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Traveltuesday 1st trip to Belize, Water taxi or air and Erin’s Caye Caulker Birthday Party

by tacogirl 25/06/2013
written by tacogirl 25/06/2013

It often come up in posts on Belize travel forums where people are planning their first visit to Ambergris Caye  and want to know if they should take the water taxi or fly.

I think the plane is totally worth it and would ride them all day if I could 🙂 The view is fantastic and never the same twice. I almost always see rays and some kind of big fish if I watch carefully and I love the texture and color of the sky, land and water.

This answer below came as a result of a trip advisor answer by blackmoose in a thread titled to the following question: 1st trip to Belize. Water taxi or air?  I liked what he had to say, he elaborated his answer  and emailed it to me for tacogirl.com.

Hi there…

We just went through the same decision making process. I had settled on the ferry to get us there as yet another plane ride seemed excessive. But in the end we took the flight…here’s our reasoning.

1) I spoke with a Belizean resident on the plane from Miami. He recommended the flight due to the ferry operators sometimes trying to hustle visitors. I’m not sure if that is entirely true…but just the thought of having to haggle or deal with that kind of stuff got my guard up.

2) A quick 15 – 20 minute flight means that you can start your vacation on the island sooner. Taking a 90 minute ferry ride sounds fun but may get tedious. Plus the view from the plane is something that you won’t regret. The different colors of the Barrier Reef and the other islands is beautiful.

My 2 cents – I have not been hustled at the water taxi but prefer to fly when ever I can because it is so much easier and super fun. I chose the picture below to go with what blackmoose said about the view, it is spectacular.

belize barrier reef

View Ambergris Caye and Barrier reef from the air

Since I am on the topic of flying, I thought I would post a great airline review from one of my readers about how smooth her Philip Goldson Airport airport experience went and how Tropic Air got her to San Pedro Airport in record time.

Laurie:

I ran across this e-mail and I just had to share with you my experience arriving BZE on this visit.  The flight arrived early (@ 10 am) and I was seated in the back of the plane.  They opened both doors, so I was the first person off the plane (1st score!).  I was the first person thru passport control (2nd score!).  I got my bags almost immediately & breezed thru customs (3rd score!).  Got to the Tropic counter at about 10:30 and checked in.  They asked me if I wanted an earlier flight (instead of the 12:40 you booked me on) and I said, of course!  I was able to get the 10:40 flight to SP and I was on the island by 11 am.

I think that must be a record!!

Cheers.
J

[divide style=”2″]

As I mentioned above I always recommend to people that flying to the island is the best option and if they want to get a boat ride in to plan a day trip to Caye Caulker. Water taxi is an easy option or if you prefer to do it as a tour, Seaduced does a great Caye Caulker Day sail.

In the case of our boat ride to Caye Caulker, Mary1220, Dennis and I were going to meet my cousin and her husband Rudy for her birthday back in January. They were on a cruise stop in Belize City, and we decided to meet in the middle. Caye Caulker island  is about 20 miles north/northeast of Belize city and about 10 miles from San Pedro Town. It measures roughly 5 miles long and 1 mile wide.

The plan was they would catch a cab from the cruise ship dock to the water taxi terminal in Belize City and hop on the first boat heading to Caye Caulker, they ended up landing ahead of us by the San Pedro Belize Express. Dennis Mary1220and I opted for Caye Caulker Water taxi, I was glad because our boat ended up having bench seats.

We agreed to meet on the beach somewhere between the water taxi docks and the Lazy Lizard beach bar. It’s  located at the area known as the split, which is a  a cut made by by hurricane Hattie in 1961 that divided the island two. We did not have to go far, I  spotted them  as soon as we got off the boat. After introductions and catching up on the beach, we started walking for a bit.

I new Erin would like a golf cart taxi tour and had pitched the group when conveniently a  6 seat golf cart taxi drove by. Mary1220 recognized the driver and got Nick to do our tour.  We went from one end to the other and around some back areas that we had never seen. He showed us some cool houses, several nesting birds, crocks and where the electric on the island stops and starts.

After our drive we had him drop us off at the Lazy Lizard. It’s a  is a great place to enjoy cool drink and laze in the sun or under a palm tree if you are a shade girl like me. They have picnic tables, sell good reasonably priced food and cheap drinks including $5 rum and buckets of Belikin beer.

The remains of a concrete seawall a short distance from the bar are a great place for sunning and people watching.  There is also a shallow swimming area by the pier. Some people opt to get an adventure in by swimming across the Split, there is a strong current there and boats often pass through so make sure to remain aware when you are swimming and snorkeling in this area.

