Belize--3 Weeks on a Budget

Hibernating in 28-degree Michigan as 8 inches of snow covers the ground, my mind easily wanders to the three weeks I spent exploring the semi-tropical paradise of Belize. The sun, the sand, the lush plants and flowers, the frolicking animals and birds and butterflies, the food, the people, the rain, the rivers, the life--it's all truly dreamy and worth every penny of the just under I spent to transport me into one of the best three weeks of my life.

Whether it's eco-adventure, beaches, ruins, blue water, hiking, camping, cave exploring, boating, or just exploring wildlife Belize seems to have it all and in great abundance. Plus, it almost seems you're practically the only tourist there which, to me, makes Belize one of the greatest budget destinations still available today. So check out my adventures and tips on how you, too, can experience some of the best places in Belize on a very conservative budget without sacrificing comfort and enjoyment--sorry no "all-inclusives" in my itinerary!!

Quick Tips:

First of all, you are currently doing the best thing you can be doing--research! I highly recommend "Lonely Planet's guide to Belize". It was my faithful friend during my trip... I also suggest "The Ecotravellers' Wildlife Guide--Belize and Northern Guatemala" by Les Beletsky. This guide is the wildlife observers ticket to the natural world of Belize with full-color pictures and descriptions of all the most common wildlife you are likely to experience in the forests of Belize.

For further research and some excellent photography of the country, I also have a copy of the "Insight Guide--Belize". (I wouldn't suggest lugging this one along on your trip, but the other two are an absolute must.)

A great website is www.belizefirst. com--home of Lan "The Belize Answer Man" Sluder. Lan is truly a recognized authority on Belize travel. He has been everywhere, seems to know everyone, and has his finger on the pulse of what is happening throughout the country at all times. He even welcomes any question you might have about your travel plans.

My tips: Pack very light--budget travel will require some walking and a lot of hoisting your pack onto high buses. You may or may not want to pack a tent--I did and it saved me some money and allowed me to see a couple places I couldn't have otherwise. Bring a water filter. If you don't have a tent, bring a mosquito net. Bring lots of bug spray. Dont' worry about your Spanish--you can get by just fine with English. When you want to book a ticket, make sure to check with www.exitotravel.com. I have consistently found cheaper tickets to Latin America through them. (No I'm not affiliated with them in any way--just a satisfied customer.)
I'd also suggest binoculars--lots to see!

Check out my other review pages for the best and worst places that I stayed at and ate at, a few things to watch out for, and some of the best and cheapest things to do with your time...

Best Way To Get Around:

The best ways to get around are to me whatever is cheapest and yet practical. This may mean riding in a lot of buses, taxis, and at times even hitch-hiking. Scared to hitch-hike? I only did it three times and I was educated as to where it is safe to do so. As a result, these three occurrences will save you . Seriously, to me that was well worth the three rides I hitched. I experienced absolutely no discomfort in hitching these rides. I'll explain more of the details in my travel review... You can rent a car and save some trouble, but you definately won't be saving money and you will miss out on one of the best parts of Belize--mingling with the general population. You will be like a famous celebrity in a limo always an arms-length away from the realities of Belize. Take the bus! Take the taxi! Take the boats! Hitch a ride! Walk!

At only $10 a night, this place was heavenly! In fact, I stayed an extra two nights just because. The owners are very friendly and down-to-earth ex-pats. There is a butterfly garden on-site as well as their garden of tropical herbs and plants. Also, a few hiking trails around the property with trees that are labeled for identification make this a real learning experience. The cabins are very small, but clean and well-kept. I was very comfortable in them. They are private as you will get a cabin totally to yourself. There are two comfortable, twin sized beds, a nightstand, and an oil lamp. That's about it for the rooms. Bathrooms are shared compost toilets which was interesting. Yes, they are kept very clean. The kitchen is a shared facility. You are free to use their appliances and utensils in exchange for cleaning up after yourself. You can also keep left-overs in the fridge. This is a great place to meet other travelers and just relax. I loved it. The taxi drivers know where this is, so just ask one of them in San Ignacio to take you there. It's only a few minutes drive from the city and doesn't cost much. Once there, it isn't a problem to wave a taxi down to get back either...

