Hi there, I'm considering a trip to AC in mid November and am looking at staying at Las Terrazas...I understand it just opened but wonder if it is as nice as it looks online...?

I'm also not clear where it is located relative to where the main town is....I don't need to be right in the middle of everything but access is important as I will be traveling on my own. Can someone fill me in on water taxis and getting around? Is it fairly safe getting around?

Is November an ok time to visit weather wise?

Thanks for the feedback....I've always wanted to visit Belize but just want to make sure I make a good choice.

SueDawn

Las Terrazas is next to Journey End, about 4 1/2 miles north of town: it is new and clean, but a water taxi ride from anywhere.

The resorts boat will give you a ride into town, but plan a Water Taxi back, a $7 ride each time.

You can take a golf cart and the road may be OK by mid November, which is when a lot of "boarders" will be there, SP that is not Las Terrazas!

For a "single" it may be a little out of the way, but it is one of the higher end resorts on the island if you are looking for luxury: you could buy a LOT of Belikins for what you'd save staying somewhere else though, and think of all the new friends you could make sharing them

SueDawn: There is a topic regarding Who's going to be in SP in November. Based on the large # of people I would think it is o.k. though I have only been in June. Many of the that will be there are message boarders. One post is called November roll call and another is November 2008 visit. Use the search option at the top of the page to find them if you like.

Hopefully you will like San Pedro, BZ as much as we do. We have been twice and plan to continue.

As far as Las Terrazas, I don't know a thing about that. Someone will though sooner or later.

I found those posts: Hopefully they will help

http://ambergriscaye.com/forum/ubbthreads.php/topics/298695/November_2008_Visit.html#Post298695
http://ambergriscaye.com/forum/ubbthreads.php/topics/289963/November_roll_call.html#Post289963

4.5 miles there is a lot farther than 4.5 miles at home. pug is right - it is lovely up north, but it is a distance from anything. this would be a place to stay to 'get away from everything'. unless you rent a cart, there isn't much to walk to. carting to town from there (i would think) would take at least 30 minutes on a very bumpy road. they prob have a complimentary boat twice a day, but when they go, not when you want to go. water taxis are $8 US each way. they are safe, but take longer to get anywhere cuz they stop a lot - much like a public bus.

if las terrazas in in your price range, there are many other accommodations available with easier access to, well, just about everything.

nov can be a bit less hot & humid than other times of the year.

good luck!

Thanks pugwash, that's all helpful info. Las Terrazes has a really big sale on until late November so it's actually rather reasonable. Some of the other higher end places right in San Pedro seem to be full or not coming up on expedia.

Thanks for responding,

Thanks Terrielinn!

You may want to check Victoria House. TOPS and much closer/eaiser to town.

SueDawn, may I ask if you are coming alone? If so, you may want to reconcider staying up north that far. Even in November the roads will be crap to pass in the dark and many golfcart rentals do not allow their carts past the bridge or the Palapa Bar. You do not want to be taking a cart alone up to Journey's end late at night.
Taking the water taxi means leaving when it does, so any good time you might be having will be subject to the water taxi schedule. I stayed at the Spindrift Hotel when I visited both times and I was perfectly happy. I saved a bunch of money by NOT renting a cart, I was close to restaurants and shops and was always a 5 minute ride to my room. I was so happy I never left......

lil'red , that's the way to do it.

The rooms at La Terrazas are lovely, but I agree with everyone who says it's not a place to stay if you're by yourself. Unless you actively want to be by yourself I'd stay somewhere pretty central. Spindrift is as central as it gets and whilst not luxurious is comfortable. Sunbreeze is a couple of hundred yards further south, right next to the airstrip and rather more luxurious though a LOT more expensive. Have you looked at the accommodation section of this forum?

I toured Las Terrazas earlier this year and thought they had done an excellent job with the condo units. Beautifully furnished and decorated, nicely upscale apartments. However, service and amenities may suffer a bit in comparison with a truly world-class resort like Victoria House, but then a lot of places do.

I agree with what others have said about the location. If you like to try different restaurants at every meal, go bar hopping at night, and do a little shopping, you'd be better off with a place in or near town.

--Lan Sluder

You cannot even compare Las Terrazas and the Spindrift hotel.

If you want a little luxury and be close to town how about The Palms or The Phoenix.

