Experiences and local guides in Ambergris Caye · San Pedro

Nature

Ambergris Caye is Belize's largest island, 800 m from the Mesoamerican barrier reef, the second largest in the world. San Pedro, its town, is explored by golf cart between colourful wooden houses. Off the coast: the Hol Chan reserve with nurse sharks, rays, turtles and moray eels; the sand flats where bonefish and permit are caught; and 70 km away, the Great Blue Hole, a marine sinkhole 124 m deep.

Activities

• Snorkelling at Hol Chan and Shark Ray Alley, 15 minutes by boat, with local guides
• Diving the Blue Hole, Half Moon Caye and Turneffe: walls, sharks and pristine reefs
• Fly fishing the flats (bonefish, permit and tarpon: the Caribbean "grand slam") with island guides
• Kitesurfing and windsurfing in the trade winds from December to July, paddleboarding in the lagoon, sunset sailing
• Kayaking through the mangroves, Secret Beach, Caye Caulker by water taxi, crocodiles and birds of the lagoon

When to go

December to May is dry and windy, high season with the best diving visibility. June to November is wetter and warmer, with low prices and whale sharks at Gladden Spit (April to June); September and October are hurricane months.

How to get there

From Belize international airport (BZE, flights from Miami, Houston, Cancún and Panama City), Tropic Air or Maya Island Air hops to San Pedro (15 minutes) or a water taxi from Belize City (1 h 30). On the island everything moves by golf cart and bike; dive and snorkel trips leave from the town piers.