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Travel and diving in Belize and the Maya ruins

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Travel Story, scuba diving in Belize the Caribbean Sea and visits to the the Maya ruins Altun Ha, Xunantunich, Caracol, Tikal, Cahal Pech and jungle tour of Monkey river and Cockscomb jaguar

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Where is Belize - Caribbean?

General Information about Belize - Caribbean

Belize is the former British Honduras. Belize is located at the Caribbean Sea and adjacent to Mexico and Guatemala. Belize has a coastline of 280 kilometres. In front of the coastline of Belize you'll find the second biggest barrier reef in the world (360 kilometres long). Here are over 200 palm islands, also called 'cayes', with white sandy beaches.

English is the official language spoken in Belize, but next to that you'll hear a lot of Spanish and English Creole. The majority of the population is Roman Catholic. In addition, people practise a mix of African and Caribbean ancestor voodoo.

To go diving there are many beautiful dive sites in Belize, the highlight; the Blue Hole! From the mainland, it only takes a 2 hour boat trip to reach the Blue Hole. There isn't really a lot of fish, but you'll get the chance to see a lot of reef sharks and bull-sharks. The Blue Hole is a nice large circle-shaped hole. Under the deep blue water surface of the Blue Hole is a cave (45m depth) with the largest stalactites and stalagmites ever discovered under water. The stalactites and stalagmites appeared a long time ago in the operation from water on limestone. This unique structure makes a swim in the blue hole very special (and therefore not really the sea life that is present). The Blue Hole is 300m wide and 122m deep.

The landscape of the country of Belize consists largely of tropical jungle (45%) with among many other things; waterfalls, caves, wildlife parks, crocodiles, jaguars, 574 bird species (including the Toucan), iguanas and other reptiles, monkeys (such as the black howler monkeys and spider monkeys), turtles and manatees or dugongs, of which Belize knows the largest population in the world. It's believed that there's only approx. 2000 worldwide manatees alife. Many of the above animal species are hardly ever seen and, or don't even appear in Central America, nor the world anymore. Belize is also known as the botanical's heaven on earth. Belize has four thousand types of plants, including 700 species of trees and 275 types of orchids. And all of this is on a very small piece of land! Belize is also one of the few countries to have thousands of hectares of almost untouched tropical jungle. In the tropical jungle of Belize, there are four different types of forest: pine forests, mixed deciduous forests, Cohune-palm woods and shore forests.

Particularly in Belize there are many caves. Since the sixties of the twentieth century, the caves are mapped and investigated. Now, there are over 300 caves examined. These already count over 150 kilometres of underground galleries. The Cebada and Petroglyph are even two of the largest caves in the world. The caves are easily found in the whole country, but most are found in the south and west of Belize. In front of the coastline you can still find underwater caves, among others the Blue Hole and the Giant Cave. The giant cave is one of the longest underwater caves in the world. All of these caves also played an important role in the Maya mythology.

Belize has a huge cultural past whose remnants certainly must be visited. Belize has many unique ruins and temples of the Mayan culture that, although built thousands of years ago, are still in good condition. The first remains of the Mayan culture date back to 1500 B.C. The Mayan civilization reached its climax between the sixth and eighth century A.D. In this period a massive empire spread over the area where we now find the countries Belize, Guatemala, parts of Mexico, Honduras and El Salvador. In Belize, the ancient buildings of the Mayas are usually still hidden and overgrown by the dense jungle. A number of Mayan temples have already been made accessible, for example the magnificent complex of Altun Ha, where in 1968 the largest by Mayas edited piece of jade (green stone) was found. Also Xunantunich is worth a visit. Xunantunich in Belize, is the most famous Mayan complex. On the top of the temple El Castillo you get a beautiful view over the dense jungle which surrounds the Maya complex. Tucked away in the dense jungle you'll also find remnants of classical Mayan cities such as Caracol which still radiates a huge grandeur. Furthermore, the Caracol is the largest Maya complex in Belize. The main pyramid of Caracol mentions Caana. Caana is the highest pyramid in Belize ever made by people and has a height of 43m. Caracol is located deep in the Forest Reserve jungle Chiquibil. On the top of the pyramid Caana you get a wonderful view over the Caracol complex and the surrounding jungle. The Maya ruins of Caracol, however, are not so well dug up as that of Tikal, Xunantunich, Altun Ha Cahal, a breakdown of several other archaeological Maya sites. This gives Caracol a special charm of authenticity, robust nature and adventure. Many Mayan cities are still undiscovered, overgrown by the deep jungle in Belize.

The climate in Belize is subtropical with a dry and wet season and can be visited all year round. The best diving period is from May to Augustus, in this time, the sea is generally the calmest and the sight the best. Although most of the hurricanes don't actually hit Belize, you must take into account that the climate in September and October isn't very favourable to travel to Belize. The climate however seems to change throughout the world, so you might be lucky.

Map Belize - Caribbean Sea:

Dive Travel Report Belize - Caribbean and trip- to the Mayan ruins Cahal Pech, Xunantunich, Caracol, Altun Ha and Tikal in Guatemala

Wednesday 21 November 2012

Departure from Belgium to Belize

At 6.10am we're picked up at home by budget taxi and arrive around 7am at the departures hall of Zaventem. The check-in runs smoothly so that we still have plenty of time for breakfast. After 50 minutes flying we arrive in Amsterdam Airport where we have to wait 5 hours for our connection flight to Atlanta. Since Schiphol is bursting with shops and eateries, we don't have to get bored and the time in between passes by quickly. During the almost 10-hour flight to Atlanta we're pampered by the very friendly crew of KLM and catch up on some new films. At 20.30pm local time we land in Atlanta to take the transfer bus to the Best Western Plus Hotel Airport South. As we expect from the Americans, our room is rather large and has a king-size bed. We've now been awake for 23 hours and therefore quickly jump into our bed to enjoy a much needed night of sleep.

Thursday 22 November 2012

Belize City

Due to the jet lag our biorhythm is a little of track, we wake up around 5.00am to not be able to get back to sleep. After a refreshing shower and a very sugary breakfast we make way back to the airport of Atlanta and take off around 10.30am in the direction of Belize City. After three hours flying, we arrive at our destination. We quickly get out some Belizian Dollars (BZD) from an ATM machine and then take a taxi (25 USD) to the Great House Hotel, a 100 meters from the Caribbean Sea. The hotel is known as one of the better hotels in Belize City and its old colonial style certainly makes a grandeur impression. We want to explore the city as soon as we get there, but the lady at the front desk warns us that a large part of the city is not safe. After this advice, we decide not to go straight into town, but go for a walk along the water. Soon, a young guy with a horse and buggy asks if we're interested in a tour around Belize City. We accept his offer (20 BZD per person) and get a little impression of the city this way. And indeed, a very large part of Belize City looks neglected and marginal. Around 15.30pm our stomachs start to growl and we go back to the hotel for a delicious and relatively inexpensive meal. Because we still experience a little of the jet lag, we search for our beds early again tonight. Sleept tight!

Friday 23 November 2012

Departure from Belize City to Placencia

Today as well, awaits an early rise, because we have a long ride to go to Placencia. After another sugary breakfast, we take a taxi to the bus terminal (8 USD) and take the bus from 8.15am toward Placencia. It's a tight affair as they drive with shabby school busses from the USA. We therefore don't have a lot of space for luggage and long legs especially are cramped! On the bus, we soon make contact with two French tourists who are on an exploration in Belize for a possible set up of a business in Kite surfing. They recommend us to get a bus ticket to Independence (19 BZD) instead of getting off in Dangriga. During the trip, we also pick up some locals, so we get the chance to observe the colourful daily life of the typical Belizean. The first part of the pass to Placencia we drive as an express service and the driver keeps a strong pace. A first stop is held in the Capital City Belmopan. Here are a number of Menonieten take a seat on the bus, a minority group of whites who without all the technical touches live a simple life like the 1900. The women are dressed in long dark skirts and their hair is neatly tied up under a cap. The men have a long beard and wear a straw hat and blue overalls. From Belmopan we drive as a 'regular' bus service and stop in all demanded places to take on and let go passengers. A second stopover of 5 minutes at the bus terminal in Dangriga takes place. During the last part of the routing steps more and more people hop on, there aren't even any seats left. Regularly sellers hop on the bus to sell their consumption (bread, rice pudding, popcorn, ...) with success, 1BZD per piece. Around 13.00pm we finally arrive in the village of Independence. We're directly approached by a nonofficial taxi driver that will take us for 2.5 BZD per person to the 'Hockey Pockey' water taxi. Since we see no way out and don't feel like carrying our luggage all the way, we eagerly accept his proposal. Unfortunately, the water taxi doesn't leave until 14.30pm and we have to kill the waiting time with some lazing and reading. At 14.30pm prompt, the water taxi leaves in the direction of Placencia and about a quarter of an hour after passing through a magnificent mangrove forest, we arrive at our final destination. Fortunately, our hotel Seaspray is located near the jetty of the water taxi. We get the Seastar room allocated; a somewhat bland room with queen-size bed, but we have a private balcony with splendid views on the Caribbean Sea! After we've unpacked our luggage, we go for a little walk to explore the surroundings. We end up in restaurant The Tatch where we treat ourselves to a delicious meal as you can get scampi and nephrops for a very reasonable price. Because of the long bus ride today we are again tired and crawl in bed fairly early. This night, there's a lot of wind and the waves beech in on the beach. Since the walls of our hotel room are paper thin, it feels as if our bed is in the middle of a storm at sea. Eventually we are accustomed to the roar of the sea and we fall asleep like babies.

