Aelfgifu Travels

Hi Aelf Crew,

We’re taking a break from the U.S. leg of my travels for a little island escape – welcome to the Caribbean stop before we go onto Central America: Caye Caulker, Belize.

Arrival in Belize City

When I landed in Belize, things didn’t exactly start smoothly. Everyone from my Houston flight had their luggage searched, which took over two hours to get through customs.

Having not preordered a taxi and discovering Uber isn’t available in Belize City, my only option was a local taxi from the taxi rank. If you’ve read my previous post on the Mongolian airport (read here) you will understand my slight aversion to this. However, being in no mood to argue after the delay at arrivals and with a ferry to catch, I agreed to the US$40 price to be taken to the port. Only later did I see that the Caribbean Sprinter ferry terminal offers airport transfers for US$15…we all know the taxi rank was going to bump up the price, but alas.

Having lived in the Caribbean before (albeit, a far more statistically dangerous island), I had a sense of unease having hopped into the nearest car with two strange men and with Apple Maps not working in Belize, I had to trust they would get me where I asked. Top Tip from Aelfgifu: If you’re travelling here, download Google Maps – it works far better across Belize and the rest of Central America.

Ferry to Caye Caulker

Once I reached the ferry terminal, one of the staff immediately grabbed my suitcase and walked off without asking. It turns out they were just loading bags onto the boat – but a word of warning, they can be overly “helpful” even when you say no.

I bought a return ticket at the price of US$37.50 with Caribbean Sprinter. Ferries to Caye Caulker run roughly every two hours, with the last one departing around 4:30PM, so it’s worth planning flights accordingly (and hence my rush to make it to the last ferry from the airport)!

First Impressions & Getting Around

The ground is mostly sand and dirt track so bear this in mind if bringing a suitcase! It was not the easiest of walks but the ferry port to my hostel was only 10 minutes or so. 

If yours is further a foot, golf carts are the way around the island which you can hire individually or with a driver for a specific journey. That being said, the island is not huge and takes 45 minutes to walk from one end to the other.

Where I Stayed

I stayed at Bella’s Backpackers, which cost US$15.50 per night for a “basic 9-bed mixed dorm ensuite”, though in reality it was more like a 20-person sauna with three fans. 

If you take one thing from this: book somewhere with air conditioning. We were all awake by 6AM drenched in sweat (glamorous, I know) – the kind of humidity where you towel off from a cold shower and start sweating again two minutes later.

Speaking of showers, they were cold only, which sounds odd until you’ve been outside for ten minutes – then it’s bliss.

That aside, Bella’s was wonderfully sociable.

Sunday Funday

Bella’s holds a ‘Sunday Funday’ – at US$55.50 there are games in the backyard (bear in mind there is no breeze here so you will be sweating uncontrollably) like beer pong, jenga and volleyball.

There is then a sunset cruise and swim from the boats. Bottomless rum punch is included in this ticket, and in a valiant effort to try to get our money’s worth, we calculated that 14 glasses would equal breaking even. The mathematics behind this is fairly loose, so I wouldn’t take my word for this, as you may end up being fairly unwell like the rest of us after that many. The event ended fairly early at 7PM, but naturally the night continued afterward on the island.

Full-Day Snorkelling Tour

Another highlight was the full-day snorkelling tour, also booked through Bella’s. It cost US$94.50 (Belize is a fairly expensive country as you will come to see) and included six stops:

1. Hol Chan Marine Reserve
2. Shark Ray Alley (near San Pedro)
3. Coral Gardens
4. Chatos Area
5. Shipwreck Site (sunken barge)
6. Manatee Search

We swam with nurse sharks, stingrays, and sea turtles, and explored the coral reef – the second largest in the world after Australia’s Great Barrier Reef. Sadly, no manatees that day, but it was still one of the best tours I’ve done anywhere.

Stingray Beach

Feeding stingrays is listed as one of the island’s most popular activities, due to the white sandy shores, turquoise water and docile stingrays gliding over your feet. I had mixed feelings about this, and everyone there did too. There were a lot of concerned onlookers here, as this is considered to be highly unethical.

Each evening around 4PM, staff from a nearby hotel feed the stingrays, and over time, the rays have learned to gather here expecting food. While that makes for stunning photos, it can disrupt their natural behaviour – making them dependent on humans, altering feeding habits, and even interfering with migration and breeding cycles.

There’s also a safety issue: stingrays have a venomous spine on their tails used only when threatened – like when accidentally stepped on by one of many tourists wading too close. It’s surprising there haven’t been serious incidents yet, given there are no formal regulations in place – just signage around the area alerting people of how risky the activity is.

If you do decide to visit, I’d suggest observing from a distance and avoiding direct contact. The water is very shallow where they congregate, so I waded past them carefully to get into the water to cool off. I would advise to be cautious around them so as to not startle them. This may sound like odd advice coming from me, who seems to get herself into dangerous situations quite frequently, but with animals in particular sometimes it is best to sit back and watch, rather than risk it.

Tips to Learn from Aelfgifu:

• Download Google Maps, as Apple Maps doesn’t work here.
• Always book accommodation with air conditioning (or a room with guaranteed fans).
• Plan flights to connect smoothly with the last ferry at 4:30 p.m.
• There are cheap airport transfer available, e.g. Caribbean Sprinter offers US$15 rather than the US$40 taxis at the airport.
• The snorkelling tour is pricey but absolutely worth it.
• Don’t miss Sunday Funday if you like meeting people – or rum punch.

Is there anything I missed? Let me know in the comments!

If this saved you a headache (or at least made you feel prepared), you can subscribe using the yellow button at the top or bottom of the page.

I’ll be taking a break from my usual posting schedule for Christmas, so keep an eye out for the next stop on my journey from San Ignacio in the new year!

Have a great Christmas everyone and stay safe.

Sweaty but smiling,

Aelfgifu