Punta Gorda Belize

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Punta Gorda is a modest, easygoing town, with many colorful, fascinating people. This Belize island comprises of five main streets and only six districts; Stann Creek, Corozal, Belize,Toledo. Cayo, and Orange Walk. Punta Gorda commonly called P.G is situated on the far south of the country and is the capital of the detached and sparsely inhabited Toledo district. It’s the biggest town south of the country, in addition to being the primary town of Toledo the town is inhabited by Lebanese, East Indian, Chinese, Garífuna, Maya and Creoles who constitute more than half the population. Just as other regions of Belize, Punta Gorda was a port to take mahogany from the jungle to the sea, to be transport to Great Britain, and many other British colonies.

English is the primary language there, but there are a few local languages spoken among the residents. Although P.G. doesn’t have the beaches like Placencia, there are a lot of piers from which to you can swim out in to the beautiful blue waters of the Gulf of Honduras. An exquisite town, a fine portion of Punta Gorda’s appeal is in its modest character. Punta Gorda is a harbor and fishing town. It was once a little fishing village prior to being inhabited by Honduras Garifuna emigrants in 1823.

Once in Punta Gorda you’ll enjoy the best of both worlds, because there’s a wide range of natural beauty and an exciting cultural diversity. The surroundings thrives on the modest climate, however one of the natural region blessings is a tourist’s nemesis; the rain. There’s no running away from the city’s wet weather because Punta Gorda is snuggled away in the wettest region of the whole country.

Although transport joining the south of Belize has developed, the Punta Gorda region is still unspoilt. It is an incredible place to come wish to conform to the rhythm of Belizean rural life.

Hotels in Punta Gorda

There are around twenty Punta Gorda Belize Hotels, inns, and guest houses in the Punta Gorda region and majority of them are inside the budget range. Just about half of these Punta Gorda Belize Hotels have online booking system. There are a couple of lodges and resorts in the region and also a lot of small and simple places to stay that at reasonable prices. It’s normally fine to just turn up and find places available at most of these Punta Gorda Belize Hotels, however during peak season this may turn out to be a problem, and since the city is very far there aren’t a lot of close backups.

In the center of Toledo District, is the Lodge at Big Falls that provides fast access to a lot of the inland attractions. The bird watcher’s heaven clings to the calm Rio Grande, with modern amenities in exquisite thatched cabanas, in addition to gourmet food and pool.

The Machaca Hill Lodge rests high over the Rio Grande, with smashing scenes of the gorgeous rainforest and Port Honduras Marine Reserve. Here you will sleep in luxury cabanas; eat in the fabulous restaurant; go kayaking and hang around the swimming pool.

A small haven near to the town is the captivating new Caribbean style Cottages cuddle comfortably in the jungle, towards Boom Creek.

When open, the 20-acre Orange Point Marina and Estates, south of Punta Gorda, will become the only high-end gated residential community and marina in southern Belize. Practically over the Moho River, on stilts and off grid, CottonTree Lodge has monkeys and birds, tours through Hokeb Ha Cave, and a thoroughly natural feel.

Comfortable rooms in town at the Sea Front Inn, named after local flora view the Caribbean, source of a constant sea breeze. The seaside Coral House Inn is an old 1930s house, beautifully remodeled with custom furnishings by local artisans, at the quiet end of Main Street.

On the fringes of town, you will discover Sun Creek Tours and Lodge and the new Beya Suites. At the Cuxlin Ha Resort and in Maya Village, guests live with the native people and learn more about their way of life and culture.

Punta Gorda Attractions

Once in town, a walk through Punta Gorda is the finest way to enjoy the Caribbean ambiance. One intriguing stop for those fascinated in the culture is the Kriol Museum. The museum has exhibits and items illustrating different views of day-to-day life of the local Creole citizen, in addition to information on their history, traditions, and culture.

This island is a popular place for a day or overnight trip of scuba diving, snorkeling, and sea-kayaking based on its location on the Bay of Honduras. A lot of tour operators normally take scheduled excursions off shore. For those who love nature, there is fantastic scenery and wildlife just about everywhere, like Blue Creek, Blue Creek Cave or the Sarstoon Temash Delta Wildlife Sanctuary.

There is great deal of ethnic marvels and natural adventures inside of Punta Gorda and the really adventurous may wish to tour this region on a mountain bike. The Toledo Botanical Arboretum is a big farm and botanic gardens; they produce over fifty kinds of tropic. The botanical garden is near to both the Kekchi Maya village and the Lubaantun ruins.

The Mopan Mayan village is the location for the Deer Dance, a nine day traditional Mayan cultural celebration, which occurs in late August to September. Although this ceremony concurs with a holy day, the Feast of San Luis, and its origins are conventional and Mayan.

Not one of Belize’s south ruins is as outstanding or beautifully remodeled like the more renowned locations in the north and west portions of the country. However, the old Maya did have real cities on the Belizean coast and many amazing reminders can be detected near Punta Gorda.