Just got back from 8 nights at Xanadu. Great location for the best of both worlds. Quiet at night with a great pier. Walk to town on the beach in 10 minutes (unless you make as many bar stops as we did). The rooms are very nice and space is not a problem. We used the kitchen so it was important to us. One of the prettiest pools we saw. There are several small markets minutes from your door and a couple of good local food spots. Also several nice resort restaurants within 5-8 minutes. They also have bikes for use of the guests during the day. It is US $5 for a taxi each way to center of town, which is dirt cheap after a busy day or evening of adult beverages.
Xanadu also has full time security so a single will feel safe coming in late. They too are running fall deals and booking direct is best. Stacey and Shirley will take care of you.

Edited - We saw the North end on 2 different days diving and the maps on-line are somewhat decieving. It is a lot further than it looks. We thought it would be close enough to walk, but it really is not. Thankfully, we ended up South. We also thought we would rent a cart for the week, but after realizing how close town was and how litlle taxi's were, we did not. We probably spent $40-50 US on taxi's compared to over $200 for a cart for the week. Drank the saving up. Hope this helps.

Places I would stay if I were travelling single are as follows, in no particular order. They are all within cheap taxis or walking distance of everything.
Spindrift
Sunbreeze
Exotic Caye
Changes in Latitude
Paradise Villas
Xanadu
Blue Tang
Palms

lil'red, I'd add Banana Beach to that list, very close to the top!

I stayed at Banana Beach both times I've been down to AC. Loved the staff from lobby to restraunt to cleaning and security. The owners are quite accessible as well. Can't say enough good about them. Also with their shop "Monkey Business" you will never have to wonder what you could or should do with your entertainment time.

And I'd add Pedro's, just as in Britain if you're travelling to sightsee staying in youth hostels makes a lot of sense. You get to meet other people doing something similar and exchange ideas. In an hotel you can often not talk to anyone at all, other than staff. If I were alone I wouldn't stay in several of the hotels listed, for just that reason.

agree, Peter - that's one of the benefits of the included breakfast at BB, no one sits alone at a table for long, unless they want to!

Good point. And although I've never stayed at any of these places, I've always heard very positive remarks about Banana Beach.

What Amanda said is obviously true, that in terms of cost (and therefore what you get) there's no comparison between the cheapest and most expensive places. But you can only sleep in one bed at a time and only eat one meal at a time, and going to an expensive place just because you can afford to when at that time it doesn't provide what you really need (in this case companionship and interchange of information) is silly and amounts to pointless snobbishness.

The OP must recognise that there are essentially two types of place here they can stay at - a full service hotel or a condo with no service at all (except probably cleaning). There aren't many hotels as such here - most are condos. You can be very alone staying in a condo block. True hotels include Victoria House (very high end), Banana Beach (moderate cost offering very good value, and close to VH). You could add The Tides right up at the top end of town to that list, lower still in price but still a proper hotel giving breakfast in the morning. As indeed does Changes in Latitude, which claims to be just a B&B but really offers most of the facilities of a small hotel - I've heard good stories about their breakfasts (especially the French toast). All others in the list above are condos, as is Las Terrazas.

Pedro's doesn't fit into these standard classifications, but then neither does its owner.

Thanks Ernie and Lil'red....the website look great. Appreciate the suggestions. In fact, Victoria House has a jungle/reef pakage which looks interesting. Take care,

To be honest, you will find very few singles at VH. It is a top hotel for Belize but gets mostly couples, honeymooners, and some families. I think it would be OK for a single person looking for luxury but I doubt you would meet many other singles there. I put most of my single clients closer to town and often in the Holiday Hotel as it is walking distance to all the shops, bars, restaurants, etc. Plus has a very "homey" atmosphere.

staying at pedro's at the moment
6 single guys -not travelling together-all in sep. rooms
2 single women travelling together
a married couple
2 single women -in diff rooms
all drink at the bar-remember we only talk about half of what happens here

I am a little confused as usual. Where or When did SD indicate she was looking for singles? The OP said traveling alone.
Some people do like to travel alone.

Where ever you end up staying you will find the people of the island are generally quite friendly and helpful. Just take time to enjoy yourself while you are down there.

You will love AC!! I do think however that you will be much happier staying closer to town as Sweet Jane said on the map it looks much closer than it really is and going by golf cart can be quite the ride!!

I don't think you stated how long you were staying but maybe if you have enough time split your stay and do the north and then maybe stay closer to town.