We liked our golf cart taxi ride so much we decided on a round two. This time Nick took us to an off the beaten path place to feed the tarpons. There is a family a bit to the back of the island not too far from the split that will give you sardines for $5 BZ and let you feed the tarpons they have trained to hang around their dock. We had a lot of fun doing that and Rudy convinced me I had to give it a try. I am glad I did and that he got a good picture of it.

Erin and Rudy had to be back on the water taxi to Belize City by 3 pm to catch the boat to make their cruise ship tender on time – boo hoo. We headed down the beach to the water taxi dock, enjoying some of Erin’s birthday chocolate rum that we brought over from The Rum Cigar and Coffee Store here on the island. It was a quick trip but a great visit, hope you enjoyed your Birthday Erin and that you and Rudy had a good time in Belize.

caye caulker water taxi

Caye Caulker water taxi dock in town

caye caulker island

Arriving at Caye Caulker

caye caulker beach

We spotted them on the beach right away

caye caulker island

Erin’s birthday party has begun

belize birds

Birds by the mangrove roots

belize beaches

Picnic time for some birthday treats

golf cart taxi caye caulker

6 seat golf cart taxi

belize animals

Crocodile lounging in the water

caye caulker belize

Love this sign

belize bars

Concrete seawall at the Lazy Lizard Bar

belize food

Birthday treats

feeding the tarpon in belize

Me feeding the tarpon taken by Rudy

[divide style=”2″]

This is the official video of the Caye Caulker chapter of the Belize Tourism Industry Association. Explore the tropical island of Caye Caulker, situated within the Belize Barrier Reef.

Caye Caulker is 5 miles long, between 100 yards and 1 mile wide and car free. Only golf carts, bicycles and pedestrians (in flip-flops or barefoot) can be found on the island. Caye Caulker has managed to preserve its fishing village atmosphere while being one of the prime destinations in the region – popular with backpackers, divers, fishermen and eco-aware venturers looking for a truly responsible destination.

The video shows a day on Caye Caulker, from sunrise to sunset, from diving and snorkeling to kayaking and kite surfing in and around the second largest barrier reef in the world. From breakfast on a sundeck to the a sea food dinner so fresh, you could actually meet the fishermen while the drop of their catch.

Related

tacogirl

Laurie Norton grew up dyslexic and was very challenged by the school. She never dreamed she would move to Belize and become a writer. A year after her move to Ambergris Caye, Laurie became an entrepreneur and professional writer starting tacogirl blog in 2007. Since then she has helped many people plan their vacations or move. She also has been published in Great Destinations Belize Guidebook, Moon Guide to Living in Belize, Insight Guides, Island Magazine several times and USA Today. Currently Laurie resides in downtown San Pedro and enjoys being a "city girl" on a tropical island.

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4 comments

Brent - Montana 26/06/2013 - 2:06 pm

Hey taco, just wanted to add quick comment on flight vs. water taxi. as you know we have taken a number of flights and have had nothing but stupendous service. one fright from belize city to SP, returning from guatemala, we scheduled ourselves 3 hours…well once we arrived we wanted to get home, Banana Beach:) they easily got us on next flight and we spent 40 minutes in BZ city. also, on one flight all three of us were there, this was going to Guatemala, so off we went about 20 minutes early:) we have only taken the taxi i think three times. if you want adventure and don’t care about time then give it a shot:) on one trip we arrived from houston and decided to do the taxi…so had to get a taxi from airport to the water front. then it was kind of fun/interesting while waiting in that little area… the ride to SP was very interesting. boat broke down… had to wait for another boat and transfer all the luggage from one to the other. it took over three hours….glad we were on front end and had some drink on to make it go by:) ok, i will sign off.. this is way longer than i thought it would be. hope all is well there:) peace Brent

Reply
ERIN 26/06/2013 - 12:33 am

we had a GREAT time , thx, ya boo hoo! i should mention u can walk to the water taxi from the tender point in about 5 minutes w/o a cab, fyi

