new Belize - San Ignacio

Hotels

Hotel Central has a friendly English owner.The rooms are spacious and have common private bathroom. It has a balcony with hammock. It costs 22 B$ for a double, but it was full when we arrived around noon. We went to Hotel Venus which is a large block full of rooms. Only rooms 10 and 16 have a window. The showers are somtimes broken, a double costs 35 Q.

Restaurant

The place to be for travellers is Eva's Restaurant. It provides plenty of travel info and organises relatively cheap tours to the jungle (at least compared to the tours lodges in the neighbourhood are offering).

What to do

The Xunantunich ruins are 30 minutes out of town. It's a bit difficult to get there, since you first have to take a bus to the ferry, and from there it's a walk up the hill. The ruins themselves are nothing special (especially after you've seen Tikal), the view over Guatemala is OK.

A 1 day trip into the jungle is possible during the dry season and can be arranged at Eva's, but don't expect too much of it. There are mainly 3 things to see:

A nice and very high waterfall which you can see from a viewpoint (the Hidden Falls waterfall).
A
smaller waterfall with pools, nice to have a swim (Rio On pools).
A cave which is OK (Rio Frio Cave).

When I was there, it was extremely difficult to visit the Mayan ruins of Caracol in the middle of the jungle. In the mean time however, they continued the excavations, made a road and recently opened a visitor's center. Although the ruins are bigger then the ones in Tikal, most of it is not yet excavated. It is also much less touristic then Tikal. Entrance (including visitor's center) is now 5 US$ (5/99). You can visit the ruins on a day trip from San Ignacio usually also including the Rio On pools and the rio Frio Cace.

If you're into eco-tourism (to be honest I'm not such a big fan myself), then San Ignacio might have what you're looking for. Although, a lot of the lodges charge pretty much and cater for Americans willing to spend some US$ (70% of visitors entering by airplane are Americans). Here are some options:

- One of the largest cave systems in central America

- 3 butterfly farms

- Belize botanical gardens

- Belize Zoo

- You can do some kayaking, rafting, horsebacking etc...

- I didn't do any of these so I can't comment on them.

Go to Caye Caulker

Article Comments:

03/08/2006
Walter (5)
Thanks for a great post Matto, I really appreciate this valuable, updated information. Cheers, Walt.

03/08/2006

matto (5)

A pretty general post with some valid points - but, a few other things readers may want to know...

1. San Ignacio is known as Cayo by the locals.

2. San Ignacio and Cayo are great fun for horses, stunning scenery, jungle treks (arrange a 3-day tour to Caracol on mule-back with Martz Farm), off-roading, kayaking on the Macal or Mopan, waterfalls (Big Rock or 1000ft), transit to Guatemala, practising your Spanish.

3. If you don?t like the outdoors, aren?t headed to Guatemala and aren?t interested in Mayan culture, then stick with the Cayes (Caulker is best value for backpackers, Tobacco is good for ?getting away from it).

4. The best place for 'travellers' who only ever do what the Lonely Planet suggests is definitely Eva's. For the rest, look out for the next edition spots and some local flavour: try "Cocopeles" 2 mins from Eva's (just ask for directions, the locals don't bite) for a great vibe, bar games, better prices and local/gringo mix. Food is supplied by local eateries such as?

5. ?the Firenza Cafe' in the small street opposite Belize Bank. It?s great for pizzas, has an outdoor bar/patio & a very cheap/good breakfast. It's also clean and won't give you a bad stomach unlike some other places mentioned in the guides...

6. The San Ignacio hotel is bad value, even on someone else?s credit card; Martha?s & Venus are much better for in-town options.

7. Backpackers is a good option out-of-town and the Xuanantunich Inn, just opposite the ferry to the Mayan site, is a fair spot if you are in a group and you negotiate a discount.

8. My lux choice would be Cacao Creek (when it opens to the public in December ? www.cacaocreek.com) or for budget, the cool Martz Farm with horses & tree-houses (speak to Joe or Miriam on 614 6462).

9. The cheap way to Tikal is to take the bus or Benque taxi to the border, then take a collectivo (mini-van from the gas station past the border bridge ? 3 minute walk) towards Flores, the closet town to Tikal. Ask to be dropped at the junction to Tikal and then flag a ride there from one of the many shuttles that do the trip from Flores. If you are in a group, negotiate a deal with the mini-vans at the border. The third price is usually the best.

10. Taxis in ?Cayo? are cheaper by day, but few trips will cost over $10. Buses run regularly from the town and are good value. Look out for express routes to/from Belize City.

11. Check out www.belizebarefoot.com Matto www.belizebarefoot.com