A short walk down the road takes you to Xunantunich ruins which were pretty impressive (even though I don't really consider myself a big fan of ruins). The view from the top of the main temple structure is breathtaking! If you're staying in San Ignacio at all and want a budget stay, definately-definately go straight to Trek Stop.

Going south past Dangriga you will come to Maya Center, a Mayan village and craft center. Hop off the bus and buy yourself a ticket to Cockscomb Jaguar Preserve ($5 in the craft center building). They can also get you a taxi. This is the tricky part: the taxi costs $12.50 one way into the park (which is 6 miles west of Maya Center). If you have time, you might try to hitch a ride into the park. If you have the energy, you could walk. It’s a nice, quiet walk along a private road.

Once in the park, register and choose your accommodations. There are campsites (which I wouldn’t recommend, even though I had a tent with me--$2.50-$5). I choose the next step up which is the rustic cabin ($7.50). Be sure you have a mosquito net. I set my tent up on the bunkbed. This is not a private room and if others are staying you will be sharing it. I had it all to myself. There is no electricity but they give you a candle to use. This kind of makes for a unique and very pleasant experience. There are showers and a bathroom outside which are also shared. They are cold but nice.
Cockscomb is a little more south; therefore it is more rainy. It rained a lot in the three days I was there. But, it was also very nice hiking in the rain. If you want to see wildlife, you’ve come to the right spot! There are many different trails to explore. I ran into a pack of koatimundi, a grey fox, many different kinds of tropical birds, some kind of snake, Jaguar tracks, lots of different neat bugs, and although I didn’t see a Jaguar, I did hear one growling not too far from the trail and heard what sounded like crunching on bones (I’m serious!).

I highly recommend making this a top priority on your trip to Belize. It was the highlight of my trip. Make sure to hike all the trails as they are all different. Try a night hike—but make sure you have a dependable headlamp or flashlight. Turn off the light when you get out there and see why this is so important! And most of all, ENJOY!!

If you need a place to stay near the Belize Zoo, there is only one choice, and it’s not a bad one either…

The Tropical Education Center was my first stop during my 3-week jaunt through Belize. It takes just about 30 minutes by bus from Belize City. The zoo is about midway between Belize City and Belmopan, the capital. If you are wise (as I wasn’t), you will want to ask the bus driver to let you off at the Tropical Education Center, NOT THE ZOO. Although they appear on maps to be directly across the highway from each other, they aren’t. And if you are carrying heavy bags, as I was, you won’t enjoy the burning-hot walk along the highway from the zoo bus stop back to the Tropical Education Center (which, by the way, is back towards Belize City, in case you do have to walk it). The walk is almost a mile.

Once you get to the gate, which is the only gate you will come to, there will be a small sign and a larger sign warning you of the fierce guard dogs on the premises. I was a little apprehensive about the sign but walked on down the road from the highway to the Education Center anyway. Luckily, the dogs weren’t there. (They belong to Sharon Matola, the founder of the zoo, and they pretty much stay with her all the time.) In fact, once I got to the Tropical Education Center, there was not one single person anywhere to be found. I waited and waited and finally a van showed up. It was Sharon Matola herself! As they were about to go out for dinner, they invited me to go with them, and I accepted the invitation. When I got back, it was dark and still nobody was around, so I just picked a room and settled in.

The next morning, I found myself still alone. So, I walked around and found a little trail to hike on. It was very peaceful and quiet until I ran into Sharon and her dogs out hiking as well.

The accommodations are small but nicely maintained. There was no electricity, but oil lamps are provided. There were two beds. A shared shower/bathroom was a short distance from the rooms. That’s about all you’ll find at the Tropical Education Center. Rooms are supposed to run $17.50/night. (You also have the option of a $35 guesthouse or $6 camping, and there is a kitchen somewhere you can rent for $1). I never did find the person I was supposed to pay. Overall, the place feels very lonely and deserted, but it’s cheap and comfortable for the most part.

