Headed to Abergris Caye, Belize in June. Looking to plan some activities. We are staying at the new Marriott that opens in a couple weeks. Alaia Belize in San Pedro.

What are your must do's? I am a diver so Blue Hole seems like a given. Any recommendations for dive outfits? Other activities and Restaurants? Any must know before I get there?

Also fly to San Pedro from Belize City or take the Ferry?

Thanks OB

Blue water grille was the best place we ate at while we were there. Snorkeling at Hol Chan was good too.

Take the puddle jumper instead of the ferry.

Snorkeling in Belize is great (Mexico Rocks, Hol Chan, and Shark Ray Alley).

Book a half-day fishing trip. They usually stop be a secluded beach and serve lunch. Last one I was on, lunch was fresh lobsters that they caught in their traps.

Palapa Bar is fun.

Elvi's Kitchen got some great food. And there are food stands at the park next to the church. Pretty good after a night of drinking.

RealTalk said:

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Take the puddle jumper instead of the ferry.

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Definitely fly. It is a long, slow, wet ride to San Pedro

Fly

I will echo the "Fly" recommendations, although it has been over 30 years since I have been to Belize. I don't think they even had a ferry then. I rode shotgun in the puddle jumper that we took from Belize City.

It's been about 28 years for me as well. We took the puddle jumper and took a boat another time from Belize City

I'm sure that place has really changed. We stayed in Cabana Huts Great food and great people.

Scariest part was flying into Belize City and all the people lined up on top of the airport and all the military planes lined up

It has been over 20 years since I have been to Belize, so any dive op or restaurant recommendations I might give would be a bit dated. However, what I will say is that the general impression I got from others before we went, and the one that has persisted in the decades since has been that most people feel like the dives at lighthouse reef or turneffe atoll are better than the blue hole. So if you are only going to do one longer distance excursion from Ambergris, you might consider going to lighthouse or turneffe instead of blue hole. I have not been to blue hole, but most folks i talked to have said it was unique and cool for what it was, but that once they checked that box, they wouldn't have any interest in going back to do it again.

Fly.

Rent a golf cart.
Eat at El Fogon, Elvi's or Hungry Grouper.
Drink 5 Barrel rum

txags92 said:

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It has been over 20 years since I have been to Belize, so any dive op or restaurant recommendations I might give would be a bit dated. However, what I will say is that the general impression I got from others before we went, and the one that has persisted in the decades since has been that most people feel like the dives at lighthouse reef or turneffe atoll are better than the blue hole. So if you are only going to do one longer distance excursion from Ambergris, you might consider going to lighthouse or turneffe instead of blue hole. I have not been to blue hole, but most folks i talked to have said it was unique and cool for what it was, but that once they checked that box, they wouldn't have any interest in going back to do it again.

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My dad said the same about Blue hole. Bucket list but not an impressive dive.

He opened a dental office there in the 90s but that was 25 years ago too.

Post a trip report when you get back, I've been eyeing that resort as wel!

The Great Blue Hole is absolutely meh.... That said the two dives they usually do with the GBH, Half Moon Cay and Lighthouse reef are two of the most colorful, fish filled and spectacular dives I have done.

Went 2 years ago and stayed at Mahogany Bay - which was great!

-Absolutely fly to San Pedro
-I would book two fishing trips (reef fishing and flats)
-restaurant recommendations are good. Elvis was great
-we cruised around in a golf cart the whole time

Been to El Pescador which was awesome!

I think a texags poster now runs it too, but can't remember.

rent golf cart and hit secret beach.
1/2 or full day with No Rush sailing tour.

Fly, golf cart, secret beach, elvi's, fish and snorkel/scuba

El Gato tours for snorkeling at Hol Chan is great. Ask Captain Geraldo about a trip to include his coooking on board while you snorkel. His grub is as good as any you will get. A sunset cruise with him is worth while, and a great way to spend the last evening there

Fly to San Pedro for sure. We drank a lot of Belikin at Palapa during our stay. We fished with Omar's Freelance Fly Fishing and George Bradley. Highly recommend both.

Fly to Pedro
Eat at Blue Water Grill
We snorkeled Hol Chan park, didnt dive tho

Fish the flats for Tarpon, Barracuda, Bone Fish, and Permit. Don't underestimate the Permit fight. Bone and Barracuda are almost translucent on the white sand flats. Son and I did this together. GoFishBelize.

Take a boat tour to pick up some Conchs, do a little spear fishing, take the catch to a private island for a Belize BBQ. Wife and I did this with two other couples and all our kids who have played ball together since they were little (teenagers now).

