This will be our 10th trip to
this incredible Central American country and it makes for a wonderful
adventurous vacation. We've always sold this trip out and
one year had enough interest to run 2 back-to-back trips of 42
people each! This trip is almost like 2 vacations since we'll
have 5-nights on the mainland and then 5-nights on Ambergris Caye
and they are so completely different.
Most
people think of Belize only as a diving resort, but it’s way more.
The mainland offers an amazing jungle with many ruins, archeological
sites and very unique adventure tours. Belize’s interior is
a 65-percent uninhabited wonderland of deep jungle rain forest,
exotic native species, and myriad Mayan temples. But certainly
it is also home to the worlds second-largest barrier reef.
With this trip we will start
off with 5-nights at the San
Ignacio Resort Hotel (read more below). This hotel has
beautiful rooms and is right in the center of San Ignacio, walking
distance to many restaurants which will make our dining, shopping
and dancing very convienent. Our group will be completely taking
over this hotel which should be a lot of fun. It also features
an award winning restaurant. It will be the perfect base for all
the adventure tours to be found nearby including an amazing site
of Mayan ruins called Xunantunich.
This ancient Mayan city rose to prominence and declined between
AD 700 to 1000. A well developed site, Xunantunich is on the Belize.com
Top Ten Maya Sites of Belize list.
This area of Belize, San Ignacio,
features 2 of the best optional tours you will ever take in your
lifetime. One of those is a tour that will have you floating on
an innertube through 7
miles of underground river caves with 
only
your headlamp to light your way. It's a very cool tour that's
a ot of fun. There are plenty of guides accompanying us too if
you'd like to hang on to one. Click
here to check out my video.
The other tour is a visit
to an incredible cave that's called
Actun Tunichil
Muknal (ATM for short) which is one of the only caves
that has not been looted that has all the 
original
pottery is exactly how it was left hundreds of years ago
and even had a skeleton of a child that has been molded to
the floor with hundreds of years of calcification! It's a tour
you will never forget. Click
here to check out my video.
From National Geographic: In myths, journeys to
the underworld are never easy, and after visiting Actun Tunichil
Muknal (Cave of the Stone Sepulchre), you may feel that you have
been through your own epic test. Access to the Maya sacrificial
site within the cave involves hiking, wading, and underwater swimming,
but nearly a mile (1.6 kilometers) underground you will reach
the resting place of the “crystal maiden,” a complete female skeleton
that sparkles from eons of crystal calcification. The cave also
contains Maya pottery shards, many showing the “kill hole” intended
to allow spirits to escape.
Another
fun day that we'll organize is a tour called Mountain
Pine Reserve (see photos left and right). This is an amazing
day filled with waterfalls swimming and beautiful scenery.
There's also optional
tours offered at the hotel including horseback riding,
zip lining, canoeing and more.
After our 5-days on the mainland
it's island time. We’ll fly over to Ambergris Caye in small
prop planes for the next
5 nights.
This
long, slender island is just inside the famous barrier reef with
excellent visibility and coral reefs. This is home to some of
the best diving in the world such as Lighthouse Atoll and
the famous Blue Hole! Click
here to check out my video
that's had 38,000 views! . Our hotel has a dive shop with
nice boats on-site making your dives really convenient.
There’s also a variety of tours
available and fun little shops and restaurants to enjoy, plus
great nightlife! One of the best tours takes us island
hopping with a couple of snorkel stops and lunch on a small island
called Goff's Caye where we may be the only people there! And
one of the best snorkel destinations you'll ever visit is called
Hol Chan,
just a short boat trip from our hotel that we'll have in our itinerary.
You can also rent a golf cart and take your own tour of the island
which is a lot of fun. It's also fun to take a bike ride or golf
cart tour to explore the island and check out some of the other
resorts on the island with beautiful pools, drinks 
and
lunch.
Our
resort there, called Sunbreeze,
is located on a beautiful stretch of beach, has a nice pool,
their own dive shop, bar and restaurant and is located a short
walk from town. 
