Share A Beer At The Lazy Lizard At The Split, A Laid Back Beach Bar In Caye Caulker, Belize

The sign on the Lazy Lizard bar at the Split reads “No shirt, No shoes, No problem.” This is not ironic; it is the operating manual. The bar sits at the southern edge of the channel that cuts Caye Caulker in two, with a dock extending into the Caribbean. The specific activity on offer is floating in warm, clear water with a beer, and the bar has been doing this better than almost anywhere else in the region for decades.

Caye Caulker

Caye Caulker is a small coral island 30 kilometres north of Belize City. No cars (only golf carts), no chain hotels, a speed limit of implied slowness that the island calls “Go Slow.” The channel called the Split was cut by Hurricane Hattie in 1961, dividing the north and south sections of the island. The Lazy Lizard occupies the south bank of this channel.

The water at the Split is warm and typically clear. The current is stronger on the ocean-facing north side than on the sheltered dock side where the Lazy Lizard operates. Local children jump from the dock most afternoons. Before 9am on weekdays, the Split belongs to the local fishermen; from 10am in high season it fills with tourists.

The Reef

The Belize Barrier Reef, the second-largest in the world, runs 15 to 20 kilometres offshore. Snorkel tours to the Hol Chan Marine Reserve and Shark Ray Alley (where nurse sharks and rays aggregate and will brush against swimmers; they are not dangerous but the size is startling at close range) run multiple times daily from the main pier at BZD 75 to 100 per person.

The Blue Hole is an advanced dive; for snorkellers it is too deep to see from the surface and the three-hour boat trip is only worthwhile for serious divers.

Staying and Eating

No chain hotels exist on the island. The accommodation runs from budget guesthouses on Front Street to small owner-operated beach lodges. Book in advance for Christmas-New Year and March. I and J’s Restaurant on Front Street serves stewed chicken and rice, conch ceviche, and fresh fish at prices that reflect local rather than tourist economics. Errolyn’s House of Fryjacks opens early for the Belizean breakfast standard.

Getting There

Water taxi from the Marine Terminal in Belize City to Caye Caulker: about 45 minutes, multiple departures daily. San Pedro on Ambergris Caye is 30 minutes further north on the same service. Cash (Belize dollars or USD) is the working currency; ATMs on the island occasionally run out.