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Just to clarify why Banana Bank wasn't included in our list of lodges in Cayo -- we list and review it in the Belmopan/Hummingbird Highway section of our guide, as it's some 20 miles from San Ignacio. Below is our listing of top jungle lodges in the Belmopan area.

By the way, I need to double-check but as I recall Banana Bank still does not have air-conditioning, though a few months ago it did get on the power grid so it has 24-hour electricity.

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

>> copyright 2000

Under US$200
* * * * Jaguar Paw. If your idea of roughing it at a jungle lodge includes air conditioning, ice-cold martinis and 24-hour electricity, Jaguar Paw may be your kind of place. A lot of lodges claim to offer adventure by day, luxury by night, but this is one that actually lives up to the luxury promise. Opened in 1996, the lodge has 16 rooms in four one-story units located to the back of the main building. Rather than the thatch-roof cabaña style that has become the de facto standard for lodges in Belize, the owners, ex-Floridians Cy and Donna Young, went with North American-style construction. Each room was decorated by Donna in a different theme: Wild West (complete with a John Wayne poster), Chinese, English Country Garden, and Africa are some of them. The furnishings are of high quality, the beds firm, the accessories and knickknacks of the type seldom found in hotels, for fear of theft by a souvenir-hunting guest. The centerpiece of the restaurant in the Maya temple-inspired main building is a high rock wall with water cascading down. There's a colorful Maya-inspired mural, painted by Pamela Braun, on the 25-foot high walls of the room. Out back, next to an aviary, framed by luxuriant foliage, waits a beautiful swimming pool. The 24-hour air-conditioning at Jaguar Paw is provided by big, 100 kilowatt generators discreetly tucked away from the hotel. For the adventure part, the lodge specializes in tube floats down the Caves Branch river, which is next door to the lodge. On the trip you float through subterranean caves still filled with Maya pottery and other artifacts. There are some 9 miles of trails on the lodge's 215 acres. Jaguar Paw, like a surprisingly large number of other hotels in Belize, is for sale, though that shouldn't affect operations. Rates: US$170 double, Dec. 15-May 15, US$140 rest of year, plus tax and 10% service. Meals extra. AE, MC, V accepted with 3% surcharge. Tel. 501-8-23024, or in the U.S. 888-775-8645; e-mail [email protected]; www.jaguarpaw.com. Directions: Turn south at Mile 37 of the Western Highway and follow the dirt path about 7 miles to the lodge.

Under US$125
* * * Pook's Hill. How about a remote lodge in deep jungle, next to a river and on the site of a Maya plaza, run by an engaging couple where meals are by lantern-light and you're totally isolated from the cares of civilization? That pretty much describes Pook's Hill, a collection of thatched, Maya-style cabañas on 300 acres next to Tapir Mountain Reserve and the Roaring River. We like the rustic touches here, like hot water for showers from cohune-nut fires. Owners Ray and Vikki Snaddon, long-time Belize residents though they're both from other outposts of the British commonwealth, have a green iguana raising project underway. There's horseback riding (US$55 for a full day, including lunch) and tubing on the river (US$10 per person.) Rates US$118 double, with a 30% discount May to October. Meals are US$6 breakfast, $9 lunch and $16 dinner. MC, V accepted with 5% surcharge. P.O. Box 14, Belmopan; tel. 501-8-12017, fax 8-23361; e-mail [email protected]; www.pookshillbelize.com. Directions: Turn south off the Western Highway at Mile 52 1/2 at Teakettle village. Go about 4 miles, then turn right and go another 1 1/2 miles to the lodge (the route is well-signed.)

