S&B,
As someone who has stayed at La Perla 2x in 2 years, the answer to your question is "it depends". Sections of the "road" (3rd world rutted, flooded, looks like Beirut on a bad day) are simply impassable by golfcart if it has rained. Plus its on the back part of the island so you have no view of the beautiful shore, reef, properties, etc. Two years ago it had been relatively dry so we rented a cart. It was still a pretty uncomfortable 45 minute ride from LaPerla to town that we only did twice in 15 days, plus you have the $5US bridge toll. Trust me, its not something you want to do very often. The extreme bouncing can be tough on certain parts of the female anatomy...I'm told. This past February there were rains a few days before we arrived so a cart is just not an option. Howwever we rode the water taxi to town a couple of times and we also rented bikes from Joe's Bikes in town for about 10 days. Frankly, that is a LOT of fun (we're 57 and 62) and not too difficult if you are in any sort of physical condition. You can easily walk to Portofino, Mata Chica, even X'tan Ha is not too far north and its beautiful. My advice, take a deep breath and get in Belize mode. It will all work out.
However if you feel you MUST have a cart, you should consider something within 2.5 miles from town. But you'll be missing some of the prettiest part of the island.
Bob
Last edited by Ambergris Bob; 04/16/14 02:08 PM.