Take a catamaran tour out to Hol Chan (snorkeling, I know you are a diver), then proceed to Caye Caulker for eats and drinks, returning to San Pedro/Ambergis. Did this on the same trip with the larger group of freinds totaling about 20, so we had the boat to ourselves, which made it better.

We were there March 2020 on Covid US Meltdown week. Most everyone had cancelled except for a very few Americans and Canadians. Very few. Places still open, but had our pick of tables in restaurants, eateries/bars, and tours. Even better that one of the couples do this every spring break so they casually behind the scenes set a lot up and knew the right contacts for the activities and places to hang, drink/eat.

Watching the US meltdown from there was surreal. Getting of Ambergis/San Pedro to the mainland at the end of meltdown week was really weird. We were leaving as a group of families 4,4,3. Well, our fam of 3 got bumped at the last minute on the "puddle jumper", because of "routing". When we met up on the mainland, and asked the others a few questions, it became clear that our 3 seats got "filled" with someone wanting off ($$$) more than us cause the mainland flights to the US had no more seats and our seats were filled, and it was almost becoming a panic to get back, for some folks. I got stopped at the carry on Xray on the mainland airport because I thought I had lost my knife back on the island and it had fallen into my backpack. I emptied it prior to packing the checked bags and could not find it. The Xray did. With the sign behind the guy that pulled it out, clearly saying "detainment" for anyone with items like that, I figured I was screwed. I think they were ready for the tourists to go at that point, cause he looked a the sign, back at me and waived me on, dropping the knife in a slot in a bucket that looked filled with like contraband.

If you like cigars, take your own, or buy only from Havana Cigars in San Pedro. Everything I saw was either fake or kept poorly.

Enjoy!

Puddle jumper, buy duty free booze in airport at Belize city. Expensive as hell on the island.

Golf cart.

Neris tacos.

Pappusa lady.

Chill the F out on the beach.

As posted by others, fly to SP. 15 minutes versus 2 hours and the flights are cheap.

We use Sea Star for our diving. Me and the kids all got certified by Doug McLain, who owns the operation.

Book a catamaran trip on the Lady Leslie. Martin Leslie is salt of the earth and runs a good operation. The day trip will include two or three snorkeling stops then a shore break on Caye Caulker. Food and cocktails/beer included but no drinking until snorkeling is wrapped up.

Rent golf carts to get around. Take golf carts to not-so Secret Beach for day-drinking and shenanigans. Take a trip up the island to El Norte for Superman shots.

Good coffee at Marbucks. If you want to brew your own, there is a roaster in town where you can buy your own - really good coffee. They also sell Cuban cigars. Sorry, don't remember the name of the place but shouldn't be hard to find.

Haven't had a bad meal on San Pedro. Blue Water is good if a little touristy. Elvi's is good, home-cooked food. Caramba in town has great seafood. Definitely hit the Truck Stop one night. Can't remember the name of the place but there is a joint on the bay side of the road that specializes in lion fish, which is delicious.

We'll be back down in June, too. Only negative is that Belize has pushed back lobster season, which usually opens around the 14th. Not sure why it's been moved back this year.

Enjoy your trip! We love it there.

Fly to San Pedro. It is actually a fun flight.

Been over 30 years since we dove Ambergris Cay but I will never forget diving Turneffe Elbow. It's a bit of a boat ride from San Pedro, but lots of fun. There are also some really good cave dives not too far from San Pedro reef that they use to not talk about or take many folks to. If you have a small boat and a lot of dives in your book, ask your divemaster.

fly, its fun.

we normally stay at the victoria house on ambris caye.

really like belize, but after multiple trips to the same place it did start feeling like groundhog day.

was booked for a trip back to victoria house for this may but decided to cancel because i did not want to deal with the covid crap.

We are staying at wataview house in June, this thread is helpful. We are thinking of doing a ride over to turneffe island and snorkel. Then one day of fishing.

Elvi's for the Mayan Buffet is an absolute must! Blue water is also excellent.

Definitely Fly
Drink lots of Belikin at Palapya Bar, sit in the inner tubes and meet people
Estel's for breakfast (I still think of their tortillas)
Aji Tapa lounge if you are north of the bridge
I never dove blue hole but have been told to plan for that to be a full day with most of that being on the boat. The diving just off shore is amazing. Night diving there in Ho Chan (I think) was one of the best things I did when I was there.

bassmaster07 said:

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Been to El Pescador which was awesome!

I think a texags poster now runs it too, but can't remember.

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87FlyFisher used to manage it, but he and his wife are now guiding in East Texas based on some of his recent posts.

