大咖福利影院

Cruisin Camper wrote:

Wow, that seems a bit pricey to me - but I would rather get a feel for the local environment and people than to be flown around, etc.听 I'm just sayin.....

Totally agree.听 We have taken local buses all over the country.听 Anywhere the buses don't go, you can always find a cab or some other form of transport.听 I prefer to book my own lodging directly and find restaurants wherever we happen to be.听 You pay a premium to have someone else do all the legwork.听 We managed to arrange and take trips to San Ignacio, Hopkins, Punta Gorda, Placencia, and Crooked Tree (from Ambergris Caye, where we live) using only google and Tripadvisor.听 It's very doable if you're willing to put in the time, and I wager you'll save at least half if not more off what the tour company would charge you.

gba327 wrote:

I have and continue to read everything I can on Belize and I agree that Northern Belize does sound perfect.听 I like it all, the mountain and the water and love the idea of being close to both.听 In the States one would have to be in Calif to get that, and who can afford that Zip Code.???? LOL

Guess more than anything, I look forward to the more simple laid back lifestyle.听 Fresh fruit and Fresh Seafood....OMG, sounds perfect to me.

Geri

There are no mountains in northern Belize.听 It's classified as "savannah" and isn't nearly as pretty to me as southern and western Belize's hills, mountains, and rainforest, with the huge trees and jungle.听 It's much more lush south and west, but of course they also get a lot more rain.听 Of course you can always drive from northern Belize to see mountains, but you will have to drive.

The fresh fruit is great, but at least on Ambergris Caye, where I live. almost all seafood you'll get is frozen.听 It goes bad so quickly in the heat, unless you can buy from a fisherman right off the boat, which is possible some days if you're up early, you'll be buying frozen fish.听 Maybe things are a bit better up on Corozal, but that's been our experience on AC.听 I thought we'd be eating tons of seafood, but we actually buy and eat less than in the US, unfortunately.听 And that we do by is pricey -- but everything is more expensive on an island.

Texblondi2 wrote:

@CaribeGal -- WOW.. I was thinking that the fresh seafood would be abundant on AC, never thought it would be mostly frozen!! So I guess that means you have to fishing for yourself if you want fresh catch then.. Totally shocked about that info..

Yes, I was shocked too -- just shows that we all have our rose-colored glasses on when moving here, and sometimes the reality is a bit different!听 And some of the frozen fish I have gotten has not been great.听 We don't fish, but it's definitely a worthy skill to have here if you want to eat the best fish!听 Or make friends with a fisherman.听

Johnhenry1925 wrote:

Texblondi, some of the restaurants on AC do serve freshly caught fish (some of them buy direct from the fushermen. There are some days when the weather is such that they just don't go fishing.

And this is true too -- I was just hoping it would be easier to buy fresh seafood for home use.听 It can be quite pricey in restaurants.

Texblondi2 wrote:

On the other hand, I have never been down there.
...
Belize has been on my radar for several years. So I figure even if I build a house there on AC and for some reason don't like it down there, I can always rent or sell it and come back to Texas. Nothing ventured, nothing gained!

This is true; however, I would certainly visit before deciding to build here to make sure Ambergris Caye suits you.听 The beaches are decent, but nothing like the Mexican Yucatan.听 We were recently visiting Tulum and were blown away by the beaches there compared to Ambergris Caye.听 The beaches are much narrower here, and quite a few places have seawalls.听 There is a path all the way along of packed sand that people (including me!) ride bikes on.听 The same path is used for walking, so you do have to pay attention if you're walking and make sure bikes aren't coming up behind you.听 It's definitely a bit of a different feel to a beach, compared to what we were used to in the southeastern US.

The water is gorgeous and the people are friendly, but I would never move somewhere without visiting first.听 Just my opinion, which I realize you didn't ask for!听 I hope you will love AC as much as you expect to.听

Johnhenry1925 wrote:

Absolutely agree that there is no comparison between the beaches on Ambergris Caye and Tulum. But then again I beleve that an expat cannot own a home in Mexico within around 30 miles of the coast.

No kidding?!听 Government regulation?听 I have heard of US expats in Baja (Mexico) living (and I presumed owning, since they are retirees) right on the coast.听 Different rules on the Yucatan?

Cruisin Camper wrote:

As far as I am aware of, Mexico still does not allow anyone other than Mexican Citizens the ability to own property there at any of the coastlines...... Have a few friends who have (or still do) own homes... but not the property itself.

You are correct -- the link @JohnHenry1925 posted above explains it.