Caye Caulker Reader Updates

The Breeze, Banana Trees, and Belize

How different, to look out my kitchen window and see banana trees! At night, the sea breeze rustling the big leaves sounded like rain. It wasn’t Michigan - it was Belize. We were on our favorite little strip of sand in the Caribbean Sea - Caye Caulker.

We had rented an upstairs unit in CAYE CAULKER APARTMENTS on the southern end of the island. Our price per night: $25US! We had a large room with a queen bed, a dresser and armoire, table and chairs, and a nice kitchenette with refrigerator, microwave and coffee maker. Over the sink was a louvered window, and right outside that window - banana trees and palm trees! This was Belize, with the breeze rustling the banana trees!

Caye Caulker Apartments has a nice walled courtyard where children can roam freely and safely. There is a covered patio with lounge chairs, tables and a grill you may use if you’ve been lucky enough to catch some fish. Bicycles are free to renters. Daily maid service and fresh towels makes your stay here most pleasant for the price.

Other apartments here may have a living room area with couch and chairs, a stove and full size refrigerator, with one or two separate bedrooms. A two-bedroom apartment rents for $62.50US.

Nothing is far away on Caye Caulker. The island is very narrow, so you are never far from the sea. The Split at the far north end is the best place for swimming, but with bicycles, even that isn’t far away.

In between are more guesthouses, houses to rent by the month, and all the shops and eat places. Caye Caulker had sprouted many more private homes and a few more guesthouses since our last visit in 2004. The little island is becoming a real tourist attraction. Prices have gone up accordingly. It took me a good week’s hunting on the Internet with lots of e-mailing to find a place to stay during the peak season of February! Most places were full or were out of our budget’s price range. We had stayed at Caye Caulker Apartments once before and were very happy with the accommodations there, so we were happy there was still a room left for us. Although ours was a short-planned, impromptu trip, I would suggest you reserve a room ahead of time. You might find a place to stay just by showing up and asking around, but it might not be what you’d be happy with. A good site is www.gocayecaulker.com.

The fun of getting to Caye Caulker is by water taxi. You fly into Phillip Goldson Airport north of Belize City and upon emerging from the terminal, eager taxi drivers waiting to take you wherever you choose will greet you. I noticed on this trip that the taxi drivers wore nice uniforms and drove much nicer cars than we had seen on previous trips.

It’s a short 15-minute ride to the Water Terminal near the Swing Bridge in Belize City for $25US. Water taxis - 40+ foot speedboats - run at regular intervals throughout the day. Cost is $10US per person one way. The last boat leaves at 5:30 most days, a lovely time to be on the water because you can experience a beautiful Caribbean sunset!

A pleasant 45-minute ride over the azure sea and you arrive at the long wooden dock on Caye Caulker. Here, too, taxis await your arrival and happily take you to your hotel or guesthouse. The only difference here is that the taxis are golf carts. For $5US, you will get your bags and yourself to any place on the island.

Caye Caulker has everything from inexpensive dorm-style hostel rooms to posh condo-style accommodations, with bed and breakfast establishments or other guesthouses in between to give you a wide choice of places to stay.

One of my favorite places is the JAGUAR MORNING STAR GUEST HOUSE. It’s conveniently located in the central part of the island. A security fence surrounds a beautiful tropical garden. A cabana with A/C for $75US/night is just beyond the entrance gate. The tall concrete, main building is graced by spectacular art work - a large painted tree, stretching from ground to top floor with a jaguar at one level in the branches, and bright macaws at another level. You can’t help but notice and admire this building as you pass by.

There are two guest rooms on the third floor. When we stayed there, the three flights up were easy, especially when you stop at the second level to admire the huge bougainvillea that languishes over the railing as it works its way upward.

One room, for $40US/night, has a queen bed and accommodates a couple. The second room, for $60US/night, has two double beds for a family. Both have refrigerators, and a coffee maker with fresh packets of coffee and tea provided daily. A private bath has a shower with hot and cold water. 5 gallon bottles of water with spigot are available for $5 for drinking. You don’t drink the tap water on Caye Caulker, but there is a large Crystal Water distribution center on the island and good water is always available and can be delivered to your room.

