AmbergrisCaye.com Home Forums Belize Life Living in Belize BUYING STUFF IN A/C VERSUS BELIZE CITY

Lovey,
Thanks, was not looking for mattress/box spring when I went to Mirab - guess one more trip to BC before ordering from the States.

Electronics are expensive, as are appliances. You might want to check out Court's website http://www.courts.com.bz/Default.aspx to get ideas of prices in Belize City.

I was told not to get the furniture from the little (Mennonite?)shop in town, as the wood is from the mainland and may carry insects that will come out of the wood and get in your house. I don't know if that is true, just what I heard, but I didn't want to take that chance.

Also, Lovey ordered my Supreme mattress. It is pretty comfortable, especially after hearing the horror stores of nice mattresses not being available. Thanks, Judy!

You can also check out a little of what is available at Sam's Club in Chetumal at http://www.sams.com.mx/ The catch is you have to know Spanish and can convert pesos to dollars.

Thanks for the Sam's link. I was able to convert the pesos and it looks like they have a nice king mattress for about $300 usd - don't know if that's with the box spring - doubt it.

They have large 42" screen TVs for about $1,200 usd. I know I'd still have to pay duty, but at least I'd know that it wouldn't get damaged in shipping. Also, I could take it back if there was any problem. DVD's, players, etc.

cakelee....did you buy your sofa there on AC? And if so, did you supply your own fabric or were you happy with the selection?

Just take into consideration the freight charges or backbreaking labor of buying in Chetumal and getting the items to SP. I don't have any idea what the airlines or a boat would charge to take your purchases to SP.

I did buy a sofa from Hummingbird. We were advised, as a rental unit, to go with the indoor/outdoor fabric (so wet swim suits sitting on it wouldn't be a major problem). Hummingbird had a few choices (many with patterns), and they had one that was close to my first choice I found online, so we went ahead and ordered it. One owner in our building brought her own fabric (as she had a bunch left over from some project at home), but I believe the rest of the owners who purchased from Hummingbird chose in-stock fabrics. If you are interested, email Hummingbird, and they can email you pictures of the fabrics they have in stock.

we do it all the time-buy in Mexico and pay duties

I bought a Sealy posturpedic mattress at Mirabs. You can get the miracle foam stuff there too. I bought all my furniture at Mirabs and Courts and Daves has a nice choice too.

At Mirabs you can order the Ashley furniture line. So if you are in the states you can go to an Ashley show room and then order the stuff from Mirabs.

It is easy to shop here, but a little more frustrating than in States due to the waiting period. So, slow down your date of arrival expectations and the rest is easy.

Remember if you buy stuff in Belize you don't take the risk of the international shipping .

I made some of my own furniture and had a friend sew the seating and backs. They look great and are surprisingly simple to fabricate even at the most basic skill level. You do need good tools however. I bought most of mine here and brought a few Home Depot items in. You learn to be pretty self sufficient here.

Went to Mirab and checked out the box spring & Mattresses - and remember I am picky about what I sleep on........very nice.

Thanks "indygal" for the info on the mattress - when you have a husband with a bad back, it's important to keep him happy!!!
Amanda Syme recommended same, so it must be true! Thanks to both of ya'll.

That makes it much easier than shipping from the states (or even from Chetumal). Yeah! One large item marked off the "To Do" list!

Cakelee had some great pointers, too, on bringing stuff in your suitcase and shipping "soft-goods" ahead. It's amazing how all this little stuff is adding up to be a bunch of big piles - and I'm being frugal!!! A blender takes up a lot of space, ya know! Must Have! Also decent place settings & glasses - aarghh!

But, I have to admit, after renting all these years on AC, it'll be nice to have our own things and personal touches! Cheers to all of you who have made the move!