Spent a week at Xanadu on Ambergris Caye Sep/Oct 2009. A direct flight from Atlanta to Belize City and then Tropic Air to San Pedro. Xanadu made our Tropic Air reservations for us and added the fare to our bill. They asked for our International flight info and then emailed us with our Tropic Air reservation confirmation. We picked Xanadu base on Trip Advisor recommendations. The rate was great because of the time of year. Approx $800 for the week for a a large loft unit with a full kitchen, two full baths, a King (could be two twins) up and Queen down. A lovely wrap around porch with a partial ocean and pool views (we were in unit 6, I wanted unit 2 with the same configuration but a full ocean view but it was unavailable). Well appointed unit. They started you out with a gallon of water in the fridge and some coffee grounds in a ziplock baggie. A couple of small grocery stores are nearby. I would say this was a roomy and lovely setting for a couple. I would not want to stay here in this unit with another couple as there would be little privacy (the loft is open to the living area below). Perhaps a family with a couple of kids would find this acceptable.

The grounds and pool area at Xanadu are lovely and very well maintained. No "walk in" beach. The property has a a sandy beach front with a seawall. There is a long dock that has lounge chairs and a shaded area at the end. You can swim off the dock. There is a roped off area for swimmers.

Xanadu arranged for golf cart rental. It was added to our bill. The cart was handy for exploring, shopping, going to lunch and dinner. Some people did without. Xanadu is a short ride from the downtown area. We liked being out of the activity. You could probably take cabs here and there and it would be a wash as far as price if you didn't want the cart.

Xanadu personnel were very accommodating as far as recommendations and assisting with reservations. They helped us make dinner reservations, book dive trips, a fishing trip and massages. All of the activity charges were added to our bill. They didn't appear to mark up for their assistance. It sure was convenient.

We went to Xanadu primarily to dive. This was a leisurely dive trip for us. We typically take 2-3 dive trips a year and we have logged over 500 dives each. We usually dive 3-4 times a day on a dedicated dive trip but we picked this spot as we thought we could do just a couple of dives in the am and have other activities in the afternoon. We weren't disappointed.

Xanadu refered us to Ecologic Divers. We tried to research dive options prior to going but didn't find allot of current recommendations on either Trip Advisor or on the "Undercurrent" website. Ecologic picked us and our gear up at the end of the dock each morning at approximately 8 am for a short ride back to their dock/shop 5 minutes away. We were diving on local reefs all week. Never more than a 10-15 minute boat ride away. "Marcos" was our Divemaster most of the week. We came back to the Ecologic dock for our surface intervals between the first and second dives. The dives averaged about 50 minutes and 50-80 feet. No real shallow areas for the second dive. We found ourselves time limited on some of the second dives because of the depths and a rather short surface interval (one hour). If you were going to do more than a two dive day you would want to consider Nitrox (we saw Nitrox tanks but we didn't inquire about their use) or ask/insist on a shallow afternoon dive. Water and warm face towels offered after dives. Ecologic's office/shop is on the dock. No restroom facilities. We were directed to a beach bar to use the head. During the surface interval they offered water and cut up fruit (oranges and/or pineapple). If you dive multiple days they hold onto your BC and regulator. You take the rest of your gear with you each day. They look like they have good selection of rentals.

The diving was pretty good. We didn't have great expectations because of negative comments about Ambergris Caye diving on "Undercurrent" and a lack of comments in Trip Advisor. The diving exceeded our expectations. We saw the largest groupers we have ever seen. Lots of Angel fish, sharks (mostly nurse), turtles, a couple of eagle rays... Quite a few lobster and the usual assortment of tropicals. They featured a few dives with swim throughs. We were the only divers on one day and on one day they had nine divers. They divided the nine into two groups with two divemasters. They seemed to have lots of new divers. They did make a concerted effort to put the new divers and heavy breathers togeather (THANK YOU MARCOS).

All in all not a bad dive trip! If you have non divers in your group this would be a great spot to consider as it is a great compromise...lots for them to see and do too. If you are interested in a more hard core dive trip you could do the afternoon dives or book a Blue Hole excursion or trips to some of the outer Cayes.

We really enjoyed the restaurants. We ate at the Sunset Grille twice and the Blue Water Grille once. Those were our favorite meals. Not cheap but then again a comparable meal in a Stateside resort town or in the Cayman Islands or in Provo would be at least double. Can't beat the seafood entrees, the friendly service, and the water front settings. Caliente had a premium Margarita that rates up there as my all time favorite. We had breakfasts and most lunches in our condo. You can find just about anything in the local grocery stores. Staples can be very pricey but then again versus going out you probably will save.

We were happy with Xanadu and Ecologic Divers.