Morning Star’s proprietors live on the second level and are some of the nicest people you’d ever want to meet. Joanne and Allison Wright keep the premises spotless.

Allison is a master wood craftsman. He makes beautiful furniture out of many types of Belizean woods, as well as intricate jewelry boxes and other fine items in his lower level workshop.

A place I excitedly stumbled upon in my Internet search was OASI. It is new and lovely. We met Luciana and Michael on our last trip and greatly enjoyed their Belizean friendliness. They told us they were going to be building their own home. I didn’t know it would also be a guesthouse.

The house is built on pillars, as are most homes on the island. Luciana and Michael live on the upper level, and the main level has two large, completely equipped apartments for rent by the night for $70US, weekly for $450US, or long term for $350US. Each 300 square foot apartment has A/C and ceiling fan, cable TV, a full kitchen, comfy sofas and beds. Bicycle use is free, Internet access available, and a barbecue awaits guests’ use on the lovely tropical grounds, which are centered with a pool and tranquil fountain.

On this trip we decided to check out Ambergris Caye. We knew that Thunderbolt Water Taxi operated between Ambergris Caye and Corozal, our final destination. However, it had been out of service for some time and we couldn’t find out for certain whether or not it was running at this time. [It does, indeed, have a regular run at 3 p.m.] Since Luciana is an agent for Tropic Air, she booked us for the short flight from San Pedro to Corozal instead.

However, we did take the water taxi from Caye Caulker to San Pedro. It is a quick 20-minute ride. Ours was probably the most pleasant of all the water taxi rides we’ve had so far. It was a beautiful, sunny Caribbean morning. The Sea was calm, the gorgeous deep turquoise you always read about, and the ride was smooth.

Approaching San Pedro, you can see that it is a much more developed and inhabited island than Caye Caulker. Buildings of every description dotted the landscape long before we reached the dock at Shark’s Pier where, once again, eager taxi drivers awaited our arrival and business.

This time it was a car! San Pedro has cars. Way too many cars! The streets are much too narrow for the amount of traffic even if they have made the streets one-ways. Like in India, you need three things to drive on this island! A good horn, good brakes, and good luck!!

We deposited our bags at the Tropic Air terminal, albeit they ended up just sitting outside next to the building. The attendant said not to worry - he’d be there all day. They weren’t locked and I was a bit concerned, but later discovered they were indeed okay and taken care of in spite of all the people that came and went on the many flights from this tiny airstrip!

So - how do we get to the beach? “Walk through that alley between those houses and you’ll be right there!” we were told. So we did, and we were!

The beaches of San Pedro are much wider, sandier and nicer than on Caye Caulker and stretch for a much longer distance. Ambergris Caye is a much larger island to start with. Along the beach were accommodations of every kind and price range.

This particular day happened to be Election Day, countrywide, a major event and holiday in Belize! Supporters of the different parties wore shirts of red, or blue, or yellow and proudly campaigned for their candidates. Flags and emblems and party conclaves were everywhere. You couldn’t miss the fact that this was a big deal in Belize!

In the northern part of San Pedro there is another type of “split” - as on Caye Caulker. We saw a banner over the sandy street that read “Welcome to the Grand Inauguration of Boca Del Rio Bridge - February 25, 2006.” So there had to be a new bridge over the split and it had just opened.

It was quite a grand bridge arching over the water below. A boat passed under without hesitation. Bright flags waving in the sea breeze adorned pedestrian walkways on either side. There was a center passageway for bikes and golf carts, and larger vehicles.

San Pedro has upscale markets and shops although we felt that to get to them we had to take our lives in our hands! The traffic was horrendous, the sun was hot, and the cars made dust! It just wasn’t very pleasant.

