Anyone been to Belize City?

[scubapuss]

We did the cave tubing and it was one of our favorite excursions anywhere, ever. We went with a private company and went to the caves for tubing then stopped at a "resort" for an authentic local lunch. The resort looked a lot like a camp to me and we sat around picnic tables and ate a fantastic meal. They also had local Belizian beer, Belekin that was so cold and refreshing. the meal was an extra charge of just $6! On the way to and from the caves the bus staff told us about the trees, animals and history of the country. I loved it and was treated so well by the staff. When we arrived back at the port it was kind of scary. A man came up and firmly requested that I give him my pair of wet shoes that I was carrying as I was already wearing a pair and he had none. WHile this was all true, I don't like people demanding my possessions from me. We didn't spend much time in port after our excusion for reasons like this.

 

 

Hi I was so excited to go on a cruise to Belize now not so much..... Do you remember what private tour you went with? thanks

[harry614]

They are not lying when they say do not go through the gates An escorted tour is different. Than just walking around town They do not call it the "jewel of central america" for it's value. Land sharks everywhere and they do not take "no I am not interested" very well. Been there twice it is a good place to take a ship excursion or a private excursion from a reputable tour operator

[hcat]

We are taking a tour to the Altun Ha ruins.. we will bring sunscreen, hats & bug repellent--what else???? Is it Ok to bring a camera or should we bring a drug store box camera??

 

Is the Wet Lizard area safe--seems just next to the gates? We are hoping to go there for lunch/drinks after the tour....

[SingingPixie]

We are taking a tour to the Altun Ha ruins.. we will bring sunscreen, hats & bug repellent--what else???? Is it Ok to bring a camera or should we bring a drug store box camera??

 

Is the Wet Lizard area safe--seems just next to the gates? We are hoping to go there for lunch/drinks after the tour....

 

Definitely take a camera- the Altun Ha area didn't feel dangerous in the slightest, and if you're on a tour you shouldn't have to be walking around Belize City on your own. As long as you keep an eye on your stuff like you would in any crowded place (don't leave your backpack on the ground while you climb the pyramid, for example), you should be fine.

 

The Wet Lizard is in the gated port area/tourist village, so it's pretty much as safe as the cruise ship.

 

 

Most of the "don't walk around Belize City alone" advice is to prevent you from being uncomfortable/hassled and in a worst case scenario, having something stolen. I haven't heard of there being a problem at all with people's physical safety in this port, even if they walk around Belize City on their own. Most likely, you'll just encounter some overly aggressive people looking to sell you goods or take you on tours. Personally I like to avoid these situations as they make me uncomfortable, but they are far from truly dangerous. Your physical safety should not be in jeopardy (or at least not any more than in any major American city) as long as you keep yourself out of dangerous situations such as getting into cars with strangers (besides licensed cab drivers), overindulging in alcohol so that you are not aware of your surroundings, etc.

[PearlRabbit]

When i went cave tubing, the ride was only about an hour on the bus. We went to the Jaguar Paw Resort for Cave tubing. We went with a great tour operator that was incrediably friendly and professional, but I think CC rules forbid me from posting his name. If you google the words Major, Tom and Belize you should find his contact information. It was so, so worth it!

[sandytoes03]

This board gets more visitors than the Belize board, so can anyone tell me what Belize City is like? We are pondering a cruise there in December. Is it similar to Cozumel or more like Labadee? 'Disneyland' feel, or real culture? What are the primarty acitives that cruisers do there?

 

Thank you!!

 

I haven't gone since 2003, but it was nothing like Cozumel or Labadee. I thought it was a sleepy, sort of run down, town. I wouldn't spend much time there. I would book an excursion and head out of town.

[Rafa]

I have to agree with almost everyone here, Belize City is kind of scary to roam around by yourselfs. Just be carefull, I will suggest to take a cruise excurcion instead.

[digital_curator]

We did an RCI excursion when we were there last spring (the only time I haven't booked on my own) and had a great time.

 

We did the Lamanai Ruins tour. We were picked up right at the pier center (a little congested with all the tours leaving) and took a large tour bus through the city (as others have said, little to see and obviously an economically depressed area) out to the countryside (pretty). After about 1/2 hour, we transferred to a boat (at this area there were washrooms and some locals selling some tourist items) and we got to see aligators, bats, and lots of local birds on the hour long trip out to the ruins. When we got there we were served a delicious lunch (chicken, rice, local pop, etc.) and then had a tour of the ruins in the jungle. Afterwards we had time to look at the small museum or shop in the 2 or 3 stores onsite. The return boat trip to the bus was much faster. It was a full day trip- we got back with just enough time to look around the port shops.

 

While Beize City might not have much to offer, Belize was possibly our favorite port in the Caribbean!