When a travel magazine finds a secret treasure, that secret doesn’t remain so for long, which is why Darlene Perrone, publisher of the 10-year-old Destination Travel Magazine, decided to dedicate seven pages to Chabil Mar Resort, a Belize boutique hotel that is starting to run out of places to display its awards. The seven page spread is a focal point for the magazine’s April issue (http://destinationstravelmagazine.com/April2015/#/64).

Both Althea Schable, reservations manager and Natalie Ranguy, guest services manager, are no slouches in the awards department, either. Both have been named Frontline Person of the Year, but if you ask about their honors, both modestly defer to the star of the show: the resort itself, located on Placencia Peninsula Road.

“We pride ourselves on the highest level of personal service, consistent with our Guest Exclusive Resort Policy,” explains Schable. “Everything is personalized here, from the booking to the pampering. Because we’re small, we can offer every guest complete privacy and what we call barefoot boutique luxury that extends from our richly appointed rooms to our onsite cuisine.”

“I don’t wonder Chabil Mar was picked for the April Destination Travel Magazine spread,” adds Ranguy. “We’ve been given TripAdvisor Traveler’s Choice awards for nine consecutive years, Fodor’s bestowed a “Choice for Luxury” designation on us and the Belize Tourism Board gave us kudos for our outstanding service.”

Located on an 18-mile peninsula that runs parallel to the Belize mainland, Chabil Mar is just a ¾ mile stroll to the center of Placencia Village where around 1,500 people reside. The resort offers unique amenities like a private pier, 400 feet of Caribbean beachfront and just 19 individually designed and secluded villas for guests.

Fine dining, lush gardens and infinity pools create an exclusive playground for a handful of guests, so leaving the premises is completely optional.

“Destination Travel is just the most recent publication to tell our story,” adds Ranguy. “We’ve been featured in magazines like America Airlines Magazine, GQ Magazine, Travel Age West, US News and World Report and on TV shows like Wheel of Fortune and The Price is Right. Our honeymoon suite is particularly romantic and private. It’s like nowhere else on Earth.”

Chabil Mar is a privately owned resort located in the Stann Creek District of Belize. It opened its doors in 2005 and has built an international reputation since that time. Historically, Chabil Mar—Maya for “Beautiful Sea”—is nestled between a Garifuna settlement and the former Creole fishing village of Placencia and in close proximity to ancient Maya ruins, rainforests, jungles and some of the best scuba and deep-water diving in the Western Hemisphere.

For more information about the resort, visit https://chabilmarvillas.com/ or call (011 501) 523–3606. If calling from the U.S. or Canada, use Chabil Mar’s toll-free number: 1-866-417-2377.

You should probably stop reading now if your idea of an idyllic vacation includes grandiose hotels, stylish restaurants that require reservations days in advance and if you are enamored of an environment in which you’re busy night and day! On the other hand, if the idea of a boutique Belize resort that’s so small and exclusive you could blend into the gorgeous scenery intrigues you, keep reading. Small pleasures can mean the difference between a forgettable holiday and one that’s so remarkable, you’re willing to pay your airline a fee to change your flight to a later date!

If you’ve dashed around Europe and awakened each day wondering where you are, you’re not alone. Choose Belize for your destination and this eminently manageable country is going to give you experiences unlike anything you recall, because proximity spells accessibility. Use the exclusive Chabil Mar as your home base and you’re a short drive or walk from a wealth of attractions and sites, which is just one of the reasons TripAdvisor gave this Belize resort a 2015 Traveler’s Choice Award for the ninth consecutive year. Isn’t it time you visited a place small enough to explore everything within reach rather than whizzing by it all?

There are plenty of reasons to headquarter at Chabil Mar, not the least of which is its reputation for being the quintessential barefoot luxury guest resort. It’s small. Exclusive. You couldn’t get lost in a crowd if you tried. Check into the full service resort that’s just a ¾-mile stroll along the beach from Placencia Village and tuck into one of the 19 beautifully appointed villas on the property that sprawls along 400 feet of Caribbean shoreline. Chabil Mar’s tiny village-like setting has no shortage of amenities despite its size. Have your fill of time on the resort’s private pier, hire a boat, dip into two infinity swimming pools and stroll lush gardens before you taste yummy Caribbean cuisine at the Café Mar.

