Brings back memories! Love Chaa Creek! And love Belize! I'm looking forward to reading about your adventures there!!!

Shell, you were one of the reason we picked it! And we were pretty thrilled with the choice!

I forgot to mention that we bought our Chaa package on Luxury Link. We bid on the package, and no one else bid on it, so for under $800 we got 4 nights in a great cottage, breakfast included every day, a dinner for two, a $100 activity credit, plus free birdwatching, etc. I'd definitely use Luxury Link again. Big thumbs up for them!

So on to dinner. Chaa is set up so that you can dine anytime from 6:30-9:00p.m. Most people eat their meals on the property since the lodge is rather isolated. Each day they leave a little newsletter in your room that shows the night's menu choices, usually a beef, a chicken or fish, and something vegetarian. The meals are set up as 4 course meals, but you don't have to do all of them if you don't want to. We never wanted soup the entire time we were there. It was just too hot outside to consider eating soup, although I'm sure it was delicious. The first night my husband had lamb with veggies, and I had seafood stew with coconut rice. I also had a yummy salad with balsamic dressing. Everything tasted very fresh and homemade. Each night they started us off with a little surprise appetizer and awesome homemade bread. Tonight's little teaser was a single nacho topped with fresh veggies, beans, and surprisingly Parmesan cheese - never saw cheddar the entire time we were there. The food was really good. I've never been a big fan of "hotel" food, but this was great, delicious in fact. We had our first Belekin, the Belize version of the classic Imperial. We were starting to feel at home. The dining room is open air and filled with candlelight. Nice setting, and once the sun goes down, it starts to cool off. We decide to split the chocolate cake with ice cream - cake wasn't that great, but the ice cream was wonderful. Nice way to wind down and relax.

All of a sudden, there's a very high-pitched whistling sound, almost like an alarm. They tell us it's locusts. We have locusts back home, but I've never heard anything like that! The jungle always brings a lot of intriguing sounds. We head back to the cabin and as predicted, fall asleep at 9:00p.m. sharp. The bed is really cozy. I had move the giant electric fan to be right beside the bed, and it does a good job of moving the air around, and it's actually pretty comfortable. We're off to Guatemala in the morning to explore Tikal.

Off to a great start! Love reading the details.

Cicadas, not locusts. Chaa Creek is one of my favorite places in Belize. Enjoy.

vgirl -- I haven't been following the Belize forum. I didn't even realize you left and returned! Did you go while I was in CR? Loving the report so far...sounds wonderful! In CR there are both locusts and cicadas...so I imagine the same for Belize depending on the time of year?

Thanks, guys - hip, you and I were traveling about at the same time. Seems like we do that every year! We'll have to trade notes - Belize for Ylang Ylang!

So, for day 2, the birds started chirping at 5:00a.m. on the dot. Very hard to sleep late in the jungle. I had set up a tour to Tikal with Pacz tours because the prices were a lot more affordable than Chaa. Our guide was set to pick us up at 7:15 and arrived really promptly. Since free breakfast was included in our plan, the lodge packed up breakfast in a box for us. I love those - you never know what you'll get in that little white box! This time we got little loaves of banana bread with delicious fresh fruit like pineapple and papaya and mango. Chaa has big mango trees that grow all over the property. Good stuff. Here's a link to the tour that we did.

http://www.pacztours.net/pages/tours/tikal.html


I'm excited to head to Tikal because we'll get to see a little bit of Guatemala. The drive there is pretty uneventful. Our guide handles the border crossing and payments. A Guatemalan driver greets us on the other side. I ask to use the restroom before we head off to Tikal. The bathroom is clean, but there's no toilet paper in any of the stalls. There's an odd sign in there, "Please do not flush toilet with your feet!" It's not the first time I see a sign like that on our trip. Is that a common problem?!

On our tour, we are joined by another couple and a woman who has a thick Easter European accent who spoke little English. We're joking with the other couple that the best thing about these tours is riding in the air conditioned van! That seems like such a treat! We pass several beautiful lakes on the way to Tikal, and we stop at a neat little shop where you can buy crafts, coffee, etc. We pass a Mennonite community, and our guide makes reference to the "Millionites" that live there - earning the nickname because they're so successful in their business ventures. We pass a national park of some kind and see signs that indicate jaguars crossing - wish we could be so lucky, but no sightings for us. Our guide tells us that he has seen them crossing the road in the area so apparently it's a good spot for a sighting. A girl can dream!

We have to pull over at a police checkpoint and wonder what that's all about. Once we reach the other side of the park, we have to pull over again. The driver said that this is how they check to make sure you're not exceeding the speed limit. They actually write down what time you enter and leave and can thereby calculate how fast you were going while you were driving - good way to check speeds with very little manpower!

While we are pulled over, I glance in the back and see that the Eastern European woman riding with us is wearing a full-on windbreaker parka with hood and she has the hood on her head with the little strings pulled tightly under her chin. Only her eyes are visible. Apparently she doesn't like the air conditioning as much as the rest of us! I turn the a.c. down, but boy, was it good while it lasted!

After about 2 hours, we arrive at Tikal. It's a huge complex, really interesting with impressive architecture. You really get to explore quite a lot here and climb the pyramids. There are beautiful views, and still several areas that aren't excavated where you can see the tops of pyramids peeking out from under the vines. Our guide tells us that he has to have 100 hours of continuous education each year to keep his license. He really has an in-depth knowledge. He shows us each of the buildings, and it's amazing how you can climb all over these ancient structures. One of them is closed because tourists have died climbing it - very steep with no handrails whatsoever; you definitely would never see anything like this in the states. Too much potential for lawsuits.

We do see a lot of wildlife in the park. First off, we spot wild oscillated turkeys that have gorgeous blue, green, and red feathers. Never seen those before. As we stop to buy a cold drink at the little drink stand, we spot an Aracari feeding her babies in a hollowed out tree. Little beaks keep emerging from the opening in the tree. Later we spot spider monkeys swinging overhead. I'm so glad we got to see monkeys; they're a favorite of mine and so fun to watch. I wasn't sure we would see any on this trip! The ruins are impressive, particularly a huge carved stone head that shows their rain god. A little creepy to see the stone where people were sacrificed, but fascinating at the same time. The final pyramid we climb has a beautiful view, and we stop to take some pictures. Very glad we went here and definitely worth doing. It wasn't all that crowded, and we did spot a lot of wildlife, so I'm okay with our decision not to stay overnight.

As we're walking to our lunch spot, we pass a big tree that our guide calls the tourist tree. He asks us why we think it got that name, and we noticed that it has red peeling bark. They think it looks like all the tourists who come over and get sunburned! Belizian humor!

Lunch is good - pretty simple but very tasty roasted chicken with squash on the side. After lunch, we get in the van to head back to Chaa. The driver gets so close to things in the road, but amazingly never hits anything. If there's a dog asleep in the road, he will pull right up to it to get it to move. Same thing with pigs, horses, etc. We can't believe how close he gets, but it seems like all the animals know the drill and get up to move. We spot a coati on the side of the road, and they let us pull over to take pictures. They are too cute! We make it back to Chaa in one piece and head back to our cabin. We see agoutis running all over the property - another lucky wildlife sighting that makes us pretty happy!

Reading your trip report is such fun. Wish I could write like that.

Thanks, Jean - you were a big help with my trip planning. By the way, I meant Eastern accent up there, not Easter accent - lol!

So dinner tonight is filet mignon for me, and snapper for my husband. Later on we learn that if you want two entrees, you can do a split with a smaller portion of each, or you can even order off the lunch menu if you want to save money. Chaa Creek is all about flexibility. We run into one of the front desk operators named Onil and talk to him about doing some tours, and he immediately says, "Okay, Mr. and Mrs. VG in cabin X" - already knows on sight our names and cabin number. To me, that's really what this place is all about - great service and kind of an intimate environment. Love it! The Belizean people are a little more quiet than those in CR, but they are friendly. To me, they almost have a sort of quiet dignity. You don't pay for a thing while you're here; just mention your room number, and it all gets put onto one bill for the end of the trip. I ask Onil about how our free dinner will be handled, and he says, "I just look at your bill and remove the most expensive one!"