Saturday 24 November 2012

Tour from Placencia to Monkey River

On the program today; the Monkey River tour and we make way to the jetty in Placencia at 8.00am, to meet our guide Ralph. We are his only passengers, which leaves us with more than sufficient leg room. Ralph quickly moves forward and races through the mangrove forest, along the shores of Placencia in the direction of Monkey River. When we have arrived at the start of the river, our guide shows various hidden birds in the trees and bushes. There are also crocodiles in the river and we even get as lucky to see a baby. After approx. 45 minutes we set foot ashore to explore the dense jungle. Ralph goes in front with the machete and follows the loud sound of the howler monkeys, that are literally heard from miles away. Our guide walks a solid pace and we struggle to follow. Especially since you constantly have to watch the ground and track beneath you in order to not slip or step on a snake! After a while we finally spot a howler monkey, one of the leading males of the group. He is dead quiet at the top of a tree and makes no sound. Chapeau for Ralph finding this animal in the wild. We get plenty of time to take photos and catch our breath. Now we dwell in the jungle, we notice that there are a lot of mosquitoes. Fortunately, we have coated our bodies with anti-mosquito spray, so that the annoying blood suckers can't get us. At least, that's what we thought, because the next day we see we've been bitten on various places we apparently forgot to lubricate! Then we continue our trip through the dense jungle and Ralph has to cut the road open with his machete, here and there. He tells us to follow his footsteps because there are indeed snakes and other toxic vermin, which could bite innocent passers. After a while we walk into a larger group of howler monkeys high in the trees. We even have the luck to spot a mother with its baby. Then the guide shows us traces of jaguars and deer and we pass various termite nests. Tired but satisfied, we make way back to Monkey Village, where we have a delicious meal. After lunch, we return to Placencia and on the road we make a stopover to spot manatees. After searching for some time, we get lucky and see several manatees. Our expedition was successful and around 13.30pm we return to land in Placencia. On the way to the hotel we pass the cosy Barefoot Bar and we opt for a quick drink. Once arrived in our hotel we decide to have a dip in the Caribbean Sea to wash all the sweat of our body. Delicious!

Photos and info of the Monkey River jungle tour 1

monkey river belize placencia

Photos and info of the Monkey River jungle tour 2

Sunday 25 November, 2012

Tour of Placencia to Cock Comb Jaguar Spare

At 8.00am we are picked up close to the hotel by an employee of Splash Dive Centre. Before we leave for an excursion to Cock Comb Jaguar Spare, we first have a brief stopover at their central office, where we are welcomed by the owner Patty. Soon after we arrive we find out Patty wants to expand her activities more to Europe and that she is looking for interesting exhibitions, websites, diving clubs, etc. on which she can promote her dive- and trip packages. She's clearly interested in our information and invites us for dinner that evening to go through all the data. Then, our guide takes us to the cock Comb Jaguar Reserve and after an hour drive (the last 20 minutes are pretty bumpy) we arrive on site. Since there are no other tourists in our group, we may choose the trail we'd like to walk (there are about 12). We opt for a walk of 3.5km which runs along a small river. In the vicinity of water, we'll have the best chance to see wildlife. Our guide is an experienced bird spotter and immediately points out one after the other (exotic) bird. Normally the birds are easily heard, but more difficult to locate because they are hiding in the dense foliage. At a given moment we also hear something rustling in the bushes and a humming sound. We are self-silent and stare down between the branches in the hope to see a cat-like, but unfortunately ... we will never know what it was. Our trip progresses on a slow pace due to the many photo and observation stops and it's already 12.30pm when we return to the visitor centre. We quickly sit down at the picnic table and enjoy our well-deserved lunch. Afterwards there's tubing on the river, but as the water is fairly low and we don't necessarily feel like getting wet, so we choose to go for a second walk. This time we go for a walk of 3km leading to a small waterfall. Due to the late noon, we now unfortunately see considerably less birds, but do come across a magnificent woodpecker and a black widow spider. After a fairly steep and rapid walk we arrive at the waterfall (which is not as spectacular as hoped) and the associated lake where you can swim. We thank for the honour, catch our breath on a bench, take the compulsory photos and return to the starting point. Finally arrived we jump back in the car and we are dropped off in front of our hotel in Placencia. As agreed, Patty and her husband Ralph of diving centre Splash pick us up at 19.00pm for a dinner in the Spanish eatery; Barcelona. They also have invited a young American couple (Stacey and Nadar) because Stacey is a professional blog star (beyond the diploma), and is approached by Patty to write, promote and keep track of her blogs through the Internet. Soon we exchange all interesting travel tips and hilarious anecdotes, an the evening flies by. We thank Patty and Ralph for dinner, exchange e-mail addresses with them and the American couple and then it's time to end this early friendship. See you on the world wide web!

photos and info of the Cock Comb Jaguar Spare jungle tour 1

cockscomb jaguar jungle belize placencia

photos and info of the Cock Comb Jaguar Spare jungle tour 2

Monday 26 November 2012

Departure from Placencia to San Ignacio and tour of the Mayan ruin Cahal Pech

Today we need to get up extra early because we must take the bus of 6.00am with direction Dangriga (10 BZD per person). At this early hour of the morning the bus is already packed after a while and everyone is treated to a beautiful sunrise. We drive passed the residential district of Placencia and marvel at the spacious houses which show a strong contrast to the other poor wooden houses in the surrounding villages. Around 7.45am we arrive in Dangriga and immediately take the bus to Belmopan (6 BZD per person). We are now slowly approaching the mountains, making the road and landscape hillier. After an hour's drive, we arrive in the capital city and wait for about 45 minutes on our last bus toward San Ignacio BZD (3 per person). This bus as well, is crowded and everyone moves contortions to let on the new and let off the old passengers. Comfortable travel is therefore not existent here. We are pleased that we finally can stretch our legs when we reach the centre of San Ignacio at 10.45am. We just arrive at the exit or already are approached by a taxi driver who will take us to our hotel Cahal Pech for 7 BZD. We eagerly accept the offer, as the hotel is fairly high situated on a hill. The hotel Cahal Pech needs a makeover (the renovations have already started), but the rooms are spacious and have a king-size bed, something we're very happy with! In the afternoon, we decide to visit the Maya ruins of Cahal Pech (10 BZD per person), which are located on walking distance. Our expectations of these sites are not really high, since the photos which we saw on the internet of Cahal Pech didn't show much spectacular. However, we are pleasantly surprised by what the site Cahal Pech has to offer. There's a small museum with artefacts and the necessary explanations about the emergence and decay of the Mayas in general and Cahal Pech in particular. In addition, there are 7 ruins unearthed which is certainly worth a visit. Fortunately, there are some clouds which make the climb of the two highest temples easily achievable. There are few tourists, giving you the opportunity for some real unique photos. After 1.5 hours we've seen it all and go back to the hotel.

belize san ignacio maya ruines cahal pech

Photos and info of the Maya ruins of Cahal Pech

Tuesday 27 November 2012

Tour of San Ignacio to the Mayan ruins Xunantunich

The taxi driver that took us from the bus terminal to the hotel in San Ignacio yesterday, picks us up this morning around 9.00am to take us to the Mayan complex Xunantunich (60 BZD for the return journey). After a short 15-minute drive, we arrive at the Mopan river which we have to cross with a manually operated ferry. From there it's only a few minute's drive up to the entrance of Xunantunich. To our great surprise there are few cars or buses on the parking spots. We buy our entrance ticket (10 BZD per person) and start our exploration of the magnificent Mayan city Xunantunich. First, we pass a number of smaller structures, but once we arrive at the central plaza we are overwhelmed by the grandeur of this ancient Mayan city Xunantunich. There are almost no tourists so we have the luxury to take brilliant photos. We climb the less large pyramids first and soon feel the sun burning on our skin. Even at this early hour of the day, the sun burns quite violently, so it doesn't take long for the sweat to drop of our forehead. But each ascent is more than worth the effort and subsequently rewarded with beautiful views. Finally, we hike our way to El Castillo, which with 40 meters is one of the of the highest Mayan temples of Belize. The temple is fortunately built up in multiple levels, making it possible to climb to the top in various stages. On one of the dashboard side flanges of El Castillo are among other things a number of beautiful frescoes to admire. To our surprise, we soon reach the top of El Castillo and the view on top of there is truly breath-taking. To get a total overview of the entire site of Xunantunich and on the background, beckons the dense jungle. The photos we are now taking is post-quality! We are on the top trying to catch our breath off, while we enjoy the beautiful landscape and get to talk to three American backpackers who are also out of breath. After sitting at the highest point for a while, we see a large group of tourists coming from the plaza of Xunantunich. That is for us the sign to tackle our piping and make the trip down and go back to the car park, where our taxi driver awaits. After a short drive around noon we end up back in the centre of San Ignacio and there eat a delicious burrito before we return to our hotel.

