges on our bill, when we asked about them the manager (Elden) became very rude unlike anyone else we met in the area. When we go back to Belize we will definitly venture south again but we will also stear clear of the Singing Sands.