Belize is a small country located approximately 240 miles south of the popular tourist destination, Cancún. Belize is in the Carribean with the eastside of the country bordering the ocean and many beautiful islands or Cayes. Despite being surrounded by Spanish speaking countries (Mexico and Guatemala) the official language of Belize is English. Belize has a mixture of spoken languages from Mayan dialects, Spanish, Creol and Garifuna.

Besides being very culturally diverse it also protects a lot of wildlife. The Belize Barrier Reef starts 300 meters off the coast in the north and is 190 miles long! The abundance of sea life living here attracts many divers and snorkelers and gives Belize delicious seafood. Belize is full of lush jungle with 70% of its forest remaining today. There are many protected areas such as parks and animal preserves in Belize with 26.2% of the country being under protective laws.

The currency is the Belizean dollar which is worth half of a USD. All over Belize USD is accepted, as well as their own currency. If you want to buy something that is $10 BZD (which means $5 USD) you could pay with $3 BZD and $2 USD. There is no need to exchange your USD in advance, you can break a bill when you arrive and get Belizean change back. Just try to have some small bills because if you try to buy a $10 BZD item with $100 USD the shop owner would have to find $190 BZD which could be hard if it is a small shop.

Be wary of scams in order to get your USD. When I arrived at customs on San Pedro island the currency exchange booth inside of a government building lied to my face. They said there were only two ATMs in all of Belize so I should exchange my USD. Let me reassure you, there are many ATMs throughout the country.

Another unique thing about Belize is that Marijana is decriminalized. In November of 2017 it became legal to possess up to ten grams of cannabis with the caveat that you must smoke it within the confines of your own house and you won’t grow or sell it. When I travel I typically steer clear from marijuana as I don’t want to be in legal trouble abroad, but upon learning this I was happy to know I could smoke with a clear conscious.

As a backpacker on a budget I felt very limited on where I could stay in Belize. A bed in a dorm room will typically be $10 to $15 USD a night. However, places with dorms for backpackers are very rare. Caye Caulker, Hopkins and Belize City are the only places I heard of with hostels. I wanted to spend time in Dangriga and Punts Gorda but the cheapest rooms were guest houses for $30 USD a night. If you do the math of two people in a private room, it is the same price as each person paid in a dorm. However, I was traveling alone and didn’t want to pay double so a I unfortunately did not get to stay in these cities. Couch surfing could be an option as well as bringing a tent and camping in one of the many nature preserves.

Read the articles below to discover my recommendations on the places I did go to!

Caye Caulker

 

The Hummingbird Highway

 

Being a Conscientious Traveler

 

Other Beach Options

 

Should I Skip San Ignacio?