belize san ignacio maya ruines xunantunich

Photos and info of the Maya ruins of Xunantunich

Wednesday 28 November 2012

Tour of San Ignacio to the Mayan ruin Caracol

Today the Caracol Mayan temple is on the program. We are picked up at 7.45am at the hotel and a few minutes later we meet our guide Dora and four other fellow travellers. We drive from San Ignacio to San Elena and take a turn into one of the side roads. The more than two-hour trip on the bumpy sandy roads to Caracol leads us through the Mountain Pine Ridge reserve. Somewhere halfway we make a stopover at the Rio Frio cave for a little peek. After we have taken the necessary photos we continue our trip to Caracol. Around 10.15am we arrive at the archaeological site of Caracol. Together with another ferrule with four passengers, we are the only visitors today! Caracol is an ancient Mayan city in the middle of the jungle, until it was discovered in 1939. A part of the town of Caracol is already dug up and made visible to the public, but a large piece of the city of Caracol is still overgrown by the jungle. Our guide Dora leads us first on a path where they make the necessary explanations about the various plants and for which they are used by the old and contemporary Maya population. Then we come across a few relics of 'middle-class houses' and a larger building that was home to one of the sons of the king. The excavations are increasing and we ultimately arrive on a vast plaza with four ruins of Caracol, which were used by the ancient Maya to do 'Research'. Our guide gives us plenty of time to climb and photograph all the buildings of this plaza. However, Dora keeps 'the best for last' because at the end of the tour we get to see the Canaa, which with its 43 meters is the highest Mayan temple of Belize. With courage we start the ascent, but in these temperatures (ca 30°c) it's nevertheless a severe test. The view from the top is insanely stunning and it's all more than worth it. Since we are the only people here, we have the temple completely to ourselves and we get some extremely beautiful photos opporturnities. In one of the adjacent trees we also spot a family of howler monkeys. The beasts are not scared at all and we can even access to just a few meters away. Everyone is euphoric and the photo devices click in turbo speed! After we've observed the howler monkeys for a while and have enjoyed the Paradise-like view from the top, we descend back to the underlying plaza and return to the visitor centre, where Dora treats us to a small picnic. Around 14.15pm we are on our way back to the inhabited world, but before we arrive there, first have a stopover at the Big Rock waterfall, so that some enthusiasts can take a dive in the ice cold water at the waterfall. The hike down is very steep and at times even dangerously slippery. After half an hour bathing fun, it's time to hit the bumpy road. It's already dark when we get back to our hotel in San Ignacio around 18.00pm.

Photos and info of the Maya ruins of Caracol 1

belize san ignacio maya ruines caracol

Photos and info of the Maya ruins of Caracol 2

Thursday 29 November 2012

Departure from San Ignacio to Flores in Guatemala

At 10.00am Jude, our fixed taxi driver in San Ignacio, awaits at the entrance of the hotel. For 30 BZD he'll take us to Benque Viejo, the border crossing with Guatemala. The journey takes approximately 20 minutes. There, we're immediately approached by one of the alternating taxi-men. A little debate about the exchange rates and after we have established a price, we exchange 90USD for 630 Quetzals. The alternating man then introduces us to a taxi driver who can take us to the hotel in Flores. His original asking price to Flores is 60 USD, but we can haggle it down to 50 USD. After these practical matters and negotiations are concluded, we finally get to the border control in Belize (we pay 37,50 BZD departure fee per person) and walk through the same terminal to the Guatemalan customs (20 Quetzals per person). Now we're officially in Guatemala, we notice that the border post has several alternating men and taxi drivers waiting on potential customers. We step in our taxi and after a 1.15-hour drive through, we are dropped off in front of the hotel Petén region in Flores. Flores is actually a relatively small island village in the Petén region which is linked via a bridge to Santa Elena on the mainland. After we have checked-in, in our charming little hotel, we walk through the water edge and the bridge to San Juan Travel in Santa Elena to our original vouchers for the trip to Tikal and return to Belize City to retrieve it. Then we explore the local shopping mall with its variety of fast food options and we return to Flores, where we have a look at the picturesque, bumpy alleys stroll and take a look at the various souvenirs hops. Finally, we drink an aperitif with view on the lake Petén region and then make a choice from one of the numerous restaurants to conclude the day.

Friday 30 November 2012

Tour of Flores in Guatemala to the Mayan ruins Tikal

The ferrule of San Juan Travel picks us up at hotel Petén region around 8.30am. We travel together with a Spanish language group and an Australian tourist to Tikal, that used to be the largest Maya cities in the world. As for the final destination, we have to go for the mandatory pit stop in a tourist shop, but none is actually interested in the far too expensive rubbish. Around 10.00am, we arrive at the main entrance of the site. In Tikal, there are plenty of preparations in progress for the magical day 21-12-2012 on which the Mayan calendar will end. In contrast to what has been maintained, this doesn't mean the end of the world, but the end of the era and the beginning of a new period. As a result of this mythical prediction there's more tourist traffic in Tikal calculated for December, but for now there only a few smaller ferrules on the parking. We pay 150 Quetzals (i.e. EUR 15 or 23 USD) per person for our entrance ticket and full of excitement enter the first ruins in Tikal. According to the travel guide we would need 4 hours to see all the prominent excavations of Tikal. Just like with our previous visits to Maya ruins we first come across the smaller excavations, but soon we get to see a number of larger temples with honeyed names as The Big Jaguar (47 meters high) and The Mascarones Temple (38 meters high). Of course, we take the obvious photos, but then make way to the Gran Plaza, the most central and prominent part of Tikal. The buildings are according to archaeologists more than 1000 years old. We are short on eyes to watch all the splendour and it's also difficult to take good photos because on this Gran Plaza most tourists school together. We decide to return later, on a hopefully quieter time and quickly go to the two-headed snake Temple. We are lucky enough to spot a few spin monkeys, playfully swinging from one to the other tree. It provides us with a number of very successful photos! In the end, we arrive at the Two-headed snake Temple, with its almost 65 meters height, it's the largest pyramid of Tikal and throughout Central America. The ascent of this temple is not via the original Maya footsteps, but via a wooden staircase on the side, which makes the tour to the top somewhat easier. Huffing and puffing we arrive after a few minutes climbing to the highest point and are treated with a magnificent view over the jungle, as far as eyes can reach. Also, the tops of the other larger temples of Tikal towering over the trees. Unfortunately, we can't enjoy this beautiful view for too long, because the heaven unlocks and we run down to find shelter. Fortunately, it's only a short shower and we can quickly hit the road again, that this time is crossed by a whole gang of nose boars. They are really cute furry critters, not at all skittish and don't give much about the curious tourists around them. Subsequently we will continue to provide The Great Pyramid and The Lost World. This temple is the oldest building of Tikal and the architecture is significantly different from that of the other buildings. Just next to it we find the 7 Temples Plaza, which as the name suggests, exists from seven smaller temples. But this place is definitely worth visiting because here you'll find less tourists and the ruins form a beautiful setting in the jungle. The courtyard radiates a certain mysticism. It starts to rain again and we decide to go back to our starting point in Tikal. Along the way, we come across wild turkeys, which appear to have surprisingly beautiful colours. Then we return to the Gran Plaza, where the rain and later time of day, result in significantly less tourists. The ultimate time to take new and better photos! Then we continue for about 30 minutes to finally get back to the entrance port of Tikal where we arrive at 15.00pm and take the transfer bus to Flores. Tired but super satisfied, we arrive back at the hotel an hour later. Food, showers, a little chit-chat and then we turn off the lights.

Photos and info of the Maya ruins of Tikal 1

guatemala flores maya ruines tikal

Photos and info of the Maya ruins of Tikal 2

Saturday December 1, 2012

Departure from Flores in Guatemala to Belize City with transfer to Long Caye on Lighthouse Reef

At 8.00am, half an hour late, we are picked up at our hotel in Flores by the transfer bus that will take us directly to Belize City. After a 1,5 hour drive we arrive at the border control of Guatemala and we must all get off, take our suitcases and get in the queue for the passport control (20 Quetzals per person). Then we move with our luggage a 100 meters to a new line for immigration control to enter the country. All together it takes a short hour to complete the formalities and take place in the bus at 10.30am for the last part of the journey, which takes approximately two hours. Around 12.45pm we reach the water taxi terminal of Belize, where a large part of our fellow passengers will make the crossing to Caye Caulker or one of the other islands. We are meant to be picked up at 14.00pm by Huracan Diving Ltd. that will take us to the chic Princess Hotel, so again, we take a taxi (10 BZD) to transfer all the luggage. The boat of Huracan Diving Ltd. is just at the pier, so thankfully we can directly transfer all suitcases to the trays on the boat. Close to the Princess Hotel and just at the water edge is a cosy restaurant Calypso, where we spend our last hour on the mainland. The prices are slightly more expensive, but our chicken enchiladas and hamburger taste delicious! In the meantime, we also get acquainted with the Flemish Steve who takes care of the kite boarding crew on Long Caye and Ruth, the owner and manager of Huracan Diving. She gave birth to her new-born Emmelien in October 2012 in Belgium and today will take the little girl to the island for the first time. Around 14.30pm we hop on board of the Mulac with a Dutch couple (Sietske and Daan) and the Scottish kite boarder Ryan to sail to Long Caye. We sail for 1 hour and 30 minutes at a speed of 32 knots by the Turneffe Reef but also by open sea, making it a somewhat bumpy trail. In the end, we reach Long Caye where we are welcomed by the entire crew of Huracan Diving Ltd. and hostess CC, the cook and surrogate mother of the island. We walk on a sandy path first along a short piece of dense forest and then arrive at Huracan Diving, where we immediately get assigned to the rooms. In advance we had a look at the website of the hotel and had no excessive expectations of the luxury and size of the room. But once on the spot we're pleasantly surprised by the king size bed and very spacious bathroom. Everything looks very well maintained! CC also gives us a brief tour and we get served a rum punch and are offered chips and cheese. After our thirst is quenched and we have met our Dutch companions, it's time for the dive instructions and completion of the mandatory paperwork. Our dive guide Jerome tells us in broad lines what the weekly program will look like (each day diving takes place at 8.00am, 11.00am and 15.00pm) and tomorrow already we'll dive on the Blue Hole. That's something to look forward! At 18.30pm CC tells us that 'dinner is served' and we get a delicious meal existing of scampi and rice. Then we take our time to get to know the fellow passengers and the rest of the crew of Huracan Diving Ltd. and then it's time to go to the room to prepare all material for the following day.

