12.14.07

San Pedro Belize Golf Cart Rental

Posted in San Pedro Belize at 12:31 pm by admin



Who I Recommend

When you go to Belize you will discover that a golf cart rental is a fun way to go about your trip there. Having a golf cart is in no way necessary but it will make the trip a little more convenient. We actually walked everywhere for most of the trip but eventually resorted to renting a golf cart from a place near the airport. We rented golf carts from Captain Morgan’s and Cholo’s. I recommend both of these companies as we had absolutely no issues with either company and I never felt like I was being swindled and I got a great deal on the carts. One way to get a good deal on rentals is to get a promotional referral from a hotel or resort near by. You can usually get the cart for much cheaper by going through a referral.

Who I Don’t Recommend

I don’t recommend Island Tour Rentals. This company is next to the large pink grocery store and is owned by the same family. They have been written about extensively on Belize message boards by multiple people claiming to have been scammed or overcharged by them either with their golf cart rental or when buying groceries. A recent incident from this year is the most disturbing of all. The golf cart rental company had a little knowledge of how the courts work in Belize and held an American couple hostage in Belize through a court order. With the couples young kids at home they had to stay in Belize until the government allowed them to leave.

The story goes like this: An American couple who loves San Pedro Belize and vacation here often rented a golf cart from Island Tour Rentals for 1 week. One of the days a dog was chasing the cart and growling and appeared like it was trying to bite their feet so they swerved to get a way from the dog and tipped the cart. Some locals came and helped tip the cart back upright and they were on their way again. They noticed it had caused some superficial damage to the cart and went immediately to the cart rental company to report the damage.

Island Tours immediately estimated the damage to be $12,000 in Belize dollars. They said the chassis was damaged and so the entire cart would need to be sold for parts and scrapped. There was mud on the chassis which made it to where you could not even see the chassis so there would have been no way to detect if the chassis was in fact damaged or not. The estimate of damages seemed to have been pulled right out of their exteriors. The police came by and estimated the damages to be $1,000 and two other mechanics estimated the damages to be $900 and $560. Not one of the mechanics or the police mechanic found any sign of chassis damage. The police took the credit card slip from the golf cart rental company and told them to not charge them for any damages until it has been investigated. The cart company went ahead and charged their card for $6,000 anyway.

As the story moves on, the cart company sues them for damages and the Belize government forces them to stay in Belize until the court case has been settled. If this were to go to the Supreme Court in Belize the couple could stand to have to stay in Belize for 1 -3 years until the case is decided. Fortunately the San Pedro business community rallied behind Sandra and Norman Warren and wrote the Belize Tourism Board requesting they make a decision on the matter expeditiously so that the Warrens can go back home with their children. Amazingly the San Pedro Business Association and community, realizing the golf cart company was trying to scam some tourists, put up the needed $8,000 security deposit showing that the couple was in good faith to pay if the cart really was in need of this amount of repairs.

Having the money secured in good faith in a bank account allowed the government to give the go ahead for the couple to go home and await the trial whenever that may actually happen. The trial has not yet been held but we believe that the couple will more then likely only need to pay around $1,000 rather then the amount of money Island Tours tried to extort from them.

Tell Us Your Story

If you would like to give us your own story of how your good or bad experience went with a particular Golf Cart rental in San Pedro then please send us your comment. We would like to know.

You can write Island Tour Rentals showing your support for the couple and your unwillingness to ever shop at their grocery store or rent a golf cart from them again by emailing them at this address:

Store:  Island Tour Rentals
Manager: Karol Maldonado
Email: ilandtourrental@btl.net

You can read more about this story here: Ambergris Caye, San Pedro Daily, and San Pedro Sun

12.13.07

Living It Up In Belize

Posted in Affordable Belize Accomodation, Belize Hostel at 11:16 am by admin


Fun Without The Danger

Belize has an amazing amount of variety and natural things to explore. If you are used to taking a vacation and then walking around in store after store not really trying anything new then I would definitely recommend you give Belize a try. The country of Belize is a British Colony but has since been made independent. They still have the queen on their currency and pride themselves on being America’s friends. This means safety for you and your family. The country is very compatible for families who need an exotic location to go for vacation without all the danger.

Where To Go In Belize

If you want an idea of where to stop off to begin with I would go to Belize City and take a ferry over to San Pedro island. Keep in mind that you will hear from people that San Pedro is the expensive island. When tourists and the locals say this they are meaning the accommodations are expensive. One thing you can do to offset the expense of a hotel room is to stay about 5 minutes (walking distance) offshore by walking over to Pedro’s Inn. You can sleep there and then in the morning walk right up to one of the best spots on the beach everyday and it only takes about 5 minutes. The stroll to the beach is quite nice and you will pass several shops and delicatessens on the way to your swim in the crystal blue water. When you jump into the ocean don’t be surprised to see all kinds of marine life swimming around you. Don’t worry as there is nothing dangerous, you will just see a variety of beautiful colored fish.

While you stay on San Pedro I would recommend taking some snorkeling tours a couple times. You will have so much fun and see a variety of water life and coral reefs. Belize has the 2nd largest coral reef in the world so you will not be disappointed. If you can find a kayak rental you can canoe yourself right on out to the reef and anchor it. You can then get out and swim at your leisure while you come back for a packed lunch when you get tired enough for a snack.

This is only the beginning to a fun vacation in Belize as you will have other opportunities as well. You can go caving and look at ancient Mayan ruins and skulls, or you could go check out the Mayan pyramids in the jungles of Belize. Stop by a tour guide shop and you will see enough expeditions to last you a few months. Pick a couple of the popular ones by asking several tourists as well as locals which ones they prefer. There is nothing better then getting the advice from someone who has actually done what is being advertised. My wife would recommend the butterfly garden in San Ignacio. If you are a fan of butterflies then you will not want to miss this place. They have a museum of the Mayan culture and history as well as an outdoor room full of butterflies.

If you happen to stay at Pedro’s Inn in San Pedro Belize let Peter know Donny sent you. It is the best Belize Hostel by far and I’m talking from 3 weeks experience staying there in my cool air conditioned room drinking bananna shakes and eating my Pedro’s Inn pizza’s from their delicous pizzeria. Their Pizza is amazing, at least stop by and give it a try and come back here and comment on how you liked it.