Anyone ever been to Belize?

I've been to Belize, but only as a tourist. It was my spring break during my junior year of college. Had a great time and even slept in the jungle with a native family for a night. Too bad none of that helps you. However, you should either PM or get in touch with David Zen on this site. He lives in Belize and would very likely be willing to help answer some of your questions. Nice guy.

Does that mean you'll let us BT'ers vacation there for free??  I've never been there but it's on my list of places to go.

I spent a few weeks in Belize, on two different trips, with some missionaries that live there full time. We were in the interior of the country - I never saw the beaches or resorts. We went west to Guatemala and north to Chetumal, Mexico (in the Quintana Roo state - maybe that is why I bought a QR Santo). I've got some great stories and places to see if you are interested.

Be very careful buying property there. A few years ago the property rights were almost non-existant for non-Belizians. The missionaries spent several years and many upper level government contacts to be able to buy land that they could be assured of keeping. I heard stories of the same property being sold to different Americans several times. Hopefully this has changed and you won't have a problem.

Let me know if you have any specific questions.

I went there on my honeymoon in 94 and have been back twice with the last visit in 98. I am sure things have changed some but it was a wonderful place. We spent most of the time on Ambergris Caye but did check out another Caye and the jungle. Ambergris Caye was what every beach vacation should be for me. Beaches are small but plentiful. They have the typical tourist stuff but its on a much smaller scale. Everything is so laid back. The tallest building was probably 5 stories and most places very much smaller (10 room hotels, 10 seat restaurants). Lots of great little beach bars with local bands or US Jimmy Buffet types who seemed to just washed up there. 2 more neat things, English is the national language and the currency is fixed at 1 US dollar equals 2 Belize dollars.

We looked at real estate but couldn't bring ourselves to do it. Seems like there were lots of "Projects" underway that looked like they would never be completed. Seems like lots of US folks move down there with big plans and end up broke or busted (Don't Stop the Carnival) or Jerry Jeff Walkers "Another Gringo in Belize". I used to keep up with some locals but have lost touch over the past 3 years.

Don't know if this helps cause its really dated, but I enjoyed reminiscing.

I visited Belize for 10 days one year ago. I spent 5 days inland, partly off of the Hummingbird Hwy and partly in San Ignacio. Then I went out to Caye Caulker for 5 days. While in San Ignacio, I took a day trip into Guatemala to the Tikal ruins. So I got to see a lot of the country, including Belize City, Belmopan, and San Pedro.

A couple very helpful websites I found are:
http://www.belizeforum.com
and a very active member of those forums has his own website and a few books:
http://www.belizefirst.com

If there are any questions you think I can answer for you, feel free to PM me. I'd recommend David Zen also.

Mike

FWIW, I remember an article in Outside Magazine from a year or so ago that stated the same thing.  I would be very careful about buying property there.

I've lived in Belize all my life so I guess you can say I have some first hand knowledge of the area. Belize has been considered by most who have visited to be the Jewel of Central America. We stand out not only as the only English speaking country in Central America but as one of the best vacation destinations in the entire western hemisphere. Our offshore atolls and our 185 mile long barrier reef are perhaps the main attraction. However, the mainland is equally as rich with thousands of acres of unspoiled land with many lagoons, rivers and streams. In fact, about 40% of our land mass is protected as parks and reserves. I would venture to guess that almost 1/2 of the remaining 60% is for sale.

Unfortunately, I don't have much first hand knowledge about the real estate business here in Belize but I can put you in touch with some people who do. What I do know is that foreigners have been buying some of the best land and property in Belize for some years now. Water front property is the most sought after property in Belize and the price tag on a piece of beach front property is higher than most Belizeans can afford so you'll find that most of these properties are owned buy foreigners. If you are looking for a nice beach front property, I'd suggest looking in the southern part of the country or on the Placencia peninsula where the best beaches are located.

Feel free to PM me if you have any questions.