Island life on Caye Caulker, Belize | Paradise Found

Too often travel stories begin with something like, “It just isn’t the same as it used to be. It has become too over developed. Now they just catered to tourists. It just has none of the culture that I thought it would have.” Well, the tiny Caribbean island of Caye Caulker, off the coast of Belize, was everything I imagined a laid back island could ever be. This was a place you could walk everywhere, locals would say hi to you on their way to work, nobody was in a rush to go anywhere, and the favorite forms of transportation, if they weren’t walking, were golf carts and bikes. And I forgot to mention the island is surrounded by barrier reefs, protecting it from the open ocean, making for some of the calmest, beautiful beaches ever.

The family trip this year took us to Belize, a place that my wife and her parents had visited a couple times 20 years ago. Back then, they stayed in San Pedro on Ambergris Caye, a 1.5hr ferry from Belize City, just north of Caye Caulker. Sadly, when we visited that island on our trip this year, it had changed, a lot, and not for the better. The laid back lifestyle was gone. Replaced by people zooming around the now paved streets in cars, on their way to and from their work and stores. The island more closely resembled downtown Bangkok with all the high rises, density of everything, and even the mess of telephone wires tangled above, dangling from all the poles. The island vibes and culture were gone, for good, all for the sake of progress, catering to tourism, and expats.

Fortunately, in stark contrast, Caye Caulker was a step back in time by 10 or 20+ years. Down any street, you could easily find a beach bar with coconut drinks ready to be served ice cold. Along the way, you’ll be walking under palm trees and tropical foliage of the sort, shading you from the scorching Caribbean sun. It’s impossible to get lost on the island, seeing as it’s only a handful of streets wide, surrounded by water on all sides. But if you do get lost, you could just follow the many stray dogs that roam the dirt streets who will inevitably bring you back to a restaurants in hopes of food scraps. Being a dog lover, this was paradise. Throughout the week, we’d make friends with dogs and they would follow us around or even join us on runs in the morning. I’m pretty sure I’ve never met friendlier dogs in my life, even our own included. 

If we weren’t walking the island to one of the many bars or beachside restaurants, we were hanging out on the dock at the AirBnb we stayed in all week. Spending the afternoons reading the latest Jack Carr book, or splitting a bucket of Belikin beers on the end of that dock, starring off into the Caribbean were some of the best days on the trip. Other days, we headed to the north end of the island where we’d bounce around to one of the many beach bars, like the Lazy Lizard or the Sip ‘N Dip. These places have seats and tables in the warm, blue water, that are actually enjoyable to sit in as you sip down a rum punch or mojito. Beyond those two beach bars, there are countless other bars scattered all over the island, like the Pelican Sunset Bar, the Sports Bar by the ferry, or even Caribbean Fusion Brewing Company. With so many options, you really can’t go wrong, especially when the local beer, Belikin, will only cost you about $2 to $3 USD no matter where you order from.

What would an island experience be without spending time actually in the water. Sure, the best experiences we had were scuba diving outside of the barrier reef or out at Shark-Ray Alley, but most days were spent walking into the water wherever we could find it. Whether it was off the dock at the end of our AirBnb or at one of the random beaches around Caye Caulker, we would all just walk right in for a swim or to cool off during the hot days and evenings. The water was so clear and warm that it was always enjoyable to pop in, especially when the rays or scools of fish would swim by within touching distance. And to add to the best experiences on the water when in Belize, we went fishing one afternoon where we the smartest fish we’d ever gone after took us to school. They knew how to get bait off a hook with ease. But luckily we were able to catch a handful of keepers and bring them back to the dock where the Pelican Grill cooked all of our catch for the most amazing meal we had all trip.

It’s a whole lot easier for me to sit back and enjoy the “relaxing” nature of a developing country, similar to how I felt in Thailand, but from what we gathered talking to the locals in passing at the bar, in a restaurant, or the guides that showed us around, they don’t want it to change either. They look at the development happening around them and they want their island lifestyle to stay right where it is. For better or worse, this place is like a time machine, that takes you back to a simpler time, without the hustle and bustle of normal life and far from the creature comforts of a 5-star resort on a beach. For some people, that might sound miserable and a waste of money, but for those looking for a little more when they travel, Caye Caulker is paradise found.