The International Costa Maya Festival is one of the biggest annual celebrations in Belize. The highlight of this multi-day festival held every year in San Pedro on the island of Ambergris Caye is the highly competitive Reina de la Costa Maya beauty pageant which features a roster of beautiful, talented, and intelligent women from across Central America.
This year, Marcia Moody, a native of San Ignacio, will be representing Belize at the beauty pageant. A lifelong resident of Belize, Moody is 23 years old and holds a Bachelor’s degree in teaching. She was previously selected as the first runner-up in the 2016 Miss Universe Belize beauty contest.
Moody will be competing against Adriana Moya Alvarado (Costa Rica), Naydin Madeline Valladares Renderos (El Salvador), Hilary Cumings (Guatemala), Cynthia de la Vega (Mexico), and Emigdielys Arlyn Samaniego Batista (Panama) as well as candidates that have yet to be determined from Honduras and Nicaragua at the this year’s Reina de Costa Maya beauty pageant.
Last year’s Reina de La Costa Maya beauty pageant winner was Michelle Estrella Nuñez from Belize. Ms. Nuñez will be handing over her crown to the next Reina de La Costa Maya on Friday, August 3 in San Pedro.
The International Costa Maya Festival was first held in 1991 and is a celebration of the wider Maya culture in Central America known in Spanish as the “Mundo Maya.” Eight countries are home to the Maya people and each sends musical acts, artists, and other cultural representatives to the multi-day International Costa Maya Festival which is always held in San Pedro on Ambergris Caye in Belize.
In 2018, the festival will begin on Thursday, August 2, with the opening ceremony at 7:00 PM. Friday, August 3, will be when Marcia Moody competes in the La Reina de Costa Rica pageant. Saturday, August 4, is International Night when top music acts from across the region will perform. And Sunday, August 5, is the last day of the festival and when a big beach party will be held.
Chabil Mar Resort wishes Marcia Moody great success and welcomes International Costa Maya Festival attendees to visit Placencia when the event is over. The Placencia Peninsula in southeast Belize is home to some of the most beautiful beaches in the country and is located close to many of the top attractions in Belize, including ancient Maya ruins, the Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary, and snorkeling and scuba diving on the Belize Barrier Reef.