We’d had all we wanted of San Pedro by 2:30! We weren’t scheduled to leave on our flight to Corozal until 5:30. We’d had lunch on the beach, so we decided to walk back to the Tropic Air Terminal. There it was air-conditioned. I checked to see if there was an earlier flight we could get on. Indeed there was. One at 3 p.m. with room for us. We were switched over to that flight and given red boarding cards. At the proper time, your card color is called and you go outside to board your flight.

A small, 12-passenger plane with a pilot who was as calm and collected as any we’ve seen hopped us over the water to the mainland. He set the little craft down as gently as if he did it by hand on Corozal’s airstrip.

And there they were!

Sharon Boniek, Holly, Michigan, February 2006

* All I can say is WOW.................. what a place. Upon our arrival at the airport in Belize City we were very unimpressed with the people, who were most unwilling to help us out. We secured a cab, that we shared with two wonderful women travelling from Pennsylvania to CayeCaulker. The streets were dirty, most houses were run down and I started asking myself "What have I gotten myself into" We arrived at the water taxi station and also found that to be crowded, dirty and very disorganized. After calming down we decided to try the local Belikin beer...........yummy. Our water taxi arrived and off we went to begin our adventure. After a short 45 minutes boat ride we arrived in heaven. On my gosh, I almost cried when I got my first glimpse of the beautiful little island. It was everything and more than what we had expected. Our luggage was unloaded and the hussling began. We must have had 5 guys ask us to stay at different hotels on the island. Later we found out that they get a commision from the hotels for bringing tourists to them. We get a golf cart taxi and we were off to our hotel, TOM'S HOTEL. It was not a bad place to stay but the cabin we were in was in great need of repair. The screens on the windows were all torn so the no-see-ums ate me alive during the night until I found Bee Jay's Skin Solution (a must for a stay on the island) We took off our shoes and went out exploring. THE SANDBOX restaurant was our first stop, again another "Oh my gosh"........ we split an order of conch fritters and a local rum drink the panty ripper. In the six days we were on the island we were never once disappointed with the food at the Sandbox. The next day we decided to rent bikes and "do" the island. We started at the split and the Lazy Lizard and rode past the airport through the mangrove swamp to the end of heaven. Absolutely breath taking.
That night, unfortunately our trip took a turn for the worse. My boyfriend got an uncontrollable nose bleed and we search for someone to help us, but the streets of Caye Caulker are rolled up by 10 pm. We came about a man who is now known as our guardian angel, Ricardo, on of the local snorkel tour operators. He took us to the local health clinic and we met the island doctor a lovely lady from Cuba. But as our luck was going one of the transformers on the island had blown out and the health care center has no electricity so she treated him in the dark. All was well but I did realize that this woman and the island are in serious need of medical supplies and equipment. If every American traveling to Caye Caulker could just bring a few things from the local drug store the island would be in much better shape. The next morning we were up at the crack of dawn and on the water taxi to San Pedro. Very very disappointing............It was crowded, dirty and touristy. We spent an hour there and returned to Caye Caulker. We spent a relaxing afternoon perched on a hammock at Popeyes.
Unfortunately our stay in heaven took a very bad turn. My boyfriend again got the nose bleed but this time it was worse. We boarded a water taxi and went off to Belize City to seek more modern health care. What a mistake. We arrived at the new state of the art health care facility Universal Health care systems. We were immediately taken in to see the owner and ENT specialist. He looked at the nose and sent me down the hall to the administrative office to discuss finances. To stop a nose bleed the charges would be $1,800 and he would not continue until I presented a charge card. I will not go through the gory graphics of the next 30 minutes but lets just say make sure you are very healthy before you go to this 3rd world country. We returned to the island and were greeted by a few of the wonderful Rastafarian gentlemen who showed genuine concern for our well being. The next day we found our guardian angel, Ricardo, and went on the most wonderful snorkeling trip on an antique sailing boat. I highly recommend Johnny's tours for snorkeling trips. It was 2.5 hours and just enough for the average person. We unfortunately had to make an emergency exit from the island in the morning due to the onset of bleeding. We are home now and the nose bleed is under control but the specialist here did say that the doctor in Belize City did more damage than good. We also found that Universal Health Care double charged our account so instead of 1,800 we were charged 3,600. What a disappointment. We contacted the American Embassy and they were a great help in reversing all of the charges. But although we encountered a few mishaps we are ready to go back to our little piece of heaven Caye Caulker. March 2003

