Ambergris Caye Trip Report - 02/01/01 05:07 PM
Belize Report:
Nine days in Ambergris Caye, we originally had plans to do ruins etc.
It was so nice, we never left the island. We stayed at Rubies the
entire time. Rubies is an inexpensive, more or less "travelers" hotel on the
beach. The location for us was perfect.
The important Stuff: We went
to the distributors and had two cases of Bilikin delivered to us. This
cost came to about $17us per case vs over $30us per case if you were to
buy Bilikin in the store. BTW, if you buy Bilikin, just buy the regular
beer--it is cheaper and better. If you want to buy Rum to take back to
the states etc. buy it at the Duty Free shop in the Airport. Most
folks know this.
Diving: We dove with Bottom Time Divers. They were excellent and the
least expensive on the island. Once they dive with you and know your
skills they pretty much let you dive your own profile, I was impressed
the way they worked with and encouraged beginning divers. Though I am
primarily a cold water diver, I have been to many dive destination all
over the world, I have heard a lot of bad publicity about diving around
Ambergris Caye--Bunk, Diving was excellent. For Blue hole Diving I
would recommend Amigos Del Mar. I have heard a lot of people talk about
the overnight trip on the Off Shore Express. I would not recommend.
The owners have been trying to sell this operation for some time now and
they are not properly maintaining the boat. It is in bad need of a
major overhaul.-- Stick with the one day trips -- or go to a resort at one of the
southern atolls.
Food: If you are a food or coffee snob, forget Belize. You will not
go hungry, especially if you like stewed chicken, rice and beans. Price
is not a reflection of quality. Los CoCos, inland from Hustlers was
some of my best meals. The street vendors were excellent. The Lions
club barbecue was cheap and good food too. Most of the coffee I drank
was either Nescafe or Maxwell house.
Windsurfing: I never thought of Belize as a "mecca" for wind surfing
(like some southern Caribbean islands) The winds are especially good
for surfing and there is place to rent sail boards and wind surfers, in
a palapa on the beach behind the Holiday Hotel.(barbeque on Wed nights)
near Bottom Time Dive shop.
People: The people of Belize are wonderful, "no problem" is the code
word. No "macho" attitudes like you find traveling in Mexico. All the
folks I met (from all over the world) were very nice. I hope Belize
keeps its low profile, It is not a place for "pretentious attitudes"
and I hope those types stay away from Belize.
Ruins: Go to one of the ruins, but don't try to see them all in one trip. It would be hard to combine a Tikal trip and Lamina in one week.
One more thing: Belize is a wonderful place; come, kick back and enjoy yourself. Don't try to accomplish too much in a short time.
What you don't do this trip, you can always do the next time. Belize is a place
you will want to come back to.
Bill
Nine days in Ambergris Caye, we originally had plans to do ruins etc.
It was so nice, we never left the island. We stayed at Rubies the
entire time. Rubies is an inexpensive, more or less "travelers" hotel on the
beach. The location for us was perfect.
The important Stuff: We went
to the distributors and had two cases of Bilikin delivered to us. This
cost came to about $17us per case vs over $30us per case if you were to
buy Bilikin in the store. BTW, if you buy Bilikin, just buy the regular
beer--it is cheaper and better. If you want to buy Rum to take back to
the states etc. buy it at the Duty Free shop in the Airport. Most
folks know this.
Diving: We dove with Bottom Time Divers. They were excellent and the
least expensive on the island. Once they dive with you and know your
skills they pretty much let you dive your own profile, I was impressed
the way they worked with and encouraged beginning divers. Though I am
primarily a cold water diver, I have been to many dive destination all
over the world, I have heard a lot of bad publicity about diving around
Ambergris Caye--Bunk, Diving was excellent. For Blue hole Diving I
would recommend Amigos Del Mar. I have heard a lot of people talk about
the overnight trip on the Off Shore Express. I would not recommend.
The owners have been trying to sell this operation for some time now and
they are not properly maintaining the boat. It is in bad need of a
major overhaul.-- Stick with the one day trips -- or go to a resort at one of the
southern atolls.
Food: If you are a food or coffee snob, forget Belize. You will not
go hungry, especially if you like stewed chicken, rice and beans. Price
is not a reflection of quality. Los CoCos, inland from Hustlers was
some of my best meals. The street vendors were excellent. The Lions
club barbecue was cheap and good food too. Most of the coffee I drank
was either Nescafe or Maxwell house.
Windsurfing: I never thought of Belize as a "mecca" for wind surfing
(like some southern Caribbean islands) The winds are especially good
for surfing and there is place to rent sail boards and wind surfers, in
a palapa on the beach behind the Holiday Hotel.(barbeque on Wed nights)
near Bottom Time Dive shop.
People: The people of Belize are wonderful, "no problem" is the code
word. No "macho" attitudes like you find traveling in Mexico. All the
folks I met (from all over the world) were very nice. I hope Belize
keeps its low profile, It is not a place for "pretentious attitudes"
and I hope those types stay away from Belize.
Ruins: Go to one of the ruins, but don't try to see them all in one trip. It would be hard to combine a Tikal trip and Lamina in one week.
One more thing: Belize is a wonderful place; come, kick back and enjoy yourself. Don't try to accomplish too much in a short time.
What you don't do this trip, you can always do the next time. Belize is a place
you will want to come back to.
Bill