Hi, My husband and I are planning a 2 week surf n' turf Aug. 2003 trip to Belize...

We booked Belizean Shores for the second week and I am having trouble deciding on a "Jungle" lodge. We plan on 3 or 4 days at the Mtn Pine Ridge area then 3 or 4 days at Hamanasi before heading to A.C.

We want to see a lot of ruins/sites in this time and tours through the resorts are just to expensive. Is it feasible to rent a 4x4 and have either Five sisters or Blancaneaux as a "base" to see a lot of the sites? Also Tikal is a must for us, is there a tour group/agency any one can recommend (don't want to do this on our own) that is reasonable.

Or am I just way in over my head and should just go with the resort's tour?

Thanks

you can e-mail at
djones@btl.net
for some info on Tikal tour agency.

Yes, you can do most of Cayo from either Blancaneaux or Five Sisters (or Hidden Valley Inn after it reopens). Blancaneaux and Five Sisters are about 45 or 50 minutes by car from San Ignacio.

On the Tikal tour you can arrange it in San Ignacio. Basically what you are buying is transportation to and from Tikal, as only Guatemalans can guide you at Tikal, and the Belize operators arrange for a local guide for you at Tikal. Or to save money you can do the transportation yourself from the border.

--Lan Sluder
Belize First www.belizefirst.com

Great, Your books are fantastic! I've been lurking on this board for awhile and you give such a wealth of information when you could just say go buy my book. Thank you for your expertise! It will surely make our trip so much better. After reading your posts on Hamanasi is when we decided that we had to stay there! Now I just have to decide between Blancaneaux & Five Sisters.
Ok, one more question, should we keep the rental car during our stay at Hamanasi or drop it off before we go there? Jim at Hamanasi said most guests do not rent cars and that the roads sometimes are not marked in the area, etc. Any further suggestions would be great...Thanks again

We just returned from Maruba Resort which my wife and I truely enjoy. We have traveled to many places around the world , but Maruba is by far a special place. It is just large enough that they cater to you hand and foot.
The servive is outstanding, the food to dye for, and the spa treatments are luxurious.
You can see many major mayan sites that are not so far and as dangerous as those sites are starting to be in the cayo area.
San Pedro is only 1 hour boat ride. If you do stay in San Pedro , you can arrive at Maruba by boat.I would recommend you stay there at the last part of the trip to unwind with some of their treatments and impeccable service. They are only a half hour by car to the airport.

web address; www.maruba-spa.com
1-800-maruba-7

Check them out!!

Seaman

Thanks, I'll check them out!

If you book a package (including excursions) at Hamanasi, no need for a car.. but if you only book the room and are not planning to take excursions with the resort, then it might be usefull to have a car... Have fun ! Hopkins is a great little place and Hamanasi is very nice...

Thanks Karin, Do you think it would be better just to stay at Hamanasi the whole week and not do the "jungle/forest" lodge? Also what about other restaurants (for a little variety) if we do stay at Hamanasi for the week. If we don't have a vehicle are they accessible by walking or bike? I just don't want to feel like I'm stranded, for lack of a better word. Plus I would loveto see Hopkins. But if all this is doable from Hamanasi and we don't have to rent a car then that is the best idea yet.
I'm thinking maybe do Hamanasi for 6 days (do a couple tours) then catch the overnight Tikal tour with Tropic Air then we will end up in San Pedro ready for our week on A.C. Thanks and I look forward to your reply!

P.S. I'm always afraid I'll miss something! LOL

What is it you want to do???
There is only a certain amount you can do from down south. Most of the excavated sites are in the northen part of Belize.Lately Tikal is better to fly to due to the disterbances in the area.
Lamani and Altun Ha are the most popular ruins as well as better excavated sites in the country. You need to find out what you really want to experience. Do you want seclusion or a bit of variety????

