Hopkins/Sittee Point Reader Updates

* BEACHES AND DREAMS has new owners. Tony and Angela Marsico, who formerly ran a popular restaurant in Fairbanks, Alaska, purchased Beaches and Dreams with another couple, but are now buying them out. Tony says: “We do plan on expanding the food service operation to include a few more upscale items in mid to upper price range as well as keeping the Belizean comfort foods and pizzas in the lower to medium price ranges. We are going to be putting an outdoor show-kitchen in and have a feature of the evening. Thursday nights will be Belizean paella night, cooked outdoors over a big outdoor burner in a 2-foot diameter paella pan which I had especially made for me to bring down there. Another night will feature a fresh shrimp boil-up. I have contacted the shrimp farm and made arrangements to get fresh shrimp in every Friday. On Saturdays, a Belizean style bouillabaisse, all these items cooked on our outdoor burner (it is an Alaskan fish cooker). I am also going to feature a steak, some chops with mango chutney and some vegetarian as well. As for pricing, pizzas with three ingredients about BZ$30 , lots for lunch in the BZ$16-24 range. Dinners from casual at BZ$24 to BZ$50 for our specialty nights. As for the rooms, we are keeping the four we have now. Plans are to move the two cabanas to another lot for weekly rentals and build eight new rooms from concrete and tile, but construction won't begin until April 2007. All those foods and the outdoor cooking setup will be in place for the November season of 06 and rooms will stay the same for this year.” Rates are around US$95 double in season. Sittee Point, tel. 501/523-7259; www.beachesanddreams.com. Lan Sluder, December 2005

* Wanted to let you know that our April 2004 stay at TUTZIL NAH COTTAGES, at the Maya Centre, was an incredible experience. Our host, Gregorio Chun, made us feel right at home, and was a wonderful source of information about the history of the Jaguar Preserve, the plants and animals of the jungle, and the Mopan Maya people. We spent several hours on an evening jungle walk with Julian Chun, and a morning jungle walk with Gregorio. Both Julian and Gregorio are mentioned in Alan Rabinowitz's book, Jaguar, about the establishment of the Jaguar Preserve, and they are experts on the local flora, fauna, and history. Thanks to them we got to see some aspects of Belize that we otherwise would have missed. We didn't see any large mammals on our walks, but did see a fishing bat (amazing!), and some incredible birds, reptiles and insects, and we learned a lot about local plants and trees, as well. The Maya food that Gregorio's wife prepared for us was excellent, and his children made our ten-year-old son feel welcome as well, with a game of barefoot soccer in the front yard. All in all, it was a great experience that we would highly recommend to others. Linda Sanders, April 2004

* This trip, my family and I stayed at HAMANASI (Hopkins Village, P.O. Box 265, Dangriga, Stann Creek District, tel. 501-5-12073, fax 5-12090, e-mail info@hamanasi.com, www.hamanasi.com). Driving up from the back, this resort looks unprepossessing, but once on the grounds, the wow factor is high. The restaurant and lobby are attractive, the grounds well kept, and the pool, with a “zero effect” is one of the nicest I’ve seen in Belize. There are three types of accommodations -- regular rooms in the main building (US$100 to $170 depending on the time of year), suites in a separate set of buildings (US$150 to $225) and “tree houses” on the back side (US$100 to $170 ). Rates include continental breakfast. All are really nice, though personally I like the suites best. They remind me a good deal of the units at Inn at Robert’s Grove, and indeed the same Mennonite builder constructed Hamanasi as built Robert’s Grove (and a number of other top resorts in Belize.) The accommodations at Hamanasi (Garifuna for almond tree) are much nicer than I expected they would be, and it’s always a plus to have a hotel exceed your expectations. The owners, Dana and David Krauskopf, who look like they just stepped out of a Travel & Leisure magazine spread, seem to know what they are doing. While they haven’t run a hotel before, they have experience in the travel agency biz and in marketing. Certainly their cats, furry grey émigrés from Russia, know exactly what they’re up to. The operation is still getting its sea legs, and not everything works perfectly -- for example the air conditioning in our suite didn’t -- but I have a feeling that before long things will get smoothed out. As many as 75% of the guests here presently are divers, albeit in many cases recreational divers. Barrier reef dives (two tanks) are US$65, and Turneffe Atoll dives (three tanks) are US$120. I suspect it is smart marketing to focus on diving now, but as the resort matures I would think a larger percentage of guests will come just for the seaside ambiance and nature tours.

Next door, JAGUAR REEF is looking better than ever. The landscaping around the duplex cabanas is starting to pay off. Owner Bruce Foerster tells us the deal to sell the resort has fallen through, and Bruce is going to be giving more attention to the property. He is buying out his partners and is upgrading the rooms this fall. We’re told that the hotel plans to go ahead with its 9-hole golf course, a “dunes course” using synthetic turf. We’re no experts, but we wonder if this kind of golf course makes sense in Belize. There definitely are advantages to synthetic turf , both in holding down maintenance costs and in reducing environmental problems associated with runoff from greens. However, we can just imagine the guidebooks and travel writers savaging the idea of an “Astroturf golf course” in Belize. Even if duffers love it, critics are going to be out in force satirizing the idea of “Sittee Point putt-putt.” Guess time will tell.

We had dinner at BEACHES AND DREAMS, and the food was delicious. We ate well without breaking the bank. Sad to hear that co-owner Dave Hegelsen developed respiratory problems in the Belize climate and can only stay in Belize a few weeks at a time.

PLEASURE COVE bills itself as “ADULTS ONLY RESORT with European sophistication that blends beautifully into the relaxed, tropical landscape.” In a brief visit, this spot didn’t strike us quite that way, but we’re willing to be convinced. Lots of lots have been sold at the British-American Cattle Co. properties in this area, and a few very nice homes are going up.

