My Weekend in Chetumal: How I Traveled, Why I Went, What I Did, Where I Stayed

Earlier this month, I travelled to Chetumal Mexico – a small city of about 200,000 people (small by world city standards but half the population of ALL of Belize) and the capital of the Quintana Roo state of Mexico.

Quintana Roo is known for Cancun, Cozumel, Playa del Carmen and Tulum…cenotes, white beaches and Maya sites. But Chetumal at the far south of the state? It wasn’t a place I’d heard of until I moved to San Pedro, Belize.

It’s not much of a tourist spot. It’s close to more touristy locations like Laguna Bacalar (about 25 miles away) and Mahahual, Mexico (about 40 miles away) but it’s more of a pass-thru town for tourists – especially to Belize.

Note: There is an international airport on the edge of the city – currently with daily flights to Cancun and Mexico City. (There was a flight a few times a week to Florida for a while but that seems to have been canceled) The flight to Mexico City is just over 2 hours and I’ve seen non-stop RT tickets for about $100US on Volaris and Viva Aerobus – but I’ve never flown from this airport. (You can see daily flights here)

Chetumal, while not touristy, is very appealing for Belizeans to visit for a variety of reasons – sometimes medical care or shopping, restaurants and movie theaters or just a day or two getaway to a city.

Let me tell you first how I traveled to Chetumal since there are MANY different ways you can do it. It depends on your budget and your time constraints.

Here the excellent Moon Guide map so you can picture it.

How I Traveled from San Pedro to Chetumal and Back (see end of post for alternatives)

The distance between San Pedro and Chetumal is only about 40 miles but it’s not as straightforward as that short distance sounds. San Pedro is in Belize, Chetumal in Mexico – you are going to go across a border. And, San Pedro is on an island, Chetumal on the mainland.

I live on Ambergris Caye and I had made a doctor’s appointment in Chetumal for 3pm on a Friday afternoon. That would give me all Friday morning to travel the 40 miles.

Here’s how I traveled.

There are faster-more expensive and more direct ways to go (or even slower and less direct) – you can see the other options at the bottom of this post!

First: San Pedro, Belize to Corozal, Belize

I took the Belize Sea Shuttle water taxi from San Pedro to Corozal, Belize. The boat currently leaves San Pedro at 8:15am and arrives in Corozal at 10:15am. (It stops in Sartaneja, Belize at about 945am if needed). It returns at 2:30pm from Corozal – pulling into San Pedro at 4:30pm.

The price is $50US each way/$95US RT (per their website) – though the prices are lower for locals – about $74bzd each way. (Make sure to make a reservation via Whatsapp and try to get tickets ahead of time at ticket office. Somewhat annoyingly, even if you have a reservation, you will pay $10bzd more for your tickets if you buy them at the dock before the trip)

It’s a nice, comfortable boat with a bathroom. You are paying a bit more for that – the alternative boat is an older one…

The alternate service, The Thunderbolt, leaves San Pedro in the afternoons DAILY at 3pm. And then returns from Corozal to San Pedro at 7am the next morning.

It is an older boat, no bathroom and less comfortable. The Thunderbolt is also cheaper than The Sea Shuttle and tends to be way more crowded. The best way for reservations and updated information is WhatsApp at +501 628-8590 (they don’t have a website). Current prices: Tourist: OW $62 RT $121 Local: OW $60 RT: $115BZD

My choice was based on my schedule. I had a 3pm appointment so I took the morning boat (the Sea Shuttle) and arrived in Corozal at about 10:15am.

Note: Belize does NOT adjust our clocks for Daylight Savings and Mexico DOES. So at this time of year, Chetmal is ONE HOUR AHEAD of San Pedro. (Make sure to check that when you are scheduling travel!)

Next: Bus from Corozal, Belize to Chetumal, Mexico (including border crossing)

At the Corozal Municipal dock, I got off the water taxi and walked the few blocks to the bus station. (Actually I ran into my friend Mark who lives in Corozal and writes BelizeFAQs.com and he gave me a short ride)

See my last post on: What I Did with 4 Hours in Corozal on My Way Back

At the Corozal bus station, I asked about the next bus to Chetumal as numerous taxi drivers tried to convince me that there were no more buses going that way. The schedule for the Corozal- Chetumal bus is scattered at best, non-existent is more like it. There are numerous bus companies running buses across the border.