* We stayed at the SEASIDE CABANAS for the last two days of our trip (I could have stayed for two more weeks!!!). I can't begin to say how much we enjoyed our stay there. We "stumbled" across the Seaside Cabanas (OK... not too hard to do given the size of the Island...) however it was most pleasant and @ US$80 a night for a 2nd floor room w/ two queen size beds and an overall atmosphere that just cant be beat, I felt it was a bargain, and I look forward to my next visit. They have a website: www.seasidecabanas.com that is VERY representative of what the lodge has to offer (actually the facility is NICER than what the website depicts). Daniel & Aimee DHondt, Newberg, Oregon, February 2002

* IGUANA REEF INN: Mario and Carin took real good care of us (Jim was on vacation in the States). They are in the process of completing an outside bar on the back side of the reception building which should be open by December. While there, Carin arranged for us to fish with one of the local guides, "Piggy," who put me in the right spot to christen my new fly rod with a small tarpon. We were there on the weekend of the annual "Lobster Fest" which is a blast. They had over 30 booths this year with over half of them cooking lobster and other items over charcoal which were served with side dishes such as potatoe salad, mashed potatoes, baked beans, salad and such for very attractive prices. It was possible to purchase a whole lobster, split and broiled over charcoal with side dishes for US$6 to $7.50, or chicken for US$4 to $5. Great values. The people on Caulker have completed most of the clean up and repairs from last year’s hurricane, and it did not appear that there was much permanent damage to the island itself. There are a couple of new hotel properties under construction which should be open by December. One of them is a fairly large multi story unit near the "Split" which should be nice. Rick Paine, Florida, June 2001

* Tropic Air took us to Caye Caulker for three days of beach-side bliss. We spent one night at TREE TOPS and two nights at SEA BEEZZZ. Both are great the Tree Tops is largely American style cleanliness and accoutrements and the Sea Beezzz is simply fantastic "in your face" beach views, sunrises and brewed quality coffee to start each day. First we booked a snorkel tour with Rascreek. He was wonderful and it was exciting to see how much the sharks and Eagle rays loved and trusted him the minute he jumped into the water - what an experience! The last day we went with Chocolate to see the manatees, lunch at Goff Caye, snorkel other Sargent Caye waters and visit St. George's Caye. Both tours have their strengths but Rascreek is the greatest. Anyhow, thank you your prompt answers to everyone on the Belize forums was the start of Belize hospitality. My only disappointment is that I couldn't find Belize First at any magazine stand not even at the Airport. I had hoped to be able to scan it a lot during my vacation. I guess next year I'll have to subscribe. Lee Brewer, Middletown, New Jersey, March 1999

