Belize Glamping

Belize Glamping: Cristo Rey Village

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Belize Glamping at its Best! Our lodge prioritizes your safety and security, making us the ideal choice for your Belizean adventure. Situated directly on the Macal River, Cristo Rey Village is nestled in a lush jungle between San Ignacio and the Mountain Pine Ridge area of the Cayo District.  Cristo Rey Village was settled by the Mayan and much of that cultural influence still exists.  Furthermore, Cristo Rey village boasts a population of approximately 700 mostly ‘Mestizo’ (Mexican + Mayan heritage) residents.  While English is the official language, the villagers grow up speaking Spanish, and start learning English in school about the age of 4 years old.  And you may also hear Kriol and Mayan spoken in the village.

Our village is a beautiful place to live, mostly because of all the wonderful Belizeans that welcomed us with open arms! On any given day you’ll see kids going door-to-door selling homemade goodies, or veggies from their gardens. The tortilla man delivers fresh tortillas twice a day (Sun-Fri) – for @ $1 U.S. a pound! There is a small convenience grocery store directly across the road from us. There you’ll find just about everything you need for simple meals.

Safest Place in Belize
Cristo Rey School Children, Lucky Dreamer Lodge

Public Bus Service

Public buses are the least expensive option, but also the most time consuming and least comfortable. The majority of the buses are retired U.S. school buses (no A/C, no frills). It can take 3-4 hours for the ride from Belize City to San Ignacio. Also, to get to the bus station requires a taxi ride from the airport or water taxi dock.
Please note the taxi fare from the airport to the water taxi dock or the bus terminal is @ $30.00 U.S. + $1 tip per bag (expected).

rainforest lodge belize
Belize bus, public transportation

Taxi Service at the Airport

You can catch a taxi from the airport to our lodge for @ $150 U.S. We don’t recommend this because many of the Airport-based taxi drivers are TOTALLY unfamiliar with our jungle area, but they will tell you they know exactly where we are. Don’t believe them! 🙂


Group Shuttle Service

Group Shuttle Transportation is @ $100 U.S. (for 2 people) – but usually only if there are more than 2 people on the shuttle. In addition, they will drop you off in San Ignacio, and you would then take a bus/shuttle or taxi from there to our lodge (for an additional $15 U.S.).  But be careful, as shuttle companies charge per person.


Commuter Flight

rainforest lodge belize

When flights are available, you can fly via TropicAir to San Ignacio (for the price of an airline ticket) and then catch a $25 U.S. taxi ride from there to our lodge. They usually only fly during high season, mid-Dec through February, but the flights are limited even then.


Car Rental

Renting a car is an option.  If you do, previous guests have been extremely happy with Crystal Auto  Please be aware that fuel prices have recently exceeded $8 U.S. per gallon, and cars here get about half of the estimated mileage due to poor road conditions.  Also, rental car companies require you to purchase their insurance or they will put a hold on your credit card (even if your credit card company or auto insurance covers rental cars).  Four wheel drive vehicles are also highly recommended (some rental car companies require it) for this area of Belize.  And they will charge you extra if you return the car dirty (it WILL be dirty).

SPECIAL NOTE: If you plan to drive across the Guatemala Border, let the car rental company know. Many of them will not allow you to drive across the Belize borders. If they do, you will need to pay an extra fee. Upon pickup verify that there is a sticker on the vehicle that authorizes border crossings. Additionally TRIPLE check the paperwork they give you and be sure the VIN# on the paperwork matches the VIN# on the vehicle.


Directions

Detailed directions are below. However, if you use Instagram, we have maps with timing on the various segments of the trip from the airport to us. Check it out here.

Please note there are not many road/street signs in Belize. There are few street lights. So, it is recommended to arrive before dusk, which is usually between 5-6pm year round.

Lucky Dreamer Lodge is 3.5 miles up Cristo Rey Road, from San Ignacio/Santa Elena turnoff, toward Mountain Pine Ridge. Our GPS coordinates are: 17.1302° N, 89.0593° W. We do not have a physical address (we’re in the jungle 🙂

We are about a 1 1/2 hour drive from Belize City. First, ask for directions from the rental car company for which way to head toward San Ignacio. [If you are arriving from somewhere else, ask the same thing…. with one exception.  If you will be arriving from the Mountain Pine Ridge area, please let us know – as the directions will be very different!]