For my trip to Chetumal, I jumped on the next bus (they seem to run about hourly until late morning) – it was Silva Bus service and had originated in Benque on the Western border at 430am! They stopped in San Ignacio, Belmopan, Belize City, Orange Walk and then picked me up in Corozal at 10:30ish. (Here’s the schedule). Gilharry Bus company also runs buses at various hours. Honestly? It’s all very hit or miss but…

I took the bus from Corozal – stopping at Belize immigration and then Mexican immigration – to the New Market in Chetumal all for $5bzd. FIVE DOLLARS! In just about an hour. That’s crazy cheap and very fast. So the trade-off for the loosey goosey schedule/maybe they’ll come/maybe they won’t- especially if it’s Sunday or a holiday – is an incredibly easy, incredibly cheap trip. With a bus driver helping me all along the way.

Eight Tips for Taking the Bus in Belize

It was a Sunday when I returned from Chetumal to Corozal, and I knew the bus schedules would be even more patchy and more elusive, so I returned to the New Market in Chetumal on Saturday to ask the bus drivers about the Sunday schedule. You’ll see the Belize buses parked out there. I was told when to return for the bus ride back across the border.

The last Sunday morning bus would leave at 9:30am.

The return trip from Chetumal – thru the border crossings – with the Gilharry bus company was 1 hour in length but this time $6bzd.

Information for the Border Crossings:

Make sure to have all your paperwork handy – a pen is always good for filling out the form on the Mexico side. The Belize exit fee for non-Belizeans will be $40bzd. There is no fee for Belizeans/Belize residents.

See below for the Mexico Exit/Tourism Fee (it’s a bit of a mess)

A quick note on money exchange: USD and BZD are not accepted at shops/stores in Chetumal so you will want some cash after you cross the border for a snack, a taxi. There are about a dozen guys that run up to you as you are about to enter Immigration at the Belize border. They are money changers. The rate they were giving me was 19 pesos for 1 USD and 9 pesos for 1 BZD. So, carry USD if you can. I exchanged about $30USD to have some cash on me. I didn’t try to negotiate.

There are small money exchange spots at the New Market where the buses from Belize arrive. They were giving the same rate.

The best rate will be at the ATM machine if you have an international card. (Just watch the fees!) I found Chetumal to be a cash and credit card town. Really small spots only accept cash – the bigger ones, credit cards/phone apps.

Let’s get to something a bit more concrete, less convoluted than the Belize bus system:

Where I Stayed in Chetumal

Chetumal has lots of hotels – I used Booking.com to find one near the town center that was reasonably priced and with decent ratings. I’ve stayed at a few in the past but wanted to try a new one and you can easily find a good spot to stay for less than $50USD a night.

I booked two nights at Hotel Arges and it was totally good. HUGE room, comfortable, all the basics, very nice front desk folks, central. Clean and cool. Price was about $45US a night.

(When I’m in a new city and don’t speak the language well – I like a hotel – not an AirBnb or apartment – with a front desk to ask all my dumb and not so dumb questions. The front desk folks spoke very good English here. Chetumal, overall, is a Spanish-only speaking city)

My room. In the center of the hotel, so while there was no view, it was also very quiet. AC worked great. BIG ROOM!

I’ve stayed in two other hotels in the last few years – Hotel 101 Urban and Hotel Casa Blanca and I liked it better than both of those.

Additionally, while I was exploring Chetumal, I took pics of two others spots to put on my “try next time I’m in Chetumal” list:

Ala Residencia – apartments near the water. GREAT location and a bit more expensive.

Casa Chetumal Hotel also looked pretty good – a great location with a bustling cafe underneath. It looked like all the local businessmen were having coffee and pastries there in the morning. I might check that one out too.

Why I Went to Chetumal

My main goal in heading to Chetumal was to see a doctor who is a thyroid specialist. And, after reaching out to the Facebook world, I got a recommendation from a friend in Belize City for a doctor that is based in Mexico City but comes to Chetumal once or twice a month to see patients.

I communicated with the office via Whatsapp to get information and to make the appointment. (Big shout out to google translate which made everything easy) And I found out that the doctor’s English was good-very good. Perfect! We can make this work!

Dr. Gilberto Trinidad Plaza Yamasaki is an endocrinologist who specializes in the thyroid and women’s issues and hormones, including menopause.

I suspected that I would meet with the endocrinologist at my 3pm meeting and then have a blood test the next day. I had a good 45 minute sit-down meeting with the doctor, talking about my symptoms, history, and issues. The appointment was about $60USD – and included a ultrasound of my spotted and scarred but still kicking thyroid.

He gave me a prescription for a slew of preliminary blood tests.