* * * * Banana Bank.
You're guaranteed to see a jaguar at this lodge, because Tika has lived here since 1982. It's okay -- the Belize government has granted permission for the lodge to have the jaguar. If you're brave, you can step into the cage and get an up-close and personal picture of a jaguar. John Carr, who in his youth was a real Montana cowboy and rodeo star, with a partner bought Banana Bank, then a 4,000-acre ranch with 1,500 head of cattle, in 1973. At one time the ranch had been headquarters for Belize Estates, one of the large companies that in colonial days logged huge tracts of land granted them by the Crown. John Carr and his wife, Carolyn have lived on the ranch since 1977, one of a small group of pioneering American expats who adopted Belize as their home. Carolyn is a noted artist; her paintings of Belize street scenes and wild creatures (sometimes both in the same scene) have been widely exhibited, and she has a studio at the lodge. Our favorite is her painting titled "Jimmy Hines," which shows the old market in Belize City where fishermen are cleaning lobster, snapper and jimmy hines, the local name for a type of sea bass or grouper. Anyway, back to the lodge. It's a wonderful, family-oriented spot, a great place for kids. There are five cabañas, with bay leaf thatch, on a bank above the Belize River. The cabañas are spacious, with curving internal walls and -- something new -- 24-hour electricity. You can hear howler monkeys calling, and besides Tika on the grounds of the lodge are toucans, parrots and a spider monkey named Simon. At night you can use the Carrs' 12" telescope to star watch under clear Central American skies. The food is filling and tasty, served family-style. Banana Bank is especially good for those who like to ride, as the lodge keeps about 50 horses. The horses are mixed breeds, mostly quarter horses. There's a large stable, a round pen to hone your riding skills and a larger arena. Rates: US$89 to $119 double for a cabaña and US$59 for a lodge room. Rates include breakfast. Lunch is US$10 and dinner, US$15. The lodge also offers many packages, including tours, all meals and horseback riding. Transfers from Belize City are US$25 per person one-way. MC, V accepted. P.O. Box 48, Belmopan; tel. 501-8-12020, fax 8-12026; e-mail [email protected]; www.bananabank.com. Directions: Turn north off the Western Highway at Mile 47 on a dirt road. Follow signs to a landing on the Belize River. Ring the bell, and a caretaker will bring a hand-pulled boat over to pick you up. The lodge is up the hill.

Under US$100
* * * * Ian Anderson's Caves Branch Adventure Camp.
Prepare to sweat. Set in a 58,000-acre chunk of private land on the Caves Branch river, this lodge is for travelers who like to do things outdoors. Ian Anderson, a Canadian, and his teams run fairly strenuous caving, hiking and river trips, and they do a top-flight job. They call them adventure trips, not sightseeing. Anderson says: "Of our guests 90% have never had either caving or jungle experience before coming to Caves Branch. We have taken children from the age of 6 to seniors at the age of 76 on many of these expeditions. Age is not necessarily a deciding factor. However, a degree of fitness and, most importantly, your sense of adventure is what will be the deciding factors." In short, this is not a place for couch potatoes. More than a dozen adventure tours are offered, open to non-guests as well as guests. Each Caves Branch guide has been trained in first aid and in cave and wilderness rescue. The lodge has four types of accommodations: The four cabaña suites are the most upmarket, with a master bedroom with king-size bed, inside bathroom with hot and cold shower and toilet, wicker-furnished living room with pull out bed, at US$94 double. Six jungle cabañas are more basic, with outside washroom facilities, for US$58 double. The camp also has budget accommodations in a co-ed bunkhouse, for US$15 per person; camping is available for US$5 per person (camp cooking is not allowed.) Buffet meals are delicious and healthful, at US$12 for breakfast or lunch, US$17 for dinner. Caves Branch also has a variety of packages, including a one-week "Lost World" trip which takes you to some of Belize's least visited caves, waterfalls and cenotes, for around US$1,500 a person. No credit cards. P.O. Box 356, Belmopan; tel./fax 501-8-22800, e-mail [email protected]; www.cavesbranch.com. Directions: About 14 miles from Belmopan at Mile 41 1/2 of the Hummingbird Highway (mile markers on the Hummingbird run backwards, starting at Mile 55 at the Western Highway), turn left and follow a dirt track to the lodge grounds.

Under US$75
* * * Warrie Head Lodge. The theme here is "colonial history in a natural setting" from the white lodge building to the mahogany furnishings in the 10 guest rooms. On the grounds of this former logging camp are several historic relics, including a steam tractor, once used to drag logs to the nearby Belize river, a horse-drawn sugar mill and old chicle pots. Owned by John and Bia Searle and managed by "Miss Lydia," Warrie Head still caters mostly to groups, but individual guests are welcome. Miss Lydia serves up tasty dinners. Rates are a good value at US$70 double in-season; from June 1-September 30, rates drop by US$5, and the seventh night is free with a week's booking. AE, MC, V accepted. P.O. Box 244, Belize City; tel. 501-2-70755, fax 2-75213; e-mail: [email protected]; www.warriehead.com. Directions: Turn north (watch for sign) at mile 54 1/2 of the Western Highway.