Venture down Belize’s back roads to experience the people, language, food, watering holes, local festivals, and exotic destinations not found in any guide book. Tour with a team you can trust; with over 15 years experience working in the tourism industry, we’ve put our skills together to bring you the ultimate Belize tour packages! With us you will discover remote regions of Belize that only few people have ever had the pleasure to visit and enjoy touring these amazing destinations while learning about the customs and traditions of the Belizean people.
Visiting Maya Ruins in Belize with 5 Star Adventures
From the diverse traditions of the Mestizo and East Indian people to the unique customs of the Maya and the Garifuna tribes, we invite you to share the country’s rich history and get involved in the daily life of the various Belizean cultures we’ll come across during our tours.
Cave Tubing in Belize with 5 Star Adventures
At 5 Star Cave Tubing, we understand what you want and we know how to let you experience it safely. Our tours range from day trips zip lining and cave tubing, to quick trips to the Belize Zoo and nearby Mayan Ruins. Whatever you choose to do, experience it with 5 Star Cave Tubing – where your adventure starts with us!
Leonardo DiCaprio at the 2016 Our Oceans conference
Next year, renowned actor and keen environmental activist Leonardo DiCaprio is planning to open his Belize eco-resort, located on Blackadore Caye. Although “Blackadore Caye, a Restorative Island” was initially planned to open in 2018, the project was delayed twice—but it is now set for a 2020 opening.
His own private island
DiCaprio is among a rare group of leading A-list actors who are both outspoken about environmental issues and also active in prevention and finding solutions. He first visited Belize in 2005 and quickly fell in love with the country, its uniqueness (“it has some of the most biodiverse marine life”), and culture. Soon thereafter, DiCaprio (together with Cayo Espanto Island Resort owner Jeff Gram) purchased Blackadore Caye for a modest $1.75 million, with the goal of creating “something not just environmental, but restorative.”
The island itself, which is only 15 minutes from San Pedro by boat, was once a popular spot with passing fishermen and has been in use for hundreds of years. Sadly, over time, Blackadore Caye fell victim to overfishing and an eroding coastline; it has also suffered from the deforestation of its native mangrove trees by the passing fishermen who would use them for firewood. More recently, modern developers have been plundering the once-abundant palm trees on the island, uprooting them and using them for landscaping purposes in San Pedro hotels.
DiCaprio’s resort, then, will not just be an eco-friendly luxury getaway for the world’s wealthy, but it will also restore and regenerate the island and has the potential to “be ground-breaking in the environmental movement”.
Living Building
The first luxury resort of its kind to do so, Blackadore Caye has been designed to adhere to the ‘Living Building Challenge’—strict requirements that will keep it as environmentally-friendly as possible. As such, each property on the island has been optimised for energy efficiency with solar panels and circadian lighting. There are 36 bungalows, 36 villas and one hotel serving as the total accommodations on the island, all of which have incorporated the principle of sacred geometry in their designs.
The eco-resort will be a paradise for guests, with infinity pools, stunning views and artificial reefs and fish shelters visible from the sprawling villas. However, it is also sustainability-focused; the resort features hundreds of planted mangrove and palm trees, as well as a special nursery that has been created to grow indigenous marine grasses to support manatee conservation. Perhaps most vital to DiCaprio’s vision of transforming environmental awareness into strategic action is the one-half of the 104-acre island that will be dedicated as a wildlife preserve. It even houses a research station that will host vital ecological studies, and guests will be encouraged to work on restoration projects during their stay.
Eco-tourism plays a vital role in the Belizean economy
The Oscar winner’s eco-resort will no doubt play an important role in maintaining sustainable tourism here in Belize, which is a vital part of the country’s economy. Belize has had its fair share of environmental troubles in the past; however we’ve reached a turning point, and things are changing for the better. Individuals, brands and organisations across many sectors played their parts in caring for their local environments during World Earth Day in April, and that very same month a Belize-wide movement began to ban single-use plastic and Styrofoam in the country.
After six years of effort from scientists, researchers and conservation experts based in the country, it was also announced last month that the size of the nature reserves in the Great Barrier Reef will be tripled across the country’s territorial waters. This means that 10% of all Belize waters are now protected areas—an initiative that will surely contribute massively to the efforts to safeguard this precious reef.
Unique coral found in the barrier reef. Photo by Jayhem / CC BY 2.0
As demonstrated by the 2017 People’s Referendum that led to the ban on oil drilling and exploration near the reef, here in Belize we take the natural wonders of our country very seriously, and Mr. DiCaprio’s environmentally-focused initiative is more than welcome.
Four years ago, Belize Police Department Inspector Sherlet Ramclam’s boss returned from a 10-week law enforcement leadership training program in the United States called the FBI National Academy and shortly thereafter pushed for some changes within the Central American country’s ranks of more than 2,300 officers.
