Belize Scuba Diving Trips – Frequently Asked Questions

Scuba Diving in Belize

Whether you’re so proficient at diving you could lead PADI certification classes or the last time you tried peering below water was as a child in a bathtub, there’s no denying that water sports are addicting — in some cases nearly as addicting as trivia. Can the two coexist? You bet. So while you’re planning your next diving escape to Belize, the epicenter of the sport, these tidbits can keep you entertained while you decide whether or not to pack a wet suit!

-West suits were invented in 1952 by a physicist named High Bradner.
-The acronym SCUBA stands for self-contained underwater breathing apparatus.
-Spit into your dive mask and it won’t fog up. A drop of liquid soap will suffice if spitting grosses you out.
-More people in the U.S. are killed by lightening than by sharks.
-Color looks different underwater. Water absorbs light so even bright hues look dull.
-The “Finding Nemo” art team had to take scuba diving classes to accurately portray underwater scenes.

Why does diving trivia matter?

Because divers love to interact with like-minded travelers, so when they check into Chabil Mar, the premier accommodation for aquatic sports enthusiasts, nothing makes a better social ice breaker than fun facts. Converse with guests at the open air Café Mar or Kaleidoscope Bar & Lounge and see how many of them are eager to share their own diving trivia. You won’t be surprised to learn that a significant number of them choose Chabil Mar simply because the resort’s Belize diving packages are the best of the best.

Belize Scuba Diving Trips
Don’t sweat the details: FAQs

Q: Are some months better than others to grab one of these packages?

A: Every month is a good month, but April to June is prime.

Q: Where do Chabil Mar diving tours take place?

A: Located along the Placencia peninsula, Chabil Mar offers prime access to the best dive spots, including the iconic Blue Hole. Stick around long enough and you could visit 20 named dive sites, including Gladden Spit.

Q: Will I need a wet suit?

A: Having learned who invented this gear, adding a short or long wet suit to your suitcase won’t take up much room, but year-round water temperatures are so comfortable, you might not need one.

Q: Must I run a separate tab for my accommodations, meals, and incidentals?

A: That’s the beauty of securing a Chabil Mar diving package: Not only do you get your fill of diving and snorkeling, but one price includes gorgeous accommodations, all meals (at the resort and on tours) and every expense associated with your excursions.

Belize Dive Resorts
Q: Do members of the Chabil Mar staff oversee these diving adventures?

A: The resort partners with Placencia Village businesses staffed with highly trained, certified scuba diving and snorkeling experts. These experts serve every level of diver and can even help visitors get their certifications.

Q: Are there any out-of-the-ordinary diving experiences available to Chabil Mar guests?

A: Come for the annual migration of whale sharks! The season runs from April to June and coincides with monthly moon phases. Check with Chabil Mar for 2022 dates to secure reservations before the resort fills up or call this toll-free number 1-866-417-2377.

Visit our website chabilmarvillas.com for more information on scuba diving in 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.

Celebrate Lobster Season in Placencia Belize

Placencia Lobster Season

Lobster is some of the most expensive and decadent seafood you’ll find, but it’s not a delicacy reserved for the wealthy in Belize. The residents of the southern fishing village of Placencia still survive on what they pull out of the water, and spiny lobster continues to be a meal worth celebrating. In fact, it might even be worth timing your trip to coincide with lobster season. That’s how big of a deal it is here.

When is Lobster Season?

Lobster season in Placencia Belize
Belize is more conscientious about employing environmentally conscious tools and methods for industry and tourism, and that extends to our fishing practices as well. While the Caribbean spiny lobster is abundant in the waters around Belize, it only stays that way because the Government of Belize limits when it can be hunted. This year, lobster season began on July 1 and runs until February 28 of next year — and that means that you should be able to find plenty of lobsters in Placencia’s restaurants as long as you visit before the middle of the spring. After that, lobster fishing is banned for the period of lobster mating season.

What is Lobster Fest?

Lobster in Placencia Belize
Belizeans love lobster and with good reason. Estimates state that it will earn the country a whopping $15 million in Belize dollars, and a lot of that has to do with Lobster Fest. As arguably the biggest event of the year, Lobster Fest is a celebration of everything about the inscrutable crustacean. The first Lobster Fest in Placencia was held in 1998, and it’s quickly become not just a beloved event for the locals but also a way to keep tourists coming in during the formerly slow summer season.