I returned to the clinic the following day to take blood. It was whisked off to the lab and I got the results via Whatsapp later that afternoon. The blood tests were $160USD. (They included complete blood work, glucose, liver work, calcium, hormonal tests and my thyroid levels)

I had a good experience and will be going back in a few months for a follow-up.

What Else Did I Do In Chetumal (Other Than Go To the Doctor)

First let me tell you how I got around Chetumal…UBER. I booked an Uber about 10 times during my 2 days. I used an ESim app from Airalo on my phone so that I had internet where ever I went.

For $20 USD, I bought 5GB of photo data and used less than 1.5GB during my time there. It made things SOOOOO much easier. Using Google Translate, Google Maps and Uber. HIGHLY RECOMMEND.

My one BIG tip is to figure out the Airalo purchase and start-up before you arrive (while you are still attached to WiFi) – it’s shockingly complicated (though I will admit I didn’t read the directions fully first and I was fumbling/cursing it for about 30 mins to get it set up)

Each Uber I called took less than 5 mins to arrive, usually 1 or 2 mins…they were everywhere – and cost from 15 to 65 pesos (at the time of the post $1US = 20 pesos). You can also use/hail taxis if you are in a busier area and they are even cheaper.

Now…what I did in Chetumal. I walked around a lot – visiting the main streets – exploring downtown Chetumal, the waterfront and the few parks.

There are not many/any tourist oriented shops. This is a working town – you will see LOTS of shoe repair shops, watch repair shops and auto/motorcycle repair places in Chetumal. I don’t know how they all survive (especially the first two) but there are dozens.

There are not many/any shops for crafts or pottery or weaving. I did see a few stalls at the New Market with very basic pottery – the type that would be used in the kitchen at home (no painting or frills) I did not see hammocks for sale – though I’m told I need to keep searching!

I went to the Museum of Mayan Culture. It’s quite impressive – not a huge amount of artifacts but lots and lots of interesting information. And a really nice book shop filled with books and all sorts of cool things. (Cancun has an even more impressive Maya museum that I visited when it first opened)

Admission for Extranjeros (non-Mexican citizens) 110 pesos or about $5.50USD.

Beauty…so subjective. Crossed eyes, facial scarring and flattened elongated foreheads.

There were only about 4 people in the museum on the Saturday morning.

I walked farther uptown (a bit less than one mile) to the New Market (it’s the spot where the buses from Belize drop you off).

Fruits, veggies, LOTS OF MEAT, all sorts of Chinese-made junk – toys, clothes, plastic stuff, socks, undies…everything.

The mangos above cost about $5bzd each in San Pedro right now. Above – they are 45 pesos (or $5bzd) for a kilogram (or 2.2lbs) or about 4-6 mangos.

Or, in one of Chetumal’s Walmarts –

The selection and prices are almost overwhelming if you are used to shopping in San Pedro. It gets you thinking about food production and regulations in Belize.

The entire center of the market – the indoor portion – is devoted to MEAT.

Belize is a chicken country through and through – and Chetumal LOVES beef and pork.

There are food stalls above the market serving some of the favorites. From Mondongo – a tripe stew to relleno negro (a favorite in Belize) – a chicken stuffed with ground pork and spices.

Chicharrons are very popular – I even saw lots of signs for beef head/cabaza tacos – Taco de Ojo, Taco de Lengua, Tacos de cheek. I draw lots of lines when it comes to food but I would say no to an eyeball taco.

When I went out for tacos on night, a chicharrones “salad” came first.

I also went to a mall, Plaza Las Americas, and a movie theater! (We have neither in Belize) It’s a serious multiplex that shows movies in Spanish, some in English dubbed in Spanish and some in English with Spanish subtitles. Tickets are only 69 pesos! (That’s $3.50US right now – the average in the US is almost $11US!)

I went to a Walmart – and walked around and got a bit overwhelmed – and didn’t really buy much. It’s not the exact same as an American Walmart -different brands, different items.

But one thing I noticed and participated in was the McDonald’s ice cream stand at the front of the store. I’d say 3 out of 4 customers were eating McDonald’s soft serve cones while pushing their shopping carts.

So…I joined in. 75 US cents for a cone? It’s just so crazy cheap. And delicious.

** Some of you may be rolling your eyes. I’d NEVER miss Walmart or McDonalds you are saying. And I agree – I don’t miss them either. (In fact, I’ve only been to Walmart 4 or 5 times in my life) But when it’s not available at all…it’s fun, a novelty, to walk around a HUGE bustling airconditioned store (or a mall) that packs just about everything you need into it…seeing new products, gawking at the low prices and huge selections, just doing something different!

