7 Awesome Things To Do on Caye Caulker, Belize

Diving into a crazy underwater-world, spoiling your tastebuds with yummy coconut-infused seafood and soaking in Belize's insane sunsets: there are many really cool things to do on Caye Caulker. 

But whatever you end up doing: go slow (read on to find out why).

We decided to spend the last days of our two weeks Belize holiday on this teeny-tiny island and it was the best decision we could have possibly made.

After a two-months road trip in Europe, a hectic 10 days in Costa Rica, spending a month exploring the surroundings of Cusco in Peru, all the while travelling with a chronic disease and medication that needed cooling all the time, getting to Caye Caulker and doing almost nothing for a few days was perfect.

Well, we didn't know we would be stranded in French Polynesia for another month after that...

But that's another chapter.

Here are 7 pretty awesome things to do on Caye Caulker, Belize.

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What and where is Caye Caulker?

Caye Caulker is a paradisiac little coral island of about 8 km long, off the coast of Belize, surrounded by the endless blue-shades of the Caribbean Sea. Sounds dreamy, right?

That's because it is.

Caye Caulker in a nutshell

First of all: what are 'cayes' anyway?

That's an easy one: 'cayes' are beautiful and tiny islands that can be very expensive if you choose wrong. 

Luckily we chose well because Caye Caulker is actually very affordable for backpackers and budget-travellers.

Why is Caye Caulker so popular?

White sandy beaches, a very laid-back Caribbean attitude of the residents, pristine water in all kinds of blueish shades and good weather all year round; it's easy to see why people love it here.

The proximity of the magnificent Belize Barrier Reef, running between the island and mainland Belize, makes it a perfect base for snorkelling and diving adventures. 

Bohemians, yogis, windsurfers, backpackers, divers - all come together on this little piece of paradise.

Tourism on Caye Caulker didn't start before the 1970s when speed-boats made accessing the island a lot easier. Apparently there was something called the 'Gringo Trail' going from Mexico to Guatemala via Caye Caulker, a trail that hippies absolutely loved and lots of them even settled on the island.

How to get to Caye Caulker?

Well, first, you will have to get to Belize. 

How do you do that? By comparing the prices of different flight providers on Skyscanner - it's the easiest way to get the greatest deals. It's what we always do.

Although there are small planes flying from Belize City to Caye Caulker, that's quite an expensive way to get there. 

The more cost-efficient option is to take the ferry. Currently there is only one company offering this service, called the Ocean Ferry. They operate five times a day (every day) between Belize City, Ambergris Caye (San Pedro) and Caye Caulker.

From the ferry port in Belize City, the ride takes about 1h15 to reach Caye Caulker and costs 8,40 € / 10 US $ one-way or 14,70 € / 17,50 US $ for a round-trip (2021).

Given that I get seasick quite easily, I was a bit apprehensive but it's actually a rather smooth ride without too many bumps.

Where to stay on Caye Caulker?

You won't find any impersonal huge resorts on Caye Caulker. Instead, there are plenty of backpacker hostels, hotels and AirBnB's to choose from. 

We stayed at a very basic but inexpensive AirBnB run by a friendly local, Mario, called the 'Vista del Mar'.

But here are a few other great options:

Colinda Cabanas | Colourful and cute little cabanas right on the beach with a lovely view

Barefoot Caye Caulker Hotel | Super modern and beautiful hotel in the centre of the village with a pool

Weezie's Ocean Front Hotel and Garden Cottages | A little boutique hotel on the East coast with amazing views of the reef

Panchos Villas | Very affordable little villas offering free wifi and shuttle service from and to the ferry port

Things to know before visiting Caye Caulker

History

It is not known when exactly people arrived on the island. Though in the mid-19th century, there have been larger populations of mixed Maya and Spanish descendants ('mestizos') arriving on Caye Caulker, seeking refuge from the then-ongoing massacres in Yucatán.

Several of the families that possessed lots on Caye Caulker back then are still very influential today. Thanks to the surrounding reefs, the village has been protected quite well from bigger waves.

Hurricanes

Due to its position in the Caribbean Sea, Caye Caulker has known some hurricanes throughout the years, the most recent one in 2000. The island is pretty defenceless when it faces storms with harsh winds and big waves, the highest point of the island being less than 2,5 meters after all.

That doesn't mean it's unsafe to stay there as bigger hurricanes passing right through this spot are still an exception, not the rule.

Language

Given that Caye Caulker belongs to the country of Belize, the official language is English.