Dinner's starter is a piece of sushi - I'm not a huge fan, and this is a little unexpected, sushi in the jungle! I have a great salad with honey lime dressing followed by the filet which is delicious. After years of having chewy beef in CR, this one is more like home. Tonight's bread is beer bread; my husband is nuts for bread, so he's pretty happy. We split carrot cake for dessert. To us, it's a little dry and not sweet enough, but that's probably just our American palates. Everything else is delicious. As we head back to our cabin, we see that one of the night hikes is starting. A dozen people in headlamps are strolling around the gardens. They start running toward us, and I see that's there's a little animal in front of them. They are right on its heels, and it's headed straight for our cabin! I can't quite figure out what it is. At first I think opossum, but as it turns toward us, it has a face with big dopey eyes, like a sloth. What the heck is this thing? And me without my camera! This is where I learned my lesson - never go to dinner or anyplace without toting the camera along because you never know what's going to happen. My husband dashes into the cabin to grab it, and I'm excited that this cute little guy is headed right for me until the guide yells, "Mexican porcupine!" And then I realize it can hurl quills at me. It's really on the run so I'm not too worried. My husband runs back out and I get a great picture of the porcupine's behind as it dashes off into the darkness. Definitely put the night hike on the to do list! We go back to the cabin to relax. I can't say enough about how much we love this cabin. To combat the heat, we pick up a bag of ice at the bar - there are nice metal ice buckets in the rooms, and the ice is actually still there in the morning. I crank up the big electric fan and we drift blissfully off to sleep.

I love reading your report - it makes me want to go back! I remember there was no cheese whatsoever in Belize, only cheeze whiz (interesting). Looking forward to reading more... do you have any pictures?

sharie, that's funny about the cheese thing. Our guide also told us that there are no American fast food chains in Belize either. We've seen them all over CR, so that surprised me. We did see a Subway in Belize City, but it had gone out of business. Some issue of the government making them buy their meat in Belize than rather importing it from the U.S. I'm kind of glad not to see them.

On to day 3, which started with an early morning birding hike. These are free, and you can do as many as you want to. We saw a bat falcon, a crimson collared tanager (beautiful!), a chacalaca, gray-necked wood rails (sound like chickens!), red-billed pigeons, a huge bunch of olive-throated parakeets that are pretty chirpy, rufous-tailed hummingbirds, a golden-fronted woodpecker, a yellow-olive flycatcher, royal flycatcher (this one is really cool!), tropical peewee (isn't that a great name?!), lots of social flycatchers, a sulphur-bellied flycatcher, tropical kingbird, a masked tityra, a yellow-green vireo, brown jays, a band-backed wren, spot-breasted wren, clay-colored robins, a yellow-winged tanager, buff-throated and black-headed saltators, tons of melodious blackbirds that are appropriately named, and yellow-throated and scrub euphonias. Our guide is named Meshack; I'm probably slaughtering the spelling, but he really knows his stuff and is fun to walk around with. We have another couple on our tour. They are much more die-hard than we are and have a lot of birdy knowledge. They ask us if we are birdy nerdy! The woman gets really excited whenever she sees anything - they have life lists and all that. They're fun to tag along with. Meshack also shows us some interesting plants. One is this cool grass that grows all over the ground. He tells us to touch it, and when we do, all of the blades and leaves immediately close up. Sort of magical. We all run our hands and feet over the grass marveling as we watch it move. Looks like something from a Harry Potter movie. There's another plant with big fruit in it, and we ask him the name. "Horse balls!" Isn't that funny? The fruit kind of grows in clusters. A lot of technical names here in Belize - tourist tree, horse balls - lol! We see some big iguanas strolling around the property. We thank M. and head off to breakfast.

This is the first time we'll have a real sit-down breakfast. You can get any kind of eggs, toast, sausage, bacon, fruit, etc. I get the special of the day - Huevos Rancheros with avocado and refried beans. My husband orders French toast. His comes with this incredible mango jam. The server tells me that it's homemade - yum, it tastes like it. Mine comes with a little bowl of sauce on the side. It looks suspiciously red and hot and spicy. I ask the server if it's hot, and he says, "It's not too hot for me..." I dip a fork in and taste it - turns out it's habanero sauce. It is fiery! I eat jalapenos and things like that, but this one has me reaching for my water glass! Breakfast, as expected is good, and we head back to the cabin to relax in the hammocks on the patio. There are two of them, and they are huge, colorful, and really cozy. We have two other hikes scheduled for the day so want to relax while we can. We are really lucky with the weather. No rain. It is pretty warm during the day, and without a.c., we decide that we'll hit the pool for the first time later in the day. Chaa has a beautiful new swimming pool that looks really inviting.

I'm glad you decided to give Belize a visit but I wondered if you'd like it as much as Costa Rica. Sounds like you had a great time! Hmm...I never saw the signs to not flush the toilet with your feet. Pretty funny. Did you get to take the ATM tour?

I loved Belize. I keep thinking we will make it back but other places have diverted us! I'm so glad you enjoyed your trip.

wanna, I did like it as much as Costa Rica, but I like different things about each country. I really love the active volcano, waterfalls, and abundant wildlife of CR, but Belize seemed to have more history/culture to explore, and wow, the beach (yet to come!) was amazing. We decided that our ideal trip would be Arenal and Ambergris, but I guess that would take a little maneuvering.

We had lots of funny bathroom encounters. At the border crossing, there was a handicapped stall in the women's restroom with a sign saying "Warning $25 fine for non-handicapped use" but the bathroom had a huge chain and padlock wrapped around it. Even a handicapped person couldn't have used it. At Tikal, there was no toilet paper in the stalls whatsoever. After I got out, I saw a toilet paper dispenser OUTSIDE the stall. I learned to always carry a napkin or Kleenex tucked into my pocket.

Toucan, we really loved it too; I don't think I ever would have tried it if it weren't for this board.

Ah, so the pool! It's really pretty - an infinity pool with pretty glass metallic tile and a water wall in front. They have an area where you can get massages by the pool if you want to. It's really refreshing, and we decide to just eat lunch there since the menu is the same as the restaurant's. There's a server that comes around periodically. I get homemade limeade that's really good. For lunch, we decide to eat something light and go with ceviche and a big salad. They hit the spot. Around the pool, we meet a lot of people, and seems like almost everyone is from Texas. I guess that 2-hour flight really lures them in! Another big attraction going for Belize is the fact that their native tongue is English. I caught myself saying, "Gracias" to a few people! The people don't seem to have much of an accent here, but sometimes when they talk to each other, they take on a bit of a Creole accent - they'll say "rivah" for river or "tree" for three. Most of the people we meet are Mestizos. We have a nature hike schedule for 1:00, so we head off to change and meet up with our guide.

Here's a link to Chaa for anyone interested. We really did love it.

http://www.chaacreek.com/

Glad to hear you enjoyed Belize and Chaa Creek!

Thanks, SiteC!

Well, we lingered a bit too long by the pool, so we have 5 minutes to change and run off to meet our guide. Most of the tours meet up in the bar area. We run in with our wet hair ready to get started spotting wildlife. Given all that we saw in Guatemala, we are pretty optimistic!

So we start hiking uphill - somehow it seems that MOST of this hike is uphill! Our first encounter is stingless bees; they kind of swarm around our heads, but the guide says they have no stingers. Never knew there was such a thing! Then the guide shows us the magic grass; we don't tell him that the other guide has already stolen his thunder on that one. It's still cool to see it again. More hiking - it's very mosquitoey, some of the worst we've ever seen, just swarms of them. This day seems worse than the others. We're glad we have repellent on. We even had to reapply it as we hiked. The guide refuses to wear any, so the mosquitoes seem to be swarming him even more. He comments on how this isn't really the norm; maybe the recent rains have made them worse, but they're pretty bad.

We go by a tree, and he says that "this is a tourist tree" - yep another one we've already seen! He grabs handfuls of plants and asks us to sniff them and guess what they are. I love to cook but am unable to identify basil, cilantro, etc. They just grow wild here. As soon as he tells me I recognize the smells right away. It's pretty cool, but this hike turns out to be much more plant and bird oriented than what we're used to. We do see some neat birds - a beautiful black-headed trogon and a gorgeous red-legged honeycreeper, lots of brown jays, and poisonwood trees that you can't touch - those will make you break out into a rash. Towards the end of the hike, a big black bird swoops right over our head - a keel-billed toucan - we love that one! The guide says everyone always wants to see a toucan! I miss the monkeys that are so prevalent in CR, but our guide says that there are howlers here. We hear them but never see them.

