Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
1
The north side
The north side, which unfolds north of the Swing Bridge, is the city's more upmarket
area, dotted with the pricier hotels and international restaurants, as well as the superb
Museum of Belize
. Here you'll also encounter the advance guard of trinket sellers,
street musicians, hustlers and hair-braiders, announcing you're near the
Tourist Village
(see below) and Belize's
cruise ship terminal
, which often handles thousands of visitors
in a single day. Look out to sea - you'll almost always spy at least one or two massive
cruise ships floating on the horizon.
The north side is also where you embark on boats to the cayes (see p.52): immediately
to the north of the Swing Bridge is the
Caye Caulker Water Taxi Terminal
and slight
further west is the
Marine Terminal
.
Memorial Park and around
On the seafront, just north of Radisson Fort George Hotel
The sea-facing
Memorial Park
honours the Belizean servicemen of World War I with a
series of memorial plaques. On the park's seaward edge,
Marine Parade
marks an
ongoing massive civil engineering project; a
seawall
stretching hundreds of yards along
the shore towards the
Princess Hotel
has reclaimed over fourteen acres of shallow sea,
and is now used as a boulevard and pedestrian promenade. Just beyond the
Princess
, the
attractive seafront
BTL Park
was built on land reclaimed much earlier; it was here that
Charles Lindbergh landed the
Spirit of St Louis
, the first aeroplane to touch down in
Belize, in 1927. The BTL Park, which is undergoing further expansion, is a popular
meeting spot, and often hosts open-air concerts and other civic events. The biggest
party takes place during the Independence Day celebrations in September.
Tourist Village
Fort St • 8am-4pm, only when cruise ships are in port, which is usually during the week, but this varies
Catering to cruise ship passengers, the Tourist Village is filled with stalls and shops,
many selling un-authentic items - pricey jewellery and liquor - but tucked away here
and there, you can occasionally find some worthy souvenirs, like Belizean hardwoods
and colourful Guatemalan weavings. The adjoining cruise ship terminal is a long dock
with numerous outdoor restaurants and bars, serving burgers, tacos and, most
popularly, tropical cocktails. Note that just outside the Tourist Village, local vendors
have also set up a makeshift flea market, where you can buy local goods for
considerably less.
Fort George Lighthouse and Baron Bliss Memorial
Marine Parade, at the tip of Fort George Peninsula • Neither is open to the public
From the Tourist Village, the road follows the north shore of the creek mouth - an area
that was once Fort George Island until the narrow strait was filled in 1924 - eventually
reaching the
Fort George Lighthouse
, which looms over the Belize Harbour. The
lighthouse sits atop the tomb of and memorial to
Baron Bliss
(see box opposite), one of
Belize's greatest benefactors. Though neither is open to the public, the lighthouse rising
against the Caribbean is wonderfully photogenic - bring the camera.
The Museum of Belize
Gabourel Lane, at the north end of Queen St • Mon-Fri 8.30am-5pm • Bz$10 •
T
223 4524,
W
nichbelize.org
Built in 1857 and housing prisoners until 1993, this former colonial prison was
beautifully transformed and reopened as the
Museum of Belize
in 2002, the twenty-first
