Best cities to live in Belize

there are no job opportunities in belize.  You may start a business but you must employe Belizeans to do the work.  tourism is all over belize but most concentrated on ambergris caye.  Belize City is about 30,000 but a very ugly place to live.  The best way to make a small fortune is to go down there with a large fortune.

I love San Ignacio. The people are the nicest of all the places I have visited in Belize over the past 8 years. A wonderful sense of family. If you call a handyman and he has a day job, he stops by after work with the wife and kids in the truck while he takes care of your repair. Wonderful for a non-handy expat like me.

I have been living in Belize for almost 30 years and the best place to live in Belize without a doubt is San Ignacio in the Cayo District.

it is much better to visit the beaches for a day and then go home, than to actually live on the beach and pay high property prices and high cost of living.

San Ignacio. Everything I need is there.

Hi,
I think either San Ignacio of Santa Elena would be a good choice.  I have stayed and travel to several locations in Belize and found these two work best for me since I don't mind not having the sea nearby.  The transportation throughout the country, except for the cayes, would be personal car, rental car or the local buses.   If you want to live close to the sea then these two locations would not be good for you.  The locals are very friendly and inviting.  As for jobs, unless you are Belizean there is a waiting period to apply for a permit to work.  If you have an online business and can work from anywhere then that's the way to go.  Check out the Belizean government website for current info on what to do for working and living in Belize.  Personally, I have chosen to live in Belize for 6 months on and 6 months off.

Hello, that sounds good, how long of a drive from the bullet tree area of San Ignacio to Placencia Village?!
Sincerely, Linda

About 3 hours - 3 1/2 hours with much of it on the very scenic Hummingbird Highway.

What about Belmopan

Belmopan is a small city hard to believe it is a capital city. But it is centrally located for travel to almost anywhere in a reasonably short time, An hour to the twin towns of Cayo, 30 minutes to Spanish lookout 2 hours to Placencia, and about the same to the international airport. The little airstrip has shceduled flights to everywhere. All the major banks have branches there,  most of the foreign embassies and government offices are there, it has reasonably good shopping, and is getting more resteraunts and cafe's all the time. The only mainland golf course is minutes away.
Being central in the country it is not as likely to have problems of  major destruction from Hurricanes.  I like the area, and have my place there so I am probably Biased

Thanks for the reply. I have to ask, because I am worried about disease from mosquito bites...which area
has less Mosquitos, riverside near San Ignacio area, or Placencia Village?
Best wishes, Linda

Ive found mosquitos not to be a problem in the Belmopan area. on the coast the biggest biters are the sand flies or no-see-ums more mosquitoes in the cayo district but they do spray the town from time to time, if there is a noticeable rise in the problem or a particular illness in the area relatable to the mosquitoes.

Ok, thank you so much!
Sincerely, Linda

I have lived in San Ignacio and Santa Elena for almost 30 years and have never found mosquitoes to be a problem.

Also, we don't have much in the way of sand flies (fleas), which tend to concentrate on the coastal areas and can be a major irritant.

Hi again, Ok, thank you so much. I look forward to coming to visit riverside areas near San Ignacio for a week and see what it is all about!
Best wishes, Linda Pease

It's a great place to live.

Google John Acott before you come down and drop me a line and I'll show you around.

That will be great, thanks John!
Best wishes, Linda

I have lived in Belmopan for the past three winters in a decent apartment that is partially furnished. I can walk to the bank, BTL to pay my internet bill or the local market for whatever I need. If you have a vehicle the rest of the country is easily accessible as Belmopan is the central jumping-off point. Although I like San Ignacio and Bullet Tree, Belmopan feels like home now. That being said I'm moving down the Hummingbird Hwy this winter to live off the grid in the bush.

Any comment about Corozal?

I'm retired...no interest in work.  Am SCUBA diver, really like the Palancar diving, which is why I am considering BZ.

I have read the banks are problematic due to US banking oversight in the war on druggies.

The latest mosquito-born flu plague will be a problem.  Any idea what the gov't or WHO is doing to prevent this?

Everyone offers the positives ...what are the negatives, other than the usual third-world insufficiencies?

Thanks

We have two bank accounts in Belize through Atlantic Bank and Atlantic Bank International.  You need two references from your existing banks in the US.  Sometimes follow-up with the bank is slow but patience and follow-up get it done.  I haven't spent much time in Corozal so I cannot really comment on that area.  Being closer to the MX border makes it easier if you want to travel to Chetumal for things you cannot get in Belize.  The biggest thing is to not flash money or act like a rich foreigner.  Our best friends are Belizean's.  It is easy to travel via water taxi to the cayes to snorkel and scuba dive.  We have not had any problems but we stay out of Belize City as much as possible.  If you are not female then the Zika virus should be no problem.  We haven't seen much in the way of mosquitos, just remember to wear bug spray if you are going out in the bush.

malaria is going to be confined to deep jungle areas as Belize does work hard at spraying but when you move to the tropics you get tropical stuff.
work ethic and ownership rights are different down there.  The banking thing will likely get solved but is a serious concern right now.  Last I heard Belize was in DC with hat in hand.  Expect things to happen Island time and expect to be a mark as an american.

"The latest mosquito-born flu plague will be a problem.  Any idea what the gov't or WHO is doing to prevent this?"  this comment suggests you dont really understand what being a poor country means.  hanging out as a retiree should be very easy, no exposure to the vagaries of their real estate market.

I've spent some time in the MX Yucatan and never had a mosquito problem, but no experience with the BZ region.  The World Health Organization (UN) usually takes care of the 3rdworld issues.  While not female I still don't like to expose myself to viruses since they can do things to a human and it may take a while to find out the negatives.  With viruses it is best to not find out by not exposing oneself.  Zika is too new for health issues to be fully explored, and humans can respond differently, because we are all different.