More hiking, still somehow going uphill! We end up at a gorgeous vista spot with a view that goes for miles. Everything is so lush and green, and there are some buried Mayan ruins up there. If you do the horseback riding, you end up in the same spot - really beautiful.

Time to hike back down and instead of going back the way we came up, we just sort of step off the front edge of the vista point. I seriously think the guide is kidding because there doesn't seem to be much of a path there, but he has a machete and chops through a few vines and off we go. We're getting pretty tired, and we have a night hike scheduled for the evening - yep, we're going for the hiking trifecta today!

We get back to our cabin and curl up in the hammocks and kick back to read and relax. Rolling thunder sounds around us, and we get a few rain sprinkles, but nothing more. I love the rain because it helps to cool things off. As we head back inside, we see that the housekeeper has moved the giant fan back to the corner. Every day I move it to the bed, and every day she moves it back to the corner! It's like a giant chess game. I love that fan, so back to the bed it goes! The temperature in our cabin hovers between 79 which is really comfortable and 89 which isn't!

We start stripping off our clothes to just relax on the bed and cool off. Husband is in boxers, and I'm in a t-shirt and panties. All of a sudden, we get our newsletter delivery! We have our front door open since it lets the breeze in and it faces our private patio. Next thing I know a man is standing in our cabin with our newsletter, and there we are in our undies. I guess he's used to it because he doesn't bat an eye, and says, "Hi, there - here's your newsletter!" It was kind of funny! I think a Do Not Disturb sign would be a great addition to this place.

Definitely enjoying your report! Loved the homemade limeade and we had lunch or snacks by the pool quite a few times. I had ceviche there for the first time and I'm hooked! I'm always asking my husband to make it for me now! Funny about the newsletter and you in your underwear!!

My husband said maybe he thought we were in our bathing suits. We'll go with that theory because it's less embarrassing!

Dinner that night is ribs and coconut shrimp. The ribs are honestly one of the best things I've ever eaten. They were really delicious. Mr. VG was in heaven. We also get Belekin Light House Beers and tiramisu for dessert. The tiramisu is surrounded by these little pieces of fruit that I think are raspberries, but on closer inspection I can't really figure out what they are. Berry colored but square. The server tells me it's dragon fruit. I've heard of it in passing but never seen one. He grabs one for me off the fresh fruit display, and it looks sort of artichokish, but the inside is a beautiful magenta color. To me, that's one of the best things about traveling someplace new, discovering all these little things. We finish dinner and get ready for our night hike. They had told us that we had to wear long pants and enclosed shoes. The birdy nerdy couple was planning on doing it too, so we look forward to seeing them.

We all assemble at the bar for the night hike; they have industrial strength head lamps for us to wear. Our guide Adrian notices that the birding couple is wearing shorts and flip flops and tells them that for safety's sake, they'll have to change. Bad thing is that they haven't packed long pants or enclosed shoes. They end up not letting them go which is disappointing, but understandable. Along for the ride with us are another couple and a family with three kids. After the porcupine incident, I'm looking forward to some good spotting. We've done a night hike in CR and seen raccoon, fox, sloth, etc. So off we go...

Adrian tells us to shine our headlamps in the grass, and reflected back are what look like hundreds of little shining sequins. The reflection off spider eyeballs! The kids really love that! We hike more - uphill again! WE hike, and hike, and hike, and you know what? We don't see anything! Adrian tells us that he can never guarantee sightings, and we understand that. I'll have to give the wildlife advantage to Costa Rica - seems like wildlife is way more abundant there. We still have fun though. Every one in a while, the kids will yell out that they've spotted something, and it will be a tiny toad or one time the littlest scorpion you've ever seen - about the size of a fingernail. The kids have eagle eyes. Adrian takes us down by a frog pond, and we do end up seeing lots of toads and frogs - sheep frogs and cane toads, and leopard frogs. We begin the long hike back, and we see a rice rat - it's actually kind of cute and fluffy. As we approach the cabins we see an opossum dart by and a few tarantulas. Total hours of hiking this day for us = 7, and we're pretty wiped out. But we managed to stay up until 11:00 - that feels like a big accomplishment in itself!

So, this brings me to our last day in the jungle. We had a great debate about which tour to do because we wanted to tube through the caves, do ATM, and also canoe at Barton Creek.

I wish we had more time, but it's almost time to move on to the beach portion of the trip. I really want to see some Mayan history, but we don't want an all day trip. Given that we spent 7 hours hiking the previous day, we decide on the Barton Creek canoe caving. The guides say it's beautiful and that we'll see some neat things along the way. Husband promises that we'll do ATM next trip, and I'm going to hold him to it. I know we'll go back to Belize.

We meet our guide, Miguel, who looks a little bit like a Belizean movie star. He's interesting and charming. I tell him that we really like to see wildlife so he says he'll keep an eye out for us. He spots an aracari, and we pull over to take pictures. This one has a nest in a telephone pole and little babies are poking their beaks out. It's nesting season. He also sees a big snake in the road, but it slithers off before we can take any pictures. He's a great guide and really interesting to talk to.

On the drive there, we end up behind an Amish horse and buggy. Then another one, and another one. I really want to take pictures, but Miguel says that you can't take pictures of them - it's just so interesting to see them, and again it's amazing to see all the diversity in this country. They're very friendly and tip their hats as we go by. Miguel says they drive about 16 miles on a bumpy road to take fruits and vegetables into town to sell. Several were already making their way back. One had a cart full of tiny piglets.

The road that we take goes right through their property, so we see men working in the fields, cows, oxen, etc. I think they're just as curious about us as we are about them. We wave as we go by, and they wave back. I imagine how hot they must get on those dusty roads, dressed in long pants and wearing long-sleeved shirts.

We arrive at Barton Creek, and the water in the creek is running high, so we park the car and decide to walk over the bridge - a rickety bridge that's really just a few planks spaced kind of far apart - again something you would never see in the U.S. but kind of fun. Before we come to the cave, we walk through lush green fields. It's gorgeous here, and I'm glad we came. This is a protected area, and there are bathrooms you can use before you go into the cave.

Miguel says that one person needs to paddle, one needs to be the photographer (me), and one needs to handle the spotlight (hubby). I got the easy job. It is gorgeous here. I really love it. There's a worker who helps us all into the canoe, and we set off with Mr. VG in front, then me, then Miguel. We can hear toucans calling around us. They sound like frogs croaking in the distance. There's a big battery in the boat that the spotlight will be hooked up to. The water is a beautiful shade of greenish blue and clear so that you can see fish swimming around. There are lush green vines dangling around us. We approach the cave, and it's kind of eerie because we don't have our spotlight on yet, and it's dark inside. Miguel has me hook up the light, and he paddles us in.

It's full of really cool rock formations, stalagmites and stalactites, and we see some bats. The walls sparkle like diamonds in some spots due to the calcite crystal formations. There's even a rock bridge that goes across the top of the cave. The cave opens up really high in some spots and then is very short and narrow in others. Miguel asks my husband to shine the light to the left, and the light lands on a human skull. This is a Mayan sacrificial site that was used for religious ceremonies. There are also bats flying around in the cave. The whole thing is very cool, eerie, spooky, interesting, and beautiful all wrapped up into one package. Miguel tells us that Mayans viewed these caves as a portal to the underworld. Skeletal remains of 28 people have been found here, most of them women and children.

We go further into the cave with Miguel directing on where to shine the light, and we also see pieces of old Mayan pottery that have become calcified along with the cave. We don't see any other people, and it's neat to have the place all to ourselves. Eventually we hear some voices from far away, and it's easy to imagine that there are Mayans in there or ghosts. Miguel narrates the entire trip and says that some people are bothered by tour guides taking people into the caves because they are still considered sacred to some people. I feel lucky that we got to see it. On the way out, Miguel says I can unplug the light, so we can be in total darkness. I detach the cable from the battery and the darkness envelops us. Just a really cool experience.

