Pelican Reef Villas is a first class operation. The family run resort is great. The staff is very friendly and obviously treated like family. They go out of their way to make sure you are comfortable. If you need anything, they will make it happen. The property was very nice. We were in a 2 story villas, all brand new condition, with great views of the ocean. They arranged car service to take us into town each night and would call ahead to any restaurant we wanted to visit. They made it their priority to arrange any day trips exactly how we wanted. I caught barracuda and tuna one day, 66 snapper the next, and 23 bones on a fly. Hands down my best fishing trip ever. I am going back to take the resort manager up on spear fishing then to cook our catch on a private island.

When my wife and I began exploring a trip to Belize, we were told that we should use a travel agent to book our trip because booking activities in Belize could be difficult. For those staying at Pelican Reef, this advice could not be more wrong.

As soon as we confirmed our trip, Lori emailed us and asked what we wanted to do in Belize. We sent her a list, and when we arrived, Eliazar, the activities coordinator, had already booked our first, and most complicated trip. We wanted to tour the ATM cave on mainland Belize, and Eliazar coordinated our taxi to the airport, our flight to Belize Municipal Airport, our transportation to the jungle, and our guided tour. There were a number of moving parts involved in this trip, but Eliazar saw to it that we didn’t have to worry about anything.

The rest of our trip was just as effortless. Our time in Belize coincided with the slowest tourist season and many activities were only being offered 24 hours in advance because there weren’t enough people on the island to fill tours earlier than that. Were it not for Eliazar, we might have spent a significant part of our vacation calling around to different tour companies trying to find something to do the next day. However, Eliazar had the list of activities we wanted to do, and each afternoon when we came back to Pelican Reef, he had already booked our trip for the next day. Despite the reduced activities schedule on the island, we got to do everything we wanted to do thanks to Eliazar.

The time we spent at the resort was just as fun as the time we spent diving and exploring Belize. Cesar was at the bar most nights, and he kept us entertained with drinks, stories, and card games. We also had some great conversations with the owners, Joe and Rhonda. Even India, the resident resort dog, was eager to keep us company.

Finally, we should note that the rooms were gorgeous. These are privately-owned condos, but they are furnished by the Pelican Reef management, so the furnishings are consistent in each of the units. What you see in the pictures on Pelican Reef’s website is exactly what we got, and we were very impressed.

All in all, our stay at Pelican Reef was phenomenal, and we look forward to going back soon.

Spent a week here in an oceanfront 2 bedroom/2 bath villas with 3 other friends the first week of September 2009. This was a dive trip; I'm a PADI instructor, one was a divemaster, another AOW, and the last a newly certified diver. I did my extended TripAdvisor research on all the accommodations on Ambergris Caye before choosing where to stay... I've travelled a great deal (Galapagos, Honduras, Mexico, China, Europe, Africa, Caribbean, Alaska/Canada, the list goes on) and stayed in the full spectrum of accommodation types from budget hostels to private B&B to camping to 5-star top-notch establishments including Venetian, Drake, etc. It was a combination of excellent reviews, pictures illustrating the luxury offered here at very reasonable rates, and the incredibly helpful and honest assistance from Lori when inquiring about reservations that helped me choose to stay here. Lori arranged for our diving excursions (5 days of diving including day trips to Blue Hole and Turneffe Atolls) through Amigos Del Mar (another 5 star review) and the diving was excellent. All four of us were so happy with our decision to stay at Pelican Reef Villas. WITHOUT EXCEPTION, this is the best place to stay on Ambergris Caye. Everything exceeded our expectations... The condo is PIMP; everything is new and in perfect condition, absolutely NO complaints. The infiniti pool with swim-up bar is divine, cushioned lounge-chairs and private beach created a perfect environment to truly forget life and just relax and soak up the moment in this beautiful place. Our condo was cleaned every day, even our many, many dirty dishes we just left in the sink. There was a security guard and I never felt unsafe and I've been to a lot of places that were. I liked that it was away from town; it was very quiet & secluded. However, we did take a cab into town to 1) pickup groceries b/c we cooked all our own food for the whole week except for dinner out on our first and last nights; and 2) go shopping for hats, souveneirs, and to see the town; and 3) go out dancing (Jaguars) and singing karaoke (Club Latino) and we were out until 3:00 a.m. The brother of someone that worked at The Sunset Grill (fabulous) had been looking out for us all evening, too. Josh was his name, he was great - his brother called him & asked him to lookout for us b/c we were obviously tourists & he wanted to make sure we were okay being out so late and all. Josh was great! He took us dancing at Jaguars, to the karaoke place so we could sing, then he made sure we got home okay.

