Belize Romantic Vacation Get Away

Mediteribbean Seafood Stew, served with a romantic view....the only thing missing, is you.

Belize has long been known for its adventurous travel....Adrenalin charged Zip Lining, Waterfall Rappelling, Scuba Diving the largest Barrier Reef in the Western Hemisphere and cave tubing underground in the Mayan gateway to the underworld land and just about any type of hiking you want. But Belize is also a fantastic romantic destination. Honeymoons, weddings and anniversaries are all a great reason for planning a trip to Belize. An all inclusive vacation to Belize encompassing just the right amount of adventure and romance, which of course includes intimate dining, are pretty easily attainable and can be customized to your interests. I recently had a couple married for 25 years coming for their anniversary. Both were avid birders and i was able to put together 10 perfect days that included 3 different types of birding days, romantic meals on our dock, a sunset river cruise / wine tasting and then to Anderson Lagoon to observe the phosphorescent plankton and some night birds as well. We added in a couples massage and a trip to the Mystical Xunantunich ruins coupled with all transports and meals which left a very stress free couple ecstatic and planning a return in 2015 already.

Beaches and Dreams is still that little intimate place where we as owners, interact with guests daily and the favorite part of my job is corresponding with people before the trip down to see just what it is that they want to achieve from the trip.

There is nothing like an 8 course tapas tasting dinner coupled with wine and served on our dock or a beach picnic with shrimp cocktail, smokey chicken pasta salad and crunchy sourdough bread to make memories that will last forever.

Just take a look at all of the fantastic things there are to do right from our centrally located little beach spot in Hopkins, Belize.

Your 10 day all inclusive Belize Romantic vacation:
Day one:
Transfer from Belize International Airport to Dangriga by plane (15 minute flight) and a half hour ride to Beaches and Dreams Seafront Inn for  welcoming cocktail and room sign in.

Dinner at the Barracuda Bar and Grill./  Mediteribbean Seafood Stew, all our fresh seafood served in a seafood, wine and tomato herb broth with linguini  marinara. Or  Tuscan Beef Tenderloin Bruchetta, 2 medallions of beef tenderloin with tuscan spice crust served over garlic Crostini and topped with ripe tomatoes and basil in olive oil, served with roasted garlic mashed potatoes. You won't be able to choose any one of Angela's fabulous dessert so she will agree to make you a dessert sampler for 2.

Day 2...Decompress with a couples massage out on our deck. Hang out by the pool and have a lunch of Seafood salad and a glass of Pinot Grigio. Take a long walk on our perfect beach and browse a few gift shops. Back for another extraordinary dinner.

Day 3 Take a private boat with just you and a captain/ guide to explore the reef while snorkeling along the barrier islands. Enjoy a cozy picnic lunch in the sand at Bread  and Butter Caye and a little more snorkeling before returning and enjoying a little more beach time before your 8 course tapas tasting dock dinner.

Day 4 . Rise early to make the drive to the Ruins of Xunantunich where you will have a guided tour of the ruins, then lunch at one of the local hotspots and shop for Mayan carvings and handicrafts. Stop at the Blue Hole national park on the way home, getting back in time to shower and another award winning meal that Barracuda Bar and Grill

Day 5- Down day to explore the quaint village of Hopkins on bikes or kayak around the point of Sittee To see if you can spot some manatees. Visit some of the many local artisan shops in the village and have beer at the local watering holes. An early dinner and a champagne sunset cruise on the Sittee river, then spot crocodiles and night life by spot life as the nocturnal creatures awake for the evening.Cruise through the cut from the River to Anderson Lagoon to see the mysterious "Burn Water", a bio luminescent glow given off by plankton when they are disturbed. Back for dessert after the cruise and enjoy a glss of wine on our deck while you watch the moon over the waves abnd the whispering of the wind through the palms.


 Day 6-Culinary Day...You will leave at 10 am to visit Miss Emma's Farm for a fram tour that will show you more varieties of fruit in one location than anywhere in Belize. Miss Emma herself will show you her orchard and botanical gardens that are the envy of any gardener. she will personally explain the variety of fruits, many imported from her native Philippines, then make you an astounding lunch from her farm made products. Then on to visit a working Spice Farm and  you will excite the olfactory senses as you smell and taste an amazing varieties of native Belizean spices as well as Indian spices brought here by the East Indian developers of this property.  Back to the beach to enjoy the rest of the evening and a roof top 3rd story appetizer and wine tasting while we watch the sun set over the mystic Mayan Mountains and Victoria's Peak. Visit and enjoy each others company, then enjoy another fabulous gourmet feast.