As we exit the cave, we pass other canoes that are making their way in. We start hiking back, and I spot a spider monkey. Wow, this is exciting, but then Miguel tells us not to get too excited because this one is on a chain. An adjacent property owner keeps it chained up. It's sad really, and I can tell it makes Miguel sad to see it. He says that people reported it, and the monkey was taken away, but the owner managed to get it back somehow. Why anyone would want to do that is beyond me. The monkey looks lonely.

We head back to Chaa and make it there just in time for lunch. Burger and fries for hubby and a big salad for me. Chaa makes all of their dressings homemade, and everything is really good. Since we're back with half a day left, we decide to visit the museum and blue morpho project. I'm also hoping that we'll get to see the howlers. The owners brought howlers to the area several years ago, and they've set up a couple of different troops. We keeps hearing them, but they remain elusive. People from the tent camp tell us that the howlers are keeping them awake all night long so I know they're nearby.

How fantsastic to relive the trip into the caves, from the Menonites to the canoes and unplugging the light. It was an absolutely amazing experience eight years ago and sounds like it is still as magical. I am so looking forward to the rest of your trip. My husband and I honeymooned at Victoria House fourteen years ago and have made a few return trips since then. I am always looking to go back but especially to take our daughter there.

Thanks for posting such a detailed report. Belize is one of our favorite destinations, too, but our trips are entirely different from yours - something for everyone!

more more more!

We really enjoyed Barton Creek too. That monkey made me so sad, I wouldn't even walk over to it. Broke my heart. It's funny because our hometown is right smack in the middle of Pennsylvania Amish country and we were so surprised to see Amish and Mennonite people in Belize! And they have their pictures taken ALL the time here by tourists - you're supposed to ask them. We had an addition put on our house last summer and nearly all the contractors were Amish and with all of their lack of technology, wouldn't you know they all had their cell phones But I couldn't help myself from snapping a picture of the Amish roofers taking their lunchbreak, sitting on the the lawnchairs they'd brought with them, under one of our trees, reading the newspaper...it was classic.

Anyway - your time at Chaa Creek sounds wonderful and yes, you have a reason to go back for ATM! You'll LOVE it!

Enjoying your report so far! Did you keep a journal while you were there? I always say I will, but never do. Loving all the details. Hoping to take daughter to Belize/Guatemala late August next year (shorter "adult trip" to CR early Summer) so taking lots of notes.

Following and enjoying it all

odie, magical is a great way to describe it, and I can't imagine a better place than Belize for a honeymoon. If I could take up permanent residence in Victoria House, I would do it in a heartbeat. Thanks, sharie for slogging through my report!

Shell, I've never seen Amish people before. They are really fascinating to me. I am compulsive with the camera, and it was so hard for me not to take their pictures. I came home and googled it, and it said they are not allowed to POSE for pictures, so technically I think maybe I could have done it, but I didn't want to offend them. I think you're the one that turned me onto Barton Creek Cave - wow, it was so cool!

hip, I didn't take a journal. I made notes on my Chaa Creek note pad! hopeful, I enjoy your trip reports too.

I think if someone had plunked me down between Chang's Grocery and an Amish cart and had me guess where I am, Belize probably would have been the last thing on my mind. What a neat cultural mix.

Hey, Percy!

After lunch we head off to the natural history museum and blue morpho farm that they have on the property. They are both uphill as usual! There wasn't a guide at the museum when we were there, and I think we would have gotten more out of it if there had been, but there are some neat artifacts and cool info. on the howler project. There are also some animal skulls, snakes in jars, and a display that looks like a mayan hut. I really like the display showing all the different bird's nests, including a tiny hummingbird one. A guide comes in and says that they are about to start the butterfly tour, so we head over to the little butterfly shelter that's next door. It's one of those double-doored buildings designed to prevent the butterflies from escaping. It's pretty small, but the cool thing is that they show you the entire life cycle of the butterflies. They show you the eggs, and then tiny caterpillars, bigger caterpillars, pupas, etc. The eggs are on leaves that contain cyanide, so when the caterpillars eat the leaves, they pick up some of the poison and become toxic to birds. It's all really interesting. As we walk through the little shelter, one lands on my husband's red shirt, and another one lands on top of a girl's hat. Despite our best efforts, one escapes while we're all exiting. It flits off happily, looking like it's enjoying the freedom of the great outdoors. And the guide says, "A bird's gonna get that one." So much for freedom!

We hike back and go to the conference center to check our e-mail. There are two computers you can use if you need them. And then we head off to dinner. Tonight is blackened tilapia and chicken with chimichurri sauce served with roasted potatoes. I get the drink special of the day which is a rum and cranberry midori punch. Tully, I thought of you since it's midori! There's some kind of pudding for dessert, but I'm intrigued by something I saw on the lunch menu, and ask if I can have the fresh fruit sorbet instead. They run off to the kitchen to check and come back with delicious papaya sorbet - wow, it's so good! We should have been eating this all along!

We go back to the cabin to relax and eventually drift off to sleep. Howlers start going off at 1:00 a.m. and awaken me. I am determined to see them before we leave!

VG, your report is so enjoyable to read, and helpful, too. You do such a nice job of describing everything from the environment to the food to the activities. I'm really getting a "feel" for what a trip to Belize would be like. It's on my list for someday. Happy to hear that you enjoyed your trip!

Me too, nice report VG, we stopped in Belize on a cruise a few years ago, it poured the whole day, ended up going to the zoo. Your report makes me want to return!

Thanks, jn - we really can't recommend it enough. I started reading trip reports and realized I've never read a bad one about Belize. Thanks for reading though all of mine. I hope you make it there someday. I think you'd really love it.

I'm really enjoying your report, VG! I always like reading about your adventures.

Belize has been on my 'to do' list for awhile, and it sounds like I really ought to move it closer to the top. It was a prime contender a few years ago, but I ended up going to Costa Rica instead (for my very first trip) because the airfare was much cheaper. How did the trip costs stack up overall in comparison to CR?

Hi, c! Belize is more expensive. We travel using miles, so that wasn't a huge factor for us, but for tours and food and everything, Belize seemed pricier to us. We stayed at some of the more expensive places, but even Çhaa has a more affordable alternative. They have a tent camp that's popular called the Macal River Camp, and you can still use the Chaa grounds if you stay there - it's just cheaper than getting one of the cabins. We met people that were staying there, and they really liked it.

A lot of the tours are set up like they are at BdC - if you have more people going on the tour, then the cost drops. A big part of the price is the transportation. We used Luxury Link to save money, and I was afraid we might get a bad cabin or view or something, but Chaa really came through with us and gave us everything we requested which I think is awesome. We wanted a king-sized bed, private patio, nice view, and they said they would do their best, and they did. We got it all.

If you like CR, you'll like Belize. Belize is easier to get around, the roads are in better shape, I thought the food was better, and things are in English which is both good and bad I guess. I kind of missed practicing my Spanish, but everyone speaking English and the signage being in English sure is easier. We saw a lot more wildlife in CR, but beaches and snorkeling and ruins are better in Belize. CR has the volcanoes which earns it big points with me. It's hard to choose a favorite; I think they're both pretty terrific. I also really love the waterfalls in CR; Belize may have some, but we didn't see them in the areas we went to.

Day 5 - Today we get to enjoy a real sit-down breakfast. I like the breakfast in a box, but this seems like a real treat. We end up ordering eggs, bacon, sausage, toast, and juice. I'm excited to see that homemade mango jam again. The bacon is huge, looks more like ham than bacon - not sure if this is Belizean or just at this lodge, but it tastes good.

Today we're heading off to Ambergris, so we want to take one last look around and shoot a few photos, check out the gift shop, etc. So, lo and behold what do I see? A howler monkey! He waited until our last day, but he showed up! He doesn't seem inclined to pose for photos and is sitting high in a tree, so I get a couple of shots that look like a big black ball of fur, but at least we got to see him!

We go to check out, and it's an easy process. We'll be going through the Municipal airport this time because the flight was cheaper, and I ask the concierge if there's a gift shop or place to eat lunch there. He looks amused and says, "I would be pleasantly surprised." I don't get my hopes up.

I asked one of the guides if Belize has an army, and unlike Costa Rica they do. We ask when the last time they were at war was, and the answer is never. Sounds like a good army to be in!