Later, I got a really great pedicure at the spa next door to my hotel. Caribe Nails Spa. I contacted them via Whatsapp and made an appointment for one hour later. Regular Gel Pedicure is 400 pesos. Spa pedicure (which was soooooo nice) is 550 pesos. My lovely technician had lived in Reno for a few years and spoke amazing English.

I was LIVING LARGE!

Here are a few places I ate and drank great coffee:

Cafe 290 – This chic coffee shop/breakfast and lunch spot has inside seating and an outside garden. The coffee is fantastic…if Chetumal has hipsters, this is where they hang.

El Buen Pan – another good coffee shop with DELICIOUS pastries. I had an amazing piece of cake called Pedacito de Cielo (39 pesos) and saved a divine extra gooey almond croissant (59 pesos) for later. The spot is pink and cutsie and the staff is fantastic.

I made a note of this spot near El Buen Pan to try for lunch or dinner on my next trip. Sur 983 Tostaderia and Cruderia. I snagged these two menu pages from their Facebook page – looks simple and delicious. And VERY WELL PRICED. (1 USD = about 20 pesos today)

I’ll be back in April/May ready to eat!

I had a really really nice time. A good weekend getaway to see different things, eat different things and maybe fight off early onset Island Fever? (Read: Island Fever: Is it REALLY A Thing? 3 Stages, When It Can Strike, How You Can Fix it)

I’ll leave you with these alternate routes for the trip from San Pedro, Belize to Chetumal, Mexico. And maybe I can add in information about the Maya Tren in my next post. I saw MAJOR construction of it on our way from Chetumal to the Belize border.

I don’t have any faith that the train will run into Belize…who is going to pay for it?

As a friend pointed out on his Facebook: “In 2005 Belize agreed to construct a mere 400 meters of road as our contribution to the new Belize/Mexican border crossing. Mexico built the entire bridge plus 500 meters of road on our side of the border by 2008. In 2012, Belize still had not built our short stretch of road. The Mexicans got fed up with waiting on us and ended up building that final chunk of road themselves.”

But you can read about the current and projected Maya Tren and see the route here.

Additional Ways to Get to Chetumal From Ambergris Caye

Fastest, Most Expensive Way: You CAN fly from San Pedro to Corozal, Belize with Tropic Air – they do 2-3 flights daily. The flight is an EASY 15-20 mins and costs $83USD one=way (minimum).

You could then use a private shuttle service that you hire before hand – that would help you thru the border crossing and bring you to your destination in Chetumal. That is going to cost about $60-75USD.

That makes your total trip from San Pedro to Chetumal: A total of $143US or $286BZD. And, if everything goes very smoothly, you could do it in an hour. (Though I’d allot 2 hours)

Most Direct Way, Water Taxi From San Pedro directly to Chetumal: There are two water taxis that make the 2ish hour trip from San Pedro, Belize to Chetumal.

San Pedro Belize Express leaves San Pedro at 830am and returns each day at 330pm from Chetumal. The website says the current one-way fare is $71US and roundtrip is $142US.

International Islander Ferries (I found prices only in pesos on their site and WhatsApped them for details) – as of now, they leave only Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday at 230pm (check-in time is 1230) – there prices are lower, I was quoted $120BZD (and $90BZD for locals) but you will want to confirm everything with them directly.

Fees/Exit and Entrance Fees For Border Crossings: Since you will be arriving in a different country – and depending on your nationality – there can be exit/entry fees. But what exactly you pay seems to be a mix of rules and whims (on the Mexican side)

Here is my understanding:

Tourism fee for Mexico (sometimes called a Departure Tax): 841 pesos (or about about $42USD) – often I see that this is ONLY charged if you stay in Mexico for 7+ days BUT I can not find this in any official Mexican document online. It is also ALMOST always included in your flight leaving from Mexico but if you are traveling from Belize to Cancun, they will charge you again at the border…it’s all a bit of hot mess that would be fixed nicely if they clearly posted what the regulations are…but…well…let’s not get into that.

You will most likely be charged by the Water Taxi from Belize to Chetumal for this fee – no matter how long you plan to stay in Chetumal. You might be charged at the land border for this fee if you’ve stayed less than 7 days (I watched some Americans try to get into it with the immigration folks on this last trip – that is never a fight you are going to win)

You will want to add on customs and immigration time on BOTH sides of the trip.

I hope that helps…this is a LONG one! SO if you have any questions, I omitted something or you have your own suggestions, please let me know.