Reply
ERIN 26/06/2013 - 12:26 am

HA HA I see Rudys boots on the beach!!! thx 🙂

Reply
tacogirl 26/06/2013 - 10:06 am

That is partly how we knew it was you guys from afar and your hat 🙂

Reply

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I just returned from my trip to Belize in mid-June 2022. I had been planning the trip weeks / months in advance and... Laurie (taco girl) wasextremely helpful in preparation for my trip. Her intimate knowledge as an expat who was ONCE a tourist, really helps because she is able to share first hand knowledge of how a tourist can explore Ambergis Caye like a "temporary local". An example of this, was she recommended 2 yoga classes for my wife to enjoy while on vacation that we would not have known about otherwise and the class was far better than a class arranged by a hotel, as you get the local experience not a staged one. In addition, she was helpful in providing recommendations for dinner and sharing some discounts she has arranged with local retailers. Reviewing the taco girl blog and reaching out to Laurie is like having a tour guide, but more important a tour guide that KNOWS Belize.read more
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From the perspective of a couple preparing for a permanent move to Belize, Laurie has been enthusiastically helpful in... both answering our questions and connecting us with local resources for our move. Highly recommend you contact her and make use of her valuable services!!!read more
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Laurie was super helpful in providing places to eat, things to do and best yet had ongoing blogs that allowed us to... look back on other places that she pointed out. A fantastic resource for both first time and return visitors of Ambergris Caye!read more
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Fantastic service .I needed to find a place where I could buy a local sim card as my UK sim doesnt work in belize and... Tacogirl put me on the right path .Decided to walk across town and discovered so much more in beautiful San Pedro.Many thanks.BWread more
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We have been using TacoGirl for what feels like decades when planning our trips to Belize! It has only been a few... years but she is the first place we stop to see what is happening in our favorite vacation spot. She knows all the best spots to get away and do so many fun things - whether it is relaxing or exploring! We are planning our next trip with our twins and she was the first person I reached out to. Knowing we have a resource like her, makes trip planning a breeze!read more
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Found tacogirl while doing some research on an upcoming trip to Belize. This is the place for all the information you... need to plan your vacation. Incredibly helpful and responsive. I sent an email with lots of questions and received a very quick and detailed response that helped us finalize our plans.read more
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We have been following TacoGirl for years now and before booking any trip to San Pedro we check to see what is... currently happening. We love the emails to let us know when a new blog has been posted. Keep up the great work Laurie, we feel like we know you.read more
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I first got my Passport in 2012 and Taco Girl was my first connection back then Great then and Marvelous Now! She's... blossomed and developed into a wonderful contact for any and all information Belize. She goes above & beyond to respond with information that you need whether visiting Belize or relocating! I wasn't able to fund the move then but now that I have much more equity I am doing it.This time she was the 1st person I reached out to! Now I am selling and moving to Belize. She responds immediately! Like I do in my Pet Sitting Business! I was so impressed I followed her all this time. And was not disappointed!Pamela Nixonread more
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Wanted to give a shout-out to tacogirl belize for helping us! She is a plethora of knowledge and was super helpful and... responsive in helping us find longer term stay on the island. Thank you so much for your help!read more
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I've spent the last month exploring Belize. I'm retired & seriously considering moving down to Belize permanently from... the US. I contacted the local San Pedro expert "Taco Girl" to help me get started in finding an apartment to rent. With her help, I've located several places that meet my needs & budget requirements. Thank you Laurie!read more
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I am so grateful for the time and energy Laurie has taken to share about her experiences traveling to and living in... Belize as well as provide thorough recommendations for planning a trip there. I was so thankful (and honestly surprised) that Laurie took the time to respond to several of my questions via email. I highly recommend reading Laurie's blogs and helping to support her business. Thank you Laurie!!read more
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tacogirl was very nice to share her knowledge with us and assisted with planning our trip to Belize; thank you for the... help and info, it was helpful and allowed us to plan utilize our time accordingly while both on the mainland and islands of this great country.read more
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As a Canadian—tired of long winters—I cannot wait to spend some time in Belize. I haven't set foot yet, but I am... yearning for lots of Caribbean adventure. Thanks so much to tacogirl for her endless enthusiasm and generosity of spirit. She is a constant stream of up-to-date information. Her knowledge and love of the area is priceless, and I will need her expertise for future endeavours!read more
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We started coming to Ambergis Caye in 2014 and stumble on to Tacogirls blog, so glad we did! We used her 15% discount... at The Premier Duty-Free shop in the airport! It worked great all we did was let them know we read it on her blog . She has great information awesome pictures, we have tried several places she has recommended, all were amazing. Highly recommend reading her blog. Kathleenread more
