Barbados, Curacao, Belize, Cabo?

[adamseve]

Anyone visited these locations? If so, could you tell me what you enjoyed or didn't enjoy abou them? My husband and I are trying to plan a last minute trip in Jan.

Also, has anyone stayed at any of the Francis Coppola's resorts in Belize?

Thanks!

[lawyergirl25]

Belize had the best snorkeling out of all the Caribbean countries I've been to thus far. We were only there for a day on a cruise, though, so I can't give you any information on the Coppola resorts.

[bookworm]

I've been to Cabo and don't plan to go back. The beaches were lovely, but the sand was very sharp and there were too many people hassling us every time we left the resort.

[emmjay]

I ate dinner at the Turtle Inn, Coppola's resort in Placencia. It was awesome and the resort was gorgeous, but that was before Hurricane Iris destroyed it in 2001! I did see a show (the Travel Channel??) about the rebuild of the resort and it looks even better than before.

As for Belize overall - loved it! We had a group of 5 and we stayed in Placencia for a week. We went kayaking, snorkeling multiple times, sailing, fishing and bike riding, and we swam every day. The beach in Placencia isn't fabulous, but the areas near Turtle Inn and Kitty's Place have the best beaches in the area. However, the scenery and snorkeling were fantastic and we had a great time. That was one of my favorite vacations I've ever taken.

My ILs just went to Curacao over this past winter and had a blast, but I don't know specifically what they did beyond parasailing and snorkeling.

[Shapsgrl]

I have been to Cabo (twice) and Barbados.

What kind of a vacation are you looking for?

I would visit Cabo it you:

- love fine resorts and cuisine
- like to do excursions such as atv rides, boat trips, golf and fishing
- like a more developed resort area

I would visit Barbados if you:

- like the white sand beaches, and aqua, warm water of the Carribean
- Enjoy a more relaxed vacation
- want to spend more time at your resort vs. spend time out on the town

Neither of these are inexpensive options - I think that they're both about comporable, but I was shocked at how expensive Cabo has become.

[adamseve]

Thank you for your replies and feedback ... this is a tough one for us. We like adventure, relaxing, and fine dining! I guess we'll have a few places to visit in the next couple of years.

We are planning to go to Croatia in June .... anyone been there?

[cactus]

We went to Belize for our honeymoon in August and it was a fantastic trip. You can get a little bit of everything there and the country is small enough that it's all pretty accessible. We did stay at FFC's hotel in Guatemala (La Lancha) which was nice, but remote...great to stay there if you want to go to Tikal (which you must do, by the way).

We investigated staying at Blancaneaux Lodge, which is the more well-known of the FFC places, in the Cayo District (mountain/forest area) of Belize, but after extensive internet research we chose to stay at Chaa Creek, which was positively amazing. I cannot say enough about how beautiful the place was, how knowledgeable the guides were, and how much stuff we found to do. We were looking for a hybrid of adventure/luxury and we found it there. PM me if you want to know more, or see photos.

We spent the last few days on Ambergris Caye at Victoria House, which was also great...lots of American honeymooners, which made it different from the other two place. It has a great pool, and you can snorkel and dive right from their pier. They have bikes you can check out and ride into town, which was nice too.

Belize as a country is great--very friendly people, relatively easy to get around, etc. We went in August, and the climate bordered on being unbearably hot...and the bugs, especially at the beach, were really bad. Overall, though, I highly recommend it!

ETA: Another thing I forgot to say about Belize is that the cultural/historical sites are pretty unrivaled...my husband is an archaeologist and he was in hog heaven with all the ruins. So if you like that sort of thing, it's pretty amazing.

[jeanine]

We went to Barbados last January and had a great time. It was really relaxing. The locals are very nice. We really didn't do too much besides hang out on the beach most of the time (we stayed in or near Christ Church Parish~if i remember correctly). The restaurants are fantastic, although expensive! We spent a day on the Atlantic side of the island which was so beautiful. The Jazz fest is in January, so that could be fun. It's a huge event. Oistens Fish Fry on Friday nights is a really good time, with GOOD cheap food.

Another thing about Barbados. It typically does not get a lot of American tourists, which makes it "different". I think one of the hotel people told me Americans only make up about 10-15% of tourism. A lot of English people vacation there, and it was really fun meeting and talking to people from Great Britain (I'm a sucker for English accents).

[papergirl]

I went to Curacao for my honeymoon. I LOVED the hotel we stayed at (Kura Hulanda). It was absolutly fabulous however I was not impressed by the country. It is said to have some of the best snorkling, which we are not into. That left very little for us to do. There is not a whole lot to see there. No great shopping or fine dinning. In fact we only came across one air conditioned restaurant while there and it was the hottest season. All in all I enjoyed myself, had a nice time but have no plans to ever return. I'd much rather go someplace new or someplace I've been that was fabulous.

I have also been to Barbados. There is a lot more to do there. Shopping is a lot better and they have great beaches.

I have not been to Belize but I have heard great things and hope to go someday. I have also heard great things about the Coppola Resorts.

If you have any specific questions please feel free to ask them.

[littlebear]

We loved Curacao, but we were more about relaxing on our honeymoon. There's not a lot of nightlife or good dining outside of the resorts/hotels so if you are looking for tons of action it's probably not your best bet. We'd go back in a heartbeat. There's some really good hiking if you are into that, and the diving is supposed to be good as well.

[rosa727]

For anyone who has been to the FFC resort in Belize (the one on the beach), how do you get there? Is it difficult? Where do you fly into? I would appreciate any help!

[emmjay]

For anyone who has been to the FFC resort in Belize (the one on the beach), how do you get there? Is it difficult? Where do you fly into? I would appreciate any help!
I didn't stay there - but we were just up the road. You have to take a small plane to Placencia - it makes a couple of stops (it was almost like a mail/supply plane) but the ride is really beautiful because you aren't very high above the coastline. It isn't hard to get there at all. I think the name of the airline we used was Tropic Air.

ETA - we flew on Continental to the main airport in Belize City, then we got the Tropic Air puddle jumper to Placencia from there.