Here's the first part of my Belize trip report. More to follow (photos too!)
Hamanasi review 3/14/9 – 3/21/9
We chose Hamanasi primarily based on TripAdvisor reviews, along with recommendations from a travel agent who specializes in Belize. We chose Belize because we wanted something more off the beaten track than the Riviera Maya in Mexico yet still with great snorkeling/diving opportunities, inland jungle/ruin tours and a luxurious yet casual vibe. Being only a few hours from DFW was a plus too as was the fact that Belize is an English speaking country.
Booking Hamanasi is very easy especially if you opt for the reef and rainforest package. Everything is included except airfare to Belize (there are non-stop flights to Houston, Atlanta, Miami, Dallas and Charlotte). Once you get to Belize City the adventure begins! After clearing customs/immigration you board a small (I’m talking 12 seats or less) prop plane for the trip from Belize City to Dangriga which is the “airport†closest to Hamanasi. The trip takes about 20 minutes. You can drive but the roads aren’t the greatest and there is no direct route. I was a little nervous about the small plane but the experience of flying over the water and jungle was really great.
Dangriga is a town of about 11000 people, mostly Garifuna, about 50 miles south of Belize City. The Garifuna are decendants of a mixture of slaves and Carib Indians who were expelled from St. Vincent by the British. Very friendly and artistically talented people. Hamanasi picks you up in one of their new airconditioned vans and takes you about 10 miles further down the coast to Hopkins, a Garifuna town of 1000 people. Hamanasi is on the beach just south of Hopkins. The majority of the staff at Hamanasi live in the nearby towns of Hopkins or Sittee River (pop. 600). The resort consists of a main building with the dining area, front desk, gift shop, bar and nearby pool, a beachfront building of 4 rooms, a beachfront building of 8 rooms, 9 treehouses in the jungle just off of the beach and a dive shop. They have their own pier as well as one snorkel boat and two dive boats. Bikes and ocean kayaks are available too.
The staff is exceptional! Very well trained, friendly, willing to help in any way they can and have an abundance of knowledge about Belize. Everyone knows your name by the end of the first day. We spent the first 4 nights in a beachfront room on the second floor. The room is quite large with a King bed, futon couch, small table and chair, tile floors and high beamed ceiling. All the rooms have A/C and ceiling fans. The bathroom is pretty, done up in colorful Mexican tiles with one sink and a walk-in shower. Hamanasi strives to be eco-friendly so towels are only replaced as needed, there is a large cooler of bottled water in the room from which you can refill water bottles and the shampoo/conditioner is in beautiful refillable wooden bottles. They really seem to make use of local products as much as possible. The extensive use of Belizean hardwoods is beautiful. The balcony has a hammock as well as chairs and a table. What a beautiful view too!
The final 3 nights we stayed in a treehouse. The switch was handled seamlessly by the staff while we were out snorkeling. The treehouses are elevated up off of the jungle floor, very private and nestled among the trees and orchids. The room is similar to the beachfront room, but a bit larger with a larger two sink bathroom, hardwood floors, a coffee maker and robes. The treehouses are very private yet only a short walk to the main building. All rooms have twice daily housekeeping. The grounds of the resort are beautiful, very well maintained and many of the unusual plants are labled for your information. Two “resort cats†and a “resort dog†wander the grounds. My daughter loved the cats!
All meals are served in the main building. If the weather is nice (which it was the entire time we were there) people sit on the covered porch or adjacent patio for meals. Breakfast is buffet style with two different breads/muffins/biscuits/coffee cakes each day, scrambled eggs, an array of fruits, yogurt, cereal and granola. Fruit juices and coffee/tea are also served. The variety and amount of food were perfect for us. If you want more, a menu at extra cost is available. Lunch is open seating with the same menu everyday. There are plenty of choices so we didn’t get bored with it. The choices range from salads to wraps to burgers to Mexican dishes to local dishes. Lots of shrimp and fish on the menu as well as several vegetarian options. Dinner is by reservation (I didn’t get the feeling they were really strict about the time, I think they simply want to stagger the guests so they can get the meals out as well as possible), with white tablecloths and a menu that changes every night. There is a different soup every day (all were excellent!), a different salad as well as a house salad, and four entrée choices including one vegetarian option, one fish, one chicken and one other meat. The menu tends toward a Mediterranean slant with some local influences. The food is very good but I would have liked more emphasis on local dishes and seasonings. There is a special dessert each day as well as a daily offering of key lime pie, ice cream, or brownies. They use local chocolate and it is awesome. Much of the food is locally obtained too, and they grow their own herbs.
A range of inland and marine tours are offered. We opted for snorkeling on 3 days, a trip to a wildlife preserve one day and a full day trip across Belize to Mayan ruins. The snorkeling is fantastic. A small aside about the beach, ocean and reef…the reef is 14 miles offshore. It only takes 30 minutes to get there by boat so that’s not a problem. The beach is not a nice as the ones in Cancun/Mayan Rivieria. The sand is more brown and granular, the beach is narrower and while the water is clean it can get stirred up and look a bit muddy/sandy near shore. There is a lot of turtle grass and garbage which washes up on the beach. The groundskeepers do rake it up, but if you get away from the resort it can be kind of ick. There really isn’t snorkeling off of the beach but I did see some nice fish and one ray in the water off of the dock.
Finally…sand flies (no see ums)…if the breeze dies down they will attack regardless of whether you have on bugspray (it helps but only a little). Some people seem more sensitive to them. I didn’t find that the bites hurt, but my daughter did. I did wake up on day 2 with numerous bites all over my arms and legs, they didn’t itch too much but I combated the itch with antihistamines and cortisone lotion. Mosquitos did not seem to be a problem but bring bug spray and lots of it!!!
The snorkel tour took you out to the Southwater Caye Marine Reserve. We snorkeled at a different spot each time, and the variety of sealife was incredible. A local guide goes on all tours and spots and points out so many things we might otherwise have missed. After a 45 minute snorkel we went to southwater caye for a snack and bathroom break then off to another site for another 45 minute snorkel. Then back to the resort in time for lunch. Perfect! The sun is very strong and I would highly recommend wearing a rash guard or even a wetsuit for sun protection. Those who didn’t all got burned. Sunscreen just doesn’t cut it in saltwater. The water is warm (85 degrees or so) so a diveskin would work too (that’s what I used).