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It was my first time visiting Belize and San Pedro so naturally I had a ton of questions when it came time to planning... the travel. Taco Gril's blog was an invaluable source of information for all the travel questions in Ambergris Caye. I was able to learn a lot of basic information, as well as many tips and tricks. In addition when I reached out to Taco Girl for advice on finding a local photographer and a restaurant recommendation, she was very quick to respond and gave me many helpful suggestions. She also provided a lot more information from a local's point of view, which was much for valuable than than a typical guidebook. Thanks to her helpful suggestions we were able to celebrate my daughter's birthday at a nice restaurant, and had a great photo family session with a local photographer. I'm very thankful for all her resources and knowledge.read more
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I started coming to San Pedro Belize in 2007 and that is when I met the online presence of Taco Girl. Her blogs on the... island and area are very personable and informative. She gives out promo codes from time to time so watch out for those. You cannot go wrong with someone who was a tourist and now lives here for quality info. Thanks Taco Girl for helping make my trips memorable!read more
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I take the seniors from our academy to Belize every year for their senior trip. One of the first people I contact when... I start planning the trip is Laurie with TacoGirl Belize. She knows the island of San Pedro better than anyone else out there. Trust me, I have looked. If you are looking for the best restaurants, hang outs and shops then Laurie help plan your vacation.read more
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Love Taco Girl Blog @LaurieNorton!I've been reading this blog since I started visiting Ambergris Caye in Belize almost... 10 years ago. It is filled with helpful up-to-date information and recommendations that I wouldn't necessarily find on my own. Laurie Norton's knowledge and extensive network on the island provides her with the ability to share perks/discounts/coupons with her readers, which come in handy year after year. Things on the island change daily - new businesses pop up constantly and LaurieNortonstays on top of these developments. Whenever I plan my return trip to the island, I always check her blog first - and I recommend you do the same. Trip Advisor ain't got nuttin' on Taco Girl!read more
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Laurie's blog is my official “go to” source for tourist and local information on San Pedro. Of course, it’s always nice... to see her guides on “what to do” in San Pedro, but I also appreciate her “insider” advice and human interest stories on what it’s like living as a local on the island. There is so much information it's amazing! Thank you Laurie!!!read more
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I am considering a move to Belize and I have serendipitously found tacogirl.....what a treasure! She is full of great... advice, helpful hints.....knows everybody on Ambergris Caye and has a thousand useful recommendations and suggestions. Whether you are planning a vacation or relocating, you should make use of the many services she has to offer…..read more
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I’m so pleased to see tacogirl's blog on Google. Laurie's blog is my official “go to” source for tourist and local... information on San Pedro. Of course, it’s always nice to see her guides on “what to do” in San Pedro, but I also appreciate her “insider” advice and human interest stories on what it’s like living as a local on the island. I especially enjoy her guest articles, providing a different perspective of all things San Pedro. Her tipping quide is a classic, and don’t forget her Tropic Air flight code and on-island discounts. You’re not up-to-date with what’s going on in San Pedro if you’re not regularly reading tacogirl's blog.read more
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I have known Laurie (Taco Girl) for several years. She has been a wealth of good information for me in all of my... pursuits in Belize. I highly recommend her for any services you may require.read more
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Do yourself a favor. Read this BEFORE any trip to San Pedro - Ambergris Caye or Belize in general. Not saying “do what... everyone else says”, but Laurie has frank and honest info which will make your stay in country a little more fun, a little more informative, and often at a great cost savings. Best thing: it’s unbiased, honest, and factual. Personal note: thank you for your personal tailored help in answering mine (and my wife’s) questions.read more
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Since 2003, my wife and I have been to Ambergris at least once a year to experience the fantastic diving. About twelve... years ago we me Tacogirl on a blog giving us discounts on golf carts, local airfares, and restaurants. Over the years we have grown a friendship and I look forward to her weekly blogs about he changes on my favorite home away from home. The island changes every year, and she always shows you what to see, do, and eat.read more
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Belize Blog Est. 2007

belize travel specialist

ABOUT ME

I took the plunge and moved to San Pedro Town on the Island of Ambergris Caye, off the coast of Belize, Central America. Originally from Canada, I made the life-changing move to escape winter for good (in 2006) after one three week vacation. If you have any questions or want Belize help planning and booking, please feel free to contact me.

SPARKING MY DESIRE

A few childhood memories that shaped my desire to move to Belize from a young age. Sailing in the Virgin Islands, seeing a rainbow out the window of an island hopper as we flew from Virgin Islands to Puerto Rico, Christmas in Hawaii and many trips to Florida.

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