Huracan Diving Ltd. on Long Caye in the Light House Reef

During the past 8 years we've dived in far foreign diving destinations, Huracan Diving is the first dive centre, where we in advance are informed about the general safety during the diving, the place of the oxygen bottles and first aid kit, the need to drink a sufficient amount of water, use of safety channel 16 and radio, emergency evacuation plan, etc. In all other countries which we previously visited, we were always informed by the dive master separately, after we inquired about the safety devices. In those places people are afraid to scare off the dives if you appoint them too much to the existing safety material. From commercial considerations, basic safety is for many divers therefore not considered, while this in accordance with the different dive federations however is a must. The dive centre Huracan Diving Ltd. fortunately was in this case an exception. Safety first!

The speed boat Mulac of Huracan Diving Ltd. is comfortable to go scuba diving with. For safety reasons the speed boat exist of 2 outboard motors, so that in case of breakdown at least 1 engine can take you further. In terms of speed the Mulac sails at 32 knots, which you would need to reach a decent speed. There's a very little chance of seasickness. Due to the location of Huracan Diving Ltd. and their fast speedboat the dive sites on Light House Reef are easily reached within ten minutes. Huracan Diving Ltd. takes up to 12 divers. We are only with 5 Divers (dive leader included) and 3 snorkelers (companion included), which gives us a lot of space to store our material and to change clothes. After the divers, the snorkelers are dropped on a shallower place, where they afterwards are also picked up again. This gives snorkelers and divers the best conditions of what Light House Reef has to offer. The speed boat is reached via a sandy road and wooden pier which is ca 100m tall. You can often watch multiple birds, such as busting pelicans and herons.

The accommodation of Huracan Diving Ltd. includes 4 double bedrooms each with a large bathroom and toilet. The building is fully equipped with hard Belizean wood and in front of all the windows are mosquito nets tight up to keep out vermin. If there are too many mosquitoes or sand flies, the surroundings are smoked out. Above the bed hangs a fan and per room you also have a detached copy (which you will hardly need in December). The outdoor veranda, where you'll have dinner, is open and also fully equipped with mosquito nets so that insects have practically no chance to get in. When it's necessary and certainly in the late afternoons, several spirals (type of incense sticks) get lit to eradicate the pests. Huracan Diving Ltd. is also an ecological resort. There is a filtering system for rain water that without any problem is drinkable. For the toilets they make use of Canadian eco-toilets which virtually consume any water, but flushes everything and is odour-free. Subsequently a combination of bacteria and wood chips do the necessary work to make sure everything is converted into odourless compost in a natural way. The electricity is generated by solar panels. On days with heavily overcast these solar panels don't deliver sufficient electricity and therefore they make use of a small generator. This generator is only used during the day. At night, it's on charge to bridge this gap, so no one gets woken up by the noise. Compact fluorescent bulbs are used everywhere, except for a couple of halogens. Waste is fully sorted by each type. Huracan Diving Ltd. is aimed very ecological!

belize huracan long caye lighthouse reef caribbean sea

Photos of Huracan Diving Ltd. on Long Caye in the Light House Reef in the Caribbean sea

The island of Long Caye is a tropical island in the Caribbean Sea located in the Light House Reef. Long Caye is located 78km to the west of the mainland of Belize and is fully healed with palm trees and mangrove forests. Here and there are small sandy roads constructed and the mangroves are usually bypassed by means of wooden piers. In terms of animals there are several different types of birds, lizards, iguanas (who'd dare to steal our sandals if we hadn't throw them in a sealed container), blue and red land crabs, etc. According to some of the inhabitants of the island the salt water crocodile occurs as well. Unfortunately we didn't come across the salt water crocodile in the mangrove puddles during our stay on Long Caye.

Photos and info on Long Caye that in the Light House Reef in the Caribbean sea is 1

belize huracan long caye lighthouse reef caribbean sea

Photos and info on Long Caye that in the Light House Reef in the Caribbean sea is 2

Sunday 2 December 2012

Diving on Night Watch, Rick's Place and aquarium in the Light House Reef of Belize

At 7.00am we are surprised by CC with a delicious breakfast. There are baked eggs, a super yummy banana bread and for the lovers there is even Nutella chocolate! Then the 3 daily dives start (all boat dives). The first dive is at 8.00am and the following at 11.00am and 15.00am. Between the diving we take the boat back to Huracan Diving

Night Watch in lung Caye

Night Watch in Long Caye is our first dive site. Night Watch is an easy dive site, where both shallow as deep diving takes place. The best attraction of this dive site is an underwater plateau at the edges in an almost drop off-like situation (tilt) to the depth. During the diving on Night Watch we find a barracuda that accompanies us as an extra dive buddy. Throughout the dive the barracuda keeps posing for the camera and swims along. Beautiful! Furthermore we see a large porcupine fish, many coral, sea fan, sea plum, sea rod, sponges, etc. in a sandy and rocky structure.

Photos diving in the Caribbean sea in Belize 1a

Rick's place in lung Caye

During this dive at Rick's place in Lung Caye, one of the Chub Yellow Bermuda comes over to nibble our dive guide Jerome's hair. The Chub Yellow Bermuda is a grey silver fish, with some very thin yellow - bronze stripes over its body and under the eyes and mouth a white line. This Chub Yellow Bermuda are ca 40 to 50 cm large (can max. to 75cm large) and remains circling around us. Some Chub Yellow Bermuda see themselves in our diving goggles and we should almost violently scare them away. They generally swim on the reefs and near the walls. Sometimes they also come to the surface. Further on this dive we see barracudas, snappers, groupers, parrot fish, tarpoon, damsel fish, goat fish, 2 turtles, spotted stingray, sergeant major fishing, trigger fish, many coral, sea fan, sea plum, sea rod, tube sponges, giant barrel sponges, bran ching vase sponges, e.a.

Aquarium in Long Caye

Aquarium in Long Caye is a nice place to go scuba diving. Again, a plateau with drop off-like condition. A lot of coral, gorgons, sea fan, sea plum, sea rod, tube sponges, giant barrel sponges, bran ching vase sponges, e.a. There were also snappers, groupers, 2 turtles, eagle ray's, barracudas, butterfly fishes, lobster, etc.

Photos diving in the Caribbean sea in Belize 1b

Monday 3 December 2012

Diving on the Blue Hole, Painted Wall and night dive in Painted Wall in the Light House Reef of Belize

Today we have the world famous Blue Hole on the program, we start breakfast at 6.00am. This way we can leave Huracan Divers at 7.00am, so we'll be there before all the other scuba diving boats. From the mainland of Belize is takes 2 hours of sailing before the speedboats can reach the Blue Hole. In the Blue Hole, there's only 1 buoy to anchor and police control is guaranteed. Moreover, every diver is prepared to get up extra early for this unique experience to dive in the Blue Hole.

Blue Hole

Since Huracan Divers, like the Blue Hole are located in the light house reef, they are the nearest accommodation and it only takes 20 minutes to sail from Huracan Divers to the Blue Hole. Around 7.30am we anchor merrily alone at the Blue Hole. What an experience to be here as the only divers! From the sea, you see under water the edges of the large perfectly round hole diameter of 300m. Of course, it's not like on the pictures taken from above, but it still gives you a unique feeling. The Blue Hole is currently 125m deep. Slumps and sandy relocation have caused a decrease of the depth of the Blue Hole over the years (presumably was the Blue Hole approximately 150m deep when discovered).

The Blue Hole is a unique dive site in the world. But for the underwater life, you absolutely don't have to visit. Yet we came across a turtle, 7 sharks and 8 large groupers. Diving in the Blue Hole, however you do for its unique structure, gigantic stalagmites and stalactites you can see from a depth of 38 to 45m. It's fantastic to swim between these huge stalagmites and stalactites. There are even stalagmites and stalactites that are larger than 4 times the length of a diver with fins. Strange is that the gigantic stalagmites and stalactites in the Blue Hole aren't 100% straight hanging down or in the upright position. Presumably the Blue Hole is sagged by earthquakes out of alignment after the stalagmites and stalactites were already constituted. The Blue Hole used to be a cave after which the ceiling was depressed by the rise of the seawater and increasing pressure of the water on the walls.

