• Skip to main content
  • Skip to secondary menu
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
Belize Travel and Country Guide

Belize Travel and Country Guide

Belize guide for vacation, diving, caving, fishing, scuba, the Caribbean sea, Maya temples, friendly people, islands, snorkel, best tourist attractions, what to do..

  • Home
  • About Belize
    • Where Is Belize?
    • Retirement Options
    • Fact Sheet
    • Top 10 Reasons To Live Here
    • Medical Care
    • Real Estate
    • Currency
    • Garifuna People
    • Cuisine
    • Education System
  • Destinations
    • Ambergris Caye
    • Placencia
    • Corozal
    • Orange Walk
    • Cayo
    • Belize City
    • Stann Creek
    • Caye Caulker
    • Toledo
    • Belmopan
  • Things To Do
    • Top 10 Things To Do
    • Top 10 Maya Sites
    • Top 10 Things To Taste
    • Honeymoons
    • Ambergris Caye Activities
    • Scuba Diving
    • Great Blue Hole
    • Activities For Cruisers
    • Birding
    • Dating in Belize
  • Hotels
    • Gold Standard Hotels
  • Tips & Articles
    • Best Time To Visit
    • Banking
    • Travel Maps
    • Bus & Transport
    • Driving In Belize
    • Public & Bank Holidays
    • Border With Guatemala
    • Border With Mexico
    • Living In Belize eBook
    • How To Get Belize Passport
  • Search Belize

Historic Belize City

st. john's cathedral belize
Built from bricks brought from England as ship’s ballast, St. John’s Cathedral is the oldest Anglican Church in Central America. In days past it served as venue for the crowning of Kings of the Mosquito coast.

The first European settlement in Belize was begun by shipwrecked English seamen in 1638. Over the next 150 years, more English settlements were established starting at the mouth of the Belize River, and gradually extending inland. This period in Belize’s early modern history was one of piracy, slavery, indiscriminate logging, and sporadic attacks by the native Maya Indians defending their land. Both Spain and Britain lay claim to the land until Britain defeated the Spanish in a military skirmish known locally as the “battle” of St. George’s Cay (1798). The territory was declared a colony of Great Britain in 1840, known as British Honduras, and, thereafter became a Crown colony in 1862. Internal self-government was granted in January 1964. In 1973, the country changed its name to Belize. It threw off the British colonizers in 1981 when it became independent.




For those who want to tour historic Belize City, tour guides are available right outside the tourism village or via your hotel. As this is the heart of the old capital and still the country’s business and commercial center, visitors who want to walk the streets are encouraged to stay on Albert Street (southside of the Swing Bridge) and Queen Street (the continuation of Albert Street but north of the Swing Bridge). Recent challenges posed by the congestion caused by the influx of dozens of artisans and local competition for the tourists’ attention and sales has caused the City of Belize and the Tourism Board to step in to set up regulatory mechanisms to ensure both tourists and locals benefit without hassles.

Near the tourism village is the historic Baron Bliss Lighthouse, named after a famous benefactor whose death is commemorated in a national holiday on March 9th . Outside of the tourism village area, visitors can purchase handmade wood furniture made by the Mennonite community and many kinds of craft items from the National Handicraft Center, (adjacent to the tourism village) as well as from the vendors who congregate near the Belize Commercial Center.

At the foot of the swing Bridge is the Marine Terminal and Museum, where an interesting collection of Belize’s’ marine heritage is on display. Just across the bridge down past the business center is a landmark of the colonial period, the former Government House, now the Belize City House of Culture. It offers classes and seminars in activities like visual and performing arts, music, photography and ceramic art. A permanent exhibit consists of a Silverware and Glass Collection which features a wide variety of authentic silver pieces dating to late 17 th and early 18 th century, including Tureens, Teapots, Crystal Wine Glasses. There is also a Furniture Collection which features English domestic furniture of simple and complex design within the late 18th and early 19th centuries. The Government House itself is an exhibit. Built in the early 1800’s, it is a combination of Caribbean Vernacular and English Urban architecture.

Just across from the House of Culture is St. John’s Cathedral where, between 1812 to 1824 several Mosquito Coast kings were crowned. This is the oldest Anglican Church in Central America . It was constructed of red brick brought as ballast from European sailing ships.