But thanks to the proximity of Hispanic countries and migrating people throughout the centuries, Spanish is very dominant as well. So is Spanglish, a mix of English and Spanish, English-Creole and several Mayan dialects. 

Just like on the mainland, Caye Caulker also has a larger population of 'mestizos', people of mixed European and indigenous heritage, and kriols, Belizean Creoles that have African and European ancestors.

Money

Belize's currency is the Belize-dollar that is directly linked to the US dollar:

1 US $ = 1,97 BZ$

For the sake of convenience, it is pegged at 2 BZ$ = 1 US$.

For a conversion to Euro, that's 1 BZ $ = 0,42 € (or 1 € = 2,40 BZ$).

US dollars are commonly accepted everywhere in Belize, including on Caye Caulker.

Despite the fact that it's a tiny island, getting cash isn't an issue at all: there are several banks in the village.

Also, most hotels, restaurants and tour operators gladly accept credit cards.

Getting around

Like I already mentioned, the island itself is only accessible by high-speed water-taxis or tiny planes, the latter being less used. Due to its size, there are no cars allowed on the islet (except for the occasional truck to move things around the electrical power-plant - that's the only ugly spot on Caye Caulker).

So you'll either use your feet or, alternatively, a bike or a golf-cart. However, golf-carts remain a more frequent sight on the neighbouring Ambergris Caye, not so much on Caulker.

Just take your time and use your feet. Crossing the island from one side to the other won't take longer than 30 minutes after all.

Timezone, plugs, data and supermarkets

As Belize's timezone is UTC-6, the same goes for Caye Caulker. The country didn't adopt the daylight saving time so it stays UTC-6 throughout the whole year.

The electricity power in Belize is of 110 V and 60 Hz and the sockets most commonly found are of the types A, B and G. and Caye Caulker is no different. Check on World Power Plugs to see if you might need an adapter.

There are several supermarkets on the island, mostly Chinese, selling pretty much everything you might need while checking off the best things to do on Caye Caulker.

The sun

If, like me, you are prone to sunburns, make sure to always put on sunscreen. The entire island is one big white sandy beach and that acts like a huge mirror for the sunrays.

You can find sunscreens of all kinds, even reef-friendly ones for eco-conscious water-pleasure, in one of the bigger supermarkets.

Health stuff

Given that I suffer from Ulcerative Colitis and some additional things, I always carry around a complete travel pharmacy and a mini-fridge to keep my medication cool.

While this might not be necessary for healthy people, you should always have some basic emergency items when visiting Caye Caulker as there is no doctor, let alone a hospital, on the island. There is a clinic and several doctors on the bigger Ambergris Caye but not here.

However, when Covid19 started, a tiny little emergency clinic with a professional nurse got installed at the beach. She also told us where we could get our PCR-tests done (on San Pedro) when we decided it was time to leave Belize and head to French Polynesia.

Read also | Traveling despite a chronic disease

                      Travel and Ulcerative Colitis treatments: my personal experience

                      Ulcerative Colitis and travel vaccinations: things to know

Go slow

The island's motto is 'Go Slow' and they take this quite literally. We were frequently spotted as 'stressed tourists' even though we thought we were just strolling at a slow pace.

But nope, apparently we weren't slow enough.

It took us a few days to really lean into that relaxed lifestyle and that's when a guy we met a few times finally said: "Now you're getting it! Always go slow! Good job guys!"

7 best things to do on Caye Caulker

1. Absolute amazing thing to do on Caye Caulker: snorkelling

The Belize Barrier reef between Caye Caulker and the mainland is actually the second biggest reef system in the world, after Australia's Great Barrier Reef.

We did this 7-stop snorkel tour with Salt Life Eco Tours and can only highly recommend them.

But there are similar ones offered by companies all over the island if your prefer to compare:

The tour we did had the following highlights:

2. The (in)famous 'Split'

What's that?

Like I previously mentioned, Caye Caulker used to be a single island before it got split in two 'by hurricane Hattie' according to the sayings from locals and all kinds of tourist ads.

Truth is, while hurricane Hattie did indeed cause major destructions on the island, the so-called 'split'  between the two islets is actually largely man-made. After the hurricane kind of created a little passage in that area, the villagers dredged a deeper and larger one to allow little boats to pass.

Tides and erosion did the rest which resulted in a 30 m deep channel big enough to let larger boats pass too.

Things to do at the Split on Caye Caulker

Take a book, relax, sip a coconut or a piña colada, have a little swim - repeat.