About 75-80 minutes into your trip [If arriving via Belize City area], look for the Santa Elena roundabout.

Go straight through – Heading to Santa Elena

(note the sign may be painted, and the flags removed)

Do NOT turn right toward San Ignacio.

Once you get out of the roundabout, you’ll almost immediately go over a cement speedbump/pedestrian crossing area.  You will go over one more cement speedbump next to the Uno gas station on the right). [NOTE: Do not count the yellow bump-pod speed bumps.  Only count the cement speed bumps]

Go another block or so and start looking to your right for the Puma gas station. 

Once you pass the Puma gas station, look to your left for a turn-off that heads up the hill (There is a small covered bus stop area with a bunch of resort signs – see photo) – that is Cristo Rey Rd. (Just to make things even more interesting this road is also known as San Antonio Rd, or Chiquibil Rd, depending on different online map services!)

Turn off to Cristo Rey from Main highway

Turn left, but then stay to the far right of the left turn. You’ll go over another cement speedbump as you head up the hill.  You’ll go over another cement speedbump further up the hill.

At approximately 2-2.5 miles you will start entering Cristo Rey Village.

Start counting the speedbumps again at this point.

After the 4th speed bump go approximately 1/10th mile more (You’re almost there!) You will pass a sign advertising a liquor store on the left.

The next thing you’ll see on the left is a cement fenced-in yard (an aqua-green color). Slow down once you see that cement wall on the left. Our driveway is on the right, EXACTLY opposite of the cement-fenced property driveway.

Sign at Driveway

There is a big green sign “Lucky Dreamer Lodge” in our driveway entrance. If you pass the end of the cement-fenced property, and head up the hill, you passed us.

Let us know a timeframe for your arrival, so the gate will be open.  If it isn’t open, please ring the Doorbell on the sign and we’ll be there shortly to let you in.

Once you enter the property, veer right towards the carport, but then turn left and head toward the parking sign with the name of your bungalow (either Banana Bungalow or Belize Bungalow) and park in front of the appropriate sign.


Getting Around Cristo Rey

For Local Transport between us and San Ignacio (and San Antonio)

The local bus and shuttle services stop right in front of our property from 7am to about 5pm daily, Mon-Saturday. (There is no public transportation available on Sunday, other than taxi service) The bus & shuttle cost @ $1  U.S. each way, per person. The ride takes 10-15 minutes.  There really is no set schedule for the bus or shuttle service.

If you don’t want to wait on the shuttle or bus, there are taxis available. The price for one way to or from San Ignacio should be @ $25-$35 BZ each way based on time of day. Always confirm price before getting into the Taxi, and that it is quoted in Belize dollars.

We recommend two different ground transportation companies for longer distances (to/from us to Belize City, Hopkins, Placencia, Orange Walk or even Chetumal or Tikal/Flores):


Other Details to Note

We are fully licensed and Gold Standard Certified by the Belize Tourism Board. (License #2078). There are a LOT accommodations in Belize that are not licensed (a few in our village) – so please ask them before booking, if the listing doesn’t mention their BTB license#.

Safest Place in Belize

We do not charge a Housekeeping/Cleaning Fee!

Please note that we are required to collect 9% sales tax. This tax is automatically included when you book your stay.

We do not charge any automatic gratuities.

We are a member of ‘Pack for a Purpose’ – we collect donated supplies for two local organizations – Cayo Animal Welfare Society and the Cristo Rey R.C. Village School.

Cristo Rey Village is in the jungle region of Belize. While this provides incredible beauty and natural wonders, it also means that heat, humidity, sudden tropical squalls, power outages and water outages are not uncommon (However, we do have a back-up generator, and back-up water supply & pump).

We have free high speed wi-fi service on the property and in the bungalow. It is fast (35mbps) and reliable! However, if the power to the village goes out, we do lose internet service, but that doesn’t happen often.

We strive for a calm, serene & relaxing environment; and most of the time it is just that. However, the local birds are very active as daylight breaks, and the Howler Monkeys can be a bit startling at night. We are also in the middle of a small, but active village. Sometimes the neighboring roosters, dogs, church music, road traffic, etc. can be heard. For those guests who are extremely noise sensitive please keep these things in mind.


Remember, if you’re looking for the a well-appointed Belize Glamping spot for your next vacation, Cristo Rey Village should be on your short list!


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