We’ll
snorkel, scuba dive and party on this great trip. Think it might
be too hot in the summer? It’s actually not bad at all.
This is the time of year we've always gone to Belize and it's
always been great.
We've
got great air which will get us in to Belize early on the 29th
giving us nearly a full day on our arrival.
$200 deposit to
sign up.
Early signups will get the better
rooms.
INCLUDES:
-
10-nights hotel accommodations
-
Domestic flights to/ from
Ambergris Caye
-
All Ground Transportation
-
Daily breakfast
Sign
up for this Trip!
OUR
GROUP INTERNATIONAL AIR FROM LAX:
We should have our group air by October.
There's a direct flight on Alaska Airlines that we are working
on.
DOES
NOT INCLUDE: International
air
SINGLE
SUPPLEMENT (if you prefer your own room) $1,100
Click
here for the tour info from our last
trip
Click
here to see photos from our last Belize trip
OUR
HOTELS:
SAN IGNACIO
RESORT HOTEL
Website - Tripadvisor
review
Established
in 1976, San Ignacio Resort Hotel is a Belizean and family-owned
boutique Hotellocated in the Cayo District, Western Belize. The
Resort is centrally situated on a 17-acre private estate and 5-minutes
away of the popular San Ignacio Town—an area that features a variety
of cultural, adventurous, and culinary experiences. This characteristic
has dubbed the Resort as “the only jungle in town”.
The 27-room Resort is renowned for its hospitality services and
features the award-winning Running W Steakhouse & Restaurant
(which showcases meats from the family’s ranch), an on-site tour
company (Cayo Gial Tours), in-room wellness treatments, an outdoor
swimming pool and tennis court area, the largest event facilities
in the District, and the #1 Activity in San Ignacio, the Green
Iguana Conservation Project.
San Ignacio Resort Hotel has been the recipient of numerous awards
including “Hotel of the Year” (2016, 2012), “Restaurant of the
Year” (2016), and “Hospitality Award” (2015) from the Belize Tourism
Board.
UPGRADE OPTION: This hotel has 5 suites that you can see
from their website. If you would like one of the suites for the
extra cost of $500 for the 5 nights total (or $250 pp person sharing)
please let us know.
We also
have the following two options at no extra charge:
SUZIE'S HILLTOP
VILLAS website
These
2 bedroom villas are directly across from the San Ignacio Hotel.
We will include the breakfast at the hotel and you're welcome
to join the group at the pool. Best for 2 single supplement
that know each other since you will share the common areas.
New modern villas perfectly
located in the quaint town of San Ignacio, Cayo, in walking distance
to restaurants, local markets, Princess Casino, and Running W
Steakhouse. Relax and refresh in your private plunge pool overlooking
the Maya Mountains and the Valley of the Macal River. It's a short
10 min drive to the Mayan Temple Xunantunich. Tikal and ATM Cave
tours can be arranged by our property manager. Suzie's villas
are? your home away from home for your next getaway or adventurous
vacation.
CASA SUZIE website
This
is a 4-bedroom home directly across from the hotel and we'll include
breakfast and use of the pool.This is best for 4 single supplement
people who know each other since you'll be sharing the common
areas.
Welcome to Casa Suzie
- Your Serene Retreat on the heart of San Ignacio!
Nestled on the crest
of the picturesque San Ignacio hills, Casa Suzie offers a one-of-a-kind
Airbnb experience that combines breathtaking views with unparalleled
comfort. With its prime location, this stunning retreat has 4
bedrooms each having its own ensuite bathroom. The living space
provides seamless flow between the kitchen, dining and living
room. A home that promises a getaway like no other.
Located
in San Pedro, this beachfront resort is in the entertainment district
and within a 5-minute walk of San Pedro Belize Express Dock, San
Pedro Central Park, and San Pedro House of Culture. Reef Runner
Glass Bottom Boat and San Pedro Town Hall are also within 10 minutes.