Our dive in the Blue Hole begins at the anchor buoy. You reach a sandy bottom with boulders. Then walk to the bottom of the Blue Hole to a depth of 12m and then you have a straight dark abyss (literally a dark round hole) to 125m depth. Since we're still very early, the sun can't penetrate fully, so that it's a little twilight-like on the wall. Last night there was also a lot of rain, which of course results in a lot of low hanging fog. About the cold you don't need to worry. In December, on a depth of 43m it still is 26°C. In the case a deep dive is concerned, our bottom time is very short. We agreed to dive to the limit to eventually dive out afterwards. Diving in the Blue Hole is a wonderfully unique experience!

Photos diving in the Caribbean sea in Belize 2a

Painted Wall in Long Caye

Painted Wall in lung Caye is a plateau with drop off. It's overgrown with coral, gorgons, sea fan, sea plum, sea rod, tube sponges, giant barrel sponges, bran ching vase sponges, e.a. In terms of special fish we spotted drum fish, spotted stingray and langoustes (which in the Caribbean Sea don't appear very often. You can opt for deep and shallow dives on Painted Wall. Therefore, all category of divers can find something to their liking. During this dive, we experience a stronger current on top of the plateau, something we hadn't encountered yet, in the previous diving. The current is pleasant, as you can effortlessly let yourself float away with the current, but it's hell taking photos of it! However, on the drop off side of the dive site Painted Wall the current more or less disappeared. We saw a nice seahorse, although we weren't in their breeding ground of the mangrove forests. In the mangrove forests is moreover not dived as it also houses salt water crocodiles and it's too densely overgrown.

Painted Wall night dive in Long Caye

Since it gets dark pretty early in Belize, you can plan a night dive at 17:30. This is what we did. Another benefit is that this gives you the opportunity to enjoy one of the multiple tasty cocktails of CC Huracan Divers! The sea was a little more restless than the previous dives. It almost feels like a washing machine dive! However, there's a lot of marine life on the hunt. A large channel clinging crab, a dormant hogfish, lobsters, e.a. And as icing on the cake, CC of Huracan Divers, prepared for us a spectacular meal; langoustines - Norwagian lobsters, that we'd seen swimming around us about an hour ago. The langoustines were delicious!!!

Photos diving in the Caribbean sea in Belize 2b

Tuesday 4 December 2012

Diving on Roller Coaster, Playground and Broken reef in the Light House Reef of Belize

Roller Coster in Half Moon Caye

Roller Coaster in Half Moon Caye is a sandy rocky plateau where during the diving many garden eels and stingrays can be found. The garden eels here were less tame, which resulted in good photo opportunities, but however isn't always possible, as they pull back into the sand when you approach them. Then you go to a fairly deep drop off where many large groupers and tarpons are present. In the blue was a great spotted stingray. Look at all possible directions during your dive is therefore a must. This is an ideal dive site to take photos of both small and larger fish. Also coral and sponge lovers will find everything to their liking.

Play Ground in Half Moon Caye

Play Ground in Half Moon Caye is a sandy rocky plateau where stingrays are visible. You firstly dive between the rocks or you dive over it to the edge of the plateau where the drop off begins. The drop off is pretty deep and there are several large groupers and tarpons present. Also sharks, barracudas and jack fish can be spotted in the blue. This dive site is intended for lovers of both small and large fish with lots of coral, sea fan, sea plum, sea rod, tube sponges, giant barrel sponges, bran ching vase sponges, e.a. When you dive out, you dive to the top edges of paine acles so you practically can enjoy your dive until the very last minute. This is an ideal place to take photos of both small and large fish.

Photos diving in the Caribbean sea in Belize 3a

Broken reef or Quebrada in Long Caye

Broken reef or Quebrada in Long Caye is a wooded dive location of coral, sea fan, sea plum, sea rod, tube sponges, giant barrel sponges, bran ching vase sponges, e.a. It's very difficult to photograph this place, as you don't want to damage any sea life. You will come across a lot of small and slightly larger fish. At this place you normally dive to a maximum of 14m to encounter all the beauty. The drop off at the edge of Broken reef or Quebrada is less wooded and has a little less sea life. It's therefore recommended to dive at the top of the reef because there you will see the most. A large turtle to end the day is always enjoyable!

After another excellent scampi meal by CC at Huracan Diving, we have a bonfire scheduled at 19u00 at the beach, which is organized together with the nearby resort. The large bonfire gets lit, the pints and cocktails get handed generously and there is even a music system, which ensures that everyone soon 'puts on their dancing shoes'!

Photos diving in the Caribbean sea in Belize

Wednesday 5 December 2012

Diving on Canyon and Night Watch in the Light House Reef of Belize

Canyon in Long Caye

Canyon in Long Caye is a nice place to go scuba diving. Also, this time we dive on a plateau with this time a shallow drop off. Because the edge of the reef and the drop off side are the most beautiful, we dive here. We regret that we didn't take a model while diving, otherwise we could have shown the immense nature of the large barrel sponges. Further during this dive, we see barracudas, groupers, snappers, Jack Fish, e.a. traditional fish of the Caribbean Sea. Less frequent fish are a hogfish, honeycomb cowfish, trunk fish, etc. Almost the end of our dive in shallow water we suddenly see a large sleeping nurse shark partly concealed. We stayed with the animal a little longer, until our dive finished. A gigantic nurse shark to end the dive, just couldn't be better!

Photos diving in the Caribbean sea in Belize 4a

Night Watch in Long Caye

Our last dive today is on Night Watch in lung Caye. As the name suggests, it's a night dive (departure at 17.30pm). During the Night Watch three tarpons accompany us from a certain distance. They seem to like to hunt in the light of our lamps, which attracts all kinds of worms and small fish. It's only at the end of the dive that the tarpons really dare to approach on a very close distance. At last we can now also admire several medusa Stars, which at night, fully folded open hunt for food. During the day, Medusa stars usually fully twist together or hide behind another object so that they are unnoticeable. Many fish are sleeping, but the langoustes are finally well visible because they no longer hide their nest. During this night dive, it's very difficult to take good photos. In our lamp beams, there are hundreds of small water creatures, which makes it almost impossible to focus the camera. Instead of taking photos, we just focus on the game with the tarpons lured by the light. Another experience too of course!

Photos diving in the Caribbean sea in Belize 4b

Thursday 6 December 2012

Diving on Deep Moon, Wall Half Moon Caye and Broken reef or Quebrada in the Light House Reef of Belize

Deep Moon in Half Moon Caye

Deep Moon in Half Moon Caye, is just like all the other dive sites in Half Moon Caye, one of the top rated. There's a lot of fish present, with a large chance on seeing sharks, manta rays, tarpons, large groupers, turtles, large seul barracuda and so much more. We also see a lot of coral, sea fan, sea plum, sea rod, tube sponges, giant barrel sponges, bran ching vase sponges, e.a.

Photos diving in the Caribbean sea in Belize 5a

Between the two dives on Half Moon Caye we get dropped off on Half Moon Care Island for 1.5 hour, which is in the western part has a coastal forest. This forest is a small, threatened and fragile ecosystem that grows on the basis of its soil type and the height above sea level. The western coastal forest also offers a valuable habitat for many birds, reptiles, e.a.

On half Moon Caye you can also find the breeding place of the protected Red-footed booby birds, which have a population of approximately 4000 breeding birds. Half Moon Caye is the only suitable breeding site in the Western Caribbean for the red-footed booby. The red-footed booby is a white coloured bird with some black on the edge on their wings, a blue mouth and red legs. While diving they absorb fish, squid, etc. which they usually swallow immediately before they fly away. To not disturb the red-footed booby birds, but be able to observe there's a lookout build that protrudes above the trees. Here you can take beautiful photos of this nesting Red-footed booby bird.

On the same breeding ground on Half Moon Caye Island are also the Magnificent Frigate birds found. At the height of their throats they have a great kind of red Hanging bag, which inflates like a balloon when they sit on their nest. The Magnificent Frigate birds cover the smaller Red-footed booby sometimes in the hope that they cede their freshly caught meal. This behaviour is also called 'cleptoparaitism'.

Further on Half Moon Caye you'll find Island lizards, iguanas, red and blue crabs, pelicans, herons, etc. There are also two very special types of geckos found on Half Moon Caye Island. The leaf-toed gecko and Allison's anole Gecko are of particular importance because of their very limited dissemination. The leaf-toed gecko, also known as the Belize Atol Gekko, is even an endemic species in Belize. This means that the leaf-toed gecko can't be found anywhere else in the world.

The turtle species Caretta and Hawksbill are both on the list of endangered animals. The Caretta and the hawksbill turtle on Half Moon Caye Island breed their eggs on the southern sandy beach. The Hawksbill Turtle is mainly captured to make all kinds of things to manufacture such as jewellery, e.a. Another reason for the hunt on both the Caretta as the Hawksbill is because of their meat.

Photos and about Half Moon Caye in the Light House Reef in the Caribbean sea 1

belize half moon caye lighthouse reef caribbean sea

Photos and about Half Moon Caye in the Light House Reef in the Caribbean sea 2

belize half moon caye lighthouse reef caribbean sea

Photos and about Half Moon Caye in the Light House Reef in the Caribbean sea 3

Wall Half Moon Caye Wall in Half Moon Caye

At the Wall Half Moon Caye we find a barracuda that starts to follow us. The barracuda, who doesn't seem to mind the cameras, almost appears as one of our diving buddies. Whenever we dig deeper, the barracuda follows, and vice versa. Fantastic and also frightening, because with these large copies of the animal, you never know for a 100% what they have planned. This dive we also seen a lot of fish, a lot of coral, sea fan, sea plum, sea rod, tube sponges, giant barrel sponges, bran ching vase sponges, e.a.