Sherlet Ramclam, an inspector for the Belize Police Department, with FBI Director Christopher Wray at the National Academy graduation on June 7, 2019, in Quantico, Virginia.
Last month, during her own 10-week tour as a student in the National Academy’s 276th class in Quantico, Virginia, Inspector Ramclam was moved to send a message to her boss to thank him for the work he was doing to push for institutional change.
“Everything that was mentioned in class is the way that we’re going,” Ramclam said. “I told him I appreciate it because now I’m seeing what he is doing and what his best interest is in for the department to move forward. I think that we’re in a better place now than we were a couple years ago.”
Driving that type of institutional evolution and connecting law enforcement agencies worldwide are among the goals of the National Academy, which today graduated 256 students, including 35 international law enforcement officers like Ramclam. The department in Belize has several National Academy graduates, but Ramclam is the country’s female police delegate.
A single mother of four born in the former British colony’s village of Independence, Ramclam knew early on hers would be a life of service to others. She was a youth leader in her church’s preschool for several years, leading kids on trips and into discussions of faith and community.
Sherlet Ramclam, Inspector, Belize Police Department
“I wanted to do something that would help people, to make their life better,” she said recently. “So I continued to search for something to help me do more for my country—not only for my community, but for my country.” She said it was a calling to become a police officer. “We do not choose,” she said. “We are called.”
That was 22 years ago, on May 11, 1997. Today she commands 42 police officers in Placencia, a coastal village popular with tourists on the Caribbean coast of Belize. She says her dual priorities are community policing to protect 6,000 residents and thousands more tourists and looking out for the officers under her. She also implores her officers to follow the golden rule to treat others as one would wish to be treated.
“That is a thing I try to instill in other people is don’t treat them badly,” Ramclam said. “I tell officers, ‘You need to deal with these guys because they are human beings. Today it might be them, but tomorrow it could be you or me.’”
A central goal of the National Academy is exposing students to a variety of fresh perspectives—offered up by the FBI’s instructors and their classmates—that might challenge long-held, institutional, or outdated views.
Sherlet Ramclam, an inspector for the Belize Police Department, overcomes an obstacle on the Yellow Brick Road, a 6.1-mile fitness course that is part of the National Academy’s training regimen.
“When creativity and innovation is stifled as a practice—not just accidentally but as a practice—you need that fresh perspective from other students, especially one of Sherlet’s experience and caliber, to really change those belief systems in a different way,” said Special Agent Christian Anglin, a National Academy supervisor and instructor.
For Ramclam, the biggest takeaway will be a renewed emphasis on officer wellness. During a recent class presentation, her group cited statistics showing the life expectancy of law enforcement officers to be 20 years less than that of civilians. They talked about the multi-disciplinary approach to wellness and the need to codify officer well-being into department policy. By focusing on officer wellness, Ramclam feels she will have a healthier workforce that can better project authority, command respect, and serve the community.
Sherlet Ramclam, an inspector for the Belize Police Department, poses next to a signpost on June 4, 2019, at the FBI’s National Academy in Quantico, Virginia.
Another foundational tenet of the National Academy is that bringing together police from disparate agencies and countries can pay huge dividends down the line for the agencies and the Bureau. Graduates can cite examples where complex cross-border cases were solved because they were able to call a classmate—or the FBI—to help run down leads or otherwise assist.
James Windsor, the FBI’s Mexico-based legal attaché for Belize, who invited Ramclam to study at the National Academy, said the relationship works both ways. “As crimes do occur in Belize in which the FBI has jurisdiction,” he said, “having a National Academy graduate there has shown to be incredibly useful in starting and continuing join investigative efforts.”
Ramclam said the National Academy also opened her eyes to new ways to get things done, from running a successful department to closing cases. “I think it’s a plus because so many times we have a case unsolved or we don’t know where to turn to,” she said. “But now we have an avenue where we can ask questions.”
Sherlet Ramclam attends the National Academy graduation on June 7, 2019.
Belize has a small and mostly private enterprise economy. It
is primarily based on tourism, agriculture and services. Despite having the
third highest per-capita income in Central America, there is a huge income
disparity between the rich and poor. Narrowing the gap and increasing equality
of income is a high point of interest for the government. High unemployment
rates are also a major concern.
Sports
Despite having very little financial backing from the
government, sports are a big part of Belizean culture. Many
people engage in water related sport activities as a hobby, especially since
more tourists started arriving, introducing the people from Belize with various
Western water sports. Soccer is the main spectator sport, but boxing,
basketball, track and field, soft-ball, and others are also popular.