* After our stay in Cayo and bus trip to Belize City, we were off by water taxi to Caye Caulker. The boat ride was enjoyable and, at US$7.50 per person one way, the most inexpensive way to get to the island. Caye Caulker was great but I must admit it seemed a little more touristy/westernized than the mainland. This was not at all a setback but it was noticeably different. The Belizeans on the island were still super and one guy even showed me how to open up the fresh coconuts which you could pick up off of the ground. On Caye Caulker we found a two double bed room that we all shared at the TROPICAL PARADISE HOTEL. The room/cabin was nice and they have a nice beach type area for relaxing and watching the ocean. The only thing that really bothered me about this place was the sign that they have posted which explains how the hotel is not responsible if housekeeping takes any valuables from your room. We did not have any problems but I found the disclaimer a little unsettling since it would not be too much fun to carry all of our valuable with us everywhere we went. We took our chances and had no problems though. Right after we unloaded our stuff in the room we went out for a snorkel with Jimmy on his family's sailboat. When we stopped at our first snorkel spot and as we were all occupied with putting on our gear, no one noticed that we no longer had a captain on the boat! We looked all around the boat and could not spot him until he came out from under the water. He had dove off the boat and went under to set the anchor which none of us were expecting. We got a pretty good kick out of that. Jimmy was good fun and took us to a couple of great snorkeling spots (I am pretty sure that there are really no bad spots on this beautiful reef, though). I found it particularly amazing how the water was so clear and blue that it almost looked man-made. To then swim in that water and see all of the amazing creatures and coral formations is an experience which can be compared to almost nothing. We also went scuba diving with FRENCHIE'S (or FRENCHY'S depending on which boat you are looking at) dive shop. My wife and I are not certified divers so we went on a couple of resort dives with an instructor named Bert. Bert was an excellent teacher who made our first experience with scuba yet another amazing experience. Bert was also an excellent underwater guide who knew where to look for all types of marine life including, barracudas, moray eels, stingrays and an octopus which I got to touch. We even saw a stingray that was literally about 6 feet in diameter and over 10 feet in total length! Bert was a lot of fun and mentioned several times how much he loved his job! Dining on Caye Caulker is not expensive but it is more expensive than on the mainland. The seafood is great and we had our best meals at the SANDBOX which is also a nice place to hangout. Also make sure you get some fresh homemade coconut buns from the children who sell them, they are wonderful. It rained a lot while we were on the island so we missed many of the activities that we wanted to do while we were there but I guess that just leaves a pretty good excuse to go back! Overall, I found Belize to be an extremely easy country to travel in where you can meet many people who will make you feel right at home. I generally felt safer everywhere we were in Belize than I do most places we visit in the states. I would easily recommend this trip to anyone who is looking for, at minimum a mild adventure or, depending on the individual, as much adventure as anyone could want. Anyone who would like more specific information should feel free to email me at dtaylor1@pdq.net. Daniel Taylor, Houston, Texas, February 1999

After visiting Cayo, we went to Caye Caulker. I thought that we had reservations at Tropical Paradise Hotel. When we got there they had no record of us. We walked next door to SEABEEZZZ HOTEL and found Chuck, the owner, who spend six months a year on the caye and the rest of the year in New York running a commercial fishing business. His place is a bit frayed at the edges, as is all the rest of Caye Caulker. The only street sign on the island says "Slow" and that is the basic concept of the entire place. We really enjoyed the Seabeezzz. The place was more real. Tropical Paradise said they were on the beach. What they do not tell you is that there are not any real beaches on Caye Caulker ... theirs is a swept area with sand applied and groomed daily. Small individual buildings (almost like trailers) sitting perfectly lined up on the sand. While Seabeezzz is more real and attended to. Good food on the Island can be had at the Little Kitchen -- cheap -- high praise from a number of the locals. James Maidhof, Overland Park, Kansas, March 1998

* I've been going to Belize for eights years, and I've always stayed at TOM'S HOTEL. This may not give me a good base for comparison, but there are many reasons why I don't have to consider staying anywhere else on Caye Caulker. My friends will surely hang me from the nearest palm tree for giving away this well-kept secret. Tom's is located on the water just south of the center of town, in a secure compound-type arrangement of buildings and decorative cement barriers. The old main hotel is a two-story wooden structure with about 25 spartan (bed, drawers, electricity and fan) yet clean single and double rooms; bathrooms with cold water showers are shared. These run between US$11 and $15 per night. If I have no roommate for the season, I stay comfortably in an up stairs front room for about US$13 a night. This structure will be replaced with a modern cement building as soon as the owners' two daughters are finished using the courtyard for their impending marriages (July 97 and February 98). In addition to the main building, there are five cabins with extra room, closets, and hot showers (about US$27.50/night). These are my favorite when I have someone to split the rent with. There are also more modern rooms over the owners' living quarters, which go for about US$22 - 26/night. This building is topped off by a great observation deck with chairs and picnic tables. Days at Tom's begin with sunrise on the dock at 5:45 (not so early when you've gone to bed about 9:30). Tom and Zeida Young own the hotel, and once you've stayed a couple times you may find yourself being invited into their family, which also includes the employees who clean the rooms each day. Although seemingly quiet at first, you may start to notice an impish, playful quality in these good people. Reservations can be made by calling 011-501-22-2102 direct from the US. Brother Charles Young, who lives next door, offers good reef trips, tailoring the trip to the customers' needs, while taking weather into consideration. Trips are about US$10 for a three- stop afternoon reef excursion, a little more for a longer trip to Hol Chan preserve with lunch on Ambergris Caye. Charles is an accomplished diver, and you'll find your boat filling with conch for dinner. Call Charles at 501-22-2128 for more information. Tom Young Sr., who lives behind the hotel, offers sailing trips out to Turneffe and Calabash Caye on the Valentina, built by his father. This is a very special trip, but is only for those who can do without the creature comforts in exchange for pristine beauty and adventure. If you decide to check out Tom's for yourself, PLEASE don't tell anyone you got the idea from me. Fran Dwight, Kalamazoo, Michigan, May 1997

