Convoy/caravan from Vancouver, BC to Belize around June/July

Hi Guys!
Looking for folks to convoy/caravan with. We plan to be driving from Vancouver, BC to Belize around June/July of this year, and can also meet up along the way. My wife & I will be traveling with two small dogs.

We would like to meet new friends who have knowledge of how to get across the borders, best route through Mexico, and crossing into Belize. We have to be on Ambergris Caye by the 2nd week of August and will be staying for 2 years or more. Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated!


Cheers, Casper and Adri
-@africassie

Hi Casper and Adri,

I can pass on our route,  hotels we’ve stayed at over the years.

Border crossing into Mexico is easy, as long as you are prepared with all your/vehicle/pet documents.

For Belize, I would suggest a customs broker. It’ll save you time and money.

You’ll also need a pet import permit and health certificate.

Arrange  your travel plans so that you don’t have to cross any border on weekends.

A caravan/convoy can be great, but also has drawbacks.

Happy planning!

Hi Brigitte,

Thanks for the advice. We will definitely have to get the dogs paperwork up to date. Where did you start your route?

@africassie We started from Canmore.

@Brigitte B i would love to chat with you but dont know how to send a message on this site! I am from alberta been living in belize for 6 months now but will be driving to belize this fall to bring a car down . I would love to hear more about your experience with the drive. Could you message me ?

@Brigitte B i would love to chat with you but dont know how to send a message on this site! I am from alberta been living in belize for 6 months now but will be driving to belize this fall to bring a car down . I would love to hear more about your experience with the drive. Could you message me ?
-@Kyley Faith

Sure! You can message me on Facebook at Brigitte Bachmann-Fairs. Messaging is much more user friendly there.

I did the drive recently. Laredo to Monterrey to Tampico to someplace in Tabasco to Chetumal. Border crossings took unreasonably long. We only drove during daylight and took toll roads every chance we could. The roads are rough compared to USA, but paved. We pulled a cargo trailer and the first Mexican-sized speed bump damaged the trailer jack. One tire got a flat due to a shard of metal, got it fixed by a super nice boy for $50 pesos. He must have known he could have charged 10x as much, as I had no choice in a tiny village.

You will be robbed by the state police at some point. Carry just enough cash and hide most of it. They set up inspection roadblocks, and with foreign plates you'll be a target. You can negotiate, even though they have M-16s. I explained that I'm a teacher on a mission trip (a bit of a fib), and talked them down to $2000 pesos, which was all I had in my wallet. Prior to that I insisted they just write me the citation and I'll speak to the judge. They don't actually have authority to write tickets for moving violations, plus they don't make any money for themselves. My alleged crime was having dogs not contained in shipping crates. But they do have authority to demand I unload the truck and trailer to search for contraband, so $2000 felt like a fair price.

At the Belize border, get a broker, and be sure you're prepared for an inexplicably long time. My broker was arranged thru Mr. Mark, but I wouldn't recommend him. If I had to do it over I'd use Darwin King who's just more fun to hang with. No restroom no water. There's so many forms. I followed the BAHA website directions for my dogs, which are out of date, so I paid a $150 fine for each of them. I also was asked to leave $200 BZD on the backseat in exchange for paying 1/10th of the duty I owed. Everyone was courteous and respectful, which is better than I can say about other customs. But you do have to wait until they finish their card game.