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We’ve written a lot about Placencia, Belize because for years it has been the “up and coming” part of the country with the most luxury travel and upscale real estate potential. It’s got the best mainland beach by far and the fact there’s only one road in and out of the peninsula has kept it feeling low-key and not deluged with mass tourism.
There’s plenty to do beyond the beach though if you use this as your base. Most people come to Belize in order to spend lots of time on or in the water, which you can certainly do from Placencia.
Scuba Diving Along the Longest Barrier Reef in this Hemisphere
The great 900-kilometer coral reef that starts off the Yucatan coast of Belize extends down through Central America, along the whole coast of Belize. So anywhere you stay on the water in this country, you’re never all that far from great diving options. From Ambergris it may only take you a few minutes, but this is the busiest place to go underwater. On tours from Placencia you will spend longer in a boat, but you may be the only boat for miles when you get there.
Belize is not a huge country, so dive packages can take you to the famous Great Blue Hole, as well as areas where the whale sharks appear at certain times of the year between May and September.
Snorkeling in Belize
Since this country is blessed with a long barrier reef and much of it is in shallow waters, this is also one of the world’s best snorkeling locations. Dozens of atolls and hundreds of patch reefs create places where you can just flop out of the boat and go exploring. The sea is teeming with colorful fish and coral and it’s not unusual to spot an eagle ray, reef shark, or sea turtle among the groupers and angelfish. Tours from Placencia can get you to the best spots, often with a beach nearby that you can have all to yourselves.
Sport Fishing in Southern Belize
Long before there was a major tourism infrastructure along the Caribbean coast of Mexico and Central America, people traveled here from afar for the great fishing. Still today it’s not unusual to see photos of smiling vacationers holding big sailfish they reeled in while out on these waters or a giant tarpon they wrestled with in the shallows.
One of the best fishing spots in Belize is at Turneffe Flats on the Turneffe Atoll. Chabil Mar Villas in Placencia offers a vacation package where you can spend part of your time at Turneffe Flats Resort and part of it in Placencia, getting to fish in different areas. They can customize the package to suit your needs in terms of what kind of fishing you want to do and how much.
While you’re on the peninsula you can also kayak along the sea coast or glide along the mangroves in the lagoon spotting wildlife. Then see the water from a different angle: in a beach chair while sipping a rum cocktail.
Source: luxurylatinamerica.com