Broken reef or Quebrada in Long Caye

At the very last dive of this holiday, we once again go diving on Broken reef or Quebrada in lung Caye. This last dive is a real icing on the cake because we see multiple tarpons which accompany us for a while, many groupers of large calibre, a turtle, a large stingray, many jacks and a barracuda. More info about Broken Reef or Quebrada to Long Caye is found in the third dive on Tuesday 4th of December. Subsequently the crew of Huracan Diving Ltd. rinses out all our diving equipment and we don't have to do anything ourselves. What a service! We enjoy a last extremely tasty meal of CC and then it's time to the end our holiday and let the cocktails richly flow. Cheers!

Photos diving in the Caribbean sea in Belize 5b

Friday 7 December 2012

Departure of Long Caye on Lighthouse reef to Belize City with tour to the Mayan ruins Altun Ha

At 8.00am we say goodbye to the crew of Huracan Diving Ltd. and we depart by speed boat back to Belize City where we arrive after 1,5 hours sailing. During the boat trip, Captain Jack contacted an acquainted taxi river, which already waits for us at the pier of the Princess Hotel. We quickly drop off our luggage at the Great House Hotel and then make our way per taxi to the Mayan Temples of Altun Ha (120 USD for the return trip, including entry fee). From Belize City is takes a long hour to drive to Altun Ha. When we arrive we soon discover this site is hugely promoted and marketed because there are six large buses (full of passengers of the large cruise ships) on the parking and the souvenirs stalls are abundant. Because there are more tourists present, it obviously takes more time to take some good photos, but we%re pretty patient which is rewarded by some beautiful shots of the ruins. After an hour, we got a good impression of Altun Ha fully and ask the taxi driver to take us back to our hotel. Here we (unfortunately) start redeploy our suitcases to return back to cold Belgium the following day.

Photos and info about the Maya ruins of Altun Ha

Saturday 8 December 2012

Departure from Belize to Belgium

Since our flight from Belize City to Atlanta departs at 13.30pm, we get picked up by a taxi at the hotel at 10.30am (25 USD). At the check-in desk of Delta Airlines there first is a little ambiguity about our ESTA declaration to enter the USA, but fortunately everything gets fixed fairly quick. Subsequently we buy some dive t-shirts in the souvenirs shops and then it's time to say goodbye to Belize. After a flight of 2 hours and 40 minutes we reach Atlanta, where it rains. Our flight to Amsterdam leaves five hours later, so we take plenty of time for lunch and browse at the shops. At 22.50pm local time we take off in Atlanta on after a little over eight hours flying, we safely land in Amsterdam. As the last stage of our trip we take the Thalys at 15.31pm to Antwerp.

Sunday 9 December 2012

Return from Belize to Belgium

There are no direct flights between Belgium or Europe and Belize. You should therefore always count on two travel days to get there. We fly from Belize City to Atlanta, from Atlanta to Schiphol and finally take the Thalys from Schiphol to Antwerp. The connection times are not always favourable, which means the trip there included 39 hours, but the return only 26 hours.

Map dive sites scuba diving in Belize - Caribbean Sea:

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Useful info and contact addresses Belize - Caribbean:

Travel document required for Belize - Caribbean:

An international passport that is valid at least for 6 months upon arrival in Belize. A visa is not required for tourist visits of up to 1 month. Applications for an extended stay can be made at the immigration office in Belize. From 26 June 2012 all children are required a private travel document. A return ticket or proof of next destination is required. This information may differ. Please inform the official services.

Safety on Belize - Caribbean:

Unfortunately Belize after sunset, especially in the city, turns into a less secure place for tourists. Mucks take place regularly and women are often the target of assault. If you go outside at night, it's advisable to book a taxi. At the border crossing from Mexico to Belize migration officials sometimes put up a fine. The migration officials mainly affect all women traveling alone. It's recommended to inform yourself about the crossing rates.

Climate on Belize - Caribbean:

Belize knows a tropical humid rainforest climate, that's somewhat more bearable, thanks to the cool winds from the Caribbean Sea. Belize has a dry and a rainy season. The dry season runs from January to April and the rainy season runs from May to November. Most of the rain falls in September and October, this is also equal to the height of the hurricane season. The south of Belize is a lot wetter than the north.
In general, the temperature in Belize during the day is around 30 degrees Celsius and 20 to 24 degrees Celsius at night. The winter period in Belize (dry season) is a little cooler (27-28 degrees Celsius). In the summer, it's a bit warmer and the temperature is on average around 31 degrees Celsius. Inland at the hottest places of Belize temperatures rise to 35 to 36 degrees Celsius. On the highest places of the Maya mountains in Belize, the opposite. There it's a little cooler than in the rest of the country. Depending on the height the difference is small, but can be a few degrees Celsius.

Average climate of Caye Caulker in the Caribbean Sea

On Belize there are several climates and temperatures. The data in the table below apply to Caye Caulker that's located in the Caribbean Sea. The average climate of Caye Caulker cannot be seen as the average of the country. Caye Caulker is located in the Caribbean Sea between San Pedro and Turneffe Island. Caye Caulker is located 20km south of San Pedro and 40km north-north-east of Turneffe island in the Caribbean Sea.

Month	Jan	feb	Mar	apr	may	Jun	Jul	aug	sep	Oct	nov	dec
max temp °C	27	28	30	31	32	31	31	32	31	30	29	27
Min temp °C	19	20	22	23	24	25	24	24	23	23	22	21
Water Temp °C	27	27	27	28	29	29	29	29	29	29	29	28
Precipitation in mm	140	70	55	50	100	255	245	145	275	255	180	175
days of rain	17	11	8	8	6	9	20	22	21	21	18	17

Current Meteo of Belize and prediction of the following 3 days:

Weather Belize City

Time difference in Belize - Caribbean:

In the summer it's 6 hours earlier in Belize and in the winter 7 hours earlier compared to Belgium.

Making a phone call and internet on Belize - Caribbean:

The international access number to Belize: 501
Mobile calls can't be made everywhere. The north and west both know places with no reception. A 3G network is not yet present in Belize.

Drinks and food on Belize - Caribbean:

Drinking water, used for ice cubes, brushing your teeth, washing vegetables, etc., if unsure about its safety, always boil before use or use bottled water.
Please make sure that also fresh milk, if not pasteurized should be cooked before consumption.
Don't eat insufficient cooked meat, fish and vegetables.
Only eat fruit that you've peeled yourself.

Currency in Belize - Caribbean Sea:

Belizean dollar: BZD OR BZ$
Coins consist of: 1, 5, 10, 25, 50 cents and 1 dollar
Notes consist of: 2, 5, 10, 20, 50 and 100 dollars.
The Belizean dollar is linked to the US dollar, divided by 2 (1US$ = 2BZ$)

Transport in Belize - Caribbean Sea:

Belize measures 280 km from north to south and from east to west 109 km. It's equipped with four main roads of good quality but narrow (Northern Highway, Southern Highway, Hummingbird Highway, Western Highway). The connection between the main roads and the villages are paved secondary roads.
Public buses drive on the motorways fairly regularly, but comfort is not insured.
Between Belize City and Caye Caulker, Ambergris Caye, there's transport with motor boats.
New lodges and hotels built in full nature, are only accessible along a path of hardened earth.
Small private companies provide domestic and regional flights to small airports in the region
A car rental is possible if you are older than 25 years and subject to a special insurance. Note that the roads there are dangerous especially at night.

Dive Centre in Belize - Caribbean Sea:

Dive Centre in Belize - Caribbean Sea

Dive Centre Huracan Diving Ltd. on Long Caye in the Light house reef
Po Box 487
Belize City,
Belize
+1 518 253 7705
Info@huracandiving.com
Www.huracandiving.com
Tin# 141584
With Huracan Diving we dived 14 dives. Huracan Diving provides a very good guidance, safety aspects are explained, the boat to dive is not fully loaded, they're very clean and super fast, everyone is very friendly and you will be truly pampered. The dive sites are beautiful and nearby. The bottles are always topped up to 200bar or a little over. The owner of Huracan Diving Ltd. is your personal carer and taxi driver. She and her crew are very friendly and give you the feeling that you are a part of the family.

Dive Center in Placencia Splash Diving
Placencia Village
Stann Creek District
Belize, Central America
501-523-3058 or 501-523-3080
Patricia@splashbelize.com
Ralph@splashbelize.com
Www.splashbelize.com
With the diving centre Splash, which is located in Belize Placencia, we sadly didn't have the chance to go scuba diving. They hold 5 boats to go scuba diving. The number of divers and the place where they want to go diving, determines which boat is used. It's a clean and well looked after dive centre with very friendly people. We booked the Cock Comb Jaguar Spare tour at Splash booked and were very satisfied with the organisation, welcome, transport, tour and guide of the Splash dive centre. We were received by the owner Patty and after our trip she also extensively inquired whether we were satisfied with their service. They clearly care much about the quality and customer friendliness. About the diving, safety, topping up of the bottles, competence of the instructors, captain and dive sites in Placencia or surroundings I cannot express because we didn't make use of it.

