Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
sticky coconut crust dessert, cooked outdoors on an open
fire.
Mon-Sat 11am-9pm, Sun 10am-3pm.
Thongs Cafe
Two blocks south of central junction
T
662 0110.
International breakfasts, baked goodies and
salads and sandwiches for less than Bz$15, in a cosy coffee-
shop setting. Dinners are served at the weekend, and
there's a small gift shop and free wi-fi.
Wed, Thurs & Sun
8am-2pm, Fri & Sat 8am-2pm & 6-9pm.
Main courses such as pesto-baked snapper, chicken
marsala or shrimp and chicken pasta cost around Bz$40,
while a mixed seafood sampler that includes lobster is
Bz$60. The chocolate pecan pie is to die for.
4-10pm;
closed Tues.
★
Chef Rob's Gourmet Café
Parrot Cove Lodge, south
of the road junction, Sittee Point
T
670 1529,
W
parrotcovelodge.com.
Dine beachside, tuck into a rib-
eye steak with spiced rum sauce or red snapper fillet with
lobster sauce, and enjoy a peaceful Hopkins evening.
Freshly sourced, with an emphasis on local produce, Rob's
creative four-course set menu changes daily, and costs
Bz$59, or Bz$79 if you opt for a luxury dish like his
Caribbean bouillabaisse.
Tues-Sun 12.15-9pm.
6
SITTEE POINT
Barracuda Bar and Grill
Beaches and Dreams Hotel,
Sittee Point
T
523 7259,
W
beachesanddreams.com.
Superb, creative Mediterranean and Caribbean food at this
beachside restaurant/lounge bar run by Alaskan chef Tony.
Sittee River
The pleasant village of
SITTEE RIVER
sits prettily on the north bank of its namesake
stream, a mile or so inland from the southern end of Hopkins, or five miles east of the
Southern Highway along its own unpaved access road. The river is a
wildlife
hotspot,
with excellent birding and a number of creeks and pristine lagoons revealing freshwater
crocodiles and turtles basking along the riverbanks. Should you spend much time in
the village, be warned that the
sandflies
can be atrocious; guesthouses provide screens
and mosquito nets for good reason.
Serpon Sugar Mill
1 mile off Southern Hwy, towards Sittee River • Daily 8am-5pm • Bz$10
Preserved as a roadside park with a small museum, the long-abandoned
Serpon Sugar
Mill
dates back to 1863, not long after sugar production had been introduced to Belize
by Maya refugees from Yucatán, and when demand was boosted thanks to the Civil
War in the US. It lasted until 1910, by which time it was clear northern Belize offered
much better conditions for growing sugar.
Now the site has largely returned to the forest, and what remains of the mill is rusting
and rotting amid the trees. Larger chunks of machinery stand crumbling on their
original brick foundations, while smaller bits and pieces have been strewn artistically
along the trails or arrayed on logs. Strolling around is enjoyable, but the primary reason
to stop here is not so much the mill itself as
birdwatching
; the woods here are alive
with birds of all kinds.
ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE SITTEE RIVER
By bus
Three daily buses between Dangriga and Placencia leave the highway to pass through Hopkins and Sittee River.
ACCOMMODATION AND EATING
Glover's Guest House
T
520 5016,
W
glovers.com.bz.
This very basic budget option serves chiefly as the base for
travellers taking the Sunday-morning boat out to its sister
property,
Glover's Atoll Resort
on Glover's Reef (see p.186).
Walk-ins are also welcome though, and there's a choice
between camping, a bunk bed in the dorm, or a shared-
bath room or en-suite private cabin. Staying two nights
earns you a third free, while there's a restaurant
and open-
air kitchen right on the riverbank. Camping per person
US$4.50
, dorms
US$10
, room
US$27
, cabin
US$43
Sir Thomas at Toucan Sittee
T
523 7039,
W
sir
-thomas-at-toucan-sittee.com.
Much the best
accommodation
in Sittee River, set on the riverbank and
complete with its own twenty-acre nature reserve where
the birding is fabulous; it's graced by toucans most
mornings, and one previous guest recorded 97 species in an
hour. Six solidly built raised bungalows have innovative
thatch and bamboo ceilings and exquisite hardwood
