Belize
Our First Trip
3/30/16 - 4/1/16
Devan and I booked our first international trip to Belize in 2016. We had only been together for almost 2 months at the time but we wanted some adventure and Southwest Airlines had a great flight deal ($300 round trip for the both of us) so off we went! Belize hands down is one of our favorite destinations of all time. The flight from Texas is less than 3 hours, so pretty quick and easy compared to our other trips.
The details
How long
We stayed for a total of 4 days and booked two separate Airbnb’s in two different parts of the city. For the first part, we stayed in Isabella Bank Village. For the second part of the trip, we stayed in Hopkins.
Once we arrived in Belize, our AirBnb host was kind enough to have his assistant pick us up and take us to his Airbnb – as it was roughly 45 min away and extremely difficult to navigate. For the first part of this trip, we wanted to stay in a secluded location so that we can get the full Belizean experience. By far, my favorite part (besides the land surrounded our Airbnb) was the Community Baboon Sanctuary (roughly a 2 mile walk). The Airbnb was located in Isabella Bank Village with a population of roughly 100 people. Out of those 100 people, the majority of them are German speaking Mennonites. It very much felt like we were in the countryside of Belize. The area in general is just really rural.
Airbnb #1: Pedestal Monkey Reserve - Belize City, Belize
This Airbnb was one of the most unique places that we’ve ever stayed in. First of all, it is called the Pedestal Monkey Reserve Home – that should tell you a little bit about it’s uniqueness and we also loved how non-traditional the home was. It’s located on a couple of acres of swamp land, and actually shared the land with another home that was owned by the host’s brother. The home came with the basic utensils and necessities, however is is highly recommended picking up food and other needed items before you get to the home, since there is no grocery store within 30 minutes. On the land, there are an abundance of coconut trees, wild animals (we saw the biggest iguana we’ve ever seen in our lives), and plants. Another unique thing about this Airbnb are the doors that open up on the second floor that view you a great view of the entire land. I would definitely recommend staying here, as long as you are properly prepared.
For this part of our trip our itinerary went something like this:
Day 1: land, get to AirBnb, take dope pics, try to catch fish using a broken pole and some lunch meat
Day 2: Walk 2 miles in 100 degree heat to Baboon Sanctuary, cut coconuts, chill
Day 3: Get dropped off at Airport, rent vehicle, drive 2 hours to Hopkins.
For the second part of our Belize trip, we rented a car in Belize City and then drove 2 hours south to an Airbnb just south of Hopkins, Belize. Driving around in Belize can be a bit tough since there aren’t many official roads and the GPS on our phones was severely inefficient. Luckily, our Airbnb host, Roy, provided us with excellent step-by-step directions on how to get to his place. Also note: speed limits in Belize are almost nonexistent.
On the way down to Hopkins, we took the scenic route and drove down Belize’s Hummingbird Highway. Seriously, look up Google images of this highway, the views are so beautiful!
Airbnb #2: Seagrapes Cabana - Hopkins, Belize
Of the two Airbnb’s that we had the pleasure of staying in, this one in Hopkins was our favorite. Not only was the location right on the beach super convenient, but our hosts, Roy and Antenella, are two of the nicest people that we’ve ever met. Seriously, they were beyond helpful and generous hosts. This trip is one of the first trips that Devan took after getting his Nikon and Roy, a professional photographer, taught him some tips and tricks! They even took us out with them one night to one of the local beach clubs. We had an awesome time. The town is a beach town, however it isn’t too touristy. There were a quite a few places to eat ($2 Rum everywhere), and plenty of gift shops from local vendors.
The actual Airbnb that we stayed in was a guest house of Roy and Antenella’s. We have access to our own living quarters and access to their own personal beach. The water that extends from their beach is extremely shallow. It never goes more than 4ft deep up to 300 yds out from their beach. So, if you are not a fan of deep ocean water (us), then this place is perfect for you. Also, there are multiple coconut trees on their beach, so we had what seemed like an unlimited supply of fruit and coconut water. The only negative about this location was the sand fleas. We got bitten pretty bad, so I would definitely recommend anyone to prepare accordingly.
Not too far from the Airbnb, we had the opportunity of doing some exploring in the jungle areas. First, we stopped for Ice Cream and souvenirs from a Mayan woman located deep in the jungle. Then, we had the opportunity of doing some zip lining and hiking to some secluded waterfalls at Mayflower Bocawina National Park. This was literally one of the more difficult hikes that we’ve ever done (we’re talking about ropes to help pull us up and along cliffs!) – but it was definitely worth it.
Thinking about heading to Belize soon? Go! Trust us, you’ll love it.