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Placencia on the Belize Map

Placencia is a small peninsula measuring about 1 mile across and 16 miles north and south attached to the southeastern corner of Stann Creek District in southeastern Belize. Placencia is approximately 160 miles (by land) south of Belize City and 33 miles south of Dangriga, the capital of Stann Creek District.

Placencia Peninsula

Due to its unique geography, the Placencia Peninsula offers visitors two very different terrains. On the landward side, the peninsula is bordered by several mangrove-lined lagoons, known for their rich abundance of fishing opportunities. The seaward side fronts the Caribbean and offers spectacular vistas and easy access to the nearby Belize Barrier Reef. The beaches of Placencia Peninsula are renowned for their pristine beauty.

Placencia Village

Located at the southern part of the peninsula where it joins the mainland, the small village of Placencia is still primarily a fishing-oriented community. With the advent of tourism into the area, the village is now home to ATMs, restaurants, cafes, luxury resorts, and dive shops.

Placencia Belize Weather

Like the rest of Belize, the Placencia Peninsula enjoys warm temperatures all year-round. The green season runs approximately from May to November, with heavier rains usually found in September and October. Daytime temps average between about 70F (21C) to 83F (28C) and nights range from about 70F (20C) to 77F (25C).

Placencia on the Belize Map (see photo above)

If you look at southeastern Belize and can find the Stann Creek District, it is very easy to spot the Placencia Peninsula. Shaped roughly like a boot with the toe pointing towards the mainland, the peninsula is at the very bottom of Stann Creek District right where it meets Toledo District.

Where to stay in Placencia Belize

Due to its beautiful beaches and fantastic views of the Caribbean, the peninsula has become a growing tourist hotspot. One of the finest resorts on the peninsula is Chabil Mar, which offers guests modern luxury in fully-equipped villas just a few minutes’ beach stroll from Placencia Village.

With close access to some of the finest attractions on the mainland like the Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary and just minutes away from some of the most beautiful parts of the Belize Barrier Reef, the Placencia Peninsula has become a popular destination in recent years. When not exploring the mainland or the offshore reefs, visitors can relax on one of the many fine beaches, learn more about the Garifuna culture, or pass the time away in one of the bars and restaurants on the peninsula.

Visit our website chabilmarvillas.com for more information on Placencia, and don’t hesitate to send us an email, or call US/CAN Toll Free: 1-866-417-2377, Local: (011-501) 523-3606, if you have questions or need help in planning a Placencia Belize vacation.

Perhaps one of the most popular and iconic locally-made drinks in Belize is rum. Made from the abundant sugar cane crop that still plays an important role in the domestic economy, rum is a distilled spirit that pairs excellently with fresh, locally-grown fruits to create unforgettable cocktails or can be consumed neat. Famed throughout the region for its high quality and smooth taste, Belizean rum is something that every visitor is encouraged to try.

Currently, two different domestic manufacturers offer an excellent selection of fine rum in Belize.

Cuello’s Distillery

Founded more than 70 years ago, Cuello is a family-owned and operated business. Based in the town of Orange Walk in the heart of Belize’s sugar cane farming region, Cuello was founded by Ignacio Cuello, a master blender and distiller who later trained his sons in the secrets of how to produce high-quality rum and other spirits. Cuello has their own festive theme song that was composed by celebrated local artist Lord Rhaburn, and the labels on all of their rum varieties celebrate Belizean culture.

Cuello’s signature rum products include:

• Caribbean White Rum
• Caribbean Rum (Dark)
• Caribbean Gold Rum
• Extra Strong Rum
• Caribbean Coconut Rum

Travellers Liquor

Founded in 1953 by master blender Omario Perdomo, Travellers is the manufacturer of what is perhaps the most famous rum in Belize: One Barrel. A simple gold rum with a smooth finish, One Barrel is a popular choice with both visitors and locals alike. With a fresh, tropical scent, One Barrel rum has natural hints of passion fruit, hibiscus, and papaya.

Travellers Liquor is named for its early success in supplying travelers to and from Belize City with a fine assortment of distilled spirits. Travellers is renowned in Belize for using only high-test molasses, carefully fermented according to traditional practices. Travellers is also the only beverage producer in the country to make liqueurs and wines made from local fruits.

Located in Belmopan, the capital of Belize, Travellers use only local molasses to ferment and then distill their rum using a triple column still. The rum is then carefully aged and bottled in Belize City.

A few of Travellers’ most popular rum varieties include:

• Don Omario Vintage Rum
• Aged Dark Rum
• Classic Gold Rum
• Cristal Parrot Lite Rum
• Classic White Rum
• Kuknat Rum (made with coconuts)

Copalli

Copalli is among the best rum brand available not only in Belize but also in the world. Their organic single estate rum is sustainably crafted with only three ingredients in the heart of the rainforest in Southern Belize. A few of Copalli’s most popular rums include:

The Copalli White Rum

After fermenting the fresh-pressed sugar cane juice, the Copalli white rum distills in both a pot and column stills before blending the two distillates. This is followed by the resting of the finished product in stainless steel. This creates a smooth white rum that’s as good served straight on the rocks or in a cocktail such as a daiquiri.

The Copalli Barrel Rested Rum

First, Copalli ferment the fresh-pressed sugar cane juice then they double distill it in their full-bodied pot still before resting it in American Oak used bourbon barrels. The result is a rich, sweet high-quality rum that tastes delicious, and neat and is a powerful and flavorful base for your favorite rum cocktail.

