Hopkins Bay Resort

Just got back from a 5 night stay here. We had a great time. The resort is beautiful, with well manicured and landscaped grounds, a clean beach, 2 pools, lots of shade umbrellas, and helpful staff. Our group had the bottom floor (2 bedrooms) of building #13. The rooms were clean and large. The large front porch with comfortable chairs was used every morning to sip coffee, watch the ocean, and listen to the birds. There was plenty of storage in the bedrooms and bathrooms. The kitchen has a full sized fridge, gas oven/range, microwave, and dishwasher. (I didn't see any dishwasher detergent though.) There is a drip coffee maker, and they provided ground coffee, sugar, and small containers of creamer in the fridge. There is also a large bottled water dispenser, so no need to buy water before you come. There was a very limited selection of pots and pans, and a bare minimum of silverware and glasses, for those that think they might want to cook. The TV had access to Netflix. The AC worked great. There is a separate room on the top floor, which can be accessed from outside, or from inside if you've booked the "3 room" package. They do not get the front big porch but do have a small upstairs porch on the back of the building. We had upstairs neighbors move in on day 3 and I can just say that the tile floors make everything very loud. We could definitely tell when they were moving around. The restaurant onsite, the Rhum Shack, was quite good, but with a limited menu. I wouldn't want to rely on it exclusively all week, but HBR is very close to town with many options for dining. There are free bikes you can use, and they offer golf cart rentals from a local business at a reasonable price from by the hour to several days. It is a 3-ish mile walk down to the far end of Hopkins/hotel row, so we made good use of the golf cart. If you rent bikes, and go out for dinner, keep in mind the sun goes down early and it is a dark ride back to the resort, the last part on a dirt road. The resort is one of just a few on the north side of Hopkins. The town is a bit gritty, in a legit local Caribbean way, with lots of personality. The locals were very friendly, the food great, and we felt very safe the whole time. Most of the resorts and hotels are a bit out of town south of the town proper. That area feels very much more tourist-centric, glossier with a bit of a bougie vibe. My only quibble with the entire stay was the offered excursions. We did a snorkel tour, priced at $270/person, described in the info given to us (before the trip and the day we checked in) as 5 hours, 2 locations, lunch included. There is a dive tour with the same description, at $300/person. What actually happened was that we had 1 diver and 6 people snorkeling, on the same tour. We were brought by boat to a sister property at Thatch Caye to get what gear we all needed. We asked for wetsuits but were told only divers get wetsuits. Then we all got back on the boat and the snorkelers were dropped off in a shallow-ish area. The boat then left with the diver and divemaster to go further out. Imagine my surprise when the snorkel guide pulled on a long sleeve wetsuit. It was rainy and overcast and after an hour of snorkeling, most of us were extremely cold. We had to swim to a nearby island to meet the boat and diver, then have an enforced hour plus break for the diver where we were offered cold drinks and cookies. We were so cold by the end of the break that several of us considered not getting back in the water. We ultimately decided the water was warmer than the wind, and did another hour long snorkel (the boat taking the diver again somewhere else) before being picked up by the boat and brought back to Thatch Caye for lunch. We were then informed that we had 2 hours to "enjoy the beach" before we could leave because the boat that brought us had already left to go pick up Thatch Caye hotel guests and would be back at 3:00. So now we're wet, cold, and have nowhere to go. We paid close to the same cost as the diver for significantly less gear (and were not given wetsuits when we did ask), and did not have a boat anywhere near us during the swim which seems a safety concern. Our 5 hour excursion was actually 8 hours, with no heads up that we might want to bring dry clothes to change into. I do see that the tour length is updated on their website now, but the info we were given on paper 6 days ago did not reflect that. The snorkeling was very good, but I will find another provider if I ever go again. The next day our husbands had an all day fishing excursion also arranged by the resort. The boat never showed. HBR did refund us the pre-paid cost, and offered a free half day of fishing the next day, but we decided we'd had enough and the guys found a different boat/guide on their own. Bottom line, I would stay at the resort again, but would find my own excursions.

Hopkins By Resort was great! My wife and I spent a week in Belize, splitting our time between Hopkins and San Pedro. This was our favorite. The room was perfect - comfortable with amazing views looking out over the pool and the ocean! It's just north of town, so it's very quiet yet accessible. They have free bikes on site, so we went into town several times. The people in town are very nice and gracious. Staff members were incredibly friendly and helpful. The Rhum Shack had really good food as well. When you arrive, there is an activities desk with a full complement of things to do. We went ziplining, cave tubing, visited Xunantunich Mayan temple, and waterfall repelling. There are a ton of things to do, but it's also just an amazing place to relax. We'd highly recommend and plan on going back!

Place is amazing and Zamira helped me a lot with checking in. Everyone here is so nice. The beach and view is really something else.

Hopkins Bay has never disappointed us. Always great customer service. The surroundings are so relaxing and peaceful.

It’s so easy to fall in love with Hopkins Bay Resort, at check in Zamira makes you feel at home and gracefully helps everyone enjoy their stay, in the Rum Shack Veronica, and Wilbur provide excellent service. I had so much fun I have already booked my next stay. Be sure to wake up to catch the sunrise.