Belize Honeymoons: Is Belize Right for Your Honeymoon?

Turtle Inn, Placencia, Belize

Belize is on the top-ten exotic tropical honeymoons list for a lot of couples – it may be on yours.  If it is, how much do you know beyond its exotic-sounding name, that it has Caribbean beaches, some jungle and some Mayan ruins mixed in there somewhere?

Much the same is true for other honeymoon destinations such as Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula, so how do you know if  a Belize honeymoon is the right choice for you, and why?

Chaa Creek's Romantic Tree Top Suite

First, and let’s get this over with right off the top, Belize is not cheap – - at least not as inexpensive (more politically correct than cheap) as Guatemala or Honduras, or some parts of Mexico.  A 7-night honeymoon at the upper tier of Belize beach resorts and jungle lodges can (and probably will) cost over US$6,000 per couple.

But, compare a Belize honeymoon to a Caribbean island honeymoon with similar kinds of lodging, meals and activities, and Belize suddenly seems much more affordable.  And, of course, Belize offers many attractive, comfortable moderate lodging options if upscale luxury isn’t on the absolute necessity list.  (US$3,000 – US$4,000 for a 7-night honeymoon is definitely doable, and you won’t feel as if you’ve skimped.)

Thatch Caye Cabana Exterior

Second, Belize resorts and lodges do not offer truly complete all-inclusive packages — if you absolutely have to have a full all-inclusive package, Belize may not be the place for your honeymoon.  (An anniversary or family vacation maybe?)    Rarely are alcoholic beverages included, and if they are, the selection is usually limited to Belize rum drinks, Belize beer and maybe a house wine (house wine is not even commonly included).

Also, all-inclusive packages (whatever that may mean at a specific resort or lodge – make sure you understand the details), tend to be offered only at the more expensive places.  (An all-inclusive package with the aforesaid Belize liquor and house wine included at a moderately upscale beach resort will run US$5,000-US$6,000 for a 7-night honeymoon, depending on season.)

Third, if your heart is set on refined culture,  with a few museums interspersed with some snorkeling or diving, you probably ought to consider another honeymoon destination.

Maya Deer Dance, Toledo Cacao Fest

Don’t get me wrong, Belize is chock-full of culture, but its culture is in its people, on its streets, at its cayes and in its jungles, where fishermen still fish from a wooden dory with hooks and lines, where extended families gather on the river to swim and eat and tell tall tales, and the Maya still dance the deer dance to celebrate man’s relationship with animals and nature.

And, you have to get out into Belize to learn about its incredible diversity of cultures and peoples – a stew of just about 300,000 people including Belize Creole (a mixture of Europe and Africa), Garifuna (a World Heritage culture from Africa and the Caribbean), Mennonites, East Indians, Maya (yes, real live Maya do walk and breathe with us in Belize), Taiwanese, Palestinian, British, Mestizo, American and Canadian.

Curasow

Fourth, Belize’s tag-line is Mother Nature’s Best Kept Secret, and Mother Nature will be all around you, held at bay, yes, but if you look closely, you’ll see her creeping about at the edges, just waiting to slip in.  So, if you faint away at the mere idea of fruit bats flitting among the guava or mango trees eating mosquitoes, you may be better off elsewhere than in the tropics.

Finally, if the unexpected ruins your day, then Belize may not be a good honeymoon idea for you.  And by unexpected, I don’t necessarily mean bad unexpected.  Your guide might spot some jaguar tracks on the way to a waterfall, so you follow them – - and see a jaguar in the distance, making you late for the waterfall, and late getting back to your resort.  Or, the kitchen is out of blackberry jam, so you have to settle for home-made guava jelly (send me some!).  Or, you’re on the way to a caye for lunch when you run into a pod of 30 or 40 dolphins, which your guide stops to watch play.

Of course, the less then idyllic unexpected can happen – a flat tire (Belize has some terrible roads – but what’s at the end of them makes their memory not so bad), service can be slow (not excruciatingly slow, but sometimes slower than you’re used to expecting) and sometimes some things just aren’t available, especially if they’re imported (cargo ships held up by bad weather, a broken crane for unloading the ships, etc.).

Bottom line?  If you can roll with the flow, like your culture up close and personal, don’t need a minute-by-minute schedule and enjoy nature, then maybe Belize is right for you.

To learn more:  www.destinationsbelize.com/honey_sail.htm

Next:  Where in Belize Should You Honeymoon?

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