Don't let this board scare you, take a walk around Belize City!

[gt95stang]

I was just in Belize last Thursday and all these folks who say that Belize is dangerous are ridiculous. Its my assumption that the ones reporting this are not experienced travelers and just have very little experience with poor countries. While its true that I wouldn't want my 20 year old daughter walking around Belize City by herself, I also wouldn't want her walking around Detroit, L.A., New York or Miami by herself either.

 

While the tour, braiding and taxi hawkers are persistent, once they realize that you're not interested in buying anything from them, they leave you alone. No different than touristy areas of other 3rd world countries. And once you get away from the port shopping area, there aren't any of the hawkers around and virtually no one bothers you.

 

I walked outside the gates with my wife and 6 year old daughter and certainly never felt unsafe or threatened. Perhaps because I've experienced similar countries, I never even felt annoyed by the hawkers (although I can certainly understand why some people might).

 

We spent some time shopping in the flea market / tent city around the port gates and ended up buying quite a bit of bead jewelry, some conch shells and a few snacks (mango, plantain chips, tangerines and a snow cone) from street vendors. One of the guys at a jewelry stand chatted us up for a half hour or so (after we had already bought some stuff from him) and we learned a lot about the school system since his 8 year old son was with him and he had 4 other boys at home.

 

Once DD was ready for a break from walking, we went back and found one of the more subtle (non-pushy) horse and carriage guys (Alex) and took a 45 minute tour of the city (the cruise line charged $59 per person for a similar excursion, we paid $25 total for the 3 of us). It was enough to get a bit of a feel for the country and how the locals really live. By walking around and talking with some of the hawkers first, we got a feel for how much things "should" cost so I felt that the $25 was fair for him and us. Especially helpful are the vendors that you buy things from. Once you've already bought stuff from them, they'll be more willing to tell you which tour operators to go to, or to avoid; and how much is a reasonable price.

 

After the carriage ride, we walked back to some street side food stands to get some local food for a bit of a snack and wandered back toward the downtown area (turn left out of the gates and then turn left at the intersection to go over the bridge). There isn't much for "trinket" shopping downtown, but there aren't any vendors harassing you and you get to "shop where the locals shop". After that, DD was pretty exhausted so we headed back to the ship.

 

I think Belize City may get a bad rap from some folks because the closer you are to the tourist village gates the more aggressive the hawkers are; some people may get frustrated and go back inside the gates without ever getting beyond the most aggressive hawkers. We had 4 or 5 talking to us at once when we stepped outside the gate, but by the time we were 100 feet down the street, it was nothing more than an occasional "I can give you a city tour" as you'd walk by a taxi driver. The vendors in the flea market / tent city weren't pushy at all. You could browse in their shops (and DD is a detailed browser!) and they'd wait for you to ask prices before approaching you at all.

 

Having a 6 year old with us, we were somewhat limited in what we could do in the country. She would have gotten pretty bored with a 60 minute cab ride even if there was something that interested her at the end of it. But I would have no problem doing a longer tour from a safety standpoint. I just didn't get an "bad vibes" from any of the vendors. I'd be more likely to seek out a less aggressive vendor because I like to reinforce that approach, not because the aggressive vendors scare me at all.

 

[cruisincarnival]

thanks for posting the pics.. I am going next year and was wondering how it was there. I have been to lots of islands and always enjoy seeing how others live and seeing different things.

[Leadft]

On behalf of Los Angeles, I take offense!!

 

(Just kidding! Thanks for this. I totally agree. I also feel the same way about Jamaica. Spent a week there and LOVED it. Wasn't bothered by the hard-sellers or poverty. Talking to those people and seeing their way of life just made me thankful for all I have.)

[blessedwith12]

Thanks for taking the time to post your review and pictures. I will be there in November and just yesterday I was telling my husband all the negative things I had heard about Belize. He questioned, "And we're going there, why?" Thanks for putting this all into perspective.

[hockeycruisers]

We were in Belize last Wednesday and I agree with your comments. We went "outside the gates" with our 14-year-old daughter and 9-year-old son and we felt very safe. Attentive as we would always be in a city with our children, and safe. Yes, we were approached by vendors wanting to braid our hair or show us their wares, however it was never obnoxious. We politely declined and they didn't persist. We did buy some neat souveniers in the flea market area and my husband enjoyed having a beer and conversation with the locals. We actually preferred to shop "outside the gate" versus in the cruise operated port shops as it seemed much more authentic in each of the ports we visited (Belize, Costa Maya and Cozumel).

