Bocawina Rainforest Resort
January 11, 2020
Belize
Belize was mostly about snorkeling, with some wildlife, a little hiking, and plenty of time relaxing on the beach. And about escaping winter back home! One big surprise: the food! We expected lots of rice and beans. It was so much more than that and we didn’t have a bad meal. Belikan Stout is quite good and is widely available.
- 24 days
- 2020 Winter
Food and Beverage $43 per day
Average per person per day, including alcohol. We ate out every meal. Our first three stops included a meal plan.
Lodging $60-$99 per night
Not including taxes and fees.
Transportation $502 per person
This includes three flights within Belize, boats to and from Caye Caulker and Tobacco Caye, a rental car for a couple of days, a shuttle, and a few taxi rides.
Entertainment $100 per person
Entertainment included a snorkel trip, a daytime visit to the zoo, and a night tour of the zoo.
Days 1-4: Mayflower Bocawina National Park
Planned Activities
- Hike
Actual Activities
- Hike
- Birdwatching
The Plan: This is the first part of a combined package along with Tobacco Caye. While the focus of this trip is snorkeling, we thought we’d fit in a little jungle and hiking. It will be interesting to be off the grid for the first time.
The Reality: Our stay included two guided activities, so we did a guided hike and a guided bird-watching session.
You may also notice the absence of any Mayan ruins in our planning. Since we’ve been to Chichen Itza, we’re skipping any ruins. However had we not been to Chichen Itza we would likely have included Tikal.
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Bocawina Walks
January 12, 2020
Fly from home
Stay at Bocawina Rainforest Resort
Rooms were basic and comfortable. Onsite restaurant is fantastic.
Get around by walking
Days 5-8: Tobacco Caye
Planned Activities
- Snorkel
- Hang out on the beach
Actual Activities
- Snorkel
- Hang out on the deck
The Plan: I have always wanted to stay in an overwater bungalow, and this place has them, at not a huge price! Also looking forward to being able to snorkel off the beach, and to being off the grid on a tiny little island.
The Reality: Pretty much like we envisioned. We did less snorkeling than we planned thanks to all the rain, but that just meant more time to hang out on the deck, which was even better than a beach!
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Tobacco Caye
January 14, 2020
Tobacco Caye: Sea and Sky
January 15, 2020
Boat from Dangriga
A shuttle from the rainforest
Stay at Tobacco Caye Paradise
Over water bungalows aren't fancy but the decks are wonderful. And so was the food!
Get around by walking
It's a tiny island.
Days 9-10: Belize Zoo
Planned Activities
- Visiting the zoo
- Night tour of the zoo
- Driving around Belize
Actual Activities
- Visiting the zoo
- Night tour of the zoo
- Driving around Belize … looking for a new duffel bag
The Plan: Once we learned you could do a night tour here, staying overnight was a must!
The Reality: Just like we planned, although our drive ended up including shopping for a new duffel bag.
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Belize Zoo
January 18, 2020
Belize Zoo: More animals
January 19, 2020
Fly from Dangriga
Stay at Tropical Education Center
Lovely pond house and more great food.
Get around by rental car
Days 11-16: Caye Caulker
Planned Activities
- Snorkel
- Hang out on the beach
Actual Activities
- Snorkel
- Hang out on the beach
The Plan: We’ve heard people get warned here that they’re walking too fast, and that spending time in a hammock is a viable use of time. With that and a couple of snorkeling trips, we should be good!
The Reality: The weather prevented us from taking a second snorkeling trip.
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Caye Caulker
January 20, 2020
Caye Caulker: Snorkel Tour and Wildlife
January 23, 2020
Ferry from Belize City
Stay at Colinda Cabañas
Nice, quiet waterfront cabañas. Various configurations. Their website has lots of tips.
Get around by walking
Days 17-24: Placencia
Planned Activities
- Snorkel
- Hang out at the beach
Actual Activities
- Hang out at the beach
The Plan: Placencia is reputed to have the best beach in Belize, so that’s why we chose it for our last stop, for some chill out beach time.
The Reality: We got some great beach time and skipped the snorkel trip because we didn’t want to deal with a long boat ride. We did get to see some sea life off the pier.
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Placencia
January 26, 2020
Shuttle from Belize City
After taking the ferry from Caye Caulker
Stay at Placencia Villas
Nice rooms close to restaurants though not waterfront. Suites include cooking facilities.
Get around by walking
Resources
- We used Lonely Planet Belize (Kindle format) as our main resource. And by the way, that picture on the cover is of Tobacco Caye Paradise, one of the place we stayed. (It’s great.)*
- TropicalSnorkeling.com has info on snorkeling in Belize
- The Colinda Cabañas website has great local tips for Caye Caulker
- We don’t often book packages but Island Expeditions made it easy to visit the Bocawina rainforest and Tobacco Caye and they offer a number of multi-day trips
- We flew Maya Island Air within Belize and the service was excellent
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