Ambergris Caye,
Belize

Transportation: Continental Airlines, Tropic Air
Lodging: Belizean Shores (Condo Resort) 
Length of Stay: 9 Days

Ambergris Caye (pronounced Key) is a small tropical island off the coast of mainland Belize. The island is quaint and you can find lodging at either remote or downtown locations. The island's town center is at the south end of the island in San Pedro. The island itself is relatively primitive in that nearly all roads are dirt, although at the airport you'll find roads of cobblestone. The island is split north and south by a small channel that is traversed only by hand-pulled ferry. The north/south barrier provides two completely different atmospheres, the north being remote with the only forms of transportation being bicycle, golf cart, or boat, and the south including downtown San Pedro and its variety of transportation ie.. automobile and airplane.

Ambergris Caye's eastern shoreline is home of the Belizean Barrier Reef, about 200 to 300 yards from shore, making waves inland practically non-existent. This geographical location creates more of a "lake" effect, rather than ocean surf. A variety of wildlife can be witnessed right offshore while snorkeling including dolphins, eagle rays, sea turtles, and crabs.

Transportation

We don't have very kind words for Continental Airlines considering airline delays prevented us from arriving at Belize City on time, in fact we arrived an entire day late! Continental Airlines is not your only choice, however, and we recommend you choose your preferred airline among American, Continental, or Taca Airlines. We even heard a recent rumor that Delta may even open a new route from Atlanta in 2005.

From Belize City you'll travel to Ambergris Caye either by air or water. We recommend the air method since two airlines provide frequent service to the island (every 30 minutes) on either Tropic Air (Cessna Caravan) or Maya Island (de Havilland Twin Otter). We selected the Tropic Air option (on the Caravan) and found it to be very convenient. The airline crew was both friendly and efficient. En route to Ambergris Caye, Tropic Air will make a quick hop to a nearby island first before arriving at San Pedro. The stop at this other island was unexpected, regardless, the delay was fun in its own way as it allowed us a sort of "tour" of the area. Besides, we were airborne again within no more than 5 minutes.

Upon arrival at San Pedro, we were greeted by a pre-arranged taxi which drove us to a nearby dock. We were welcomed at the dock by the Guest Services Manager from Belizean Shores, Thatcher, a Belize native. He and the taxi-driver assisted us by packing our luggage into the boat-taxi. As we sat in the boat it was the first moment we began to relax, considering the Continental Airlines "disaster" we had experienced. Our over-water taxi would be a short ride, no more than 10 minutes.En route to Belizean Shores we saw our first eagle ray "flying" calmly under the water and got a glimpse of Captain Morgan's Retreat, the filming location of FOX's TV show "Temptation Island." Our destination, Belizean Shores, was located practically right next door. We made it!

Lodging

The remaining 8 days of the trip were spent at the Belizean Shores Resort. Each "condo" has 4 villas and although 2 of the 3 villas around ours were in use, we never once heard the travelers inside. The resort is unique in that we met various folks who actually live at the resort. In fact, we met a couple from Canada who were in the process of moving to Belizean Shores. Neat. The resort's "claim to fame" is its swimming pool. We frequently heard statements like, "We have the best pool on the island," and we agree. The swimming pool boasts a swim-around bar and intricate architectural features. Crowds were few and far between at the resort which was a pleasant surprise.

Our villa was on beachfront property and located on the east side of the resort. The view from our room's 2nd floor balcony was outstanding! The resort's restaurant and office are located on the extreme west side of the property, requiring a lengthy walk every time you want to converse with management or get a bite to eat. The resort is considered barefoot, meaning no concrete or designed pathways. The management does an excellent job of keeping the sand raked and incredibly, you will not want to wear shoes most of the time! We actually found barefoot walking rather addictive and found ourselves walking barefoot most of the time! One disparaging situation was the state of construction at the resort. As we understand, it has been that way for quite some time due to its rapid growth and will continue to be so. A couple of times we nearly stepped on a nail when we were walking barefoot. Use caution.

A short, ten-minute walk southward on the beach is where you'll find a rather small, local store. This store had the minimum necessities like soda, chips, and snacks, so we stocked up on these items and carried them back to our room where we had a full-size fridge. Room amenities include a full-featured kitchen with a gas stove/oven, and dishwasher. Other features include satellite TV, although at times we found most channels inaccessible for one reason or another. The rooms were overly spacious, providing a sense of home rather than hotel lodging. One benefit on our trip was a massage therapist who is a resident of the resort. We gave her a phone call and was knocking at our door within a matter of minutes with her portable massage table, to enjoy a massage on our balcony.

Overall a stay at the Belizean Shores Resort is recommended. We enjoyed the people, the food, and the environment. Enjoy your trip!!!

Pro & Cons

Pros: A pleasant vacation spot for rest and relaxation. Seclusion. Very friendly people. A scuba diving delight.

Cons: Mosquitoes and lack of adequate restaurant coverage. Although there are plenty of restaurants downtown, if you stay on the north end you'll have much fewer choices.

Tips

• Anticipate a visit to tranquility. Don't expect mainstream restaurants and large crowds, never be in a hurry, and enjoy the laidback personality of the islanders!
• Stay away from downtown when it's raining. The roads become muddy and essentially impassable, unless you don't mind getting filthy. It was raining on the day of our departure and the mud made our exit, well, rather interesting.
• We encourage you rent a golf cart for at least a day in order to see the rest of the island. When you do decide to travel, do not travel at dawn or you'll discover the island's unpleasant mosquitoes! Also, wear clothes that you don't mind getting dirty as many of the golf cart roads are mudholes.
• Use caution when walking around the island or always wear footwear in construction areas. Due to the constant state of growth you never know when you'll step on a nail, broken glass, or other hazard.
• We were told by many that March is the best month to visit Belize. March brings easterly wind meaning mosquitoes are blown away from the tourist areas and never become a problem. We found that mosquitoes were only a problem when there were westerly wind.