Just got back from a 6 night stay at Jaguar Reef in Hopkins, Belize. We had a great time! Jaguar Reef/Almond Beach is absolutely beautiful. We loved our Ocean View Room (literally a 20sec walk to the beach). All of the staff was wonderful...extremely friendly and willing to help. The food wasn't bad, but there are lots of wonderful places to eat within walking distance so we were glad we didn't buy the meal plan.
A few notes to fellow travelers:
1. Bring a headlamp so that you can have dinner in Hopkins and travel the mile home on your own (either walking or using the provided peddle bikes). It gets dark around 6pm, but it is definitely worth staying in Hopkins later than that.
2. Take a left out of the resort and go to the Sittee River Marina for drinks (on a peddle bike). It's a really cool place! Their kitchen was undergoing renovations so we didn't have dinner, but the drinks are cold and the people are great!
3. Rent a motorbike from Emma (Motorbike Rentals and Alternate Adventures) in Hopkins. She is very helpful at giving you ideas and directions for little adventures to take on your own. We love doing the Tiger Fern Trail (double waterfall) hike in Cockscomb basin, as well as driving down the peninsula to Placencia. If you go to Placencia, stop at Maya Beach Bistro for a mimosa - they also will give you a local map and some suggestions for beach-side dining (the Cozy Corner is delicious! my husband's mouth is still watering over the Cozy Corner Burger!).
4. The Butterfly Spa was wonderful! Ray and Erin work wonders!
5. For delicious meals try these local places within walking distance to the resort that serve excellent food.
a. Chef Rob's is a 2min walk down the beach (to the South)...four courses for $55 belize dollars (27 USD!).
b. Kait's Bakery in the village. Heading north it is the path-like road on the left after the basketball courts. She is great! Grab some banana bread from her and juice from the grocery store, and you'll have breakfast for 2+ days!
c. Thongs Cafe in the village. It's right across from the motorbike rentals; you can't miss it! The staff is friendly and the breakfast is simple and delicious.
d. Innies in the village. They have inexpensive cultural dishes. The Bundiga sounds funny but it is yummy! The fish is good too...fresh and plentiful!
e. Baracuda's, next to Chef Robs, is the most expensive (even more than the resort), but the pizza is a nice change for two people. We can't comment on the rest of the food, but the plates we saw come out looked great!

Safe and happy travels!!
Jessica & Jack, Vermont

Used Jaguar Reef as a home base to dive the wonderful Belize Barrier Reef. The lodge is located south of Hopkins on the beach. South Water Key is 45min from shore, with Glover's and Turnneffe 1 1/2 hours away.

Staff are excellent and very friendly. Rooms are clean, and well appointed if dated. Stay at the Almond Beach part of the resort for the updated rooms.

Food was the real weak link at JRL. They really need to reinvent the entire dining experience. Breakfast was the best meal. Luckily we did not Take the all inclusive plan. JRL is conveniently located next to some wonderful restaurants Chef Rob's (Parrot Cove), Barracuda Grill (Beaches and Dreams) and Hamanasi.

Nice grounds with two pools, hammocks, free bikes and kayaks for your use.

'no see 'ums' are present so use bug spray. We used a natural citronella and lemon eucalyptus oil spray (we hate DEET) and it worked very well.

Local residents and town of Hopkins is very friendly. Very safe walking 15-20 mins to town. Do yourself a favor and try the Hudutu at Innies (perhaps more than once)...mmm good...

Overall impression:
Good value. Dated rooms and pour/ bland food prevent Jaguar Reef Lodge from being a 4 star resort.

Jaguar Reef Lodge is a beautiful, healing place. It was hard to leave, but I know we’ll be back soon. The small plane to Dangriga, the bumpy road to Hopkins, and then the breathtaking view of the beach when you enter the Lodge are perfect hints of what’s to come. Then Stephanie welcomes you into her world and the fun begins! The charming cabana on the beach was clean and spacious. We ate all our meals beachfront in the open-air restaurant. By the second day, you remember how to relax and take in the beauty of the country and its people.

I can’t thank our tour guides enough for sharing so much of their history and culture with us. We saw Mayan ruins, monkeys, Toucans, Kudamundi, crocodiles, iguanas, and tarantulas. We swam in waterfalls while huge Blue Morphos fluttered by, and snorkeled in gorgeous coral reefs with lobsters, stingrays, tarpon, sharks, starfish, and even a seahorse! We went for long walks on the beach, into the mangroves, and to Hopkins Village...where the people couldn’t have been kinder.

We chose the all-inclusive food, adventure, and even romance packages! The bill when we left was exactly as expected, but we got so much more. Thank you again, Stephanie, and all our new friends in Hopkins. See you soon!

Went to Belize for the first time, and actually found Jaguar Reef through a social deal website. We had a blast! First of all, the resort took care of all of the travel for us from the international airport in Belize City to the lodge. They arranged the transfer flight, the shuttle, the whole deal. Really impressed.

When we arrived, the staff couldn't have been friendlier. Stephanie was charming and we enjoyed chatting with her throughout the trip. The room was great - big, comfortable beds, clean bathroom, a nice porch with chairs, and an A/C and water cooler (and mini-fridge!) in the room. One note, they do say on the website that wifi is available in rooms...it's only really available in the lobby. But that's OK! Don't check email on vacation!

The facilities across the hotel were great. Dining room, lobby, bar were all well-maintained, and the dining room had big, beautiful glass doors/windows that opened right on to the beach. I felt like I was on the beach the entire time I was here.

Food was pretty tasty. Had some breakfasts, lunches, and dinners at the hotel. I will say, it was a little pricey, and we enjoyed several meals at Innie's in town, and at Chef Rob's a little ways down the beach. Again, service staff were incredibly kind and friendly.

One of my favorite things about Jaguar Reef was that you could use, for free, snorkel gear, a sailboat, kayaks, or bikes. We took bikes in to town a few days, stocked up on supplies (booze, snacks, etc.) and for some meals.

The bars were great -- King and Rick were great bartenders -- although the prices were pretty on-par with what I am used to in Washington DC. I had expected the drinks to be cheaper, so we went and got some liquor in town to avoid spending a ton of money at the bar every night, and made friends.

The trips were really fun. We did a river boat tour through Jaguar Reef, and then SCUBA diving. We did the pool training at Hopkins Underwater Adventure (loved them...super friendly, really made me feel comfortable as a first-timer) and then a dive with Hamanasi (less friendly, and honestly, less safe...wouldn't dive with them again if you're not experienced). It was a blast, although I wish the dive leader had been a little more helpful with new divers!!!

We had an amazing stay at JRL and can't wait to go back. Thank you to the staff for making this an excellent trip. Highly recommend this to couples, singles, groups of friends, anyone looking for a relaxing experience away from high-tech stress!