Sportsbetting in Belize is very popular. One of the sites people like to use is
sport.netbet.ng.
Tourism
Due to the ideal geographical location and climate, tourism
is one of the main industries in Belize, and the fastest growing one. This
growth has positively impacted all other aspects of the economy. In 2012,
Belize welcomed over 1,000,000 tourists for the first time in recorded history.
Currently, over 25% of the population is employed within this industry.
Tanning on the beautiful sandy beaches, fishing, scuba
diving, walking through the vast jungle flora and fauna and exploring numerous
Maya ruins are one of the many activities you can enjoy. 2018 was an
outstanding and record-breaking year for tourism. In September alone, over 21,000
overnight visitors arrived in Belize.
Agriculture
The Belize government has set agriculture as their number
one priority for growth. It currently employs over one fifth of the population,
accounting for around 22% of the GDP. Severe droughts have negatively impacted
crops growth in the region. Belize has remained as the only country in CARICOM
to export food, and it’s very likely that it will become the only one in all of
Central America as well. CARICOM has a free-trade agreement with the EU, which
makes agricultural demand in Belize limitless.
Sugar is the main exporting product, accounting for around
50% of domestic export revenues. It is being produced in the north of the
country and is mainly being exported to the United States and EU. The second
largest agricultural export is fruit. Belize is rich with bananas, oranges and
grapefruits which are mostly grown in the Stann Creek Valley. Banana production
is the most significant, however, the export of bananas has recently dropped.
Manufacturing
Manufacturing such as food products, textiles, and
fertilizers accounts for one-eighth of the GNP. In late 20th
Century, the Belize government attempted to emphasize import substitution to
promote industrial development. However, the economy is so deeply dependant of
exports that this eventually failed. Since then, many factories have opened for
all kind of purposes such as footwear and textile, tobacco, alcohol, sugar
refineries etc.
Transportation
Agricultural and forest produce is mainly transported by
road, but rivers are also used. The road network is fairly good, linking all
major cities with smaller towns and villages.
The main port is Belize City but it doesn’t have modern
facilities which causes vessels with more than the allowed cargo limit to have
to anchor more than a mile offshore. Barges are used for sugar export, while
tenders for transporting passengers to and from cruise ships. The Commerce
Bight port, handles exports from the Stann Creek district, while a port at Big
Creek is used for banana exports.
The 5 Star Cave Tubing Team seeks to highlight the
historical and cultural attributes of this melting pot called Belize. With over
15 years experience working in the tourism industry, we’ve put our skills
together to bring you the ultimate
Belize tour packages.
Our team has ventured down Belize’s back roads and are
uniquely familiar with the people, language, food, watering holes, local festivals,
and exotic destinations not found in any guide book. Tour with a team you can
trust; our experienced guides are thoughtful, informed, and fun to be around. With
us you will discover remote regions of Belize that only few
people have had the pleasure to visit and enjoy touring these amazing
destinations while learning about the customs and traditions of the Belizean people. From the diverse traditions of the Mestizo
and East Indian people to the unique customs of the Maya and the Garifuna
tribes, we look forward to sharing the country’s rich history and get you involved
in the daily life of the various Belizean cultures we come across during our
tours.
At 5
Star Cave Tubing, we understand what you want and we know how to let you
experience it safely. Our guides speak fluent English and are highly
experienced in the business of taking care and looking out for our Clients. In
terms of comfort, we provide the best transportation and accommodations
available. We provide all necessary equipment, of the highest quality, thereby
enhancing your safety, convenience and comfort. Our tours range from day trips zip lining and cave tubing, to
quick trips to the Belize
Zoo and nearby Mayan
Ruins. Whatever you choose to do, experience it with 5 Star Cave Tubing – where
your adventure starts with us!
The 2019 Hurricane Season is fast approaching, are you prepared? Now is a good time to review your family’s hurricane preparedness plan or create one if you don’t already have one.
Do you know where to go in the event a tropical system threatens Belize and your home is not safe?
Here is the 2019 National Shelter List along with some preparedness tips from the National Emergency Management Organization (NEMO).
Vacations are a must for everyone. You have got to travel and visit beautiful Belize. It has been one of the most recommended destinations. The reason why? You are soon to find out. A trip to Belize is what you need if you are stressed, or want to see the world or even just have some quality time with yourself or significant other. Keep on reading and find out all the amazing things you could do during your stay at Belize.
What About An Online Casino Games?
It is not everyone that finds fascination in all these outdoor activities. Although that is one of the reasons why people take vacations. Take some time playing that real money pokies game that you love so much before you go out to explore. Well, people have different ways of adjusting to a new environment and playing an online game might be one of them.