Alas, we ran out of time and didn’t get a chance to see KANATIK, the upscale all-inclusive that’s abuilding north of Hopkins. We hope to get back around the time of the grand opening in the late fall. Lan Sluder, August 2001

* Just wanted to let you know about a great place in Hopkins. Spent ten wonderful days in this Garifuna fishing village, jungle river canoe trips, trekking in the Cockscomb Jaguar Reserve, enjoying the beach and making day trips to great ruins. Hopkins is definitely a great destination and you will enjoy it at a great price at the TIPPLE TREE BEYA hotel. It is small but packs all the right stuff for US$29 per night for a double room with a beautiful ocean view, directly on a fantastic beach. British/American owners Patricia Sturman and Deborah Dean made this a memorable vacation. They possess a great store of knowledge about Belize and know just about everyone in the village, so if you want to meet the local medicine woman they can arrange it. I never had such a revitalizing visit to any country in all my years of travelling the globe. Mary Beeler, Chattanooga, Tennessee, February 1999

* LETTER FROM BEACHES AND DREAMS: My wife, Sharon, and I spent the last 35 years in Vancouver, Canada, but she grew up in southern Africa, and I worked there for several years. We always wanted to retire to the tropics. We checked out Australia, New Zealand, Fiji, Jamaica and Mexico but settled on Belize because of the language, the ties to the British Commonwealth, and the relative proximity to Vancouver where two of our kids live. Two years ago the university where we both worked offered an early retirement package, so I took advantage of that while Sharon took a sabbatical. We bought two commercial lots (110' beach frontage, 120' road frontage) from Ron Zent and commenced construction in July 1997. Our son Ryan and I drove down here with a van full of possessions in September 1997, and we finally are just now finishing construction, although we have had rentals since August 1998 and the restaurant has been open since late November. We have had nothing but rave reviews about the rooms, the beach, the ambience and the food ... in fact several people have said it's the best food in Belize. We have our own dock, large hardwood-panelled rooms, private baths, pressurized hot water, verandahs right on the beach, and tiled bar/restaurant and patio which can seat up to 20 inside and the same again outside under cover. We got our Web page up the week before Christmas and have had good response. Cheers, Dave Helgesen, Beaches and Dreams, Sittee Point, February 1999

* JAGUAR REEF LODGE, Sittee Point. Contact: General Delivery, Hopkins Village, Stann Creek District, tel. 501-9-23452, e-mail jaguarreef@btl.net. Jaguar Reef majority owner Bruce Foerster gave up his own room so I could spend a night at his seaside lodge. You can't ask for better hospitality than that! A number of improvements have been made to Jaguar Reef and its collection of seven duplex beach cottages since I last stayed there, including air conditioning, fridges in the rooms and filling in the previously open screened areas at the top of the walls, which has helped cut ambient noise from the adjoining room. Our meals in the beachside restaurant and patio were excellent, with cheerful, friendly service by the staff from near Sittee and Hopkins villages. Speaking of Hopkins, this predominantly Garifuna village is one of Belize's uncut jewels. Folks are friendly, and the village is safe and interesting. The sand flies in this area have the reputation of being among the hungriest in all of Belize, but on my several visits here to Jaguar Reef I've had only minimal problems. Lan Sluder, BELIZE FIRST, July 1998

* JAGUAR REEF just might be the most beautiful setting on earth. Bernard and all the employees were sensational, the service impeccable. Unfortunately, Mother Nature cruelly gave this wonderful place sand flies. They are in your room, in your bed and even with constant bug spray (offered free in the bar), we were still bitten enough to be very uncomfortable. Mother Nature's second cruel twist for us was to turn the weather to a cold 63 degrees, windy and rainy. Day after day, we were unable to enjoy the water activities we so looked forward to. This was not the place for teenagers, poor weather, no TV, few "modern conveniences" and lots of bug bites. We still would recommend Jaguar Reef, however, as it is beautiful. My advice to others? We booked through International Expeditions, paying in advance for excursions such as river and snorkel trips that went unused because of weather/sea conditions. There is no such thing as a refund so this cost us thousands for trips unused. Obviously, we would not do that again even in the busy Christmas season. Second, I hope to never encounter another sand fly which might take some intense research to know about since brochures don't tend to tell you these things (but your Update does!). Belize is a unique and fascinating place to visit. We hope to return to experience other places someday soon. Loree Edwards, Wilsonville, Oregon, December 1997

* My husband and I spent 10 days in Belize, our first and definitely not our last trip. It took me forever to plan the trip as we wanted to see everything in Belize in our 10 days -- impossible! We spent our first three nights at JAGUAR REEF LODGE in Hopkins. We rented a Suzuki Samurai from Budget at the international airport and attempted the drive to Hopkins by ourselves. This drive was probably the worst part of our visit. The Southern Highway is a nightmare, and it was already dark and pouring rain. We were terrified as the visibility was zero, and the public buses would go roaring past us spraying mud and gravel on our little vehicle. We missed the dinner serving at Jaguar Reef, but our host was very gracious and had the kitchen re-open to serve us dinner. The food at the restaurant was quite good, especially the fish we caught that the kitchen prepared with an excellent coconut-lime sauce. We hired the owner from Toucan Sittee Lodge to take us down the Sittee River to fish where we caught a few jacks and small barracuda. The accommodations at Jaguar Reef are excellent and our cabana was closest to the beach. Ours was a duplex, and you can hear your neighbors when you are in the bathroom and vice- versa. Our biggest problem was the sandflies. Fortunately, I had plenty of powerful repellant. We were actually awoken two morning from being bitten under the covers -- they can easily get in through the screens. Abby Eady, Lubbock, Texas , November 1996