Belize Scuba Diving

Belize Scuba Diving 2 Belize Scuba Diving

If you've never been to Belize, a great place to start is Ambergris Caye. It offers attractions of great diving and interesting bridge keep you busy during those surface intervals.

Ambergris Caye is the most popular place in Belize for scuba diving. It offers a variety diving such as reefs, walls, blue holes and more. If you've never been to Belize before, Ambergris Caye is a great starting point.

Geography

Ambergris Caye is the largest island of Belize and is 25 miles long and 1 mile wide. So it is a small island and easy to explore. The city on Amergris Caye is San Pedro and lies near the southern tip.

San Pedro has 3 main lines that are parallel to the beach and reef. They more tourist oriented names now but many of the locals still call them by their former names. The 3 main streets are Barrier Reef Drive (Front Street) Pescador Drive (Middle Street) and Angel Coral Drive (Back Street).

The reef is located just off of ambergris. It is about a half mile east of the shore so boat rides to most dive sites are short.

Location

Belize itself is situated on the Caribbean coast. It is bordered by Mexico to the north, Guatemala to the south and west and the Caribbean to the east.

Ambergris Caye is located about 35 miles north of Belize City and 11 miles north of the sister island of Caye Caulker.

It is the airport on the island with several flights daily from Belize City (Maya Island Air and Tropic Air). The flight is short, about 20 minutes, but beautiful. You can also reach Ambergris by water taxi City of Belize (or Caye Caulker). The trip from Belize City is about 75 minutes and is a fun way to the island.

Weather

The average daytime temperature during summer months is usually around mid to high 80 F with temperatures in the F 90 is not that rare. Things cool off a bit in the winter months with average temperatures closer to around 80F.

Ambergris Caye Belize and a season rains from June to November with most rainfall occurring in the period from September to November. The island is not affected by hurricanes during hurricane season (June-November also).

Reefs and Rides

Ambergris Caye Belize sits right off the second largest barrier reef in the world (the reef goes 185 miles). The reef is only about half a mile off the island for the boat rides can be short. The visibility is typically in the range of 50-100 feet.

If you go out to the reef, dive some views are less than 10 minutes walk away. One of the places most popular dive is located in the Hol Chan Marine Reserve which lies less than 5 miles from San Pedro. This is the area where the popular Shark Ray Alley is located. Although it is a snorkel spot, it is fun and worthwhile.

Over there is plenty of variety in Ambergris Caye diving. You can canyons, tunnels, wrecks, blue hole, etc. As it is the tourist most popular destination for diving in Belize, there are many dive operators to choose from. Most hotels usually have or are affiliated with / recommend a particular equipment.

So if you are looking for Topside with a perfect location for diving and interesting attractions in Belize and Ambergris Caye may be for you.

About the Author:

Dianne Rein runs a scuba diving website at

www.scuba-diving-smiles.com.
You can read her full report on
scuba diving in Ambergris Caye
as well as a report on
scuba diving in Caye Caulker, Belize
on her website.

Article Source: ArticlesBase.com - Scuba Diving in Ambergris Caye, Belize