This is definitely a no-frills kind of place. You walk into what seems like a small-town diner with about 10 tables. I don't recall there being a menu. I just told them I was hungry and vegan. They made me up a big, fat burrito. I don't think it tasted all that spectacular, but the Belize-made "Marie Sharp's" hot sauce makes anything taste great! Plus, the mere size of the meal and its incredibly low price left me quite satisfied otherwise. Then, I washed it all down with a nice, fresh juice and was good to go. You don't have to be vegetarian to enjoy Hannah's. If fact, you will probably enjoy it even more if you aren't. Lonely Planet even says they have Indian food, but I wasn't so lucky when I went there--they didn't have it!

San Ignacio doesn't have very good street signs, so I'll explain how to get to the restaurant. When you first come into town, you will walk from the area near the river to the main street. If you turn left and walk nearly to the end of main street, you will find this restaurant on the left. Meals are budget priced anywhere from $3-$10 or so. Enjoy....

Watch out, vegetarians!! Lonely Planet says when you get to Tobacco Key and check it at Gaviota's, they will have no problem catering to your request for vegetarian food. Not so!! They complained the minute I brought it up. They acted like I was some kind of fool to come all the way out to their island and then request vegetarian food. Another vegetarian girl who happened to be staying there at the same time was suffering the same persecution. Although they did finally cater to our request, it came with a healthy dose of murmering and complaining. The portions were so small, I wasn't sure I was going to make it off that island alive. Although I can't recommend this place whatsoever, if you are a non-vegetarian, it seems that they were in perfect bliss with the food they were being served... Hmph!

The food is served three times a day in their dining area, which is similar to a back porch. It's all you can eat, but I noticed they seem to be a little stingy and make people feel bad for actually taking all they can eat! It is typically fish and seafood with some salads and such. The price is included in your stay. If you are vegetarian and want to go to Tobacco key, bring a big sack of food or plan to make it fast!

Having left Tobacco Key a couple days early, I had some time to wander. I decided to try the Community Baboon Sanctuary. I’m glad I did! Head north up the highway from Belize city on one of the frequent Northern Transport buses. Make sure to tell them you want off at Burrell Boom. Also ask the passenger next to you to let you know when you should get off. Once you’re off, you will need to catch a ride for the 13 miles from the highway to the sanctuary. It’s not as hard as it seems and you don’t have to be a regular hitchhiker to try it. I caught a ride with the second truck that drove by and he dropped me right off on his way. Using this tip will save you the $75 taxi fare!

Once at the sanctuary, go check in and pay $5 entrance. You can also pay for your camping fee (also $5). If you choose not to camp, there are a couple rustic places to stay, but they are $25 to $40. Also note, there is a dinky café on the property, but I was their only customer and they didn’t really know what to do with a vegetarian. I had to help them through it and it all worked out, but if I was going again, I’d bring my own food.

The black howler monkeys (baboons) are across the road in the patch of trees you see there. Ask for a guide to take you the first time so he’ll be able to tell you when they are there. Then you can go whenever you want and find them. You will learn how to hand-feed them trumpet vines. A way to see much more wildlife and a lot more monkeys is to take the canoe trip they may or may not offer you. Ask for it—it is a major highlight of this trip. You can float gently down the Belize river for 3 hours looking at alligators, giant iguana, tons of birds, lots of monkeys in the trees, and peace and quiet like you’ve never experienced, all for only about $10.

Now the trick: Getting back is not as easy as getting there. I stood out front on the road for over an hour waiting for a ride. It was totally desolate! Then I walked down the road a ways to a bus stop. There were a couple of guys sitting there smoking some pot, apparently waiting for something to pick them up, so I waited with them. Finally, a Mennonite family drove by and offered me a ride. The potheads warned me not to go with them. But I went anyway and had a very friendly time riding with them. They even not only took me out to the highway but all the way to the airport (about an hour drive). If you don’t get this kind of service, just wait at the highway for the bus back to Belize City and get on.