 

We also traveled through the city in a mini-van with our tour operator (I'll review that under a ziplining thread) and he was very informative about the city and the culture. It was very eye-opening for my suburban-bred children and I was glad we all had the opportunity to visit!

[Perfect Stranger]

It looks like a dump....not any place I would want to walk around.

[gail811]

Thank you for the comments and pictures gt95stang. I have never felt unsafe on our trips to Belize; made a great friend on a tour my first trip there and he is my guide each time I visit now. He is proud of his country and points out the good and the bad to us. We make a point of leaving the area around the pier...that is why we travel...to experience other countries and their cultures.

[OZjones12]

It looks like a dump....not any place I would want to walk around.

 

 

That is what spa days are for... Just stay on the ship and get your nails done... :cool:

[Shellintampa]

Thank you for taking the time to post such an informative post. You are correct about the assumptions that are made on this board. It is mainly cruisers, that have never taken a land based vacation in a 3rd World country.

No matter where you are in the world safety is as safe as you make yourself. I feel just as safe in Coxen Hole Roatan, Belize City, Akumal , Tulum and Coba, Mexico as I do in hometown Tampa ,Florida at times.

You just have to watch yourself, do not flash large amounts of cash, do not walk down small dark alleys, etc.

[RVman]

Typo, I guess I will have to post a few of mine

 

Rum with that?

Going into the city of Belize

 

 

 

 

 

Notice the dog, he had the mange really bad

 

 

New Construction

 

 

 

[Perfect Stranger]

You can't go by "feelings". Just because you "don't feel unsafe", doesn't mean you ARE SAFE. They know cruise ship passengers have money (whether you flash it or not) and I would worry about my purse being yanked off my arm.

[gt95stang]

You can't go by "feelings". Just because you "don't feel unsafe", doesn't mean you ARE SAFE. They know cruise ship passengers have money (whether you flash it or not) and I would worry about my purse being yanked off my arm.

And just because you "feel" threatened by someone wanting to sell you a necklace or braid your daughter's hair doesn't mean you are in danger.

 

If you're scared walking around Belize City with your family in the middle of the day, the fear is all in your head.

[Perfect Stranger]

I would take these warnings seriously.

 

http://belize.usembassy.gov/uploads/images/GGXGekhJK5rHnion3OjThw/wwwfsnavoidingcrime.pdf

 

http://www.virtualtourist.com/travel/Caribbean_and_Central_America/Belize/Warnings_or_Dangers-Belize-Belize_City-R-1.html

[gt95stang]

I would take these warnings seriously.

 

http://belize.usembassy.gov/uploads/images/GGXGekhJK5rHnion3OjThw/wwwfsnavoidingcrime.pdf

 

http://www.virtualtourist.com/travel/Caribbean_and_Central_America/Belize/Warnings_or_Dangers-Belize-Belize_City-R-1.html

Good Grief!

 

There isn't even a state department travel warning on Belize (http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/tw/tw_1764.html). If you're going to avoid a country because there is government information about crime in that country on the internet, or because somebody posted about a crime that occurred in that country, you're never going to leave your house.

 

If you're scared of people that are different from you, then I understand that. Schedule your cruises to places that are familiar to you or stay on the boat. But if you're going to bother to schedule a cruise and actually go to Belize, then get outside the gates and actually see something.

[EBallgrl]

If a place was really that dangerous for cruise passengers, the cruiselines would not take you there.

 

I have been there twice now on cruises and love it. Just because people are poor does not make them criminals. If you dont want your purse snatched, carry a fanny pack or backpack. I did not get to shop outside the port on my last visit due to almost missing the last tender from a long tour, but our first visit we shopped out there and I never felt uncomfortable. Sure people tried selling me things I did not want, but I have encountered that in all the ports I have been to.

 

They are just trying to make a living for themselves and I doubt that a ship comes EVERY day. So they must make up for that when they can. All you have to do is walk away.

 

I dont care where you come from, you can be a victim of crime ANYWHERE. Try to be more open minded. geez!

 

Thanks for posting your experience OP! :D

[surroundedbyboys]

Our family of 4 did a land based vacation in Belize for a week in March. We stayed at a resort but we traveled all over-from the border in Guatamala (ruins) to the coastline and to the interior jungles.

 

Obviously this type of travel isn't for everyone. Some would rather be pampered in a big city as opposed to traipsing through a poor country. We enjoy both and everything in between. We have been to Egypt, China, Jamaica, Mexico, Italy, Switzerland, Greece, etc. etc.

