My dive-buddy and I stayed for 3 nights in a Garden Cottage. Although we are divers we enjoy experiencing the other highlights and the culture of countries we visit. Unfortunately starting with an initial complaint (because it was the first thing that happened) we were not met at the airport when we arrived as per the arrangements. Our plane was due to land at 10:45 am, in the event we landed about 10 mins early, we were the only plane arriving at the time and we collected our baggage and went through customs quickly. We were actually outside by the 10:45 landing time. For some reason our driver, Elias, had been given an 11:45 pick-up time, he then allowed 15 mins for us to collect baggage and get through customs, so we were waiting at 10:45 am and our driver arrived at 12:00 am. When Elias turned up we saw his paperwork and knew it was not his fault. Elias asked whether we wanted to stop on the way for lunch and we pulled into a local restaurant along our route where we had a good meal. For much of the journey Elias provided us with information and spotted birds for us. We were staying in a Garden Cottage, which was everything the web site portrays. There was wire netting over all the windows as well as mosquito nets over the beds, someone sets these up every afternoon/evening and then moves them to the head of the bed (out of the way) in the morning. There were ample power points in the room for us to charge our devices. There was no air conditioning but we found the ceiling fan adequate and slept quite well. I do not think either of us got a mosquito bite during our stay; insect repellent was used. The food was excellent, there were menus, which changed by the day, for breakfast, lunch and dinner. The lodge is part of the Gallon Jug Farm and that is where most of the food came from, some fish was also on the menu. One cut of beef that I had was exceptional. There seemed to be a bit of confusion around the trips (the trips themselves were excellent). When we arrived around mid-afternoon we were told that someone would speak to us about possible trips during the evening meal. In the event no one did, we made our own enquiries with the dining staff and discovered there was an evening walk, we got on this but I had to rush my dinner and nip back to our cottage to change into socks and boots (no sensible person would walk in the rain forest in open sandals). We saw Tarantulas and other spiders as well as scorpions, a fawn and a few birds. On our last day we were approached at dinner regarding trips but other than this it seemed safer to check on what might be planned at the reception. The trips seem to be somewhat set each day with little consultation with guests although we did at one point suggest things that we would like to do the following day (all of which were accommodated). The trips that we did included an evening walk, a morning walk, an evening drive, a morning drive, drive to the Upper Escarpment, lake kayaking, a lake cruise and we did a couple of local hikes of our own. On all of the organised trips whether walks or drives the guides were essential, they know the right places to look and what to look for and they know what they have seen when they find it (that may sound silly but identification of different birds is not always easy). When visiting Chan Chich expect to see birds, deer, monkeys (both spider and howler). I am guessing that everyone wants to see a Jaguar but while they are definitely in the area long with Pumas (check the Trail Camera footage, usually available on Facebook) the odds of spotting them are very slim. The true owners of the area seem to be the Ocellated Turkeys, they are everywhere, every few hundred yards along every road and many wandering around the lodge. I believe that our delayed pick-up was a one-off admin error, the issue around deciding and communicating what trips are on when and whether people want to go on them could definitely have been better organised. So a couple of minor moans but I wouldn't want those to obscure that we had a fantastic stay and we very much enjoyed everything at Chan Chich, the people were great, the trips were interesting and the food was marvellous.

This is a difficult one to assess… The lodge is beautiful, located in the most wonderful place and overall we had a very enjoyable time there, with knowledgable guides, excellent housekeeping staff and good food. We had booked Chan Chich as our last stop in Belize, hoping to end on a high at the self proclaimed “best lodge in Belize” There was a large group of birders at the lodge throughout our stay, and we felt that our experience, whilst very good, may have been adversely affected by this, as the resources of the hotel seemed to be stretched and the group dominated the lodge. Elsewhere in Belize we had enjoyed the warmth of the staff everywhere we had stayed, and had always been greeted by name. Here it was a little different, (with the notable exception of Shaun) and we felt undervalued as clients, compared to the larger group. We mentioned specifics to management at the time, and received an apology from a member of staff, who had been very curt, He said he had been “very busy”. We also felt that the menu of guided tours we were offered was very short, and were told that night walks, which we would have loved, were no longer offered. This might, or might not have been affected by the presence of the group. We have no way of knowing, although another reviewer refers to an excellent night walk they did in March, the same month of our stay. On our return, we emailed the lodge, on the only email address given on their website, in order to give what we thought was well meaning, polite, useful feedback on how we thought the large group could have been better accommodated together with “outlying” guests. We have received no reply at all. Not even an acknowledgement. We then copied in the manager at the Gallon Jug Estate, who has overall responsibility for the Lodge, and again, have had neither a reply nor acknowledgement This is very poor customer service, and similar to the previous reviewer, we have been left with a bad taste in the mouth. An excellent lodge should provide more than just the on the ground experience, and in order to move forward with a product should be open to suggestions from guests from whom they have taken the not inconsiderable payment for staying there, who are willing to share their ideas. Come on Chan Chich….you can do better!

My husband and two children (ages 13 and 11) stayed three nights here and were blown away by our connection to nature and the Mayan culture. Reuben was our guide for multiple excursions and it was incredibly special to learn about the area through his eyes. He is Mayan and encouraged us to ask lots of questions during our archaeological tour as he pointed out ancient Mayan structures covered over by nature and took us into tombs in nearby caves that had been looted for their treasures. Our night walk had us dodging spiders, snakes and leaf-cutter ants as we searched for the "big cats" that roam the rainforest. Reuben's reverence for nature inspired us all. Other highlights included the delicious, freshly prepared meals and the pool, which always felt very refreshing after a hot hike. Chan Chich feels more like a retreat than a resort so if you're traveling with kids don't expect zip lines or other amenities. This place is also not for the faint of heart, since you will be far away from civilization but up close and personal with the howler and spider monkeys who live in the trees just outside of the cabanas, as well as many other creatures. We even accidentally came home with a tarantula that crawled into my son's luggage!

We enjoyed our time at the lodge and the staff were helpful and friendly. However, we were over-charged by a few hundred dollars. Following our stay, and having paid the bill, Chan Chich stopped responding to my emails and have been uncommunicative since that point. This has left a very bad taste.

We stayed at Chan Chich 3 nights on a birding trip. The grounds were well-tended and the cabanas were lovely, with a huge bouquet of fresh flowers to greet us on our arrival. Our cabana had a wrap-around porch with a chaise lounge (with mosquito net -- which was unnecessary during the day) and hammock. The beds and pillows were extremely comfortable, and the mosquito nets added a touch of the exotic. The restaurant offered good variety at each meal, but the service was slow during our stay, though the staff was very attentive.