Blancaneaux Lodge

WOW. We just finished up a 4 night stay at Blancaneaux to celebrate our 45th anniversary. The stay was exceptional. We were in the "Honeymoon" Cabana #12 which is the furthest away from the main lobby. The cabana is gorgeous, private and quiet. We had asked for a mosquito net, but never even saw one mosquito. It was super cozy to sleep with the net however. No A/C which I thought would be an issue. But with the ceiling fan and breezes coming through it was no problem - especially at night when the whole area cools down nicely. We had our own plunge pool and used it every day to relax, drink wine and birdwatch. It is the staff that really sets this place apart. Nothing was too much trouble. They all knew our names and seemed to genuinely love their jobs. I am sure I will leave out some folks but we fondly remember: Mark (our birding guide and carriage ride host), Kearny (our personal server for our special anniversary dinner), Dean (server and bartender), Byron (bartender), Osmani (server and warm friend), Sindy (concierge), Telma (concierge?), Randall (Carriage driver), 3 massage therapists (awesome - just can't remember names), Edwin (guide), Hector (gardener?) and everyone else! We managed the hike to Big Rock Falls. Super tough in my book, but my husband did it with a orthopedic boot on one foot! Well worth the effort to hike there. The sunrise Birdwatch was awesome and we were shown a great birding app by Mark that we are still using at home. River tubing is really fun. Every meal was a treat - the continental breakfast delivered to our room was healthy, filling and delicious. Pizza and Mediterranean Salad after a big hike was perfect. The Garden Dinner/tour is not to be missed. We never left the property (we have visited Belize previously and done a lot of caving, Mayan ruins etc). I must mention that for our anniversary dinner we had made reservations at the Guatemalan restaurant. However, as we were walking to dinner from our room, we were stopped by Kearny who directed us to a little palapa that was decked out in candles and flowers. It was our own sanctuary for the evening. So romantic and special. If you are looking for a beautiful, peaceful, "zen" place this is it! Thank you to all the awesome Blancaneaux staff for making our anniversary super special.

The Blancaneauz Lodge property is beautifully landscaped. It is quite different, though, than the rest of the Mountain Pine Ridge Forest Preserve in which it is located. The forest preserve has primarily Caribbean pine trees, along with some palms, and it strikingly resembles parts of the western US where Ponderosa pines dominate. There is jungle not far off, but don't expect jungle at Blancaneaux. It would have been ideal if FFC had also purchased the piece of property across the river as it's now been clear cut for some kind of unfortunate development. Paving the highway all the way to Caracol is definitely going to impact traffic and development in this part of Belize. The three restaurants at the lodge are all very good in their way, but it's odd having an Italian restaurant in Belize. The garden restaurant experience was very good as was were the meals at the Guatemalan restaurant. A bonus is that room service for breakfast is included, and it's lovely having breakast on one's deck. A highlight of Blancaneaux were the trips, experiences, adventures that one can choose to go on-- They are numerous and a wide variety of types of experiences. We found the guides to be top notch and the trips very worthwhile. We chose to stay at Blancaneaux due to its location relative to to sites we wanted to visit in the general vicinity. We were not disappointed. One thing that was disappointing was the room itself. A nice cabana with screens looking out to a deck and river view-- Very nice. However, the neighboring cabana was only separated by a line of bamboo plants in planters. We could literally hear every word being spoken by the people in the adjacent cabana, which was extremely annoying. Also, there was little space to unpack in-- No drawers, and only a set of shelves shared with the mini-bar and refrigerator. There was enough space to hang up some clothes on hangers. Finely, the bed (and couch) were ancient and not extremely comfortable. For the price paid, none of these room-related issues should have been a factor.

Blancaneaux Lodge is an amazing property! We just finished up our Belizian family vacation with 3 nights at Blancaneaux, and it was perfect in every way! We came from the sister property Turtle Inn, and on our way we did the ATM cave adventure. We can't recommend that outing enough. On property, the river is so inviting and compelling. The setting is amazing, and the kids loved exploring the river, swimming in the pool, and playing cards at the Jaguar Bar. We loved each of the 3 unique dining options, and the organic garden provided the best fresh produce at every meal. We enjoyed the surrounding forests and Mayan ruins as well. It was the perfect blend of adventure, relaxation, and cultural awareness. The staff was amazing, and they took care of every need and request. We loved the garden tour, birding walk, river tube rafting, and pool side drink service. It was a perfect stay from start to finish~

I decided to do something different for my wife and I 39th wedding anniversary. Well Blankaneux did not disappoint. They understood the assignment and exceeded our expectations. The staff, food, accommodations and property was top notch. It would be difficult or just being too picky for me to give them less than 5 stars. It's a jungle resort with comfort and attentiveness to its occupants. I am definitely coming back.

I’ve been researching traveling to Belize for quite some time and finally made the journey. I’ve become accustomed to some luxury resorts and Blancaneaux certainly did not disappoint and were everything I had hoped and more. The entire staff was incredibly friendly and helpful. My wife and I stayed in Cabana number 5. I would totally stay there again because it overlooked a small waterfall (beautiful and such a great sound for sleeping). The cabana itself is the luxury I expected from FFC. Thank you, sir for sharing your beautiful property. The cabana has balcony which is awesome to take in the views, but it also has some loungers with umbrella at the lower level, closer to the waterfall. We stayed a week and devided our time between adventures and enjoying the property. Highly recommended excursions we did were a visit to Tikal (Mayan ruins in Guatemala - longer drive, but worth it to us just to visit another country); the ATM cave (no pics/videos allowed since 2012 so not initally on our list, but added it after listening to other guests who went - very cool adventure. It felt like we were one of the first ones to discover the cave); Big Rock Falls (hour walk from the lodge to a magical waterfall and pool); and the sunset horse ride (2 hour ride through pine ridge and some rainforest - very beautiful and peaceful ride). The restaurants on the property are pretty much your only option, but rest assured they are the best options. There was a soup at the Guatemalan restaurant that was insanely delicous. The Italian restaurant was delicous and a must do is the garden tour that has fresh mojitos and a magnificent snacks and main course served family style for the group (everything from their 3.5 acre garden!). I had already planned on leaving a great review, but then the staff completely caught us by surprise. We went to enjoy our last dinner when the host stopped us and asked us to follow him. He took us down to the edge of the river where the most beautiful table was set for a romantic dinner (it was our anniversary). We were really blown away and impressed. The staff at Blancaneaux are everything you would expect at a luxury lodge, but they pay attention to the details and really take it to the next level. I cannot recommend this beautiful property enough. It was the perfect spot for our anniversary. Thank you to all the staff and guides! You really made our stay special!