Or take canoes to float around, chill on the water (remember the sunscreen!!) and just enjoy life.

If binge-drinking and partying isn't your thing, avoid the time around spring-break as lots and lots of young Americans choose the Split to celebrate their life at that moment.

The 'Lazy Lizard' is the most famous bar for that kind of party.

3. Do a day-trip from Caye Caulker to San Pedro, Ambergris Caye

With a length of 34 km, Ambergris Caye is the biggest of Belize's islands. The main town is San Pedro where almost all of the island's inhabitants live (less than 13.000).

San Pedro was founded in 1848 by mestizos that had fled the Yucatéan-wars and has a very typical Caribbean vibe.

A lot bigger than Caye Caulker, we found it to be much more hectic as well. Even though there aren't any cars here either: there are a lot more golf-carts and it just feels crowded. That is, when you come straight from Caye Caulker.

San Pedro has several lovely and tasty little restaurants and a few beautiful (and very popular) beaches. It is absolutely worth the day-trip.

Getting to San Pedro from Caye Caulker is easy: the Ocean Ferry Belize takes about 30 minutes and it costs 8,40 € / 10 US $ one way or 14,70 € / 17,50 US $ for a round-trip.

4. Chillax in one of the numerous hammocks at the beach & eat

Again: go slow!

That's the best way to enjoy Caye Caulker. And the locals make everything to have tourists implement this motto: there are hammocks pretty much everywhere along the beach.

Try those right next to Chef Kareem's UnBelizeable Lunch in the middle of the village and enjoy some lovely grilled sea-food in-between lazy sessions. Or grab an insanely tasty bagel and coffee at Ice and Beans.

Take your sunglasses, a good book or your Kindle, a fresh coconut and off you go.

5. Get active with Yoga

If you do want to move your body in some way - at least a little bit - try to book a Yoga session at the  Namasté Café & Yoga studio.

We loved the colourful interior and their healthy veggie breakfasts are delicious!

Just book your spot for the rooftop-yoga ahead of time as space is limited and the list fills up quite quickly.

6. Set over to Koko King/Northside Beach Club

To enjoy some delicious food at the Koko King, a beach-restaurant with quite the reputation, you'll have to take the water-taxi to get to the other part of Caye Caulker, the one that is separated by the Split.

The taxi is free, the ride takes about two minutes and there is one every half hour.

While the place has been renamed 'Northside Beach Club' - which, frankly, is a bit dull compared to the former name - people will probably still refer to it as the 'Koko King'.

Again: white sandy beach, insanely blue water and relaxing music. Oh, and a very cool pool bar.

We set over to have lunch and enjoyed some scrumptious tacos, totally alone in the restaurant,

7. Enjoy Caye Caulker's sunsets

While most of the restaurants, hotels and cabans are located on the East side of the island because it's supposed to be prettier (the white sand and turquoise waters are mostly found here), it's obviously a good idea to find a good spot ont the West side as well: beautiful sunsets await you!

Our favourite spot with good music, tasty little snacks and a mean Piña Colada was the Pelican Sunset Bar.

Awesome thing to do on Caye Caulker that you might want to skip

The Great Blue Hole

Yes, it's mythical and famous.

No, it's not interesting at all. It is incredibly expensive to fly above it, which is the only way to actually see the hole. There are boats leaving from Caye Caulker bringing you to the hole but from up close, you can't even see it.

Divers find it boring. Even the experimented ones. Due to a high percentage of sulfur down there, there's just no sea-life to watch. No corals either cause they need sunlight and the bottom here is just too deep. There's dark grey sand on the ground. That's it.

When arriving in Belize by plane, depending on what side you are sitting, it is even possible to spot the Great Blue Hole from above - for free!

Eat at the Lazy Lizard at the Split

Again: if spring-break-like partying is your thing, you should definitely come here. But please don't come for the food: it's quite mediocre and insanely expensive.

They built out the 'lazy lizard' as a whole brand, including t-shirts and gadgets with the green logo (the lizard - duh!) and you pay for that name and fame.

Just go a bit further down the village, preferably even in a side-street, and the food-quality increases while de prices go down dramatically.

Last awesome thing to do on Caye Caulker

Don't think of anything else. Just 'go slow', relax, breathe, eat good food, have interesting conversations and just savour your time on Caye Caulker.

I hope you enjoyed this short-list of awesome things to do on Caye Caulker.

Don't hesitate to comment or send us a message with your thoughts.

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As ever

xx

Cyn

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