We meet our driver, Alexi, and just like the other guides and drivers, he's smart and interesting to talk to. We talk politics, culture, religion, etc. We pass a few interesting things on the road. One is a joint venture between Belize and Taiwan to study the genetic engineering of plants. Rumor has it that they are trying to develop a square watermelon! We also see a number of basketball courts. Basketball seems popular here. A lot of Belizeans follow the NBA. The Chicago Bulls seem to be popular.

The drive takes a couple of hours, and eventually we end up back in Belize City. We pass through a pretty rough looking area, and Alexi says that you probably wouldn't want to walk on this street at night. It's a big change from the jungle environment. Looks very urban.

He drops us off at the airport, and it's teeny. We get our bags unloaded, and enter the small building. It's basically just a counter and some chairs where you wait for your flights. There are also restrooms, which is a step up from some of the CR airports I've seen. No gift shop or restaurant for sure though! My husband goes up to the counter, and tells them our names, and the clerk says, "Let me get your boarding passes." At which point, we are each handed a laminated piece of paper that says "Boarding Pass" - lol! No time, gate, number, etc. Just Boarding Pass!

We had asked Victoria House to book our flights for us, and we notice on our paperwork that instead of the 1:00 flight back that they told us they would book, they have us on a 9:00 a.m. flight the last day. It's on Tropic Air, so we decide to clear it up with the clerk, so there's no hassle the last day. Our flight back to the states isn't until 4:00, and we don't want to spend the day at the airport after flying back from the island. He says he can't help us and that we should talk to Tropic Air. Okay, but we're at Tropic Air. No help, so we figure we'll just work it out with Victoria House once we get there.

We sit down to relax, and then they say that we're boarding the plane. It's really early, but I guess everyone is there, so we hand them our passes and board. They seat us by weight so big guys go in the front and kids in the back. There are about 13 people on the plane. One of the drivers had told me to sit on the right side to get good photos, and luckily I end up on the right hand side. We take off and pretty soon we're over some amazingly beautiful water - greenish blue and gorgeous. Lots of little colorful houses appear below us. We're getting excited to get our first glimpse of Ambergris. And to see the famous Victoria House. And to get in the air conditioning! After a quick 15 minute flight, the plane lands and we're off on a new adventure!

So the Tropic Air Airport is actually pretty nice. They get our bags unloaded quickly and we're taken to an outside area to pick the bags up. It's funny because they unload them from the cart right in front of you, but there's a rope between you and your bags, and you're not allowed to cross it. Meanwhile pushy drivers are all trying to get us to get into their taxis. I should mention that Tropic Air doesn't have the strict luggage restrictions that Sansa and Nature Air have, so we've gone a little nuts with the baggage. I have a big rolling bag, as does my husband, and we each have a smaller bag and a carry on. Once we get the luggage, we're sort of bogged down, and we can't find our Victoria House driver.

We're standing there with all our bags, and the taxi drivers are hounding us, and our driver just isn't there. It's kind of freaky because the drivers are pushy, and the taxis don't look like taxis; they look kind of like creepy vans that have seen better days. How do we know who has a legit taxi? It's stressful because we were counting on the pickup, and now we're not sure if they're coming to get us. The drivers are all yelling, "taxi, taxi, taxi" but we tell them VH is on the way to get us. Finally one guy just picks up our luggage and puts it in his van and says, "Get in the van and come with me." Okay, we don't really have a choice, so we get in. I ask the guy a few questions to see if he's a real taxi driver, and my quiz consists of questions about good places to eat breakfast, shop, etc. He answers them all, so I feel like we're probably not being led off to our doom. He tells us that VH will reimburse him, so we don't have to pay him. He's actually pretty nice.

Here's my hint to you - the vans with green license plates are taxis. I wish we had known that from the start. We drive a couple of miles through town, and it's a cute little place - lots of restaurants and little shops, very colorful. I like it already. We pull up in front of Victoria House, and it's beautiful. Pretty hibiscus blooming everywhere and right on the beach. It seems very quiet and private. We go to reception and tell them that no one picked us up; they check and our name is on the list, but they just neglected to get us. No one says they're sorry or offers much of an explanation. I don't know if it's cultural or just this hotel, but they don't seem to want to deal with it, so they give us the room key and someone leads us off to our room.

We get the to room; ours is called a Plantation Room, and it's gorgeous. Decorated in dark woods with creamy fabrics and a big gauzy canopy over the bed. Pictures of palm trees; it looks very Caribbean. We head out to the private balcony, and get a load of the view - white, white sand, lots of palm trees, the pool. I'm starting to feel less annoyed. There are two nice robes on the bed and hibiscus flowers everywhere. Also a little box of chocolates and best of all two free drink tickets. Okay, I can get over it, and we head off to the dive shop and to lunch!

I hadn't realized that VH has its own snorkel and dive shop where you can book tours. This made things pretty easy for us. I know we want to go to Hol Chan and Shark Ray Alley, so we reserve that for the next day. We just tell them our room number, and our reservation goes up on the board. They tell us that they really limit the size of their tours - around 6-8 people max. We can't wait! The dive shop is a little straw palapa just sitting out over the water on a long pier. It really looks like something out of a Corona commercial - white sand, gorgeous teal water, palapas, nearby a hammock swings in the breeze. I really love this beach. While I'm normally a go, go, go girl, I think I could just sit in this spot for 3 days and be happy! The sand is powdery and soft.

We decide to go to the bar for lunch, wanting to try something with a more local flavor, husband gets stewed chicken with rice, and I get a lobster po-boy. Both are great. We sit out on the patio and enjoy the view. The portions are huge, so we get the leftovers boxed up to take back to our room since it has a minifrig. A minifrig and air conditioning seem like huge luxuries after a few days in the jungle!

http://www.victoria-house.com/

I am thoroughly enjoying your trip report! We are headed to Belize next March for 9 days and are planning to stay at both Chaa Creek and Victoria House (though I haven't booked them yet) so this has been very helpful! Can't wait to read more...

sessa, I'm jealous; I already want to go back. I think you will really enjoy it!

We get back to our room, and I open up the frig to find it full of towels! Tons of them, and the frig is hot. This is where a phone in the room would be great, but no such luck, so we troop back down to reception.

They seem perplexed and say they'll send someone to check it out. Turns out the housekeeping staff was defrosting it, so they remove all the towels and crank it back up, and it's ready to go. That was pretty easy; the housekeeper is really sweet and apologetic. It's no big issue for us - we're glad they got it fixed so quickly. I ask where we can fill up our ice bucket, and the woman says that they fill it for you, but only if you ask. She fills ours up and leaves. I wish there were an ice maker somewhere for us to access; I hate having to bother someone to get it. Turns out this woman fills ours up every day without our asking, and she leaves a beautiful hibiscus flower on top of the ice bucket to let us know she's been there. Pretty thoughtful.

Husband and I snuggle up on the bed and drift off to sleep. I'm not a napper, but wow, this is just too cozy - soft linens, tons of pillows, the breezy canopy. Pretty much heaven. When I wake up, my husband looks over at me and teases, "I've never seen you like this. Is this what you look like when you're relaxed?!" Ha, ha, ha!! After the nap, we head off to dinner. We get a grouper sandwich and a snapper dish with veggies. Seafood here is excellent. I'm falling in love with Victoria House.

The next morning we wake up, and I'm already excited - today is Hol Chan day!

A continental breakfast comes free with the room. We head down to the outdoor seating area to enjoy the view, and the server brings us each a little basket. Inside is a variety of pastry/muffin items - 3 each. Bread loving husband is pretty happy. I decide to pop a Dramamine. Even though there aren't waves inside the reef, the water is choppy, and it's windy.

We head out to the dock at 8:45 for our 9:00 a.m. pickup. We see on the board that 2 other couples will be joining us - a nice small group. Our guide Leonardo pulls the boat around, and we all climb in. Leonardo is very tan and barrel-chested. He says he's been diving for 30 years, so we're in good hands. One girl is very nervous because she's not a good swimmer. He asks us who is comfortable in the water, and everyone but she raises their hands. He hands her a life jacket, and she puts it on.

The trip to Hol Chan is pretty quick since we're close to the reef. Leonardo jumps in first. I hadn't realized he'd be joining us, but he says it's a guided tour - awesome! That makes me even more excited. I know he'll spot things that we would never see.