Also on the attractive Southern Foreshore, sits the recently renovated Bliss Institute, named, like the Bliss Lighthouse, after an English Baron who visited Belize, fell in love with the country, and willed his $2 million fortune in trust for the Belizean people. For years it housed the Belize Arts Council, library and a museum of Mayan artifacts taken from archeological sites. Its recent renovation sees its role as the primary performance arm of the Museum of Belize instead of the multi-purpose site it has traditionally been.

treasury-colonial-building-belize-city
One of the more attractive colonial style buildings is the Government Treasury at left, right next to the Supreme Court.

The government has made the restoration of Belize City , severely damaged by hurricanes in 1961 and 1978, a priority. It was Hurricane Hattie’s destruction in 1961 that led to the eventual relocation of the capital inland to Belmopan by the middle of the 1970’s. The recent spate of major hurricanes in 1998, 2000 and 2001 wrecked damage more to the district’s cayes and rural communities than it did to the city. The city has expanded into its outskirts over the past decade, and a number of suburb-type communities have emerged. The downtown business district houses most of the country’s attorneys, accountants and other professionals. Five major banks (Belize Bank, Atlantic Bank, Scotia Bank, Barclay’s Bank and Heritage Bank) offer a full panoply of local and international banking services.

Several beautiful old colonial mansions on the waterfront have been converted into guest houses. The city has many simple budget hotels, including the Mopan Hotel, located on Regent Street in the business district (the owners are great sources of information about anything Belizean, and go out of their way to assist travelers). The Bakadeer Inn, Grant’s Guest House, Chateau Caribbean Hotel and The Great House are other popular hotels. Expensive luxury hotels such as the Radisson Fort George, The Princess Hotel and Casino and the Belize Biltmore cater to international business travelers as well as tourists.

Primary Sidebar

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Forbes Ranks Belize In 1 of 3 Top Destinations To Retire Post-Covid-19

Eventually, the COVID 19 pandemic will be contained. And global markets and economies will recover. Belize is at this time one of only 14 countries in the world that is free of COVID-19. The experience of having lived through this challenging period will leave us with a reinforced and perhaps, a reinvented understanding of what […]

Hallett Moody Refutes Lindsay Belisle 1859 Border Treaty Myth

The following is an extremely detailed analysis of the 1859 treaty between Britain and Guatemala that established the boundaries between the two countries. It debunks a myth being touted by one Lindsay Belisle that tries to say the treaty does not establish the border between Belize and Guatemala. Mr. Moody was at one time Lindsay’s […]

Expat Heroic Stand Against Marauding Sea Pirates

Austrian national and Placencia resort owner Christian Gigi Gusenbauer is lucky to be alive this morning. He successfully underwent surgery to remove shotgun pellets after he was attacked by pirates on his island home Friday 19 February. It happened at about 6:45 pm when Christian was alone on his Private Haven island located in the […]

Belize Economic Recovery Plan: A Working Document

By John Saldivar MSc (Econ) INTRODUCTION Since March 2020, the Belize economy has come to almost a grinding halt as a consequence of the worldwide pandemic COVID-19. Tourism, the mainstay of the economy, collapsed immediately after the closing of the international airport and with it has gone over fifteen thousand jobs and millions in foreign […]

john carr belize

John Carr Reflects On Ranching, Taxes, Business and Life In Belize

John Carr is a cowboy from Montana who emigrated to Belize and with his wife runs a cattle ranch and a resort near the City of Belmopan. He shared some of his thoughts on living and doing business here when he spoke at the opening of the National Agriculture and Trade Show.  Acting Prime Minister […]

Footer

Our Partners

Belize.com is the first website established in Belize, 1995. As a pioneer Digital Media Company, we provide expert content and advice for locals, expats and tourists.

Recommended Resources:  Belize Ministry of National Security – Ghan Eden Belize – Belize Newsletter

Recent

  • Belize – Guatemala Strengthen Bilateral Relations
  • Belize Reduces COVID19 Safety Measures To Stimulate Tourism
  • Belize Moves Ahead With More Cruise Tourism Investment
  • Belize Government Moves To Digital Transformation of Judiciary
  • Exotic South American Fish Species Found In Belize

© 1995-2050 ITM Ltd. · Reproduction without explicit permission prohibited · All Rights Reserved · Contact · About · Privacy Policy ·