By Kirsten Hubbard Placencia Village, known more simply as Placencia, sits at the very tip of the narrow Placencia Peninsula in southern Belize. As a result, it feels more like an island. It’s just a few minutes walk from the lagoon side to the open Caribbean. Less than 500 people are lucky enough to be considered permanent residents of Placencia, Belize’s tranquil community. The majority are…
A feature attraction of diving in Belize, Especially for divers with an appreciation of geographical phenomena, is the opportunity to explore the famed Blue Hole. Part of the Lighthouse Reef System, it lies approximately 60 miles off the mainland out of Belize City. It is one of the most astounding dive sites to be found anywhere on earth, right in the center of Lighthouse Reef…
Planning a wedding that’s perfect for you is easy when you have options. And a Belizean wedding offers all kinds of choices that will reflect your unique bond. You and your hubby-to-be may want to consider a ceremony that best suits your personalities, such as a formal or informal affair? Do you both crave a little adventure? Or would you prefer to be one with…
Nov 10, 2011 (Caribbean News Now – McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) — The Garifuna people are one of the few remaining African ethnic groups in the entire Caribbean and Latin America who still maintain their culture. Some historians believe that these people were from the Mende ethnic group and migrated from West Africa to the Americas centuries before the other native people arrived in…
The name Nim Li Punit is derived from a carving on one of the site’s twenty six stelae, which depicts a figure wearing a large headdress. In the Maya Kekchi language, Nim li Punit means “the big hat.” The monument on which this carving appears is the longest stela in Belize, originally located in an area called Plaza of the Stelae. Nim Li Punit is…
WHAT TO SEE Offering a bit of a respite from the hotter lowlands, Mountain Pine Ridge is one of the most heavily visited reserves. It’s a landscape of rolling pine forest spread over smooth granite hillsides, a slightly bizarre area with battalions of uniform pine sporadically dissected by fire breaks and broadleaf gallery forest. Established in 1944, the reserve has been logged on a carefully…
Over 40% of Belize’s land mass enjoys some form of legal protected areas area status and these diverse natural areas form the basis of Belize’s tourism offerings. This significant portion of the country under sustainable management is a testament to the diversity of plant and animal species and to the energy and enthusiasm of pioneers in Belize conservation.
There are three ways to get to Placencia Belize – by plane, by car and by bus. Placencia By Plane: This is the most recommended way to get to Placencia. There are several flights into Placencia throughout the day and they are well coordinated with international flight arrival times. We are an agent of both local airlines — Tropic Air and Maya Island Air — and…
Spanning Belize’s coastline for 185 miles is the Belize Barrier Reef with dive sites inside and outside of the reef providing countless dive locations year round.
By Robin Denselow When the remarkable album Watina was released, nearly four years ago, it launched the tragically brief international career of Andy Palacio and focused attention to the culture and history of the Garifuna community – the descendents of escaped slaves from Africa who inter-married with the indigenous people of St Vincent, and are now scattered across Central America. Palacio died within a year…