Placencia Lobster fest
This three-day event was cancelled last year because of the pandemic, and it looks like it won’t be happening this year either. But even if you don’t get the chance to see the pageantry of Lobster Fest this year, there are still plenty of reasons to come to Placencia. The Lobster Tour is one of them, and it features some of Placencia’s top restaurants — putting a spotlight on their menu and their approach to serving lobster in particular. It’s a great way to catch specials and deals.

Lobster Fest may not be happening this year, but the lobsters aren’t going anywhere. Take a trip down to Belize to see what you’re missing and to taste some of the most delicious food you’ve ever had. And stay in Chabil Mar if you want to be treated like you’re royalty while you’re here.

Placencia Belize Lobsterfest

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.

Placencia Belize: The Honeymoon Destination Made For You

The Best Place To Honeymoon in Belize In 2022

Imagine a tropical destination that never requires you to board a boat, positioned alongside the Caribbean Sea in a country less than two hours from the United States. That’s the Placencia Peninsula. This thin strip of land stretches a full 16 miles from north to south, though it rarely extends beyond a half-mile in width. The beach is always in reach — along with excursions out to the Belize Barrier Reef, journeys into the interior to explore the wild jungle and the food and culture of the various villages up the coast.

Yet despite all this, Placencia Peninsula — and the town of Placencia Village which is its major cultural and commercial hub — manages to maintain a sleepy and inviting vibe. The tourist industry has developed enough to offer all the comforts and amenities you could want, but the area has yet to lose its rustic charm or become overwhelmed with foreigners and tourist traps. Placencia Village’s main street has been recognized by the Guinness Book of World Records as the smallest in the world, and you’re more likely to see people navigating the peninsula in a golf cart than you are to see them in a conventional car.

In other words, it’s the perfect place to unplug and forget about life back home — and the perfect place to attune yourself to that special someone. Fortunately, it’s a philosophy that the locals understand well. Because while Placencia has yet to be overwhelmed by the tourist industry, the area still has a reputation for both its friendly residents and its thoughtful hospitality industry. It’s also a region that’s proud of its ecological tourism. It’s a movement that Belize has been proactive in fostering, so that each new generation can let their love blossom into full bloom here.

Best Belize Honeymoon destinations
The region’s most romantic resort is arguably Chabil Mar. Positioned directly on the beach, this boutique resort is small enough to offer you a personalized Belize honeymoon experience — and our seasoned and knowledgeable local staff can make sure that all the little details fall perfectly into place. Fortunately, you don’t have to do any planning if you don’t want to. Chabil Mar’s Belize honeymoon packages are distinct and varied enough to suit just about any couple — from the outdoor adventurers hoping to venture into the Stann Creek District to the beach bums who would like to spend a full week island hopping. Belize may not be an especially big country, but the opportunities for adventure are huge. Can you imagine a more promising way to begin the adventure called marriage?

For more information about visiting Belize for your honeymoon , 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.

6 Ways to Make Your Belize Honeymoon Unforgettable!

belize honeymoon

The cake is history. So are champagne toasts. Even the bridal bouquet has a new home. What began with a kiss, ended with “I do,” and as you two head for your Belize honeymoon, you’re probably so tired, all you want to do is sleep! Give it a day. You’ll both be eager to make memories—especially if you booked your romantic stay at Chabil Mar Villas, where honeymooners go for seclusion, pampering and superior hospitality. Once you’ve caught your breath, the Chabil Mar team stands ready to send you off on adventures that turn ordinary honeymoons into spectacular ones.

Swim with the fishes

belize barrier reef

Marine reserves throughout Belize amaze honeymooners eager to see so many undersea wonders. Observe them from a boat or jump into the water, especially around the Belize Barrier Reef where you can swim with giant Tarpon, flirt with stingrays and Eagle Rays and introduce yourselves to dolphins and barracuda if they happen to swim by. There’s a manatee refuge, too. With hundreds of species of marine life, the only witnesses to your undersea hugs, Belize’s underworld adventures could be the highlights of your stay!

Meet the animals

Belize Jaguar

Not every honeymoon couple is eager to roam jungles and rainforests in hopes of spotting Belize’s big cats, howler monkeys and other animals indigenous to this region so opt for a Belize Zoo and Tropical Education Center experience. Wear good shoes to explore all 29 acres of savannas and exhibits and do ask your guide to point out the orphans, critters born at the zoo, lovingly rehabilitated creatures and animals received as gifts from other zoological societies. Identify all 125 of Belize’s indigenous animals housed at the zoo and impress your new spouse.