Right away, he says, "Sea turtles" - then "Nurse shark" - each time he yells something out and points, we all dunk our heads under to get a better view. Two big turtles swim by me close enough to touch. I see an 8 or 9-foot nurse shark go by. There are stingrays, and huge groupers, snappers - lots of big wow moments here. I just love it! They're in front of us, behind us, under us, and there's some beautiful colored corals too - lots of deep purple ones. Honestly, this is one of my favorite things we've ever done. We've snorkeled a lot, and have never seen anything this amazing.

There are also blue tangs, parrot fish, huge angelfish - I wish I knew more about them, but fish of all colors and sizes. Love, love, love it here! One of the girls starts looking like she's not feeling well, and she heads back to the boat, very sea sick and very sad looking. I feel bad for her, and I'm glad I took the Dramamine. Nervous girl starts looking a little queasy too. After about an hour at Hol Chan, we pile back in boat to head to Shark Ray Alley. I ask Leonardo if people chum the water to get the sharks and rays to come, and he says that they aren't supposed to but they do. VH doesn't do it, so they wait around for other boats to do it, and then the sharks and rays start appearing. L tells us not to get too close, stay about 10 feet back because you don't want to get into the feeding frenzy. Lots of nurse sharks appear. Big rays and silver fish that look piranaish to me - silver with tough looking jaws - they're Jacks Leonardo says. I can't believe we're in the water with them, but they all whoosh by to get to the food. I am kicking myself for not buying an underwater camera. It was $20 or $25 at the gift shop, and I thought it was too much, but now I really wish I had it. Queasy girl never gets in the water here. The husband of the nervous girl asks what she thought about snorkeling, and she says, "There were too many fish!" Thought that was cute! My husband asks Leonardo if anyone ever gets bitten, and he laughs and says, "All the time!" Thanks for telling us after we're safely back in the boat!


About 11:30 or so, we head back in and get ready to go to town for lunch. We haven't decided where to go yet, but I'm armed with my Fodor's list and can't wait to see San Pedro.

It sounds like a really wonderful trip, VG! Looking forward to the rest.

Keep it coming, I'm reading

We decide to take a taxi to town; now that we know what they look like. The front desk calls one for us, and it comes pretty quickly. Cost is only 5 bucks from VH to town. There are also golf carts you can rent, but they start at $20 an hour, and that seems pricey. Taxi it is. We get dropped off in town, and next thing I know we hear, "Hey, there my friend, pretty lady..." All that sort of stuff. Uh-oh, I feel the big hard sell coming on.

"Want to buy these bracelets? Pretty bracelets?" I say no thanks, and then he offers, "How about this, you smoke?" And I notice some little baggies tucked in amongst the jewelry. "No thanks; I'm good" - and maybe someone can educate me here. It doesn't look like anything I've ever seen before. Sort of like dried up pods. I expected to see joints rolled up, but what the heck were these things - lol?! The guy is ticked off that we don't buy anything, and as he leaves he says, "You don't smoke, but I bet you drink, don't you?!" Nice welcome to town! I've seen that a lot in Mexico, but it kind of surprised me here. I guess it shouldn't have. Our drivers have mentioned that Belize is a big transport area for drugs moving from Columbia to Mexico. The guy isn't too intimidating; he looks pretty young and is riding a bicycle!

We move on and decide to check out more lunch spots and do some shopping. We end up at Fido's - have heard a lot about this place, and they have a huge palapa right on the beach that looks pretty inviting. We're looking forward to our first meal in town!

Hi, C & P - thanks for sticking with me!

Fido's (pronounced Fee-dough's) has a fun atmosphere; there's a giant shark hanging from the ceiling with a snorkeler in its mouth. Typical fun beachy place. I have a bit of sticker shock when I open the menu - a burger is $16, and a drink is $15.

It's only after we eat that we realize the menu is in Belizean dollars, so we can divide the cost in half - ah, that makes more sense. Now I'm wishing I got a fun tropical drink, but at $7.50, it still seems like tourist prices are in play. I guess you're paying for that view! Ambergris has a much more Caribbean vibe than the jungle area we came from. We see a lot more people sporting dreadlocks here. Service is very laid back. A lot more Creole culture, and a lot less Mestizo, and we do hear some Spanish mixed in.

We finish lunch and head off to explore the town and shop. There are a lot of little shops; most of them seem to have mass-produced trinkets like key chains, t-shirts, magnets, etc. Not very many hand-crafted items, but we do buy some coffee for the folks back home and a few gifts. Service is very friendly at the shop where we buy the gifts. The town is very walkable. We decide we'll come tomorrow to do a little more exploring, and we head back to VH. We pass a lot of golf carts on the way. Even though it's low season, things outside the resort seem pretty busy.

At VH, we walk along the beach and see some big stingrays right at the edge of the water. The water is crystal clear, and the sea grass is cleared out in this area. There are steps going down into the water if you want to go in, and there's also a set of steps off the edge of the pier. Seems like most folks prefer the pool, and VH has a nice setup. Two pools that you can use, and I think some of the villas have private pools. We put the pool on our agenda for tomorrow and head off to the dive shop to inquire about more tours. After Hol Chan, we are anxious to get back in the water!

I took a friend of mine (who has lived in San Pedro for years) to lunch at Fidos a few months ago. She was pleasantly surprised at how decent the food was. It is tourist priced, but the portions are good, and I really like some of the menu items.

Still loving your report. I haven't been to Hol Chan in several years, since dear husband got his diving certification. I think I need to go back....

The snorkeling sounds wonderful. How much did you pay for your outing?

Jn, I don't remember the exact cost, but I think we paid around $40 per person. It seemed just slightly higher priced than some of the other places I checked, but it also had a lot fewer people on the tour, so it seems like we got more individualized attention. Seaduced and Searious are two other outfitters you can check out. The location was pretty convenient too. I believe we also paid an entrance fee to get into Hol Chan - maybe ten bucks? Wow, we both just loved it! If I could go there every single day, I would do it. And next time I would bring a camera!

Jean, yes, we did think the food was pretty food. I remember thinking this is a $16 hamburger?!! But for $8, yes I would totally go back. It's a fun atmosphere, and the portions were big. Seems like the portions were really big everywhere we went. Fido's also has live music in the evenings, and it seems like that would be awesome. Definitely go back to Hol Chan. You're lucky to have it so close!

volcanogirl - You mentioned bidding on Chaa Creek on Luxury Link. It seems like you got a fantastic deal! I originally misunderstood the rate listing online since it is only in very small print that is says "per person." So the plan to spend around $150/night at Chaa Crek shot up to $330! How far in advance of your trip did you bid?

Sessa, here's the link to what I bid on, although the starting asking price was lower a couple of months ago. I think I paid $799, and that was for both of us and included 4 nights in a great cottage, free breakfasts for both of us, a dinner for two, some tours/activity credit etc. I checked around about Luxury Link before I bid on it, and it seemed legit, and we ended up loving it. I would definitely use them again. They asked us to put a range of dates in, and we got our first choice of dates and all the amenties we asked for.

http://www.luxurylink.com/luxury-hotels/lodge-at-chaa-creek?clid=2260

They also have packages for Chan Chich if anyone is interested. I think it looks like a great property too. Now if only Victoria House would join the club!

Very nice report. How much of a hassle is it to avoid those drug dealers ? We have kids and prefer not to get hassled.

He's the only one we saw on our entire trip. I wouldn't think you would encounter it at all in the jungle areas. I'm curious if anyone else has run into it at the beach. The resort areas seem pretty sheltered from things; ours had a strict no solicitors policy. My husband and I are pretty clean cut and suburban looking. We were kind of surprised he approached us.

I was wondering how the rest of our experience in town would go, and luckily it went well. We did encounter a couple of little kids selling jewelry, but they were sweet and moved along when we passed.

Thank you very much for the detail report. My wife and I are eagerly reading every bit of it. We're going to Belize from 8/19 to 8/28. You don't know how much your report helps us.

Hey V-girl,
Your report really inspired me and I booked a trip to Belize with my mileage last night- for next Feb ! You had also helped me out with our first trip to the Osa in CR last year so I really trust your opinions and insight. Thank you !

