The Unfinished Man’s Guide To Traveling In Belize

I started writing this post as I was cruising at some 20,000 ft above the Caribbean Sea, away from Belize, a country I had just spent two weeks exploring. I figured that if I started taking notes right after the trip, that my adventures would be fresh in my mind. What I’ve written are notes highlighting my experiences in Belize, and a series of practical tips on traveling around the country, not getting scammed, and enjoying the best that the country has to offer. If you’re debating visiting Belize over fears of the alleged high levels of violence, I address that too. Before that, though, let’s start with a very brief overview of the country.

Belize, formally known as British Honduras, is an ex-British colony in the northernmost region of Central America. The country was renamed Belize in 1973, and reached full independence in 1981. Belize shares a border to the North with Mexico, and to the South and West by Guatemala. Belize was essentially a large slavers haven, and when the British finally pulled out, the place “went downhill”, literally in fact.  Belize City is slowly sinking back into the swamp it was built on. With a landmass of 22,960 square km, and with only 332,000 people living there, Belize possesses the lowest population density in all of Central America.

I could continue on with mountains of information about the country’s GDP, legal system, and countless other interesting bits of information, but Wikipedia does a better job of that; instead I would like to share with you my own tips and suggestions as a person whose first experience in a 3rd world country was Belize.

What to know when traveling in Belize

• Belizeans primarily speak English and Spanish. No one will frown on you for speaking English, so feel free to save your terrible broken Spanish for a visits across the border to Guatemala. The only non-English speaking person I met during my two-week stint was an ex-member of the Guatemalan special forces. He was born in Guatemala, a Spanish-speaking country, so fair enough.
• Avoid Belize city like the plague – I can’t stress this point enough. After you arrive, be it via air or sea, have plans made in advance to exit the city before dark. If you’re stuck in the city after dark, I suggest staying at D’Nest Inn. Though the owners got on my nerves with their terrible karaoke television shows, I believe their Inn is one of the cleanest and safest of the lot.
• Belize is very much a 3rd world country. If you haven’t traveled to a 3rd world country before, you may find yourself with a severe case of culture shock; I know I was. Many areas of the country are slums, complete with half-starved roving wild dogs and people living in rusted out shipping containers. I found this mildly depressing, but it also made me feel very thankful for the lifestyle I live back in North America.
• Cab drivers are going to rip you off no matter what, but don’t go with the first driver who approaches you. Believe me, the moment the drivers catch a glimpse of you at a bus stop or road side, they’ll approach you with the zeal of a Future Shop sales-person. See who will rip you off the least and go with them.
• Taking the bus is cheap, reasonably fast, and the buses travel to just about every part of the country. If you can stand the unbelievably bad music that the drivers play, the bus system is the way to go. Unlike the cab drivers, the bus staff seemed genuinely friendly, and didn’t seem like they were trying to work an angle.
• Belize has a very high rate of crime, especially rape and other forms of physical violence – this is especially true in Belize City, and that’s why I suggested avoiding the place, especially after dark. Having said that, I felt that the further you move from Belize City, the safer it was. Places like Belmopan seemed clean, friendly, and with a lack of angry gun-toting people.

When my flight touched down and I stepped off the plane into the Belize Airport, I experienced nothing short of absolute culture shock. It was such a simple thing that set it off too. The size of the airport was very small, but even stranger was that I had to walk off the airplane across the tarmac on foot! I really couldn’t believe it. It wasn’t because I felt above doing such a thing, but that it seemed so foreign to me. I had simply never experienced such a thing, and I found that much of my trip fell into that category.

Belize is full of Chinese restaurants. I really have no idea why, but the food was fairly delicious.

This is what a typical bus-stop in Belize looks like. Many of the bus-stops are painted in garish colours with various corporate sponsorships plastered across them.

This is a very sad-looking outhouse on the island of Caye Caulker just off the coast of Belize.

This building has seen better days, and was obviously ruined by fire. Most of the buildings in Belize are made of concrete, and are built on raised columns. Family’s usually inhabit the upper flow, and expand downwards as they have more children.

If you can accept the fact that you’re not in Kansas anymore, Belize is full of adventure and beauty. My portrayal of the country may sound overly harsh, but I really did have an amazing time, and I can say with absolute sincerity that I recommend a visit to anyone who wishes to experience the culture of a very foreign place, with the comfort of an English-speaking locale. I hope you find my suggestions useful.