Seaman

Hi Seaman, My problem is I want both! LoL! But Hamanasi has a "magical ruin tour" that takes you to Xunantunich & Cahal Pech and then one to Blue Hole National Park and to Antelope Falls. So if we do these and then take Tropic's overnight Tikal tour before heading to A.C. I think we will see some sites and have plenty of relaxing and seclusion. We don't have to see everything on our first trip and it might of gotten to hectic anyway if we tried-I think this will be the perfect balance (as long as we can explore some while at Hamanasi without a car). Thanks for all your help, a day trip to Maruba from A.C. would be great...that place looks beautiful!

Personally I would rent a car and keep it while at Hamanasi. The Southern Highway is now paved below Independence. I think there is sometimes a built-in interest at resorts for guests to not have cars, as that way they will buy more tours and trips, plus they will be more likely to take all meals at the resort. Some trips you may want to do as part of a guided tour, but others can easily be done on your own. It's great to have a car so you can go where and when you want to go, whether it's just down the road to Beaches & Dreams for dinner (really too far to walk) or on a day trip to the ruins near PG.

--Lan Sluder

Thank you so much Lan, you answered my question!
Ok, we will do the above and rent a car while at Hamanasi and drop it off before heading to Tikal-Your right I don't want to be limited on where we go & eat. If you add up the tour prices, the car more than pays for itself.

Thank you to everyone, this is such a nice message board. We can't wait to experience Belize!

Actually, in Hopkins, I would take a bike rather than a car to go to the different restaurants... ;-)
but again it depends if you want to book tours with the resort or do the visits by yourself (in which case a car is useful)...

Thanks Karin, so biking to other places in Hopkins is an option. Hmmmmm, what to do, and Hamanasi does have complimentary bike use and my husband is an avid cyclist.
I guess I have awhile to think about this and I'll see what my husband thinks. Both options have its pluses and minuses!
I really do appreciate all the responses, since we've never been there it makes planning a trip so much easier. You people are so kind I can see why Belize is such a special place.
At least I got the lodging settled!

i have a few comments...

first, a walk from hamnasi to beaches and dreams for dinner is NOT far...i stayed at beaches & dreams for a week this summer & strolled down the beach in the afternoon to take a snorkel trip at hamanasi & it was maybe 10 minutes along the beach. i also kayaked there and back for my first venture out. piece of cake. unless you are physically incapacitated, it should be nothing but a pleasure to meander down to b&d in the evening for a meal. stephanie is a fabulous cook and you won't be sorry. while i was there LOTS of people from hamanasi & the other fancy resorts defected to b&d for their meals. ALL of their meals!

second, just because you stay at a resort doesn't mean you have to take EVERY side trip they book. it's possible to rent a car from dangriga (try tyrone at griga's---502-0442, he would probably deliver the car to you.) then try driving around on a side trip or two and see if you like it. i prefer the stress-free feeling of a nice, informed guide driving me about so i don't have to fret about turn-offs & so forth. it's possible to retain local guides from outside your hotel for trips, if you prefer. you are not obligated to dbook through your hotel & you may be able to find someone who can do the trip exactly as you wish.

third, when i was in hopkins (early july) it seemed like not a lot of local restaurants were operating. i stopped at iris's once for beans & rice & cole slaw, and at the hideaway restaurant for same on another night. these were the only ones that seemed to be open from the hopkins town website. ruth's restaurant was not open when i checked. she was going to bake a coconut pie for us (i asked around and she got the "best baker" nod) but it turned out she wasn't able to do it. from hamanasi you can easily bike into town or someone from the resort could certainly drop you off so you could stroll about for the evening. catch a cab or other ride back at king kassava at the crossroads. i truly don't think it's worth renting a car just for going out to dinner in hopkins. if you take one day off to lounge & end up driving your car the mile down the road to dinner, your very modest meals will end up costing around $100!

cheers---
gogo

[This message has been edited by gogo (edited 09-10-2002).]

Awesome! Thanks Gogo for all the info. I'll just try to rent a car from Tyrone and then we can do some trips on our own for a day or two. I was hoping beaches & dreams was a close walk (that will be fun to)! You say people defected to b&d for ALL of their meals-is the food at other resorts bad or just expensive(or both-LOL)? Thank you so much...I couldn't figuire out if Hamansi was miles from anything or like you said a 10 minute walk.This gives me a great perspective....Thanks!