Experience Belize’s past

cahal-pech maya site

Long before Belize became a melting pot of diverse peoples and cultures, generations of Mayans roamed the land. They disappeared without a trace, leaving behind spectacular vestiges of palaces, temples, ball courts and artifacts that are mysterious, exotic and priceless. If you’re both curious and eager to learn more about the Mayans, explore some of Belize’s best ruins, caves and compounds. The Chabil Mar team recommends Xunantunich, Lubantuum and Nim Li Punit and can make arrangements to get you to one–or all three.

Dive in

Dive coral James Chabil Mar Resort Belize

It’s time to find out how daring each of you can be by visiting The Big Blue Hole, a natural wonder comprised of collapsed undersea caves that left a perfect circle in the ocean that’s 1,000 feet across and 412 feet deep. Maintained by the Belize Audubon Society, it was a favorite of iconic marine biologist Jacques Cousteau and a world-class dive experience that attracts people from around the world. If just the thought of dropping into this vast hole is scary, have Chabil Mar staff book a helicopter so you two can see it from the air instead.

Stroll Placencia

placencia-belize

Still recovering from wedding shopping? You may have told friends you’ve had enough, but you’re sure to change your mind if you visit Placencia Village, an epicenter of fun that is part of the reason Placencia took a prestigious travel award for being a top Caribbean destination. Because Chabil Mar is close to the village, you won’t have to go far to discover quirky shops, indulge in world-famous Belize chocolates, tour art galleries, check out pubs and indulge in delicious local foods. If you haven’t yet thanked your parents for throwing you the wedding of your dreams, pick out gifts for them here in Placencia Village to show them you were raised right.

Get your romance on

belize romantic resorts honeymoon

We think Belize sunsets are extraordinary. Our beaches are pristine. Belize’s sultry shoreline begs couples to stroll hand-in-hand along Placencia’s 16 miles of sand. You’re here for romance, so take full advantage of intimate moments and lush enclaves on Chabil Mar grounds or sail along the shoreline in a private boat provisioned with picnic foods, cold beer, rum punch and anything else you desire. Since Chabil Mar staff specializes in romance, find out why so many honeymooners recommend this resort to friends after they return home!

For more information about visiting Belize for your honeymoon , 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.

 

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Forget Disney: Belize Family Vacations Can Make Your Kids Smarter

“Parent’s” magazine has been dispensing advice for decades, so when writers like Hollee Actman Becker are given opportunities to see how family members benefit from taking vacations together, she put her own kids on a plane to test the theory. They flew south. On their return flight, her kids’ eyes sparkled as they asked, “When are we going again?”.

The glow in their eyes was no accident. It’s the look kids get when they’ve been pried away from electronics devices and delivered to a beautiful place where television pales in comparison to marine life of a great barrier reef. Staff at Chabil Mar Resort in Placencia, Belize are familiar with that look. That’s why they have carefully crafted family vacation packages designed to suit people of all ages and interests.

Family vacations up a family’s HQ (Happiness Quotient)

British child psychologist Oliver James states, “Family holidays are valued by children, both in the moment and for long afterward in their memory.” He says that traveling boosts a child’s brain development thanks to sensory experiences (like sailing, diving, experiencing wildlife in their own habitats) and cultural ones (meeting people with diverse backgrounds, beliefs, practices, and even foods).

Dr. Margot Sunderland agrees. She says family vacations are “associated with higher IQ in children,” so a trip to Belize could make your kids smarter while you and your spouse get the respite you need. How smart? Find out for yourself by coming to Chabil Mar where recreational opportunities are everywhere you turn.

Oh, the places you’ll see!

-Stroll Placencia Village so the kids learn about Belizean culture—no geography class substitutes.
-Visit ancient Mayan Ruins, some of which contain the skeletal remains of sacrificial victims.
-No kid takes a Belize chocolate tour pass where parents say yes to sampling.
-Cockscomb Basin, the only jaguar preserve on the planet, teaches kids that not all Jaguars are cars!
-Invite the kids to chat up the noisy Howler Monkeys on a Monkey River visit.
-Introduce them to kayaking and scuba diving on visits to Laughing Bird or Silk Cayes.

Belize vacation packages are amazing


At Chabil Mar, vacation packages for families are so popular, parents have taken their children out of school for visits because they know that classroom lessons don’t hold a candle to what they can learn on a visit to a country like Belize. The entire family can spend quality time together within the large, luxurious accommodations at Chabil Mar that are guaranteed to bring all family members closer.

Expect to be impressed by the number of extras you and your family enjoy at single package pricing when you browse this web page with your children. If that doesn’t convince you to start planning right now, we are pretty sure your children will make a convincing argument for a family vacation!

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