Discover tips for traveling to Belize with the help of our experienced team, who have been providing memorable vacations since 1986. Traveling can come with its fair share of obstacles, so we’ve put together this helpful guide to help you avoid common mistakes. With the team’s wealth of knowledge, we’ll address any lingering concerns or uncertainties you may have about your trip. The following are potential issues that can impact your trip:
- Missing our meeting and having to catch up with the itinerary on your own.
- Delayed or misplaced luggage causing inconvenience until it catches up with you.
- Falling ill either before or during the trip.
- Sustaining an injury while exploring Belize.
- Facing the disappointment of canceling your trip due to a pre-existing injury.
- Realizing you selected the wrong trip or arrived ill-prepared.
- Post-trip letdown from not being able to experience something you had eagerly anticipated.
- Unexpected weather conditions that differ from your expectations.
Rest assured, you can influence these situations by mitigating them entirely or minimizing their impact with the following tips, ensuring your vacation in Belize exceeds all your expectations. Take some time to review this valuable resource, and let us ease any worries you may have.
1. Arrive on time
Try not to accept connections with less than a two-hour layover. If your flight between Burlington and New York is delayed, you may miss your flight to Belize. If you are late, you should already be familiar with our instructions for this contingency (see “If Late or Delayed” in the info sheet for your trip).
If late, remember to keep a positive attitude. Have as much fun as you can. There aren’t many flights to Belize, so if you miss yours, you will probably be behind us for an entire day. Living it up is much more fun than getting angry with those nearby. If lucky, other Slickrock Belize Adventures travelers will be on the same flight. Check out the Getting Here page for arrival information including what time to book your flights.
2. Pack so that it’s okay if your luggage is lost
Occasionally, airlines bump luggage because everyone on the flight brought too much stuff or mix-up with connecting flights. We have an excellent Belize packing list, stick closely to it, and you will be fine. Another reason to have at least two hours between flights is that your luggage also makes it.
Since many airlines only fly once a day to Belize, delayed luggage means you may not see it until the end of the trip (we leave Dangriga well before the flight arrives the next day). So pack your carry-on with essentials to avoid being caught with only the clothes on your back. Remember that all of our trips are in very remote areas. The airlines may not always be willing to deliver your luggage to the island.
3. Stay healthy
Sometimes guests either show up sick or become sick shortly after arrival. This is almost always due to too much stress before a trip. Don’t stay up half the night before your trip tying loose ends. And it’s not a good idea to go on another trip right before your trip to Belize, leaving little time in between. By pushing the envelope, you increase your chances of getting sick.
Then instead of sea kayaking, snorkeling, and surfing, you end up lying in your Belize hut for a few days with a lovely view of palm trees out the window. Not bad, but not the way you want to spend your vacation. Ensure you get plenty of rest, eat well, don’t overdo it, and try to relax before the trip.
4. Don’t get hurt
Even when on a guided trip, you are still responsible for yourself. Please watch where you are going. In Belize, you may encounter slippery paths or docks and uneven terrain. An injury could ruin your trip, not to mention possibly even the vacation of others on the same trip.
Don’t miss any of your guide’s orientation talks; they will cover many safety considerations. Listen to the warnings and heed them. Most illnesses and accidents on vacations are avoidable and result from guest negligence. The guide cannot be right there with each person every step of the way.
5. Buy travel insurance
We require all guests to acquire travel insurance to help protect you and your travel investment against the unexpected, including medical and trip cancellation policies. Slickrock is proud to partner with Generali Global Assistance. Click here to learn more about Generali and to add it to your trip. Generali Global Assistance offers a 10-day free look and can only be purchased up through your final payment date.
6. Read the brochure
We have often heard from past guests, “I wish I had realized….” Although that situation was covered in our material, they neglected to read it. Yes, it is a lot to read, but you will be glad you did. Please note the trip’s difficulty level and objectively assess your ability level. Don’t find yourself reading that Traveler’s Checks are not recommended for the first time as you sit in your airplane seat, having just left the USA, the land of ATMs. Please be prepared. We spend hours writing our literature to help you have a better vacation. Please read it; we appreciate your patience.
7. Maintain an attitude of flexibility
All trip participants should understand that adventure travel requires flexibility, and you should expect last-minute changes. Please be aware that the stated itinerary and brochure descriptions are not a contractual obligation on the part of Slickrock Belize Adventures. We do our best to describe trips accurately in each brochure and flier we provide. However, due to local circumstances or events, amenities, services, facilities, types of transport, route, schedule, and activities could change without prior notice. Events causing these changes may include mechanical breakdown, transport cancellations, illness, weather, and other unforeseeable factors.
Persons interested in only one sport will have to adjust their expectations as this is a multi-sport trip, not a single-sport trip, and all sports require a guide or buddy, especially when the conditions are extreme. We find that guests who show up thinking they will only do one sport quickly realize the beauty of this location is that you can try so many things. You’ll want to do everything; there are few places in the world where you can experience this many sports in one week.
Guests with extensive experience in a particular sport may receive a special, abbreviated orientation to get started earlier, but this is not always possible for every sport. Our guides care for the whole group, not just one person, and they must balance their time with everyone so everyone is safe in the water. If you have only one sport you are interested in, our guides will do their best to get to the orientation as soon as possible, but it may not happen the first day you are on the island or maybe not even the second day.
8. Accept the weather
Although no one can do anything about the weather, it’s incredible how much difference a good attitude can make. We have witnessed people work themselves into a frenzy over poor weather. It’s unpredictable in the tropics. Sometimes the weather is amazing, while other times, a cold front appears. We’ve also seen trips with horrible weather in which everyone said it was their best trip ever. Don’t let the weather ruin your trip. Whatever hand Mother Nature deals you, accept it with gratitude.