Clothing, shoes and sun protection for the tours in Belize - Caribbean:

For jungle tours appropriate, closed shoes with anti-slip soles are a must. Preferably they are also waterproof and can be used to move through the mud. Always wear long trousers and a shirt with (long) sleeves to protect yourself against the insects. All uncovered body parts must be very well coated with an insect repellent. In general, it's also appointed to cover your clothes with the spray, since some mosquitos easily sting through a t-shirt. Only follow the roadways, don't touch anything, stay in the middle of the paths and always follow the guide. Because he knows the place best and knows where possible dangers are hiding.

To visit the Maya ruins, solid sandals, with a firm hold are the minimum requirement. Some parts of the roads and stairs of the Maya ruins are slippery. The Maya ruins have wide access roads, so you can easily go wearing shorts and a t-shirt with short sleeves (unless it has been raining because this attracts more mosquitoes). However, it's advisable to always bring insect repellent, certainly in Caracol and Tikal this isn't an unnecessary luxury since the ruins are located in the middle of the jungle. Always walk in middle of the paths. Along the way our guide showed several spiders, trees with very long and sharp torhns, etc..

Sunscreen with a high protection factor is certainly also a must in Belize since the UV index is very high. Keep in mind that the effectiveness of sunscreen is reduced when it's used in combination with insect repellent. Regular lubrication is therefore the message!

Emergency Numbers Belize - Caribbean Sea:

Emergency Numbers for police, ambulance and fire department: 911
Hyperbaric Chamber or recompression chamber emergency phone: 501-226-2851

Medical information Belize - Caribbean Sea:

Always refer to your doctor to get your vaccinations looked after: e.g. Hepatitisch A - B, diphtheria, Tetanos, polio, typhoid.

Malaria is to a greater or lesser degree on all of Belize. When staying in the areas of Toledo and Stann Creek anti-malarial measures are strongly advised. Malaria is transmitted by mosquitoes. That's why protection against mosquito bites is very important. Malaria mosquito mainly bite at night and early in the morning. Always wear protective clothing with an anti-repellent sprayed with deet. Protect your uncovered skin, with an insect repellent with sufficient deet. In risky areas, sleep under a tightly sealed mosquito net and make sure it's pushed well underneath your mattress. If you get feverlike or flulike symptoms during or after the stay, always contact your doctor directly and tell the doctor that you are or just have visited a malaria area in Belize.

Dengue (also called knock fever) is caused by the aedes mosquito (Asian tiger mosquito) that occurs during the day (especially at sunrise 09-11 hours and sunday 13-17 hours). Dengue is a viral disease. Symptoms of viral disease dengue are: start to start with fever, headache and joint pain (tuberculosis), major muscle aches (including lean aches and pain around the eyeballs), which explain the stiffness of the sick. Sometimes there is a dry cough, and the heart rate is relatively slow relative to the fever (relative bradycardia). Classical (but not always!) Progresses the disease according to a biphasic pattern: after 3 to 4 days fever occurs a transient improvement, around the 5th to 6th day the fever rises again. At that time, a red flaky skin rash (similar to measles) may appear. After a few days, the fever disappears, but there may be a long period of difficult recovery, characterized by asthenia, muscle aches and allergies. There is no specific treatment, the condition heals itself. One should not use aspirin in the treatment of dengue fever, but only paracetamol for fever. However, there is no specific treatment or vaccine for the viral disease viral disease. Always consult a doctor immediately.

Chikungunya is spread by the aedes mosquito (Asian tiger mosquito). The aedes mosquito (Asian tiger mosquito) bites during the day (especially at sunrise 09.00 - 11.00am and at sunset 13.00 - 17.00pm). Chikungunya is a viral disease. Symptoms of the viral disease Chikungunya are: high fever, flulike symptoms and usually accompanied by striking to violent joint pain in the ankles, wrists and/or fingers. Other possible symptoms include swelling of the hands and/or feet, skin rash, light bleeding (gum). The precautionary measures are: an insect repellent spray with deet, sleep under a mosquito net and wear protective clothes with long sleeves at night. Aspirins as a treatment of Chikungunya are forbidden, only use paracetamol for the fever. However, there is no specific treatment or vaccine for the viral disease Chikungunya. Chikungunya is present in both urban and rural areas. Always consult a doctor immediately.

The Chagas disease or American disease Trypanosomiasis is also active in Belize. This is a unicellular parasite in the rural areas of Latin America. The parasite Chagas is transferred by true bugs (heteroptera). The true bugs (heteroptera) bite overnight when the civilians are asleep. Because the true bugs (heteroptera) tend to feed themselves from the face, they're also called 'kissing bugs'. After they bite, they unload themselves, on the bitten person. The stool, which now is close to the bite, causes the problem, as that's what contains the parasite. Itching distributes the faeces and so causes a wound. The parasites can also spread by undamaged membrane, as by subsequently rubbing the eyes. Therefore, staying at a place like primitive huts, open air or cheap hotels should absolutely be avoided. If you do have to spend the night in these circumstances, use a mosquito net that's captured under your mattress. This way, you prevent contact with the falling true bugs (heteroptera) and faeces of the true bugs (heteroptera). You best check the room, cupboards, bedding and clothing regularly. True bugs (heteroptera) are large insects which are usually found behind frameworks, trays, crevices, ceilings or even under the mattress. Apply a sufficient amount of insect repellent at night. If you get infected with Chagas, the first typical symptoms include fever, rashes and/or headache. Contact your GP or doctor immediately and tell him that you're on or just have visited Belize.

Sand flies are small white flying creatures of 2 to 3mm that are corrosive to drink blood. Because they are so small, you usually feel them too late or not at all, if they have already bitten. Sand flies can cause some serious problems. If you are bitten, the parasite leishmaniasis can be transferred. The bites ensure infections and can become serious ulcers, then become ugly scars. Never scratch the bites and don't exacerbate the infection. Some people have an allergic reaction to the bites. In the event of an allergic reaction the bite will turn into a large itchy bump. If the infections of sand fly bites do not seem to heal, go to a specialist in tropical medicine.

Prevention against above: combat infections of the host (insect), closed clothing, mosquito nets, ET and permethrin impregnated clothing

Bilharziasis (formerly called Bilharziose) means wurms. Bilharziasis occurs in the largest part of Africa and in certain parts of South America and the Near and Far East. The risk of bilharziasis is greatest in the still water (especially in reservoirs), but also in the rivers (large or small, fast or slow running) can occur contamination. There is no vaccine for bilharziasis. One avoids so best to walk bare feet, take baths or go swimming in fresh water. If you have been in contact with potentially contaminated water, a check after 3 months (desirable serology, eosinophilia) is necessary. Exceptionally, serious complications can occur in the first months of possible exposure (blood in the urine, paralysis). In this case, you should consult a doctor immediately.
Rabies also occurs on Belize. In the event of a bite by a dog, cat, bat, fox or monkey, contact your doctor. If you stay in Belize for over 4 weeks, you may consider to get a vaccination.
A good medical pharmacy in original packaging is an absolute must for traveling to Belize.
The medical care in hospitals in the cities of Belize knows a reasonable level. Outside the cities, there are health centres. In the health centres, the medical facilities are limited. There's often not even a doctor present. Belize knows a shortage of doctors. The health centres are usually only mobile clinics.
A good travel insurance is recommended.

Hyperbaric centre or recompression chamber in Belize - Caribbean:

Address Hyperbaric centre or recompression chamber in Belize:

Otto Rodriguez, MD
11 Lion's Street
San Pedro Town
Belize C.A.

Contact details Hyperbaric centre or recompression chamber in Belize:

Emergency service is available 24-hour, everyday.
Emergency Phone: 501-226-2851
Phone: 501-226-3195
Fax: 501-226-2852
Email: Sssbelize@aol.com
Dr. Otto Rodriguez: 501-16-3864
Antonia Guerrero: 501-16-3442
Radio Frequency: 14,4600

If you land on the airstrip next to the city of San Pedro, Ambergris Caye, you can see a particular building on the north side of the runway. The building houses a double door hyperbaric recompression chamber, which is the property of Subaquatics of Belize Ltd. It's the only hyperbaric recompression chamber in Belize. The hyperbaric recompression chamber is accessible via the Radio on Frequency 14,4600 and this for twenty-four hours a day. The majority of the dive shops and boats in San Pedro are equipped with a radio. San Pedro is proud of its safe diving and on its hyperbaric centre or recompression chamber https://ambergriscaye.com/pages/town/hyperbar.html.

Dangerous animals in Belize - Caribbean:

The Black Widow Spider is very toxic and deadly. This spider lives in a dark environment, for example in drain tubes, under logs and rocks.

A bite of the brown hermit spider is painful, itchy and indicates heavy deep wounds. The poison can cause a necrotic ache. The wound will grow by several days. The damaged tissue will die and eventually rotting of the body. It will take months to heal and will leave deep scars.

The Bullet Ant's (In Belize also called soldier ant) bites are very painful and last for about 24 hours. In the event of a few bites the victim will develop fever.

The Coral snake is red, yellow, black, yellow and red coloured alternately. The coral snake has a very strong neurotoxicity (neurotic poison) GIF.

The poison dart frog is bright and colourful to warn its enemies. The poison dart frog gives his poison batrachotoxin through his skin. A very small quantity of this gif batrachotoxin (powerful neuro toxin) can already be sufficient to be fatal.