DH wanted to go to CR again, but Belize won out. We have been before, 10 years ago, but went down south and to the jungle, which we loved, but not to Ambergris--which we were previously kind of turned off about. (Now, don't anyone get upset, but years ago, the posts made it sound a little trashy). I'm assuming it is NOT like that?? It sounds like it is worth adding Ambergris to our trip this time, for the snorkeling and at Victoria House.

Can't remember if you said what type of room you got at VH?

Thanks again for the inspiration and the GREAT trip report !!

fc, that is awesome. I hope you really love it. I'm glad I could help. A lot of people on the board helped me before I went too!

joan, that's great! We were a little skeptical too, but we ended up just loving it. Someone advised us not to stay in the city based on what we were looking for, and for us, that was good advice. VH has that total feeling of peace and relaxation that we were looking for. It was only about 50% full when we went, so a lot of times we were the only people on the beach or there would only be one other couple at the pool. It is a popular place though. Gradually we started seeing people that we had met earlier on our trip. We saw our Tikal buddies eating breakfast one morning and a newlywed couple from Chaa showed up a couple of days later. It's like in CR where you keep seeing the same people over and over again.

Our room was called a Plantation Room, but they also have casitas, villas, suites - all kinds of choices. Ours were in a little grouping of four rooms, two upstairs and two downstairs - never heard a peep from any of the other rooms. At Chaa, we felt like we had to be a little bit quiet because the windows are just screens to let the breeze in.

When we get to the dive shop, we check out the tours. I am interesting in doing the manatee watch, but husband is wanting more snorkeling. That sounds good to me too, so we book a tour for Mexico Rocks and Tres Cocos - supposed to be lots of cool corral and smaller colorful fish. The rest of the day is spent walking on the beach, relaxing at the pool, and enjoying a casual dinner of quesadillas. We're looking forward to another day of snorkeling in this awesome place.

We wake up the next day, do the mega-muffin breakfast, and get ready for our 9:00 a.m. tour to Mexico Rocks and Tres Cocos. The sky is dark, and the water is really choppy, so I'm wondering if we'll get rain. The boat pulls up, and the guide is wearing a t-shirt with a logo, same logo is on all the equipment, so I think VH farms out some of their tour trips to other providers. There's only one other couple (I think they were a couple!) on the tour with us. I take a Dramamine this day too.

We get to the first location and the guide tells us the general area in which we're to swim. There's a big pipe jutting out of the water that acts as a marker.

We see some pretty corrals - electric blue ones and lots of purple ones again; some look like fingers wriggling in the water. We spot a couple of small rays. There are no big ticket items here like at Hol Chan, but it's very pretty. The guide doesn't get in the water with us even after the other woman asks him to. I miss Lorenzo! After about an hour we return to the boat and start heading to the other location. I ask the guide if he thinks it will rain, and he tells me, "We save all the rain for the farmers. Do you see any farmers here?" Five minutes later, it starts to rain! It doesn't last very long though, but the sky remains dark and overcast. Nice in a way because it keeps the temperature down. We wrap our towels around us because it gets really windy.

At the second location the guide gets in with us - yes! It really is a lot better with a guide. Next time I might ask ahead if the tour is guided or not. We see a moray eel which is peeking out from under a rock, a huge lobster (which puts an idea into my head for dinner!), Southern rays and electric rays, and lots of squirrel fish with huge black eyes. The coral here is totally different than in the other spot. Lots of different shapes from brain to fan to elkhorn, lots of colors too. The weird thing is that even though we're very far out, we can actually stand up in the water out here. Some spots are only 3 or 4 feet deep. I asked for a life jacket at this spot because it's just easier to stay above the coral that way. I hate the thought of accidentally destroying anything and you don't kick up so much sediment if you're floating. My husband loves it here, so it was a good choice. I really prefer Hol Chan though if I had to pick one. When we go back, I am determined to take that manatee tour!

After an hour, we head back in to VH and go back to the room to shower and change and head to town for lunch and more shopping. I have my heart set on going to Wild Mango's to eat - have read a lot of good reviews about this place. The chef, Amy Knox, previously worked at VH and has won Belize Chef of the Year a few times. I imagine it's a little bit fancy, but not really sure what to expect. Supposed to be sort of Caribbean/Latin fusion with a creative menu. And it's right on the beach, so that's a bonus!

My husband runs to the front desk to get a taxi and check on our outgoing flight time. They had told us they would book us for 1:00 but our paperwork says 9:00; they tell him that he's all set for 1:00 but to reconfirm 24 hours before the flight. That was easy! The taxi arrives, and we're off. We quickly arrive at Wild Mango's (sometimes just called Mangos) and boy is it cute. It is really casual and right on the beach with a nice view; it's also very tiny and looks like it would fill up pretty quickly. Amy herself is walking around the restaurant entertaining a friend's mother. I order a Baja fish wrap, and my husband gets a pork dish. I also order a margarita. Mango's has a nice view of the small beach, and quite a few people are strolling by. Several feet away men with dreadlocks are making wood carvings on the beach. The food arrives, and I really like mine a lot; it's a huge portion - definitely enough for two people. Husband tries bites and likes it too. The server brings out a neat little dish filled with three different homemade salsas to sample. Neat spot, and I would definitely go here again.

After lunch, we stroll around town and see several other restaurants that intrigued us - Caliente and Caramba being two I remember. It's fun to see them all after hearing about them on the board. We end up at D & E's Custard. The sign says that it opens at 2:00ish, and it is 2:00ish, so we try the door. No such luck. Three girls arrive and say that it's worth it, and that we should stick around. Then an entire family arrives, and we're all in this little line waiting for the door to open. Shortly after that, the owner comes to the door and says that if we give her a chance to settle in, she'll take care of all of us right away. There's a good selection of custards and sorbets - everything from chocolate to soursop. I'm a chocolate kind of girl so I get that. We chat with the other customers. I get the impression that the girls come here every day. The family is from Dallas - ANOTHER Texas family! Oprah plays on the t.v., and there are colorful murals on the wall. The place is cozy and tiny - thumbs up for the custard - it's good stuff!

After a little more shopping, we find a van with a green license plate and pile in to go back to the hotel. We check out the gift shop, and I find some gorgeous bracelets for twelve bucks - good find! Later, we stroll to the pool and spend the rest of the day relaxing and enjoying the view. One of the workers points out a lazy iguana lying on the roof. Very uncrowded poolside, lots of lounge chairs available. A guy walks by with a five-foot long barracuda that he's just caught, so I guess there's some good fishing to be had.

After the pool, we shower and change, reconfirm our flight, and head to the dining room for dinner. This is our first time eating inside other than at the bar. The room is nice, cozy, romantic. I order grilled lobster and don't feel guilty about it. Mr. VG gets cashew crusted grouper. I also get an awesome roasted chili Caesar salad that has romaine lettuce, crisp tortilla sticks, feta, and toasted walnuts - it's awesome. Like everything else it's very fresh and good. It comes with cho-cho, which is some kind of squash. Nearby the staff sings Happy Birthday to the girl at the next table. What an awesome place for a birthday. We want dessert, but have no room left. All the food at VH has been delicious. We stroll around the property on the white sand paths enjoying our last night here.

So, our last day! VH has booked us out on a 1:00 p.m. flight back to the mainland and tell us that we should get a taxi by noon to be safe. Mr. VG goes to the dining room and brings back the mega muffin breakfast, so we can have breakfast in bed - yea! We start packing up, very sad to leave, go out, walk on the beach, relax on the balcony, take a few last pics, and then it's down to reception to check out. Checking out is easy. Any time you eat, drink, or shop on the property, they just ask your room number and charge it to your room. We review all the charges and pay. They give us a few souvenirs as mementos. The taxi arrives, and we get in. We end up sharing the taxi with some of our snorkeling buddies, and we're jealous that they're staying one more day. The front desk tells us that three different groups have come by the front desk today to extend their stay. Yes, it's that awesome!

The taxi takes us to Tropic Air, and we go to check in, and they tell us that VH didn't book us on a 1:00 flight, that they booked us on a 9:00 a.m. flight. Argh! Despite confirming and reconfirming the 1:00 time. Tropic Air is awesome though and say that if the flight isn't full they'll put us on the 1:00. Makes me very glad we arrived early. Turns out we can get on the flight - the last two spots!