 

One of our guides, who lived in Belize City, said that it is very safe although he told us to avoid the McDonalds "as pick pockets frequent the area". As others have said- it's all about common sense. Keep your money safe and close, don't flash it around- keep small bills in an easy accessible spot. Keep your head up and don't go places where you would be alone and "easy pickings". This is true of absolutely any area in the world! There are going to be bad people and good people everywhere you go.

 

We loved Belize. We were greeted in a friendly, open manner. We ran into a school group at one of the mayan ruins and the teacher had a great time talking to my sons about their schooling in America. We took presents to the people in the village we visited and had an hour long conversation with the mom of the children we shared with. Later when going through the town a large group of children and adults were playing a baseball game with the baseball bats & balls we had brought.

 

One very cool thing for us in Belize is that English is the common language. While we try to learn some of the language in every country we go to, we just don't have enough to converse for long periods of time. Always smile, meet people in the eye, show them an interest in their lives and culture and share some of yours with them.

[MamaParrotHead]

I really enjoy the open air markets with local vendors...can you tell me how to get to the area in your first picture/s and how long/far it is from the ship?

 

Thanks.

[gt95stang]

I really enjoy the open air markets with local vendors...can you tell me how to get to the area in your first picture/s and how long/far it is from the ship?

 

Thanks.

That is directly across Fort Street from the tourist village. On the map below, you would go left down Fort Street from the main entrance. At least I think its left, we went out the far left exit and went right. There are also several vendors with nothing but tables and tents set up right along Fort Street.

 

I would say your best bet would be to start at the main entrance. I can't remember what is to the right of there, but I don't think we ventured that way much. So you might want to go a little bit that way to see if there is anything interesting. But then head back the other way and you'll hit all the street vendors and the market in the pictures. If you keep walking to the first big intersection past the tourism village (you'll see some food stands on the right side of the street) you can turn either left or right to hit the "where the locals shop" district. If you go right (away from the bridge), you'll hit the more "upscale" (relatively speaking) shops. If you go left and over the bridge, that's the area where the Ace Hardware picture was taken.

 

The village tourism map I was trying to post here is too large and it messes up the page. So here is a link to it: http://www.cave-tubing.com/images/tourism-village-map.gif

[JenaMH]

Thank you so much for making this thread. I had read some of the other posts and was to the point where I wasn't even considering doing an excursion unless it was through the boat.

Poverty does not frighten me, and there's no manicures to mess up here!

Maybe we will wander around a bit after all. :)

[PeggyMc]

Great photos. Pictures go along way in describing things. Thank you for posting them.

[Name Of The Game]

OP, you're not helping people by encouraging them to walk around in an unsafe area.

[KimberleyFL]

gt95stang, how would I get to the place to get a horse and carriage tour? Thanks for the info.

[HarpHarp]

OP, you're not helping people by encouraging them to walk around in an unsafe area.

 

I also love walking around Belize City. As a fellow Ne Ohio cruiser, I want to know how do you get anywhere in Cleveland without walking in an unsafe area?:D

[Name Of The Game]

There are decent neighborhoods in Cleveland including mine which safe and well kept. True there are bad areas and I avoid them.

[jimjamxx]

OP, you're not helping people by encouraging them to walk around in an unsafe area.

It is NOT an unsafe area, We had a very similar experience as the OP "outside da gates" although we did not have a small one with us. After my Carnival sponsored excursion(To the ruins) we were let off the bus outside the gates and instructed to walk back to the port area. About 2-3 block walk.

 

I found Miss Charlotte(wife) back @ the port enclosure(she had done the cave tubing excursion with a bunch of friends).

 

I said let's go back 'outside the gates", they have some amazing things to look at. At NO time did we feel on safe or threatened.

 

While walking around we came across a vendor that was selling some amazing hand turned wooded bowls made from local wood. Being a woodworker myself, we stoped and talked to him. I found a bowl I like and asked

 

"How much?" He said let me ask the guy that made it,

he is right here. After they had a conversation in the local dialect(Creole) he said : $10.00 USD.

 

I said that is not a good price. I would like to give you $20.00USD(Keep in mind I do know some woodworking)

 

The artist then signed it. He also said that he had NEVER had anyone offer to pay more than he asked.

 

Moral of the story: He made my day with a beautiful wooden hand carved bowl and I made his day by paying what I thought it was worth.

 

So get out there, once out the "gate" go right and you see/experience some good stuff.

 

Our tour guy on the Carnival excursion told us that the folks outside the gate made most of the stuff in the port area.

JimmyJames