Exploring Chan Chich Lodge- Part 1

We awakened at The Radisson on Sunday morning to find everything still intact and realized that Belize City had survived Tropical Storm Alex. The water that had splashed over the sea wall in front of the hotel had drained away very quickly. We heard a few people say that San Pedro lost electricity for a period of time but other than that, everything seemed in good order.

So, the big question was- Where were they going to send our group of travel agents that missed San Pedro yesterday? Would we go to San Pedro today or would we continue along our planned itinerary to Chan Chich Lodge? We had lots of business to conduct in San Pedro so we would have been fine with that. However, when the call came that we would be going to Chan Chich Lodge, I was jumping for joy!

Phil and I had been trying to get to Chan Chich for the past 2 years. It's barely 30 minutes from Belize City by air but going by road takes several hours. It seems that going by air is a no brainer except that it's a charter flight that can be somewhat costly. So, we were very thankful that BETEX had given us the opportunity to go.

We shuttled over to the Municipal airstrip and hopped on Tropic Air for the short flight to the Gallon Jug airstrip. We arrived to find a reception table set up at the edge of the airstrip with fresh lime juice and someone providing cold towels. We were told that we would take a quick tour of the Gallon Jug area before driving the short distance to the lodge.

The Gallon Jug area not only houses Chan Chich Lodge, but a full working farm, coffee production plant, lumber yard, horse stables, and the living community of the employees. As we drove through the area we learned that the farm has about 1000 cattle, coffee plants, mangos, avocados, cacao and more. The employee community on site even has a school and two churches. As we drove through the farm area there were oscillating turkeys, various birds, and deer everywhere. Our guide told us that they would be fired immediately if they kill any animals.

We arrived at the lodge a few minutes later after crossing over a small suspension bridge and entering into a thickly forested area. The lodge is set right in the plaza of an ancient Maya archeological site. Okay, I'm thinking, can it get any better than this?

Then, we were given a special itinerary and told that we would have a site inspection, lunch, an afternoon tour of our choice, sunset canoeing, appetizers & cocktails by the bonfire, dinner on the deck, a night ride in the jungle, and then a bird watching walk the next morning. Do I think every single one of my clients should go to Chan Chich? Absolutely!

I was seriously thinking about asking for a job! More details tomorrow...