Unexpected Surprises

I know a few of you are Seinfeld fans and have seen the “Serenity Now” episode where a few of the cast started saying that phrase as a method to lower blood pressure and the saying turns to “Serenity now, insanity later” as everyone using the mantra gets more worked up as the show progresses.

Thankfully that was not the case at our recent stay at San Ignacio Resort Hotel. It truly was serenity relaxation all the way. We also got pampered well and every time we came back to our room there was a new treat waiting for us. As much as I love food, my favorite one was the day they left a flower petal happy birthday message on the bed. It came with a bouquet with mums and roses which was extra special to me. Roses are not easily found here and a professional gardener confirmed that is because they are not commonly grown as they take so much care.

I was not the only one that got a birthday surprise. One afternoon while at the pool we saw them decorating for a couple of other guests that were staying there. Some lucky girl’s boyfriend had asked the resort to make a special private dinner in the garden and staff went above and beyond to make it look extra special. That was a great opportunity for us to meet the owner Miriam as she was checking in to make sure everything was just right.

Potable Water and Yummy Food

While at the resort I was surprised to learn that they have potable water. I asked Marketing Manager Trinity about that and she said In regards to the water system they use the town water supply, which is chlorinated and then SIRH also has an internal filtration system. They use different grades of filters for different areas of the hotel. For example important areas like the kitchen water and ice machine go through 4 different filters.

Speaking of the kitchen, we knew we were in for a treat as the popular on site Running W Steakhouse and Restaurant. The name says it all for a couple of carnivores. We ate there several times and switched around from the view overlooking the pool, to the ambient inside and of course we had to do steak and eggs room service for a luxury experience.

I loved the Jamaican limes that were served in our iced tea; I had never seen one before. Notice how orange the inside is compared to a regular lime? I did not order it but since we were in food share mode (I always am) I got to try the pork dumplings – yum. The Cayo Lime pie with ice cream from The Ice Cream Shoppe in town and the heavenly cookie were a big hit. To read more about the famous cookie and see more food pictures visit Life Stories of a Meandering Fool blog and read his Food Explorer – Cayo Belizepost.

Breakfast – Yes, Please

Breakfast has always been one of my favorite meals. I always like to joke around that it is partly because when I was born and being the second child my dad was more relaxed in the hospital cafeteria instead of pacing the waiting room like he was for my brother.

Being that good beef in Belize is a rare (but attainable) treat, I knew I was all in for steak and eggs and I was not disappointed. I did go for bacon and eggs the second day as it was really good on the burgers. Since moving to Belize, I pretty much never order toast, but instead opt for fried jacks, a popular local breakfast side. I am a big fan of smaller sized ones.

More Running W Restaurant Food

Of course Running W is known for it’s steak and we definitely opted to try it a few ways; with our eggs (as mentioned above), in a burger and as a large hunks of meat 😉 No matter which way we had it served up it was always tasty. I also enjoyed the starter of soup with came as a side with some of the meals and fresh made rolls. Since we enjoyed the food we opted to eat a good portion of our meals during our 3 days at the resort restaurant. Stay tuned for a future post about where we ate in San Ignacio Town.

Around San Ignacio Resort Hotel

While we did walk to town (to come in a future post) the point of this trip was to really get some downtime and enjoy the resort. We opted to get a Regal Room and we were willing to wait till it was available. I was glad we did. The room was spacious peaceful and quiet – what more could we ask for?

The pool was also very enjoyable and I loved how jungle like the resort was considering it was minutes away from town. Although there were guests there because it was low season we pretty much had the place to ourselves and really enjoyed it. One of the many benefits in traveling in low season. Another is specials and SIRH has a great one happening right now till the end of October – $119 USD single and double occupancy on accommodations. Click through to the San Ignacio Resort Hotel website for more details.

To get more info and see more San Ignacio resort pictures click through to my San Ignacio here we come post.

Fantastic Tour at our Doorstep

Since we were only there for 3 days, we did not opt to do any full day tours. We did go to Cahal Peche on our own (stay tuned for that write up) and the Iguana Project at San Ignacio Hotel. What a fantastic tour.

Nigel, our guide was really great, super smart, very funny and we learned a lot from him. It was an awesome experience interacting with the iguanas, watching them get excited for feeding time and having them climb all over us.

Green Iguanas are endangered due to people hunting females because eggs are supposedly an aphrodisiac. The Forestry Department has been working to stop this and has declared an open season during the time that females are not carrying eggs. If you are caught Iguana hunting off season, from February to June you will risk a hefty fine of $1000 BZD or 6 months in prison.

Interestingly, temperature can determine the sex an iguana is born, if monitored during the first week the egg is laid – For females 80°F – 85°F and for males it is 85°F – 95°F. Nigel told us this is also true for turtles and crocodiles which is why they lay their egg “clutches” at varying heights and close to river access.

See the the tour’s Trip Advisor reviews here: Green Iguana Conservation Project.

Travel to San Ignacio Belize

After considering a few possibilities, we decided to take the most direct route – Tropic Air flight to Maya Flats in San Ignacio. Thankfully my cab was on time (actually 10 min early) so I was the first one at the airport. I had asked Kendall to stop at Ruby’s to get us some pre-flight breakfast on his way to meet me at the airport. Unfortunately they were out of fruit salad but he was still in time to get bacon & egg Johnny cakes 🙂 We were both in good time to check in (note they will not check in passengers 10 minutes or less before flights).

We took the 8:00 am flight which left on time and landed slightly after the scheduled time of 8:55. Both being fans of take offs and landings, we did not mind that we had to make a pit stop at Municipal Airport along the way.

To make it easy, Trinity at San Ignacio Hotel did offer to arrange a hotel driven transfer from Maya Flats but I opted to use my own pick.

Shuttle services is an area that often comes up on Trip Advisor and as a destination expert, I wanted to be able to contribute to future posts so I chose Theodore Valdes aka Teddy-bear and was very pleased. He set the price at $50 BZD to pick us up at San Ignacio Airport and and drop us off at the hotel. Teddy even told me he would have a custom made sign to greet us at the airport and was willing to accommodate my request to put our blog names on it for a fun photo op. We would have found each other either way as we enjoyed a rock star moment after dropping everyone off at Municipal, we were the only ones on the plane 🙂

We were in communication while in mid flight as I wanted to let him know we were dropping passengers and refueling the plane at Municipal. He texted me back and told me he was already waiting and enjoying a coffee and the lovely view at the airport.

Teddy gave us a quick tour of town before dropping us at the hotel and he was a great tour guide. I liked the fact that he promoted other people (including local cabs) it follows my “there is enough pie for everyone” philosophy. Sometimes you just have to slice it creatively. 🙂 I would totally recommend him if you need a transfer service.

Here are two posts on him that came up when I searched land travel options: William’s Shuttle Service, who he often works with and Belize Shuttles anyone!!!

You can also read other traveler feedback on Teddy bear Shuttle Service.

Now that you have read my review, you can find out what other travelers have to say on the San Ignacio Hotel Trip Advisor reviews page: San Ignacio Resort Hotel.