Lubaantun is the biggest of the Mayan ruins close by, namely Lubaantun in Yucatec Maya, meaning “Place of the Fallen Stones”, it is unique because the structures were constructed from cut and fitted limestone instead of the regular rock and mortar building technique. This place has five plazas and three ball courts. The old city’s center, and the existing architecture and urban abstract hold a good feel of the once aura of this Mayan ceremonial center. Lubaantun is situated about twenty miles North West of Punta Gorda, and just about a mile away from the village of San Pedro Columbia.

Nim Li Punit, meaning “Big Hat”, boasts twenty-five stelae the largest Maya carved stele in Belize is also included. This stele portrays a local ruler wearing a big wide diadem thus the name big hat. Nim Li Punit is a comparatively small place, with four plazas and one ball court. An astronomical observation area is located in one of the plazas. The eight sculpted stelae, and especially, stele 14, make this place a desirable stop. Nim Li Punit is situated roughly two miles away from the Southern Highway, close to the Indian Creek village and twenty-five miles North of Punta Gorda.

Dining in Punta Gorda

Although there is not many fine dining in and around Punta Gorda, there are many different restaurants that offer the normal Belizean, Caribbean and Garinagu dishes, including gibnut, a common rodent.

There is Marian’s Seaview Restaurant located on the seafront of Punta Gorda this restaurant has a view of the Gulf of Honduras and provides a many East Indian dishes like local curries and many other dishes not offered anywhere in town.

Then there is Emery’s Restaurant which provides many quality local dishes such as baked chicken and pork, fresh fish and garlic shrimp. Beers and drinks are readily available in addition to orange juice.

Marenco’s Ice Cream Parlour is a real spot to hang out for middle-class Belizeans, expatriates and travelers. You will be able to get local fry fish coming directly from Punta Gorda docks .The ice cream there is also wonderful.

Mangrove Inn overlooks the sea and has some of the best tasting food in town plus the menu is always changing.

Earth Runnings is also good to try. The menu there is interesting and nicely presented. Music from Bob Marley to Louis Armstrong to local songs is normally playing. During the evenings, local musicians might show up to entertain.

For those with cordial stomachs, or have lived in Central America for a while can eat the local panades or salbutes garnaches.

Nightlife in Punta Gorda

Nightlife in Punta Gorda Belize is relaxing; however there are a few bars with pool tables on some nights. Although they occasionally show sporting events at the Punta Gorda Sports Bar, it is actually a general nightspot with live bands, DJs, and karaoke nights. Another alternative downtown is the Titanic Bar. If you prefer to go further out there is the funky Ocean View Bar, which has a big outside dock into the sea. Lastly, there is Waluco’s which is north of town, here there are live music jam sessions, a local Punta Rock band, or a Garífuna drumming once in a while.

Shopping in Punta Gorda

Punta Gorda holds a lot of shops that mostly sell items such as pots, pans, a few articles of clothing, shoes and hammocks. A few shops sell hand-crafted arts as well. The Fajina Craft Centre sells traditional Maya crafts, jipijapa baskets, slate carvings and the traditional embroidered Maya blouses, shirts and wall hangings

The Jeweller on Main Street creates and sells traditional Maya earrings that they are rare in the world. Tienda La Indita Maya sells not just apparels and shoes, but some lovely wooden crafts such as bowls, jewelery and napkin rings.

Saturday, is the normal market day when villagers goes to town to sell their products. This is the perfect time to buy fresh fruits and veggies.

Weather in Punta Gorda

Punta Gorda is located in the lee of the Maya mountains and so it gets a lot more rainfall than North Belize. However this isn’t a problem because it is sporadic and comes in breaks during June to November which is the rainy season. The rain there is warm not like in London or Seattle, or even Vancouver. Rain and humidity are at their peak in the south and this occurs from June through to February. Once in Punta Gorda during this period be prepared for at least one brief downpour just about every day and some sensual weather condition in between. During the period of March to May is considered as the dry season since it is mostly warm and sunny. The temperature is normally in the range of 50°F to 95°F.

Transportation in Punta Gorda

The route to Punta Gorda is by means of the south highway. The other option to reach there apart from boat is flying. Punta Gorda is approximately a four hour drive away from Belize City and there’s an express bus that operates daily. The airstrip also has many regular flights from Belize City. Punta Gorda also has three water taxis from Puerto Barrios in Guatemala that runs daily, or straight from Livingston on Tuesdays and Fridays. The boats won’t operate if the weather is bad.

Punta Gorda is a little and walking town. There are five main streets namely Front, Main, Jose Maria Nunez, West, and Far West. Day activity tends to focus on Central Park on Main Street. A few Punta Gorda Belize Hotels provide free bikes for their guests; there is also bike hire service available.