“Last night I dreamt of San Pedro.” Well, not exactly, but I’ve been daydreaming of it. In October 2018, I attended the Northern Virginia Association of Realtors Conference. I dropped my business card into a fishbowl of an international development company called https://ecidevelopment.com/ and to my surprise, my card was pulled out at random to win a complimentary 4-night stay at https://www.grandbaymen.com/. Four years later, while cleaning my condo, I found the certificate that awarded me that 4-night stay in Belize. I had completely forgotten about it. Over the last three years, I had gone through unexpected and heartbreaking personal tragedy, a global pandemic, and lots of time dedicated to real estate and consulting. It had also been almost seven years since I had gone on vacation, so with all of that, I was more than overdue for one. Fortunately, ECI development was gracious and allowed me to use the certificate even though it had expired. The day before I was to leave on my trip, my friend decided to join.
I wasn’t sure what to expect when I booked a flight on https://www.tropicair.com/ to get from mainland Belize to San Pedro, the inspiration behind Madonna’s “La Isla Bonita”. It was the smallest plane I’d ever been on. It was the kind of plane that requires you to “even out” the cabin. The flight over, though a little scary because of the slight turbulence that felt more significant due to the size of the plane, was 20 minutes of pure amazement! I highly recommend flying over taking the water taxi. It was so beautiful to see the various shades of blue water. What a breathtaking view!
The next cool thing about San Pedro is that most people get around the island by golf cart. We rented ours from https://blueholegolfcartrental.com/. The driving took some getting used to, and the roads had many potholes and frequent speed bumps, but driving the golf cart with the tropical breeze was so much fun to explore the island. You can come and go as you please and parking is readily available. Our condo was a comfortable 1 bedroom unit very close to town with a full kitchen and featured a nice, serene pool that had a a swim up bar and a gym. They have a main office that offers daily room make up, laundry service, and the staff will make recommendations, book tours, and make restaurant reservations for you. The staff were very gracious, sweet and very helpful!
On the first day after some reluctance due to the fear of being bitten by sea roaches, we decided to golf cart to Secret Beach. We were greeted and ushered in by a staff member of Maruba. They made our 50 minute drive worth it with their great mango smoothies and generous service and hospitality! The water at Secret Beach was very warm, calm, and clear and allowed us to swim a good distance out. This is a daytime visit as the restaurants are powered by solar power only. Things start shutting down at 4:30 p.m. See our full review here. https://www.tripadvisor.com/UserReviewEdit-g291962-d17439862-Maruba_Beach_Klub-San_Pedro_Ambergris_Caye_Belize_Cayes.html
When riding into town you see a mix of fruit stands, restaurants, and tiny shops or stands that feature the artesan work of the Belizeans. One of my favorite things to do is see all of the beautiful hand made creations of the local people. I bought several beautiful beaded animal ornaments and a hand painted ceramic Toucan as souvenirs.
The staff of Grand Baymen recommended and booked a 3-hour snorkel tour of Hol Chan Marine Reserve through https://seariousadventuresbelize.com/. Hol Chan is the Mayan word for little channel. This is a must see tour! Even if you aren’t a good swimmer, you can wear a life jacket to keep you afloat as you snorkel. Our tour guide was excellent, and he led us to view and identify all kinds of Caribbean fish around the coral, a large sea turtle, rays, and nurse sharks! Two nurse sharks swam right under me. I swam with sharks!
The staff at Grand Baymen recommended that we dine at https://www.elviskitchen.com/. Not only was the ambience very nice, but the food was delicious! My friend thought the ceviche was the best ceviche she ever had. I ordered a coconut curry shrimp dish that was delectable!
Be sure to pop into the https://green-espresso.business.site/ where you can escape the humidity, relax, and enjoy a hot or cold beverage. I loved my latte and my strawberry banana shake. I had to visit twice!
We also got a recommendation from some repeat tourists to have dinner at https://www.purboutiquecabanas.com/, and it was pure paradise to the senses! From the tranquil, small, warm swim up bar, the rich and delicious virgin pina coladas, and the magical and relaxing hands of our masseuses while hearing tranquil music accompanied by the birdsongs from above, this place is a must visit! The massage went well above the hour for which we signed up.
No matter where we went, everyone treated us with the utmost respect and kindness. Because the main language is English, we really got to engage with those we met and learn a little bit about the lives they lead and their culture. We had a lovely conversation with two ladies who were indulging us with a pedi that was relaxing and had a great massage at https://massage-by-the-reef-day-spa.business.site/. They don’t manufacture anything in San Pedro. Tourism is their main business, and they do it with the gold standard of service. When you are on the island of San Pedro, you will see pockets of run down shops and dilapidated neighborhoods. You might expect that these conditions would harden the Belizeans, but every person we encountered was so kind. Because they impressed me so much as a people, I really wanted to take the time to write reviews of the establishments they represented and truly highlight how Belizeans are. They showed me the type of human beings we should all aspire to be. My mother used to say, “You get more with honey than you do with vinegar.” I believe in karma. You get what you give, and I want to give back to the Belizeans by introducing their beautiful country and the places we visited and were treated so well. With everything described above and that sparkling attitude, Belize is a true gem of Central America.
Check on fulfilling one of my goals on my vision board.
Belize, thank you for a memorable experience. Here is some well-deserved honey for you!
Please share your comments!
I certainly would love to visit Belize after readying your article. Sounds wonderful.
Thanks for reading. I am glad you would consider going to Belize based on my post. I would love to go explore mainland Belize. You can see other wildlife and the Mayan ruins.
Your review of Belize and the places you visited makes me want to go now!
Thank you for reading, and I am glad I inspired you!
Great article on Belize! Makes me want to go. My sister and her husband had their honeymoon there almost 10 years ago and still talk about it to this day. I’m so glad they honored your certificate!
Nice job, Deanna! Great read, so glad you had a great trip ❤️