Offshore Banking
Belize!, Caribbean travel, scuba, Mayan culture|
The Stann Creek District in Southern Belize is becoming an increasingly popular destination for visitors to Belize, since it offers perhaps the most diverse tourist experiences: the beautiful white sandy beaches of Placencia (and inviting offshore cayes), the rugged Maya Mountains and the lush jungles of the Cockscomb Basin Jaguar Preserve, and the Garifuna art, music, cuisine and culture of Dangriga. The Stann Creek District is also a major banana and other fruit-producing region, and in recent years, improvements have made the deep-water port at Big Creek an important transshipment point for bananas, mangos and other Belizean agricultural products to Britain and the European continent. The Stann Creek District of Belize has become increasingly accessible to visitors, with the completion of the new Manatee Highway at Milepost 30.5 on the Western Highway (less than two miles past the Belize Zoo turnoff), the recent improvements to the Hummingbird Highway, and the opening of the Placencia airstrip. Cockscomb Basin Jaguar Preserve The Placencia Peninsula--an 11-mile strip of land sandwiched between the Caribbean Sea and the Planencia Lagoon, has beautiful white sand beaches and--because of its distance from the reef--"real" (though not very high) surf. The water is warm and clear; the trade winds gentle and cooling. There are few sights more calming to the spirit than a Belizean sunset on a deserted Placencia Peninsula beach. The beaches along the Placencia Peninsula are dotted with small resorts that can easily arrange dive and snorkel trips to the reef, which is about 17 miles away. They can also arrange day trips to many small, idyllic cayes, such as Laughing Bird Caye, a mini-atoll that offers protected snorkeling and swimming, a white sand beach and many cooling palm trees (it even has a couple of hammocks!) Laughing Bird Caye is also a favorite camping site for reef kayakers who base their expeditions in Placencia. Your hotel can also arrange deep sea or reef fishing trips, or day sailing on a 36-foot catamaran. Among the newest beachfront Placencia resorts is Luba Hati (House of the Moon), and The Inn at Robert's Grove,. Other well-known and comfortable beachfront resort hotels include Singing Sands Inn and Kitty's Place. The new Sea Horse Dive Shop offers PADI and NAUI certified divemasters. Placencia Town is famous for its "Main Street"--a 20 inch wide sidewalk that meanders through town and up the beach. Placencia was a quiet, rustic, fishing village until a few years ago. It's still quiet and rustic, but it now has electricity and several more new or renovated budget accomodations, including Ran's Villas, Paradise Vacation Resort and the Sea Spray Hotel. Placencia Town also has delicious restaurants, some of which are are set up in the patios of private homes along the path between the beach and the lagoon. You can get a delicious plate heaped with stewed chicken, rice and beans for about US $4. There are also several small gift shops, a post office and even a disco! The Placencia Lagoon is an important breeding area for saltwater crocodiles, marine turtles and the rare and and endangered manatees; there are also numerous species of birds. A trip to nearby Seine Bight, a traditional Garifuna village, a few miles north of Placencia, provides a chance to sample Garifuna cooking and music (including traditional drumming and modern Punta rock) at the Kulcha Shack Cafe. Try the Nautical Inn, a charming resort on the beach, the Hotel Seine Bight, which features one and two story beachfront cabanas, and a gourmet restaurant and bar, or the Blue Crab Beach Resort, which features cabanas, rooms and campgrounds. The Cockscomb Basin Jaguar Preserve In 1986, the government of Belize established the world's first and only jaguar preserve, a 155 square mile, heavily forested rserve that is also home to all the other Belizean jungle cats--pumas, ocelots, margays and jaguarundis; as well as tapir, paca, deer, peccacy (the jaguar's favorite meal), several species of amphibians and snakes, and hundreds of bird species. The establishment of the reserve followed a two-year study of the jaguar and other Belizean cats conducted by naturalist Alan Rabinowitz, with the financial and political backing of Wildlife Conservation International and the Belize Audubon Society. Rabinowitz's experiences are described in his fascinating book, entitled Jaguar. Rabinowitz trapped several jaguars, fitted them with radio collars and tracked their movements, diet, and breeding habits. The Jaguar Preserve is a major ecotourism attraction. Visitors can take a day trip or arrange to stay for one or more nights at the campground or several cabins located near the sanctuary's headquarters. Because the jaguars and other jungle cats are nocturnal, most people are able to spot only the tracks of the spotted cats, but occasionally visitors have glimpsed them near the roads or along the riverbanks. Guides and staff have even seen jaguars walking near the sanctuary headquarters at night! The Cockscomb preserve has hiking trails of various degrees of difficulty (wear good hiking shoes or boots, especially during the rainy season); some of them lead to natural swimming holes and creeks. Insect repellant is a necessity. Dangriga is definitely the place to be on November 19th of each year, the day that the entire country--but especially Dangriga--celebrates the arrival of the Garifuna people to Belize in 1823. The town reinacts the arrival by canoe, and there are parties, dancing, music, drumming, in celebration of the successful resistance of the Garifuna people to enslavement, colonization and deportation. A visit to Dangriga provides the opportunity to observe performances by such traditional groups as the Turtle Shell Band and the Warribaggabagga Dancers; as well as modern Punta rock and reggae. Dangriga is famous for its cassava-based breads and cashew wine, as well as fish and plaintain cooked in coconut sauce. Dangriga is a convenient base for visits to the Cockscomb Basin Jaguar Preserve; the Pelican Beach Resort is convenient to both the Cockscomb and for trips to nearby cayes; there are also several budget hotels, including the Hub Guesthouse, the Bonefish Hotel and the Rio Mar hotel. Hopkins, a fishing village about 8 miles south of Dangriga offers accomodations and meals at the Hopkins Women's Cooperative, a tourism cooperative formed by several local women; arrangements can be made to have meals in the home of village residents. This is an opportunity to participate in low-impact tourism at low budget rates. Camping is also available. A few miles south of Hopkins is the Sittee River area, where a new resort, The Jaguar Reef Resort, has been created near where the river meets the sea. Glover's Reef Atoll, one of the country's four offshore atolls, is composed of several small cayes surrounded by clear blue waters and coral reefs. Several of these cayes have beautiful, tree-studded white sand beaches and there are several resorts catering to scuba divers, snorkelers, fishermen and windsurfers. One rivately owned caye, Northeast Caye, is home to SlickRock Adventures, an adventure tour company that specializes in sea kayaking expeditions. Manta Resort caters primarily to scuba divers. Glover's Reef Atoll is famous for its abundant sea life and beautifully formed coral. Visitors to these case generally come by boat from either Belize City, Dangriga or Hopkins/Sittee; the atoll is only accessible by sea. Tobacco Caye, Carrie Bowe Caye and South Water Caye are located from 10-20 miles south of Dangriga. They are on the edge of the barrier reef, are teeming with tropical fish and other underwater flora and fauna. Dive and snorkel expeditions can be arranged from hotels in Placencia or Dangriga. Tobacco Caye offers rustic accomodations run by fishermen; camping is also available. Tobacco Caye is also the location for a reef study project run by Earthwatch. There are also several small resorts that have been built on Tobacco Caye. South Water Caye is a privately owned caye that is only 120 feet from the reefs; the Blue Marlin Lodge and Leslie Cottages offer both diving and fishing packages. Long Caye offers camping or simple cabins right in front of the reef at low prices.
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