Good input gogo.
Been there and did that too.
I certainly wouldn't think a car necessary to stroll to Beaches and Dreams.

It's a must in my book to see that whole area and it can almost be done on foot, seaside or on the road.

I would think that Hamansi could guide you towards bicycle renting.
We have rented a car, in the past and left it sitting in Placencia for several days when we went to a caye to stay. I too thought the money was well spent for that one trip, but I also know now it is able to be done without it.
We also had no problems with the resort owners helping us put together our own tours. Just ask them, and if they won't or can't then go from there. Word of mouth in the village of Hopkins will find you a good guide.
I guess it's preference. We learned by taking more than one trip to Belize. The first trip was extremely impressive, the second one even more so, etc.

coquina---

i'm not sure if the food was expensive/bad or what at the resorts but i guess it was markedly better at b&d. one couple would come from a resort one night, then bring friends the next night, then the third night the place would be packed with everyone they'd told. Then they'd all move on and the cycle started over. we ate lots of our meals there and saw the same people repeatedly walk up. (breakfast was included and dinners were good so we ate there most nights.)

have fun!
gogo

Great! Thank you!

Beaches & Dreams is just 10 minutes from Hamanasi? Seems like farther than that to me, especially the older I get. Or maybe it's the sandfleas that slowed me down.

In any case, Beaches & Dreams does have excellent food. I thought Hamanasi had good food, too, and well priced for a resort. There are also several good restaurants in Hopkins village, like Iris's, small local places in most cases in people's homes.

I still think a car is handy to have to get around, both around the Hopkins area and to make day trips. There are lots of interesting things to do that require either a car or paying a considerable amount for a tour -- for example, seeing the scarlet macaws around Red Bank, visiting Cockscomb, going to Mayflower or down to the ruins near PG, going to Placencia or up to Gales Point, even going to the relatively close sugar mill site at Sittee.

--Lan Sluder

I was also in the Hopkins area in June and had a hard time finding open restaurants or at least ones that were serving at about 8:30pm. Tried the hotels and local places. Ended up eating at Hamanasi as it was the only place still serving. Food was good. Some guests there said they had been staying at Hamanasi for a few days and were on the meal plan but were a bit disappointed with it as the menu never changed the whole time they were there - even specials remained the same! Maybe that was why several guests were at B & D. I have also eaten at B & D a few times on previous trips and found the food very good. Used to be a great place in Hopkins called "Over the waves" with Ms Enselma cooking, but I think Hurricane Iris wiped it out. She used to own Jabiru Rest/Bar as well but I heard she was no longer affiliated with that one (restaurant is still there at the entrance to town).

Food is great at Beaches and Dreams, I though Hamanasi was pretty good too.. Jabiru is also nice, so is Iris... I was there in November and all restaurants (Jude's, Innis, Iris, Jabiru, and a couple of other small ones) were open.... A garifuna meal prepared by Therese Castillo is also something not to be missed !...

WOW, Thanks for all the input! This is going to be one FUN trip! I am glad we will be able to have our choice in unique places to dine in Hopkins.

Karin, I saw Therese Castillo on the Hopkins website!!! She looks so nice, we will have to have dinner with her-did you have the gibnut, armadillo or iguana? LOL!!!

Ok, don't kill me people but I just found out about Tobacco Caye. Belize has so much to offer...and we only have 2 weeks

Would anyone recommend splitting up our time on Hamanasi with Tobacco caye lodge? Uggh-why did I have to see that? It looks so romantic and beautiful. I am driving my husband nuts-EVERYTHING looks so cool & interesting in Belize. Our first 6 days our still up in the air-what do you think of 3 (or 4)days at Hamanasi and 3(or 2) at Tobacco Caye? I know I'm crazy but help me figure this out! My husband is cool as long as he can kayak, fish and lay in a hammock. He is no help-LOL! Hamanasi (tree house) is a definite though. Then there is also the Mtn pine region...UUGGHHH! What would you guys do in these 6 days?

Do the Hopkins area and Tobacco Caye.
We did it just last year and it's great.

Don't hesitate, make plans now LOL.

