Belize Beaches

Photo by Christian Amott
© All Rights Reserved

If you ever longed to play Robinson Crusoe, this is the place to do it. So grab a local Belikin brew, slip into a hammock and chill out for a few weeks - months - or even years. No marooned sailor ever had it so good.

But bear in mind that most Belize beaches are hardly large enough to spread your towel on.

"This ain’t no Ipanema, Buba."

And then there are the pesky sea grasses that sneak along the bottom to shore - almost everywhere. But, what the hey, a gentle breeze is rocking your hammock, putting you to sleep, and you can always walk down to the end of the pier and slip into that picture perfect lagoon.

So slide back into a slower paced life and relax a bit. Head for Ambergris or Caye Caulker. Here the locals are friendly and the beaches, though small, are loaded with palms. Resorts range from one to five stars as do the prices. Caye Caulker is the more laid-back of the two, so they say. How can they tell? Do they count the number of sleeping dogs?

Now if you’re really serious about this Rob Crusoe thing, get on board a boat to Laughing Bird Caye, a sandy spit of land about the size of your backyard with half a dozen palms on it. Or try Goff's Caye, for a similar 'my world is an island' experience. But you won't be alone because every other escape artist in the world is going to get on that boat with you.

For that truly pampered - "I spent the winter in the tropics." - experience, you can stay on Caye Chapel Island with its own 18-hole golf course. You can also head for Cayo Espanto for a similar treatment, sans golf. Or stay at Placencia, where the accommodations are more modest but also much cheaper.

Click Photo to Enlarge Photo © Diego Alvarez de Toledo - Istockphoto.com