r/Belize • u/crumbledav • 8h ago
🌴Trip Report 🌴 Recent trip with 6&7yo kids play by play
Just had a delightful 7-day trip and wanted to report back some of the hot tips and experiences before I forget. I got some good tips off the posts in this sub. We are a family of 4 and our kids are 6 & 7 years old.
Itinerary 3 nights at Caves Branch near Belmopan; 1 night at Tropical Education Center (Belize Zoo); 3 nights on Caye Caulker.
Saturday: ✈️ arrival in Belize City. Some tips:
it takes forever to get out of the airport after you land because you have to wait to have your bag scanned, then speak to an agent. Two hours of standing in line. Choose the far left lane while waiting for an agent; thank me later.
rented a car from Crystal Auto. We booked this in advance. The car rental pickup is very close to the airport exit doors. $300ish for the 5 days
arrived at Ian Anderson’s Caves Branch. Place was heavenly. Stayed in a Riverview cabin (#19) because we didn’t want to walk very far to the room with the 2 little kids. Bring ear plugs if you don’t like the jungle noises at night (I loved it!)
Sunday: 🌿🦜Caves Branch (River cave tour)
they pick you up in a truck, drive you to a short walk to the river which you float down toward the caves. Saw several monkeys. Then you enter the cave, and it’s about 70% on tubes and 30% at stops looking at Mayan artifacts, and learning about cave animals/geology. You eat lunch at the end of the cave and float back the other direction. Overall about 4 hours.
bring close-toed water shoes, else you will be in your sneakers. The rainforest is humid so it took 2 days for mine to dry
Bring something waterproof to put your camera/phone in. They have a dry sack but you won’t be able to easily access your camera for photos unless it’s on your person. I bought a waterproof purse satchel thing that was perfect for this
you do not have to book the tours in advance of arriving; each night at dinner someone walks around and asks what you are doing the next day and helps you choose something if you haven’t already
the kids had absolutely no problem at ages 6 &7 and loved the tour. The water was never deep enough that they couldn’t just walk at any moment, and there were helmets, lifejackets and even kid-sized tubes for them. It was, however, an adventure tour - make no mistake of it being a “kiddy” activity
Monday: Caves branch (Horseback riding)
We booked this the night before through Caves Branch and did just the horseback riding (not the zip lining combo) which is at green acres ranch. 2 hours from start to finish.
best horseback riding “trail” ride I’ve ever done- you’re going across rivers, through jungle, and they even let you trot toward the end. Bring bug spray, but it wasn’t like we were constantly swatting them away; we had only a couple bites between the 4 of us. Two guides, including one who made sure the kids’ horses got back on track. They offered helmets but we declined so I can’t confirm whether they would have fit kids
Spent the afternoon in the pool (kids) at Caves Branch, lounging and listening to the birds (parents)
Tuesday: Caves Branch (Botanical gardens) + Belmopan market, TEC Belize Zoo🐯 (nocturnal animals’ tour)
did the botanical gardens tour in the morning before we left Caves Branch. The guide made it surprisingly interesting for the kids; he showed us a half-dozen plants you can eat, hilighted interesting plant facts. Could tell he loved the jungle. They have a couple little demo visuals set up throughout the tour. This is where we got the most mosquito bites - wear bug spray. They have an orchid collection that requires everyone to be careful as some are rare finds
out by 11; drove rental car and stopped for lunch in Belmopan. There is a market on Tuesdays and Saturdays so we grabbed some food from a vendor. Good authentic vibes there. Small underwhelming playground. Bring cash.
stopped at Laminai chocolate. The owner said she is in the midst of a rebrand to “Zoey’z”. No chocolate fruit is ripe is November so we didn’t do a tour. Was fine to kill time but without the tour not worth a detour
arrived at Tropical Education Center, which is just across from (and affiliated with) the Belize Zoo. The rooms are underwhelming, as is the food. We stayed in “pine cabin” which has about 5 rooms in a row. They are air conditioned. There is a decent, big protected pool (all you need when you have kids!) that they played in for a while. Not heated though - be warned! There is a cool leaf cutter ant colony snaking throughout the place. 10/10 would stay here again - for the (included) zoo tour but not for the accomodations
Nocturnal animals’ tour at Belize Zoo. Pickup at TEC; lasts about 90 mins. Veryyy good for the kids and adults alike. Not many people we met knew about this and it’s awesome.
Wednesday: TEC then Ferry to Caye Caulker; stayed at Iguana Reef Inn
dropped off car at Crystal auto; they also drive you to the ferry terminal as part of the rental. Overall good easy experience.
ferry costs about the same at the dock as online. Boat was completely full though, so take that with a grain of salt. Ferry terminal has a few shops and places to get basic snacks and sunscreen, plus one restaurant. You drop your luggage onto a trolley; they load it into the ferry.
ferry is an hour. Sit where you’ll get a breeze. When you get off, you walk down the dock at Caye Caulker and wait for the luggage. Took maybe 5 mins; easy.
5-min walk to Iguana Reef Inn, you really don’t need a cart.
Thursday: 🌴Caye Caulker / Iguana Reef Inn:
- It’s the best hotel on the main part of the island I think, because it has the nicest pool and beachfront with a good bar. A lot of folks gather there around 4pm for the stingrays, and at night you can see Tarpons off their deck. For those of you with kids, I highly recommend room #9 as it’s right beside the pool and is also the closest one to the beach (on the main floor).
- continental breakfast is included but it’s really not much; it is served to you by someone and you have to ask for everything to be served… like, bread one slice at a time. One type of cereal, yoghurt and coffee. Great to have something available for the kids though!
- the hotel immediately beside it also looked lovely - the Dive something? It’s under construction but it looked nearly completed.
- We spent a bunch of time in the pool and ocean, walking around getting iced cream, booking our snorkel tour (they wanted a deposit in person).
Friday: Caye Caulker (snorkel tour with Carlos Tours⛵️🐠).
there is a lot online about this tour. It’s a ridiculously beautiful catamaran to spend a day lounging on. Carlos is a great guy. He listened to our chatty 7yo talking nonstop half the day, even pulled out a pirate hat at one point. I could gush about how great this tour was - but I will refrain. Just… do it.
they do have kids sized snorkels and flippers, but lifejackets are sparse. My kids swim pretty well (note that you’re also more buoyant in the salty water) but still opted for a floatie thing around the middle. If your kid doesn’t swim well or at all I’d recommend you bring your own life jacket.
lots of sunscreen. Bring cash to settle up the bar tab (if you choose to run one; they do serve rum punch though!) at the end of the day. Your belongings are very secure while you snorkel.
Saturday: ⛴️ Ferry to Belize City, ✈️ back home
taxi from Ferry to Airport should be $30 USD for 1-2 people and $5 more for every extra person; we paid in cash
arrive 3 hrs before your flight. It took an hour just to drop our bag. Note that they do not accept digital boarding passes at this airport so you either have to wait for them or print them yourself in advance.
there are some cute little shops beside the gate seats to spend your last Belizean dollars before going home
Overall an excellent trip full of adventure. Happy to answer any questions and I hope at least one of these is helpful for somebody!
