We made this the first leg of our family vacation to Belize in Feb. I cannot say enough about the staff and the lodge. Just a quick list of highlights that made it great for myself, my husband and 7 year old son. After an hour ride from the airport where we were met, we took a 45 minute open boat ride to the lodge. Our driver frequently stopped to point out birds, crocs, flora, etc along the way. This resort is a bird watcher's paradise, and my son had a great time looking for birds - who knew he would even be interested! The staff is amazing - every single one of them from guides to kitchen help.
The food is unbelievable, and they go out of their way to make sure the meals work for you. My husband had recently been ill and was on a very limited diet. They made him broth, toast and scrambled eggs whenever he needed it! The daily menu and activities are posted. There are kid friendly options if you have a picky eater. One of the nice characteristics of the lodge is that you go on tours and eat meals with other visitors. It is very family friendly. My son & I went handline fishing like the locals. When we returned, the kitchen staff cooked his fish. And when they brought it out, the entire "restaurant" cheered for him. He was so proud!
Each day you sign up for two adventures, and additional ones can be added for a nominal fee. We did fishing, temple tour, morning kayak, night safari, evening walk, maya medicine walk and learned to cook.
I could go on and on about this part of our adventure. I absolutely feel this a top highlight of our Belize adventure and throroughly reccommend it for a family adventure.

After our huge dissapointment at Tikal inn in Tikal (since we were basically scammed by them), we continued our trip to Belize. Thank God this was a whole different story!!! Not only the country -Belize- is a paradise, but this place was a private earthly heaven. The hotel is so beautiful. So simple, and at the same time so beautiful and elegant. The services were so much more than we expected. Delicious meals, beautiful clean rooms. We took three tours with them, an archaeological tour, the river night tour, and the birding tour. I insist, after the huge dissapinting experience at tikal Inn we were able to value so much the details from this staff. Not only the guides have such a deep knowledge, but they look so decent, and even elegant. Their way of presenting themselves, approaching us, and approaching their subject, they were SO PROFESSIONAL. I highly recommend this place. You will get the value for your money.

Many places like Lamanai Outpost Lodge (LOL) have one good looking picture, but in the end are disappointingly similar. LOL is much better than any picture you could take. The accommodations are individual (often assembled into small clusters) units with thatched roofs. They are not air conditioned, but have ceiling fans. Temperature was perfect in early April. Private modern bathrooms, good beds and very simple and elegant spaces. The open air (under roof) dining room is really quite spectacular. But what really sets this place apart is the people. After a few days there I asked one of the staff if there was a boss--because everybody acted like they were the boss! There is a boss but everybody on staff seems to own any problem you are trying to overcome. The food is excellent. The bird guides were extremely good, and the tours were very relaxed. The tours of the Lamanai ruins were also excellent. It will take you a number of days to exhaust this place.

From my first contact with Blanca at Lamanai I felt that we would be well looked after. They were prompt and helpful. We just spent 4 nights at Lamanai with our kids 14,11 and 9, and we all had a great time. Arriving at the lodge via a boat trip and seeing bats and crocs on the way in added to the feeling we were going somewhere special. The location of the lodge on a wide lagoon is scenic and great for swimming as well. Activities are very well done, and there is lots to see whether an early morning guided canoe ride, a visit into the local village for lunch or a nightime jungle walk. Adding to the appeal is that Lamanai is also very supportive of researchers, and we were fortunate to learn more about Jaguars from a group conducting research in the nearby national park. Having the amazing Lamanai ruins nearby was a bonus. However, what truly sets Lamanai apart is their fantastic staff, and their ability to make activities fun for kids and experts alike. My kids will never forget how well they were treated by everyone from the guides like Raul and Ruben, Mirna in the dining room and Danilo in the bar. While the menu is set, they were very happy to accomodate alternatives and while not everyone wants to be woken up by Howler Monkeys, this was what we signed up for!