The online travel magazine Travel Noire has named Belize one of the top destinations to escape to during the winter. That’s no surprise to us. There are many good reasons to visit Belize during the winter months. Here are just a few.

Belize Has Something for Everyone

Belize is the perfect destination for every traveler. If you enjoy outdoor adventures, you’re covered with incredible hiking, fishing, cave exploring, and wilderness treks. Do you enjoy immersing yourself in history and culture? Dive into Belize’s rich mix of cultures and its historical importance as a primary site of the Maya civilization. If you prefer taking it easy on the beach, welcome to some of the most stunning, white-sand beaches and easygoing beach towns in the world.

The Weather Is at Its Best

Belize is warm and sunny most of the year, but the weather is most pleasant from December through March. It’s not unbearably hot, and you can enjoy most outdoor activities. Average daytime temperatures are in the mid-to-high-70s. Ocean breezes make it enjoyable to walk around, hike, sail, go to the beach, or tour Belize’s many attractions. 

It’s the High Season in Belize

Winter is the main tourist season in Belize, but that doesn’t mean you’ll be surrounded by crowds. It never gets overly busy in this sparsely populated country where much of the natural land is wild and untouched. That just means everything is open, and you can do everything on your Belize bucket list.

Festival Fever Is Raging

Belize is known for its many colorful festivals, and the winter months are a wonderful way to experience Belizean cuisine, music, crafts, and history. It’s the only country with two major carnivals, the San Pedro Carnival and Fiesta de Carnaval, which are both in February. December brings the Maya Solstice Festival, a holiday boat parade, Christmas celebrations, and a Boxing Day festival. 

Make Your Stay Special at Chabil Mar 

To get the most out of your Belize vacation, stay at Chabil Mar. This luxurious, full-service resort is just steps from the gorgeous beaches of Placencia. Stay in a private villa with a private pier, award-winning restaurants, and guest-exclusive amenities. Check out our Belize vacation packages for a stay that’s truly special.  

The 17th annual Battle of the Drums Competition and Show is returning for the first time in two years since the pandemic hit and with only a few more days to spare, the tempo among competitors and spectators is growing by the minute as they await the return of one of the biggest cultural events in the country.

The Competition

The Battle of the Drums as it is known locally is scheduled to take place this weekend on November 12th at the Punta Gorda Sporting Complex. It is held annually the weekend prior to Garifuna Settlement Day celebration and is used as a means to pay tribute to the Garifuna people, and their culture through traditional music. With the event being put on pause for two years due to the pandemic and having to revert to online, this year’s celebration is promising to be the biggest yet, with not only local competitors but drummers from Honduras and Guatemala, for a face-to-face duel. The competition will include Garifuna musical genres in gunjei, hungu hungu, parranda, punta and punta rock subgenres.

History of the Battle of the Drums

First introduced on November 17th, 2006, the first competition was held in Punta Gorda Town, and having been well received among competitors, locals, and visitors the event was dubbed a major success. Within the following two years, word of the competition had not only spread across the country but in the neighboring Garifuna communities across the border in Guatemala and Honduras, sparking interest among drummers, and drawing a much larger audience. While the festivities serve as a venue to display the Garifuna culture and music, proceeds from the sale of tickets are used to fund Garifuna cultural projects within Punta Gorda Town and other communities.

History of the Garifuna People

The Garifuna people in Belize are descendants of a shipwreck slave ship who intermarried with the Arawak Indians of the island of St. Vincent in the Caribbean. To escape further persecution, they fled to Central America, Belize, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Guatemala. Over the years they have settled along the coast of Belize in areas such as Dangriga which is considered the cultural capital as well as Punta Gorda, Hopkins, Seine Bight, and other smaller communities in the south. Garinagu are a proud set of people who have managed to preserve their unique culture through songs, dance, food, and language. They mostly express themselves through their dance and music, which have specific functions and are embedded with their values, morals, history, and identity.

Where to Stay When in The South

Whether or not you can keep up with the fast-paced dancing and drumming, we can guarantee that by the end of the day you will be beaten by exhaustion and looking for that perfect escape. We suggest that you take advantage of our impeccable service at Chabil Mar. We pride ourselves in being a top-tier resort located in Placencia Village and within close proximity to Punta Gorda Town where the event is scheduled to take place.