* We spent several days on Caye Caulker. Bummer! I've visited Belize (my mother's homeland) several times over the years. How disappointing to find Caye Caulker spoiled by unfettered commercialism. The overdevelopment of this idyllic spot has resulted in a crowded, unkempt, and ravished isle. You can't imagine my disappointment. We stayed at TROPICAL PARADISE. The hotel was all right, but my enthusiasm was dampened by the condition of the caye. Vincent T. Johnson, Ph.D, New Orleans, Louisiana, Summer 1997

* We had three weeks in Belize, and we chose to spend the third week on Caye Caulker. It grows on you. A quaint island with neat shops and places to eat. Living is very inexpensive, and snorkeling and diving are great. Not nearly as crowded as Ambergris Caye, nor as commercialized. For an inexpensive, clean bedroom with clean bathroom, try TROPICAL PARADISE back room #5 if you would like to wake up to the sunrise between your toes through the patio door. US$17 for two!!! Ken and Carol Turner, Magnetawan, Ontario, Canada, January 1998

* IGNACIO'S CABINS: Pretty close to the airport, but a distance away from everything else (at least as far as you can be on Caye Caulker). They had a check from our agent for us, but did not realize what days it was for, so we got the end cabin #14 which does not have hot water. I think some of the other cabins do have hot water. It also did not have towels or toilet paper. Ramon, who helps run the place gave us toilet paper and gave us towels under protest as he said he did not usually supply them. The cabins are mostly on stilts on the beach. They have windows with screens and louvers, and a Casablanca fan. Our cabin had a single and a double bed. The double was very bouncy (which my husband didn't like), and the bottom sheet was a synthetic which pills. Also in the room was one chair, a rack on the wall, three wall shelves, and a couple of clothes lines, including one on the stair landing. The shower and sink drained directly out the bottom to the sand below. Toilet paper had to be placed in the trash (which was not emptied) There was no mirror in the bathroom or anywhere else, no soap, and no place to put anything in the bathroom except the sink or the toilet box. There was a night light and electricity in the bathroom, and one overhead light in the cabin. There was a sign on the wall that said BZ$45/night, but I don't know what we actually paid as we had a package deal. There is a dock, with some chairs on it where people sunbathed and swam. We were actually quite comfortable here except for the bed and the lack of a mirror. Restaurants: We had a good breakfast at THE OTHER SIDE OF THE MOON. US$15 US for two including tip. SAND BOX: Sand floor inside and patio outdoors. Good food and OK service. US$22 for two without drinks. Popeye's has good pizza, but we couldn't eat it all and they wanted US 50 cents for the take-out box. Very little non-alcoholic to drink. US$19 for the largest pizza and a couple of sodas. The best dinner we had on Caye Caulker was at Roque's house -- he runs the DRIFTWOOD DIVE SHOP. He gave us lobster tails, broasted potatoes, cole slaw, and Cokes. Rosalie Beasley. Leonardtown, Maryland, March 1998