Day 7-Open day to do as you wish or get caught up on some afternoon naps in the hammock. Go to the Marina and rent some kayaks to check out the Sittee river during the day if you like.

Day 8-Catamaran Sailing- we've signed you up for a full day trip to snorkel or just relax aboard the luxury Catamaran Utopia for a day of cruising, lunching and cocktailing. Another great meal and late night walk on the beach.

Day 9- A guided waterfall hike to one of the waterfalls at Cockscomb Basin jaguar preserve and ajungle picnic lunch followed by a leisurely half hour tube float while you cool off .Back for another best of Belize dinner at the Barracuda Bar and Grill and then maybe an evening swim.

Day 10- Start planning your return trip to Hopkins Belize, the perfect destination for a romantic getaway......you'd better Belize it!

 

A sunset stroll on the beach in Hopkins , Belize   www.beachesanddreams.com

 

Delicious Caribbean Menus

The plethora of fresh fish we've been getting at the Barracuda Bar and Grill at Beaches and Dreams has been great this year with regular catches of giant prawns, calamari and a great variety of Caribbean fish, including this mornings catch of Spanish Mackerel , which are running right here in the bight which paints the beachfront here in Hopkins, Belize with all of the colors from the palette every morning. I saw Old Man Nunez just as the sun came up casting his net to catch sprat to use for bait for the abundant Mackerel.

The changing colors of a Beaches and Dreams morning

                                                                                                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                    

1 cast from Mr. Nunez and he has all the bait he'll need to catch a boatload of Spanish Mackerel

" Buiti Bunafi" (pronounced Bweety Boon-ah-fee) I bid him in Garifuna, acknowledged by a nod from him as he paddled by, eyes scanning  below the surface with barely enough light to see the telltale silver flash that tells him he is on the sprat. He readies his net and in one throw he brings up enough sprat to catch a boatload of the Spanish Mackerel.  I order 10 pounds of filets from him and he is on his way.

The Mackerel have a high content of oil and this makes for perfect smoking. I'll brine them overnight with brown sugar and salt, the way the Athabascans taught me in Alaska with a slow smoldering fire far away from the fish. I'll be able to give the fish a good 8 hour smoke. It will make a fabulous appetizer with pickled onions in sour cream. I'll also mix some of the crumbly smoky goodness with some cream cheese and bread crumbs for a great stuffing for snapper, topped with a delicate Champagne sauce. The smoked  fish will also make add  flavor and texture to our Belizean Paella which is one of the stars of our menu when lobsters are not in season.

Ready for some smoke after a 12 hour brine

Ready to close the lid and let benign neglect take over

 For the Paella, we take our smoked chicken and pork tenderloin and toss it in a pan with extra virgin olive oil, I'll add the mackerel then too. I let these products get hot and flavor the oil with their smokey goodness before adding raw giant prawns and whatever fresh fish and seafood we have that day. To this we add a rich saffron broth and some half cooked short grain rice, garlic and herbs round out the flavor platform and once the rice is done, the Paella is served with fresh roasted vegetables, and, if its for me, a glass of Bolla Pinot Grigio..

The Appetizer of Smoked Mackerel with pickled onions and sour cream will have the pleasure of being accompanied by our signature Sourdough Ciabatta Bread, lightly crisped in the oven. this airy crusty bread is made with a Sourdough Starter I started in Alaska 25 years ago. I brought it down and every time I bake the fresh bread, I take little out and add it to more flour and water and in 3 days, have a new bubbling batch that make finished product chewy and slightly sour.

A fresh batch of Sourdough Starter bubbles with the original sourdough brought from my Alaskan 25 year old starter

 Its just another day in culinary Paradise here in Belize. We meld the past with the present, culturally and gastronomically, borrowing from all cultures to produce some great food right on our little stretch of beach...........You'd Better Believe it!