I'm heading to AC in mid August and have been reading this board for a couple weeks now. You guys are all so helpful.I finally have a question. I will be spending 6 days in San Pedro and 2-3 inland. What's the malaria risk? Is it worth taking the pills? I took Larium before a trip to Botswana and had mild but unpleasant side affects. Any input or suggestions would be great. Thanks in advance!

You really don't need to take precautions against malaria while on Ambergris Caye. Two-three days on the mainland may be another story, depending on where you're going. Deep jungle, yes. Belize City, Belmopan, some of the Maya sites, no

Listen to your physician or tropical medicine specialist, or the CDC, but as a practical matter very few people visiting Ambergris Caye take anti-malarials. Malaria is present in Belize, and in fairly large number of cases considering Belize's small population, but one is at risk mainly in the far south and in other bush areas.

Even if you decide to take an antimalarial, there's no need to take Larium, as the strains in Belize are not chloroquine-resistant. Chloroquine (trade name Aralen) has been used for years, or decades, and most people have no reaction to it except possibly a slight upset stomach.

--Lan Sluder
Belize First Magazine http://www.turq.com/belizefirst/

Those days on the mainland do present a risk. You need to weigh the unpleasantness of the side effects against the unpleasantness of malaria.
I spent a couple days at Maruba and I thought I was doing a good job with the Deet. But, I think I forgot to put it on after I had my mud massage one night. That one slip left me covered in bites and I can't tell you how reassured I was that I had been taking the preventative.
Play Safe

Our trip was similar to yours. 3 days in the rain forest and 6 days on AC. Me, my husband and the two kids all took Aralen. No side effects, and safe enough for kids. We did spend one day in Guatamala and hiked five miles into the jungle. I was glad we took it, even though the mosquitos were not bad at all. We were there during the tail end of the dry season. The rainy season starts the first of June, and the mosquitos get worse. I had a scientist who's excavating some of the ruins in the south, tell me that, the effort at taking the Aralen is nothing compared to malaria itself. He said if you ever had it, you wish you were dead. I was glad we did!!