JeremiahJohnson said:

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txags92 said:

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It has been over 20 years since I have been to Belize, so any dive op or restaurant recommendations I might give would be a bit dated. However, what I will say is that the general impression I got from others before we went, and the one that has persisted in the decades since has been that most people feel like the dives at lighthouse reef or turneffe atoll are better than the blue hole. So if you are only going to do one longer distance excursion from Ambergris, you might consider going to lighthouse or turneffe instead of blue hole. I have not been to blue hole, but most folks i talked to have said it was unique and cool for what it was, but that once they checked that box, they wouldn't have any interest in going back to do it again.

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My dad said the same about Blue hole. Bucket list but not an impressive dive.

He opened a dental office there in the 90s but that was 25 years ago too.

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I dove the Blue Hole over 30 years ago and the dive is one you talk about, but not really all that great. It's an hour-glass shape inside with some stalactites about 135' where it starts to get larger in diameter. No coral, no fish (although there was 1 lost hammerhead shark swimming around). What made it memorable is we flew out in a float plane and dove off of the pontoons. Really great aerial photo opportunities.

Definitely fly out to San Pedro, unless you want to travel with some chickens and goats! Get some ice cream at Manelly's in downtown. The place doesn't look like much, but the coconut ice cream is dayum good. Have a traditional Belizean meal (baked chicken, rice and beans) on the beach, get a massage on the beach under some palm trees, stare out over the reef for hours. We stay at Belizean Shores north of town and love it there. If you look on a map, it appears to be the closest spot to the reef. Were supposed to go last May but COVID ruined it, so we were going to go in December...no go. Hopefully maybe later this year, as we had already booked rooms and put money down for last year. Do they still have the chicken drop? I've been there a dozen times and never seen it. I'm an early riser, so it's always been my thing to get out a half hour before sunrise to watch the world light up. Can often see dolphin hunting, as well as Pelicans diving, and if you're lucky a spotted Eagle Ray breaching. Damn I'm getting 'homesick' for BZ!

jejdag said:

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Definitely fly out to San Pedro, unless you want to travel with some chickens and goats! Get some ice cream at Manelly's in downtown. The place doesn't look like much, but the coconut ice cream is dayum good. Have a traditional Belizean meal (baked chicken, rice and beans) on the beach, get a massage on the beach under some palm trees, stare out over the reef for hours. We stay at Belizean Shores north of town and love it there. If you look on a map, it appears to be the closest spot to the reef. Were supposed to go last May but COVID ruined it, so we were going to go in December...no go. Hopefully maybe later this year, as we had already booked rooms and put money down for last year. Do they still have the chicken drop? I've been there a dozen times and never seen it. I'm an early riser, so it's always been my thing to get out a half hour before sunrise to watch the world light up. Can often see dolphin hunting, as well as Pelicans diving, and if you're lucky a spotted Eagle Ray breaching. Damn I'm getting 'homesick' for BZ!

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Edit to ask, where is the palapa bar now? It used to be on the beach across from the airport, but I heard they moved it. Was always our tradition to get a Pina Colada there before anything else.

The only place I got sick at in Belize was at Caramba's. The Papusa lady and El Fogon was the best food I had all week. I actually brought a bottle of the BBQ sauce from El Fogon back home. We convinced them to sell us some.

Absolutely rent a cart and explore. Secret beach is worth the drive and is a good afternoon chill spot.

Also there are ruins really close to the airport. I think we payed a cab driver like $50 and he took us out there and hung out while we walked the ruins.

Stop and eat Ceviche at Banana Beach
If you fish and catch a small barracuda (<48"), keep it and eat it. It's amazing.
take a golf cart and go sight fish for bones on the north end of the island. No guide required
Lobster burritos in the locals district
Hand feed Tarpon
Take a kayak out the the reef north of the cut and snorkel
Throw topwaters at daybreak and catch green jacks
don't buy the "hand made" crap on the beach unless you just want to help someone. it's all for sale near the lobster burritos for 75% cheaper

Puddle Jumper for sure.

Fly - get a golf cart and hit whatever strikes your fancy
check out the truck stop one night
Get the whole fried fish at the palapa bar and ask for their secret hot sauce - its stupid good and comes in a repurposed water bottle - we brought some home.

Google Seakarus tours and get Clifford to take you out - he's a blast and if its fish, conch, lobster, etc.. you want, he will put you on it.
Secret beach is fun for about 2-3 hours then meh.....

Oh and on the transfer flight, don't freak out if you land at Caye Caulker first....they often don't tell you that when you board and you're like WTF! but its all good. Nothing a rum punch wont cure.

They still have the chicken drop - its the most over hyped touristy thing on the island - I guess you need to see it once but after that pass......you will be offered weed about 7000 times while you're there so....

And you will really have 3 beer choices for the most part - 2 types of Belikin and Landshark --- enjoy all of them