Compare rates on flights to Belize City, Belize
- Air conditioned affordable rooms
- Breezy VIP boat service to the Lamanai ruins led by expert guides
- Incredible Belizean fare at the onsite bar and restaurant
- Tranquil riverfront location
- Run by a friendly, informative Belizean family
- The mosquito netting is provided for a reason - bring extra Deet!
- It's a long, hot walk into Orange Walk Town
- There's not much to see in Orange Walk Town in the first place
- Phone 302-3955; Located on Lamanai Alley, fifteen minutes from the center.
- Bright wooden beams and sanded floors make for a welcoming, squeaky-clean cabana setting.
- Private tables shaded by banana-leaf roofs line the riverbank, perfect for a leisurely meal.
- Don't stay out too late, however, or the mosquitoes will make a meal of you.
The Lamanai Riverside Retreat is perfectly located for those who venture to Orange Walk Town only because it's near the Lamanai ruins. Because the ruins are only accessible by boat, it's likely you'll pass the Retreat on your way down the New River anyway. However, it's a perfectly savory selection, boasting a tranquil jungle setting, affordable rooms with television and air conditioning, and phenomenal Belizean cuisine in its onsite restaurant. Try the ceviche - it's the best in the country, hands down.
A good portion of the Retreat's appeal is its family dynamic. The owner, Raul Pelayo, catches and tags crocodiles on the side, and will display a dog-eared photographs of his conquests on request. One of his sons is a co-owner, and some of his numerous other grown children work in the restaurant and behind the bar.