The Copalli Cocoa Rum

Copalli takes their delicious Copalli white rum, place it into a tank to rest with roasted, 100% organic cacao nibs grown on the neighboring Copal Tree Farm. Over several weeks, the cacao nibs infuse a rich chocolate flavor and aroma into the rum, which is then redistilled to create a smooth finished premium product that is delicious on the rocks or for your favorite rum cocktail recipes.

Big Titty Rum

Rum and pirates color the history of the entire Caribbean and Belize is no exception. Pirates gave pet names to the rums of various ports of call. Legend has it that pirates amused by the local practice of mothers dribbling rum on their breasts to calm teething babies named Belize rum “titty rum”. Big Titty Rum honors this fine tradition.

Big Titty Rum is more than just a cute name. They take this craft seriously. But, in matters of taste, there can be no dispute. 

Savor a Rum Cocktail at Chabil Mar

If you’re interested in sampling one of Belize’s classic rum formulations, the bar at the Chabil Mar resort in Placencia offers a full complement of delicious cocktails made from 100% Belizean rum. Travelers and guests interested in trying Belizean rum or other locally-made spirits should inquire at the bar in Chabil Mar.

Visit our website chabilmarvillas.com for more information on Belize, and don’t hesitate to send us an email, or call US/CAN Toll Free: 1-866-417-2377, Local: (011-501) 523-3606, if you have questions or need help in planning a Belize vacation.

Because the international airport is located in the northern part of the country, many visitors overlook the majestic beauty and exciting attractions in southern Belize.

Belize is a small country, so the southern region can be reached in just a short drive of two to three hours. Whether it’s gorgeous Caribbean beaches, vast wildlife refuges, fragrant citrus plantations, or the softly rolling slopes of the Maya Mountains, southern Belize has a lot to offer.

Some of the top southern Belize attractions include the Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary (CBWS). Just a short distance from the Placencia Peninsula, the CBWS measures more than 150 square miles (400 square km) of trackless wilderness, including mountains, jungles, savannahs, beaches, and waterfalls. Although rarely spotted in the daytime, the CWBS is also home to hundreds of jaguars which are continuously monitored by conservation scientists.

Other attractions in southern Belize include boat tours along the very well-named Monkey River. Heading upstream from the coast, the Monkey River passes through some of the wildest, most unspoiled jungle terrain in Belize, a great place to see exotic birds and animals in their native habitats, including, of course, troops of black howler monkeys.

And not to be outdone are the world-class scuba diving and snorkeling sites located on the southern end of the Belize Barrier Reef, the largest coral reef system in the Americas. There are several protected marine areas in the reef, making it an ideal place to see huge schools of tropical fish, sea turtles, rays, sharks, manatees, and even dolphins.

If you’re interested in touring southern Belize, you should definitely stay at Chabil Mar. An oasis of luxury, this southern Belize resort features elegant villas fully equipped with all modern conveniences, two freshwater infinity swimming pools, a lush tropical garden, and a gourmet restaurant.

Chabil Mar is located on the Placencia Peninsula in southern Belize, often called “the island you can drive to” because of its golden sand beaches and narrow connection to the mainland. In the Mayan tongue, “Chabil Mar” means “Beautiful Sea,” a very apt description for the turquoise Caribbean Sea that borders Placencia’s eastern shore.

Chabil Mar regularly organizes tours to top activities in the region, including scuba diving and snorkeling on the reef, expeditions to the Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary and Monkey River, visits to Mayflower Bocawina National Park, and explorations of ancient Maya sites like Nim Li Punit and Lubaantum.

On your vacation to southern Belize, stay at Chabil Mar.

Belize is blessed by the presence of the Belize Barrier Reef, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and the second-largest barrier reef in the world. A complex marine ecosystem that is home to nearly one-quarter of all the marine species in the world’s oceans, understanding the difference between the atolls and the reefs is quite subtle.

Reefs are made from a living animal, the coral, which regularly produces a hard exoskeleton of calcium carbonate, the same substance that composes the shells of mollusks and other kinds of shellfish. Over time, the exuded exoskeleton begins to build up until it appears like an underwater hedgerow or stony “bush” that serves as the home for a multitude of aquatic creatures, including fish, juvenile mammals, sharks, and a wide variety of flora that use the coral for shelter, as a nursery, or as a feeding ground.

It is the entirety of this coral exoskeleton and its attendant marine life that makes up the coral reef. An atoll, however, is a specific kind of coral reef. All atolls are reefs that form around the mouth of an underwater volcano, growing in a circular pattern. Due to the temperature changes and other ejecta from the volcano, atolls are generally lifeless, sometimes referred to as “underwater deserts.” Generally, coral reefs, on the other hand, are the complete opposite – home to some of the densest and most biodiverse collections of marine lifeforms.

Coral reefs can grow anywhere there is a hard foundation like limestone sea floors or sunken ships that are close enough to the surface of the water to allow access to sunlight. Coral reefs grow slowly, taking hundreds, if not thousands of years, to achieve their immense size. Indeed, the Belize Barrier Reef is easily visible from outer space. And marine biologists estimate that some coral reefs are up to a million years old.

Atolls, predominately found in the Pacific Ocean, are circular in shape, growing as they do around a lagoon created by submarine volcanos. When a volcano erupts, much of the ejected material settles on the sea floor. As these deposits continue, they can create enough material that the solid material rises above the surface of the water to create islands. After the material has cooled, coral reefs can begin growing on this material, eventually covering it completely and forming true atolls.

Chabil Mar offers organized tours and vacation packages to the most beautiful Belize atolls and the Belize coral reef.

For more information about Belize atolls and coral reefs, feel free to chat with our Concierge at: concierge@chabilmarvillas.com or contact our Reservations Manager at: reservations@chabilmarvillas.com. Or perhaps you would like to call toll free from the US or Canada: 1-866-417-2377.