Hi there, we use cookies to improve your experience on our website. You can update your settings by clicking the Privacy policy link at the bottom of the page. I traveled to Belize in October with a buddy on a dive trip and would like to offer a straight forward, no BS travel guide for your review and knowledge.
I am writing this while actually here and will edit and post when my vacation is over, please pardon the length but my goal is to give you information that I wish I had but did not have before coming. I hope my efforts will teach a few things that will make your trip more pleasurable and hopefully will be entertaining reading. First and foremost… Currency. The American Greenback is accepted everywhere, but they will give you change in local currency. It has been recommended before you leave, find some American tourists who have more time on the island and exchange as much Belizean currency for Greenback as you can before you leaving the country.
Belize City has rampant unemployment, horrible slums, boarded up buildings, massive crime and is in general a very dirty, unsavory place. The top ranked hotel in the city had huge pot holes in the parking lot, a metal detector as you entered the front door and we were the ONLY tourists in the only local casino and clubs.
The worst economy hotel I have ever seen in the far superior to this place. When your international flight lands… clear customs and get on a Tropic Air plane and get to San Pedro as fast as you can. The difference between this island and the mainland is day and night… San Pedro is bustling with and warm and friendly faces and activity that goes on well into the morning hours.
If you are going to buy something from a street vendor, ask them their price and then simply tell them up front what you are willing to pay for the item. When not if they balk… walk away. Transportation… when here the main mode of transportation is golf cart… yes, golf cart.