The waiting area for Tropic Air is nice - there's a huge aquarium, our last little glimpse of Belizean wildlife. Fifteen to twenty minutes before flight time, they tell us to board, and we take off since everyone is already there. It's a quick fifteen minute flight to Belize International. We're early and have time to shop for some souvenirs - t-shirts and rum cakes. And, we look for a place to eat lunch. We make a great discovery - Jet's Bar - I guess it's some sort of famous institution. It's the only place we can find, and they tell us they have the best hot dogs in Belize and rum punch. We get two dogs, and they are really good; the bun almost tastes like a kolache and they're fresh and good. Jet is only about 4 foot 5 inches, but has a big personality. There are pictures of him with beautiful women all over the bar. Funny spot! We finish eating and eventually board our plane back to the real world, but we'll definitely be back.

I'm sad that your report has come to an end. You have snorkeled in some great locations on your past trips, would you say that Belize was the best?

Thanks again for the great report. I'm happy enough here in Iowa during the summer, but do look forward to returning to Ambergris in January.....

jn, thanks for reading through it all! I would say without a doubt that Hol Chan is the best snorkeling I've ever done. You know how you usually have one vacation memory that really stands out? Hol Chan was it for me on this trip. It's kind of like an underwater BdC - just so much to see that I didn't want to leave. I think having a good guide made it that much better too.

Jean, thank YOU for all your great tips. What a great place.

I wanted to ask you if you've ever eaten gibnut? Whenever I would ask locals about Belizean specialties, they would tell me that we should try gibnut - they called it the royal rat! I guess Queen Elizabeth ate it when she visited. It sounded sort of like an agouti. And someone in Guatemala asked me if I like armadillo!

I don't think I've ever seen gibnut offered anywhere on Ambergris.

However, I did see it as a lunch special at a small roadside place last winter in Placencia. Unfortunately, we were on our way to meet Katie Valk (who I think posts on here) for lunch, so we didn't stop. If I had it to do over, we would have stopped and gotten a serving, just to see what it was like.

J, if you ever have it, I'd love to hear what you think.

One thing I forgot to mention is that we ate and drank everything we wanted including fresh fruit, ice, drinks, and water in restaurants. At both C.C. and V.H. they provided purified water to drink - C.C. left bottles of water in the room and provided refills at a tap at the bar, and V.H. left big bottled jugs of water in the room for us. They said that the water was fine to drink out of the tap, but that it didn't taste all that great. We did use the tap to brush our teeth, and it was fine.

Happy travels, everyone!

Gibnut is great, wonderful taste and will have some this afternoon.

Great report. Nice to see someone as crazy about the details as I am. I've considered Belize a couple of times now, and even looked at those Luxury Link packages, but have put it off because the airfare from LAX has always been more expensive as have the on-the-ground prices of elsewhere in Central America. It might just be our next CA destination now.

That was such a fun read, VG! Thanks for all the great detailed information. I've always had an interest in Belize and you have just piqued it further.

Katie, that's good to know - will put in on the "must try" list for next time.

Kristina, I think you're a girl after my own heart! I remember your saying you're a foodie. I really love CR and like the homestyle food there, but Belize had some really amazing, delicious food, a lot more elaborate than what we've had in CR and great seafood.

Thanks, c - you and I have similar tastes I think, and I think you would just love Belize. If I ever strike it rich, I'm going to take up a permanent room at VH.

OK VG, you have caused me such a dilemma! Our only trip to Belize was to Palencia and it was 2yrs after hurricane Ida. It was very disappointing.
After reading your excellent report, now we have to decide CR vs Belize when we do our yearly CA trip. Such a problem ;0)

Thanks for taking the time to write all of this for us.

Crash, we are going to have the same problem! Thanks for reading.

vgirl - WONDERFUL report...I think you've pushed me over the edge to make sure our trip happens next year. Not that it wouldn't, but it sure is hard leaving Costa Rica (and I know you understand that)!

Did you feel happy with the amount of time you had in each area or would you add or take away from any? I'm trying to keep this trip "moderate" on the price scale so probably won't be able to visit Victoria House, but it sounds amazing. Chaa Creek has a great eco-kids camp that looks like a great deal, but I don't think I want my vacay to be that structured!

Thanks, hip - it was reading all the reports here that made me think about trying Belize. I was hesitant because we really do one big vacation a year, and I was worried that I wouldn't like it as much as CR and might end up disappointed. Then we ended up loving it. It was cool to visit ruins and best of all for us, enjoy great snorkeling.

I think about 4 nights in the jungle and 4 nights on the cayes is a good time frame. There are things we were interested in doing in the jungle area that we didn't get to like the ATM cave and cave tubing, but the cost of tours adds up, and we decided it would give us a reason to come back.

I was happy with the amount of time we had on Ambergris. With another day or two, I definitely would have gone and checked out the other cayes or done the manatee tour. If funds and vacation time were unlimited, I definitely could have added more days. When we checked out, three different people were extending their stays.

We met people staying at Chaa's river camp, and they really liked it. It's cool because it's more affordable, but you can still enjoy the birding hikes, etc. While we were there, that's where the howlers were hanging out.

I'm so glad to hear you had a great time in Belize and that Luxury Link worked out for you (I'm a big fan)! Loved all the details in your report and brought back many memories. You should definitely try out Chan Chich next time too. Wonderful place, more wildlife. Thanks for posting your report!

vgirl - Yeah, sort of why I'm trying to figure out costs now...because those tours really absorb the budget quickly. I like the idea of Chaa Creek including so much for $55/night incl break/dinner at the Camp. That's a bargain! I assume we could try the restaurant at the lodge as well...

Yes, and if you want to, you can order off the lunch menu at dinner which will save $ too. I think a lot of people think you have to get all 4 courses at dinner, but we never did that - it was so much food! Plus they always had a free little appetizer and homemade bread thrown in.

Patty, I had my eye on Chan Chich too, and still think all the wildlife there looks great. We saw some wildlife in Belize, but not nearly as much as in CR, so Chan Chich looks really appealing for that reason. Thanks for all your help!

What a great trip, and such a great trip report!! Thank you so much for all the details. I definitely want to go back to Belize, wanted to before, but even more now!

Hip, when we went to Chaa we did a package that included some tours and it really worked out much less expensive - if you know in advance you'll be doing the tours to begin with. Also, on their website, or blog page they always have contests to win vacations! Go for it!! I was looking at their eco-kids camp too - maybe next summer!!

Great report! I want to go back too

Thanks, Shell and sharie; it definitely was a great time. I want to go back too! And Shell, thanks for all your tips!

vgirl - I'm not sure how I'd get buy without these forums. I've read like 4 posts now about people not realizing they could just order 1 or 2 courses rather than all 4. I'd be bummed about that if I didn't know beforehand!

Shell - I just happened to add CC on Facebook on Saturday so I did see that sweepstakes thing, but your post here gave me the extra push! I wrote in yesterday on my iPhone, very last minute, so we'll see what happens! Doesn't hurt to try!

Another thing I wish we'd done before we went is to buy some sort of reef fish guide or one of those Rainforest Publications guides to reef fish. We saw so many great things and kept wanting to identify them.

hip, I hope you win!

I really enjoyed your trip report. WE have been to Belize 3 times.The first trip was to Victoria House-The second to Mata Chica on Ambergris-excellent, but isolated- and then on to Chaa Creek-great- and the third to Placencia where we stayed at the Placencia Hotel-I think,-not so good and took a short trip to Guatemala. If we return to Placencia, I would recommend Roberts Grove or a villa hotel-I cannot remember the name , or Coppola's hotel. Your report brought back many fond memories. Thank you for taking the time to write it.

owlwoman, I hope you make it back someday. And that you get good weather!

flicker, thanks for reading and for the recs on Placencia. I would love the chance to try out some other areas of the country.

vgirl and Shell - My "essay", however clumsily written because I wrote it on the bus using my iPhone last minute on Sunday, got posted on Chaa Creek's blog today and the sweepstakes is now closed -- I have no idea when the drawing is but cross your fingers!

I guess I need to work on my karma. Drawing was today and no win for me. That's ok, I'll still go.

They should have opened it up to votes. You would have won by a landslide!

They have lots of drawings it seems - I think when one ends, another one starts! Keep trying maybe you'll win the next one!

Hi again. How was the rain?