When you are ready to go out and about, there’s no better or more navigable haven than Placencia Village. With a population of just 1,500 Belizeans, your stroll to the town center quickly inserts you into a vibrant hub that’s far from madding crowds, yet the shops, stalls and attractions will feed your need for the flavor of Belize. Dare we mention the friendly, bi-lingual merchants? The Saturday town market is likely to have all of the souvenir and gift needs you require when you’re ready to come home, and once you’ve had your fill, stroll back to your beach umbrella to resume reading or snoozing.

The wealth of plants and wildlife found within Belize (60-percent of the country is forested) is astonishing and shouldn’t be missed. See exotic birds, 4,000 species of flowers (250 of them orchids), easily navigated caves and Maya archaeological sites that stun and inspire.

Organized tours take the work out of planning and there are so many opportunities to indulge in water sports close to Placencia and Chabil Mar, you needn’t worry about spending half your holiday getting to and from them. Kayaks and canoes get you inside caves, down rivers, around lagoons and through forests where waterfalls await. Miss opportunities to visit the underwater world off Belize? Not a chance.

From vividly-colored fish, 100 kinds of coral and undersea caves that leave experienced divers and snorkelers speechless, you may even find yourself alone under the turquoise sea, so feel free to claim it as your peronal, private domain. After all, who’s there to challenge you?

Did somebody say chocolate? Is it true that there’s an entire festival devoted to chocolate on Belize? Yes, the rumor is correct and if you are not beyond catching planes to indulge, book your passage now so you claim your share of the calories and the fun. No need to tell your dentist you’ll be attending this year’s Chocolate Festival. Just bring your toothbrush. He doesn’t need to know what you were doing between 22nd and 24th May 2015.

Which came first, the chocolate or the cacao plants? Every May, Belize celebrates a huge cash crop. The Toledo Cacao Fest was always scheduled for the third week of May to coordinate with Sovereign’s Day on or about 24 May. Political happenings notwithstanding, the celebration’s focus and name have been changed with some frequency over time, until the Belize Tourism Board and National Institute for Culture and History decided to halt the confusion. These days, it’s called the 7th Annual Chocolate Festival of Belize.

A little history: Once upon a time, the Toledo District was home to poverty-stricken people working a flagging crop, but a fortuitous confluence of conditions and imagination lead Belize leaders to evaluate the area’s soil and prioritize a crop that makes environmental sense—cacao beans. All of this came about in 1984 when the Toledo Cacao Growers Association (TCGA) was launched. Because the climate and soil in Toledo are idyllic, entrepreneurs set about planting cacao terroir, a unique bean capable of producing some of the most delicious chocolate food products on the planet.

Festival side shows: The Belize chocolate festival can turn into something of a free-for-all, where gambling, kids mechanical rides, exhibits and displays focus on indigenous Maya culture and the ubiquitous mega-chocolate party that dominates Punta Gorda Town. Expect to find street stalls selling everything from barbeque to crafts and drumming lessons. Toledo’s central plaza and outlying areas will be festooned with decorations. Merchants sell local beers and spirits from beneath tents and crowds are entertained by rap music-playing DJs. If you miss the festival’s wine and chocolate event at Garbutts Marine on Friday, 22nd May, from 6 p.m. to 11 p.m., you might have to live the remainder of your life with mega-regrets.

But where’s the chocolate? In a word, everywhere! Amble around the town central and peripheral festival areas and you will run into products, samples and even chocolate literature. Watch demonstrations on how cacao is processed and used in recipes and products that are putting Belize on the map. Snack on regular food—tamales and empanadas first so you don’t become delirious from the chocolate rush that could come from consuming too many chocolate-laced foods and drinks that include chocolate wines and stout.

Who should you blame? A select group of manufacturers are at the heart and soul of the Belize chocolate industry and the festival. Ix Cacao is a family business headquartered in San Felipe and known for intensely-flavored chocolates infused with all-spice, local vanilla, organic orange peel and baalam nut. Kakaw Chocolate, located on Ambergris Caye, not only produces chocolate products for resale but operates a yummy beach boutique. Goss Chocolates, founded when the first Cacao Fest was staged in 2007, is the company to turn to if European chocolates, delicate milk chocolates and specialty items like truffles are on your radar. Finally, Cotton Tree Chocolate makes little chocolate barrels filled with rum and they also sell cocoa bean jewelry!

Are you ready to spend three whole days in a haze of chocolate? Just nod “Yes” and then find out more about the 2015 festival here: http://chocolatefestivalofbelize.com/. Oh, and don’t worry about what to pack. Just grab anything with an elastic waistband.

Contact us today for more details on the Chocolate Festival of Belize.