Have an Amazing Time At The Beach
Every vacation trip has got to be topped up by an amazing relaxation session at the beach. And we must say that the beach at Belize never disappoints. Water has been said to be very therapeutic and take this as a treat for the mind.
Engage In The Garifuna Culture In Belize
Online casino games come in different forms and more information can be found at best online casino usa guide. And what better way to know more about other cultures than to start off by playing an online casino game that has a theme culture for that specific area. But if it fails then just go on and get familiar with the locals and how they live. And this might be more than fun.
Snorkelling In Belize
Probably you have done this before. But believe us when we say this. But if you haven’t done it in Belize then you haven’t gone before. The experience for some strange reason feels brand new again. And we bet you would not want to be the one to miss out on this experience.
Belize has 3 land-based casinos that you can visit and play your favourite casino games. However, gambling can become a problem if not monitored. We have written this guide to help you not fall a victim to gambling problems.
What You Should Know About Gambling
Gambling is simply a leisure activity. However, it comes with some risks. Because of that, you should protect yourself when it comes to the problem of gambling.
Problem Gambling
Many gamble to the point where they ruin their finances, relationships and health. Note the tips listed below to protect yourself.
Tips for Safer Gambling
Gambling In Not A Way to Make Money
The truth of the matter is; both online casino sites and brick and mortar casinos are businesses. But that doesn’t mean they are designed in a way that they take in more money than they actually pay out. Because of that, you must know that eventually, you will win or lose. Stop believing that you will be the big winner or loser because it’s that belief which feeds the gambling problem.
Use Money That You Can Afford To Lose
Always make it a habit to put money aside for entertainment. That money should be the one you use for gambling. Never use money that you have set aside for other important things like rent, school fees for the kids or bills.
Never Chase Your Losses
When you make a loss, simply walk away and come try again when you are refreshed. Trying to chase your losses will lead to bigger losses.
Set a Budget
Set aside money for gambling. As soon as it’s finished, stop. Don’t use money that you haven’t set aside specifically for gambling.
Set a Time Limit
Set some time for gambling or sports book online. As soon as that time is up, stop. Never keep playing as you will end up losing more money.
Don’t Gamble When You Are Emotional
Never gamble when you are depressed or angry. Usually, when you are emotional, you are not capable of making the right decisions.
Never Mix Gambling and Alcohol
When you are drunk, you usually make wrong decisions. Never gamble under the influence.
When it comes to playing safely at online casinos in Italy, the most experienced players have already started using the services of Miglioricasinononaams.com.
Belize’s first national rugby team was founded on November 9, 2018. The team has made great progress in their level of competition, and they are ready to participate in the first historic Central American Rugby 7s Tournament, which will be held on May 18, 2019, in San Salvador. Belize has had an official rugby team since 2015; the sport has gained increasing popularity, and now there are seven rugby teams in the region: San Pedro, Hopkins, San Ignacio, Ladyvillle, Belmopan, Orange Walk, and Belize City.
The team will be playing against teams from El Salvador, Guatemala, and Nicaragua, and it is expected to give impressive results based on the quality of game they have been playing. This event will also mark the formation of the Central American Rugby 7s Union, which will be launched by the presidents from the seven Central American countries. The Rugby 7s tournaments will be rotating annually in all the member countries.
The Rugby Belize team
Tony Gillings, the founder of Rugby Belize, has played a huge role in expanding the rugby game in Belize, and this has resulted in the formation of the seven teams in the region. The national team is comprised of players from those respective teams, and therefore, the national team is expected to yield good results in this competition.
Rugby history in Belize
Rugby is rather new in Belize, but it has gained popularity very quickly and the progress is notable. The game was first played in Belize by British soldiers, and at this time, no Belizean was involved. The British soldiers influenced the region because it was England’s former colony.
What Rugby 7s entails
The rules and regulations of the game as well as the size of the field for both the Rugby 7s and the regular rugby game are the same, but there are a number of differences that set them apart, including the following:
Rugby 7s lasts 7 minutes each way, whereas a regular rugby game lasts 80 minutes.
Rugby 7s follows the Olympic version of the game, whereas regular rugby does not.
Rugby 7s is played by 7 players on the field, while regular rugby involves 15 players.
Rugby 7s involves more contact and is played at a faster pace as compared to regular rugby games, which makes the former more interesting.
Rugby games are also popular for the players’ aggression, which requires them to be in good shape and to have energy all the time. Players can enhance their levels of energy by using steroids to supplement their diet and workouts. They can purchase the steroids online from reliable vendors, such as120kgs.
Rugby Belize matches
The team played its first international match against BATSUB Sailfish RFC in November 2018. Although they lost to BATSUB with a final score of 3 to 2, the Belizean team put up a good fight, especially considering that they were a new team playing against a well experienced one.