The colours of the eyelash viper vary from gold - yellow, green, olive green, brown, grey - brown, with stains or cross tires in different colours and has 2 lash like pointed scales above the eye. The eyelash viper lives in trees, is a typical ambush predator that hunts at night. The eyelash viper has a strong hemotoxic (blood cells destructive) poison.

creamy texture extraordinary adhesiveness eyelash viper

The yellow-jawed-Tommy goff snake is very aggressive, very grumpy, doesn't creep away and is feared in the whole of Central America. They are quite difficult to spot and bite when they are distorted. The yellow-jawed-Tommy goff snake has a strong fast acting hemotoxic (blood cells destructive) poison and is rarely deadly. His bite is designed to start the digestive system and to ensure that the prey can't go far before it collapses.

The jumping pitviper snake often hides under fallen trees and stacks of leaves, which makes it difficult to see. The colour of its body varies from brown to grey, dark brown or black dorsal spots, but has no pattern on his head. The jumping pitviper snake has a strong hemotoxic (blood cells destructive) poison. The jumping pitviper snake is a nocturnal hunter, that only comes out in the early evening, to feed itself with lizards, rodents and frogs.

The Mayan coral hose is difficult to see in its habitat and moves around under the surface, such as leaves, tops or other shelter. The Mayan coral snake is primarily a nocturnal Predator. The Maya coral hose has the most dangerous neurotoxic gif in Belize and is very deadly.

The Mexican pit viper has colours on its heavy body that can vary, but most Mexican pit vipers are brown or black with a dark brown or black stripes and sometimes with white or creamy accents. They have a rather unpleasant character and are extremely dangerous. However, when they feel threatened, they instinctively try to fly.

The South American rattlesnake is located in swamps and feed themselves with birds, small mammals, amphibians and reptile bites of a neotropical rattlesnake in particular, can lead to loss of vision or complete blindness, auditory disorders, hanging eyelids (called 'ptosis'), paralysis of the peripheral muscles, such as the neck, which will get so weak that it seems broken and ultimately life threatening breathing difficulties.

The horned viper is the only snake in Belize with a clear inverse muzzle which is at least twice as high as wide. The colours of the horned viper are dark and often with a narrow cream coloured middle back (dorsal) line. The horned Viper has a strong hemotoxic (blood cells destructive) poison to destroy its preys.

Bats are a small risk for people who aren't sleeping in the wild. Bats can transfer rabies. In South and Central America, you will find the vampire bat. The Vampire bat is small and a highly manoeuvrable flyer. The vampire bat usually lands on their sleeping victims such as cows and horses. Vampire bats bite their victims to eventually drink the blood of the wound.
Rabies is in mammals occurs in Belize. Contact your doctor directly when you've been bitten by a mammal (e.g. a dog, cat, bat, fox or monkey).
Bees, wasps and hornets are present in Belize in many types of the diversities in different habitats. Avoiding these flying insects is the best protection. You will find bees, wasps and hornets especially in flowers and fruits. Almost all honey bees in Belize are Africanised, with the exception of the indigenous angel dummy bees.
Centipedes are usually small and harmless. A couple of them have a toxic bite, but the infection that they cause with their sharp claws, form the greatest danger. Their sharp claws deeply dig in the skin. If you notice a centipedes crawling on your, brush or wipe them off in the direction in which they walk.
Snakes are found everywhere in Belize, but it's rare to actually see them. The snakes avoid people if it's possible. They use the poison to catch their prey or to defend themselves. People who have been bitten, often have (accidentally stand on it) or came too near the snake.
Check in areas (in both Belize and the Cayes) for spiders and scorpions before putting on your shoes and clothing each morning. A bite of a scorpions rarely makes victims except children, the sick and the elderly. Also check your bedding and shelter for scorpions and spiders. Be careful if you boulder in, around or up trees. The tarantulas are large and hairy spiders, which for us are sold as a pet in pet shops. Their bite is painful, but not dangerous, provided that you aren't allergic to their poison. In the case you are bitten by a tarantula and an oppressive feeling in the chest or shortness of breath is occurring, a quick admit to the hospital is essential.
Mosquitoes in Belize must be bypassed. Use anti-insect spray with sufficient deet for all uncovered skin parts and spray your clothes in with specially designed anti insects resources. Please note, the anti-insect resources for clothing are usually not suitable for the skin! Always use the mosquito net (in which no mosquitoes can enter) fastened under the mattress. Don't lie against the mosquito net.
Check your room, cupboards, bedding and clothing in the morning on triatomas. Their excrements distribute the parasite Chagas.

Toxic and dangerous animals during diving in Belize - Caribbean:

Auger shells are conical (thin and elongated) molluscs and their poison is fatal. There are 300 types of Auger shells.

Cone shells are conical but thicker than the auger shells. Cone shells live in crevices, between rocks, coral reefs, along rocky coasts and protective bays in tropical areas. Cone shells may inject the poison via a harpoon (sort like needles) which can cause acute pain, swelling, paralysis, blindness and death within a few hours.

Fire corals have nettle cells on a calcified skeleton and are usually yellow and brownish green. Divers have more than once made the error to spot this as something innocent. Fire corals are often recognized as regular coral, but that's technically incorrect. Fire corals is actually closely related to jellyfish and other stinging anemones with nettle cells.

The Portuguese Man O'War (which isn't a real jellyfish but a complex colony of four types of polyps) may be fatal. The Portuguese Man O'War swims with its gallbladder (lilac balloon) literally on the surface. When in danger, the air from the gallbladder (lilac balloon) can be lowered to sink to just below the surface of the water. The Portuguese Man O'War has very long tentacles from 15m to 50m long. The tentacles of the Portuguese Man O'War capture and paralyze their food. People usually can't directly be killed by the poison. Although the poison can cause a lot of pain, possibly fever, breathing difficulties, a shock (in the event of a 2nd bracer this may even result in a life-threatening anaphylactic shock) and paralysis (if one, for example is fully entangled in the tentacles), which can result in drowning. There are only 2 animals which are immune to the poison of the Portuguese Man O'War, the sea turtle and the slug. Furthermore, the Portuguese Warship doesn't have enemies, only preys.

The scorpionfish is usually reddish in colour, but can adjust depending on which he is located. A scorpionfish has very sharp spines on its dorsal fin.

The stone fish owns a very good camouflage, and adapts its colour in clot-formation to its environment. To spot the stone fish you sometimes really have to concentrate. The fins on the back of the stone fish, are very toxic. The stone fish is the most toxic fish in the world.

The surgeonfish, pliers or doctor fish on average has a size of 20 to 25cm with a small mouth and bright colours. These surgeonfish, pliers or doctor fish have extremely sharp and movable spines on both sides of their tail. That blade appears and works the same as a scalped of surgeons. That blade can cause very painful wounds when you hit the thorn.

The Toad fish gets 17 to 25 cm in size, have dull colours and a big mouth. The Male Toad Fish makes the nest and monitors it, after the female has laid her eggs. The Toad Fish often hides in rocky crevices, between ground vegetation or digs herself in the sand. The danger of the Toad Fish is that they are very sharp and have highly poisonous spines on the dorsal fin. Because the Toad Fish like many other animals hide, contact with the soil and rocks should always be limited to avoid any stinging.

The jellyfish have tentacles which can be painful when they sting you. Beached jellyfish should be avoided, because of their tentacles, even when they are dead they can be still active. Some jellyfish species are very dangerous to humans.

Stingrays are a great danger in shallow tropical waters, irrespective of the soil structure you encounter there. You can easily step on the stingrays or whiptail stingray. The stingrays or whiptail stingray then must defend itself. There's a large variation between stingrays or whiptail stingrays, but all have a sharp needle which produce poison that is extremely painful, will leave a big wound or cause death. The poison of a dead stingrays or whiptail stingray can remain very active, so here as well, stay aware. Stingrays are especially found along the coasts of South America, Africa, Australia and Asia.

The lion fish or coral devil is a territorial reef resident and doesn't originally come from Belize and the Caribbean Sea. The lion fish or coral devil originates from areas and therefore doesn't have natural enemies in the in Belize and the Caribbean Sea. The population of the lion fish or coral devil therefor easily grows can literally empty the Caribbean Sea. The lion fish or coral devil can with its toxic spines, distribute very painful stitches. The lion fish or coral Devil may by provocation respond aggressively and must therefore be approached cautiously. During the day lion fish or coral devil hides itself in crevices, between rocks or in coral formations where it comes to a standstill and remain sticking with his head usually a little downwards. The lion fish or coral devil is a nocturnal hunter on for example: small fish, mussels, shrimps and crabs. The lion fish or coral devil tries to thrive its prey in a corner by spreading its fins. The lion fish or coral devil approaches its prey slowly and carefully. If the prey has come close enough, the lion fish or coral devil fold its fins back and shoots itself forward very fast to gatherer its prey with its mouth!

Other information about Belize - Caribbean:

Electricity: 110/220 V, an adapter plug (world connector) is required. The power outlets are grounded and have three rectangular holes.
Tips: At the usual restaurant or hotels the tips are included in the bill. If that is not the case then add a tip of 10% .
Taxi drivers expect no tip, unless they carry your bags. A small tip is desired.
Guides expect a 15% tip if you are satisfied. This is according to different travel guides, I personally find it a bit much.

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