Placencia, Belize Trip Review
Located in the Stann Creek District, about 3 hours south of Belize City lies the sleepy Placencia peninsula. While the village is technically "inland," nothing about the atmosphere or the surrounding views suggest that it is not a hidden Caribbean oasis.
Why should you go to Placencia?
With half the village full of resorts and the other classic hotel options, Placencia offers ideal stays whether you want to stay tucked in your hotel area or explore the sleepy village. Furthermore, because of its desired location, Placencia has abundant choices when it comes to water or land activities! From snorkeling or diving with turtles in summer to whale shark diving in March to visiting the elusive jaguar sanctuary, Placencia will always have something for those who want to go in the water as well as stay on land!
Adventure Activities
Diving: Regarding Belize's Great Barrier Reef, there are so many diverse sealife diving locations. Because we chose two beach locations, click here to read about the options in Placencia.
Snorkeling: Similar to diving, snorkeling is abundant and there are a few key spots to spot elusive sea turtles or beautiful coral reefs. Click here to read about the options in Placencia.
Mayan Ruins: Scattered through Belize, there are several important Mayan Ruins. We considered the following:
Xunantunich (Near Placencia): This beautiful Mayan ruin was a major ceremonial center and has several plazas and a large selection of classic period structures. The site also has El Castillo, the second tallest structure in Belize (after the temple at Caracol), at some 130 feet (40 m) tall. Those who are adventurous enough to climb to the top will be rewarded with panoramic views of Belize and Guatemala.
Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary: Check out the world's only jaguar reserve!
Mayan Cooking: Cooking Tours are guided excursions that give you the opportunity to learn about traditional Belizean home cooking in Maya, Garifuna and Creole (Kriol) cultures.
Chocolate Tours! Visit a traditional Maya Chocolate Factory! Yes, you get samples and you'll make your very own chocolate the way that the Mayas did!
Click here to read about our Silk Caye snorkeling trip!
Lodging
When we were deciding between hotels, we factored in the quality of the room and hotel amenities as well as beachfront access and pool. In hindsight, I should have closely looked at the distance between hotel to the village and also remembered that 90F degree heat is NOT pleasant to walk or bike in and that rainy season means surprise showers!
Our Pick: Laru Beya Resort ($$)
I struggled to decide between the hotel options as all seemed to be very comparable in terms of price, room quality, amenities and onsite restaurants. In the end, we chose Laru Beya because the pool was mere feet away from the beach! For four people, our 2 bed, 2 bath ground floor apartment was perfect. While the room may have been a bit dated, the beds were comfortable and we had great hot water pressure. The staff were fantastic and more than willing to help with tour booking or general questions.
My only negatives was the distance to the village. Originally, I thought we would be close enough to walk or bike but in the heat and with surprise showers, the village was just too far away. We rented a golf cart but that was an unexpected cost that we could have spent on something else.
Honorable Mentions:
Ocean Breeze ($$)
Turtle Inn ($$$)
Food & Drink
Quarterdeck (Laru Beya): Because this was the hotel restaurant, we ate most of our meals from breakfast to dinner. For breakfast, the quality was good as we tried everything from fryjacks to yogurt. The prices were a little more than we expected, but the quality was good. We particularly enjoyed dinner since we ordered lobster most nights!
Wendy's Creole Restaurant & Bar: While we really wanted to try this restaurant, we only had room for dessert after our seafood lunch. The locals raved about the actual food and the space is really fun. We definitely enjoyed our citrus cheesecake and bread pudding though!
Omars Creole Grub: Known for fresh seafood and locally owned, we ordered garlic butter crab! While we had to work for the crab, the meat had great flavors and tasted so fresh!
Above Grounds Coffee House: Most likely the only cafe in the village, the cafe sells Belizean coffee beans. If you want an iced coffee, look no further!
Barefoot Beach Bar: Located on the ocean side of the penisula, Barefoot offers stiff drinks at happy hour prices! The bar is right on the beach and location is great to sit back, relax, and enjoy the beachside vibes.
Honorable Mentions but did not try...
Turtle Inn: Head here for an extensive wine collection and farm-to-table food!
Rumfish y Vino
The Secret Garden Restaurant and Bar
Yoli's Over Da Water Bar & Grill
UnChartered Tip: Click here for my Google Maps pins of our favorites!
Budget Breakdown
The UnChartered Summary
Because Placencia was our first destination, we were immediately immersed in Caribbean island life! The easy going and friendly locals helped the “tough” transition! Here are some helpful tips for next time…
Placencia is a very small village either with small hotels or resort heavy once you leave the village. Most people appeared to be at the bigger resorts rather than in the village.
If the weather is poor (like it was for us), you could get bored quickly.
Once you enter Placencia, some of the activities I noted above will take two hours to reach. We originally were going to go on one more activity, but the driving time dissuaded us.
In the future, we will return for whale shark season, which is the full moon in April! Apparently it is really easy to dive with them!
