Placencia

Introduction

Placencia is a small town located in the Stann Creek District of Belize. The eastern side of the Peninsula is a long expanse of white sand beach and heavy mangrove in some areas; the western side is bounded by a long narrow north-south trending bay of the Caribbean Sea. A significant settlement on the peninsula is the Garifuna village of Seine Bight.

Getting There

By Plane

There are flights to/from Belize City-International, Belize City-Municipal, Dangriga and Punta Gorda.

By Bus

Buses travel north towards Belize City and south towards Punta Gorda.

Getting Around

There are taxis, but you shouldn't need them except perhaps to/from the airstrip, which is only 10 minutes from town. "The Sidewalk" is a concrete pedestrian-only path that runs most of the length of the village, ending at the seashore. It is interesting to walk up and down and there are many businesses of all types along the way.

Eat

The best seafood is at Lost In Paradise Beach Shop & Pirates Grill, located on the sidewalk in Placencia. Great baja fish tacos, ceviche, shrimp cocktails, nachos, burritos, tapas and philly cheese steak subs, vegetarian meals. Great affordable meals, small location, great food on the go. Breakfast, Coffee and Wifi available.

Actually, you can find quite a bit of good food and a few places for great food. A few suggestions would be Barefoot Beach Bar for burgers, smoked fish, smoked chicken and cold beer. French Connection offers limited seating and astonishingly good food. Tratoria offers good Italian, there is another Italian place above Wallens Market, that's also quite nice. If you want to spend a lot of money you could visit one of the resorts, though it's not the best way to spend your money. De Tatch is the best place for local food. Seafood, chicken and daily specials reasonable.

Drink

The local coconut rum is surprisingly good, and happy hour at the Barefoot Beach Bar is the best place to be. They also have an excellent band on a Sunday evening, Inner Vibrations.

Sleep

Accommodation ranges from huts with shared "bathroom" to cabanas on the beach to guest houses to resorts. The resorts are north of the airstrip in Seine Bight and Maya Beach, and not really part of the village.

Keep Connected

Internet

Internet cafés can be found at most major tourist destinations around Belize. Wi-Fi is also increasingly common, and many hotels are offering it for free. Rates at cybercafes run between BZ$2 and BZ$10 per hour.

Phone

See also International Telephone Calls

The general emergency number is 911. The country calling code to Belize is 501 and to make an international call from Belize, the code is 00.
Belize has a standardized seven-digit phone numbering system. There are no city or area codes to dial from within Belize.

Payphones are the most common public phones and accept pre-purchased phone cards.

If you bring your own cell phone, avoid roaming charges, as the bill for internet can add up quickly. Instead, use only wifi or buy a local SIM card.
Belize Telecommunications Limited (BTL) and their cellular division DigiCell have a virtual monopoly on cellular service in Belize. Luckily, DigiCell does have affordable packages for SIM card activation.

Post

Belize's postal service provides services throughout the country. Services are not very reliable though and it might take weeks for a postcard or letter to arrive at your destination. Post offices are generally open from 8:00am to 5:00pm, with a one hour lunch break starting around noon.
Most hotels will post a letter for you, and there are post offices in the major towns. It costs BZ$.80 to send a letter to the United States, and BZ$1 to send a letter to Europe. Postcards to the same destinations cost BZ$.40 and BZ$.50 respectively. If you want to send a package, it's better to use international companies like TNT, DHL, UPS or FedEx, as they are fast, reliable and not too expensive.

External Links