A long, thin peninsula with a lagoon on one side, the sea on the other, and whale sharks in spring.
Placencia village sits at the tip of a long, narrow peninsula, with the sea on one side and a lagoon on the other. It has a famous narrow sidewalk, good restaurants for its size, and the best beach on the mainland coast.
In spring, Gladden Spit, a promontory on the reef offshore, is where whale sharks gather to feed on snapper spawn around the full moon. Outside that window, Placencia is a calm base for sailing to the southern cayes, Laughing Bird Caye, and Monkey River.
Gladden Spit
Whale sharks gather to feed, roughly March to June around the full moon. Interaction rules apply.Check before you travel
Laughing Bird Caye
A small protected caye within the UNESCO reef system, for snorkelling.Check before you travel
Monkey River
A morning on the river for howler monkeys, iguanas and birds.
Sailing
A private catamaran south through the cayes for a day, or several.
The lagoon
Manatees sometimes feed in Placencia Lagoon at dawn.Check before you travel
Fly-fishing
Permit flats to the south, with guides who have fished them for years.Check before you travel
Boat and flight times are ranges and depend on the weather and the operator. How we get around
We choose places to stay for the setting, the people running them, and how they fit your plans.
Whale sharks are wild animals following a spawning event. Some days the water is empty. We plan the trip so that a blank day at Gladden Spit doesn't spoil the week.
The south is wetter than the north all year, so a shower most afternoons is normal even in the dry season.
Drums in the evening, hudut for supper, and the boat to the outer cayes in the morning.
The far south: rivers, cacao farms, villages, and the most remote cayes in Belize.