We stayed at Beaches and Dreams, went to Tobacco and then back to Beaches and Dreams. ( then home, ugh )

Reefs End was nice, of course now you will need to decide which resort you want there too. If you are making the decisions, do what you want, he doesn't seem to mind.

No matter what ya do, it will be memorable.

Go slow and remember, it's a third world country. They are eager to please us and we are anxious to be their guests.

Lan, the age and sandflies may be your downfall, not bashing ya. Those little sandflies only show up at daybreak and nightfall, if there's no breeze, otherwise they aren't a problem.

Just as in AC, wear DEET or long pants and socks.
It's a lovely walk.

Thanks NYgal! You have GREAT advice. We are going to do it! We will have to stay at blancaneaux or 5 sisters next trip. Plus we will at least tour the area while at Hamanasi. I figure we will stay at Hamanasi first then head to Tobacco Caye before going on our second part of trip. Ok, you knew I was going to ask...which hotel in Tobacco Caye? I'm thinking Tobacco Caye Lodge but up for suggestions. Do you know if the blue cabanas are private or are they attached to another cottage? On their website it looks like you share the front porch. ? We are not picky but do like our privacy from time to time. I'm thinkimg 4 days at Hamanasi and 2 days on Tobacco Caye, do you think that is a good mix? thanks again

OK, you have the right idea and a good amount of days for each place. You won't want to leave one to go to the other, but once you do you won't regret it.

If I remember right ( may not ) Tobacco Caye Lodge was attatched, what you see is like a duplex. There are several resorts, 5 or six, on the caye.
We stayed at Reef's End, they have cabanas, separate from the other building. We had asked for one, they were full, but had an absolutely great room, second floor facing west, #4. Many people told us we had the best view on the caye. ( the cabana did not face the water )
There is also Oceans Edge, which we will try next visit or back to Reefs End.

The east side of the caye has wind that made my hair stand out, funny but true. Nice breeze. Not gonna blow you away.

I am trying to remember the names of the resorts as the circle of the caye. Starting with Tobacco Caye Lodge, but can't for sure. Next may be Oceans edge, then Giavotti, Reefs End Resort, somewhere is Lanas and then the one that is reopening, Tobacco Caye Paradise. I don't even recollect that one by sight, but it's there.

Prices are all per person per night. The boat ride to Tobacco Caye itself is $35 US per person, that's round trip I think. You pick up the boat in Dangriga.

FYI, most of the snorkelers waded into the water right in front of Reef's End Resort, plus they have just rebuilt their Bar & Restuarant, opening was last Feb. We watched them building and what fun that was.
Ok, here I go babbling, but obviously we had a good time. We really enjoyed our mealtime since we had set times ( which I was hesitant of) but the time spent was fun. Met people from Germany, France and Australia. Great conversations and laughable, since we only speak one language.

Just take in the moments, they are all grand. Go slow and don't worry, it will all work out. Let them guide you and ask questions, they love to talk.

OH, there is a dive shop there as well.

The resorts will not be filled, you can change to another one after you get there if you want. Don't hesitate to make the change, it happens. Pick any of them.
They are not all on the internet. I think 3 are. Giavoti, Lanas and the one reopening are not. At least I can't find them.

Now I can't wait to go back, see what you have done to me ?




[This message has been edited by NYgal (edited 09-12-2002).]

Thank you Nygal, your info is priceless. I can't find any info on Oceans Edge-what kind of lodging do they have?

http://www2.symet.net/beltex/

This is all I have found for their resort. It's kinda neat.

You will also need to remember, this will not be like Ambergris Caye. These are not lush accomodations. We liked it since we don't spend all day in the room anyway. It's the outdoors that counts.

It's not expensive. It's like a small community in a 5 acre area.
We spent some time talking with the people at Ocean's Edge and had a cocktail there. BrendaLee and her husb are really hospitable. I heard the food is good there too.
Hope this helps.

Great! I searched & searched and couldn't find anything. This place looks cool. I don't mind rustic, as long as it is cheap and on a little island in Belize! LOL! So when are you going back?

January or Feburary, 2003