Every morning I got up at 6 a.m. and walked out to the end of the dock with a beach towel and spent an hour stretching on the ocean, all by myself, it was fantastic and great way to start each day. The bathrooms are impeccable, I wish I had the kitchen in my own house, the beds were very comfortable, the decor was perfect, I loved the fresh flowers in the condo and welcome cocktail upon arrival - I could go on & on about all the reasons I loved the condo itself. Suffice it to say that I can't wait to stay there again & wish I had the money to purchase one (our condo was for sale at $440,000 US). Owners were friendly and helpful; their dogs were delightful and absolutely not a problem even for non-dog lovers; they were very sweet but would leave someone alone if their presence was unwanted. Eliazar & Cesar were sooooooo great, we left them a 30% tip and made dinner for them a couple of nights, we were so grateful for their incredible customer service, but they're truly dedicated to helping you in any way possible. They even called the dive shop and cab driver after we left the condo on a couple of occasions to keep us updated on whatever they were working on for us (finding us fresh lobster tails to grill for dinner, what time the fruit & vegetable store closed, etc.). They were happy to have us stay there, were genuinely nice people, and always went above & beyond to help us. One of the guests got a massage right on the beach, almost forgot to mention this is something they offer.

Can't say enough good stuff about this place.

I do recall reading a couple of comments complaining about the grass when trying to snorkel off their private beach, so please let me address this issue. The Belizeans are trying very hard to be eco-friendly so they continue to have the natural resources to bring tourism to their country... The grass has to stay and if you choose to snorkel off the private beach, then you need to cope with that! Turtles and other marine species NEED THAT GRASS, so get over any issues you have with them allowing nature to take its course!!! Moreover, if you want to snorkel, then do yourself a big, big, big favor and book a snorkel trip to the Hol Chan Marine park where you can actually see the fish and corals that make it one of the best snorkeling spots in the world. I went snorkeling there just one time during the week and it was the best snorkelling I've ever done except for in the Galapagos. I saw a green moray eel, loads of nurse sharks & sting rays, a porcupine fish, tons of small reef fish, wonderful vibrant corals, and all the great stuff to see on a snorkeling adventure. You're not going to see this stuff snorkeling off the private beach, so just stop expecting them to have something like that right outside your room. Enjoy a swim in the infiniti pool, which is fabulous, and you can look right at the ocean while you're there. Or take the plunge off the dock but remember this is an eco-friendly place and take pride in it rather than complain about it!

After extensive research here on TA I took the decision to stay at Pelican Reef Villas. Apart from the actual Hotel Reviews though, there didn't seem to be a great deal of other information here in the forums so I still was a little uncertain whether the right decision had been made.

It was, though. Pelican Reef now ranks as one of our most 'special' places we have stayed (and this list includes a 5-star tree-house in an Australian rainforest and the best hotels Hong Kong, Japan and Thailand have to offer). It is obviously important to have a comfortable room and in this regard PRV did not fall short in any way. From the breathtaking water-view, to the ornate furnishings in the living area of the suits, to the whirlpool tub and the massive, comfortable double-mattressed sleigh bed we instantly felt at home.

However good accommodations are though, the experience can be compromised if the atmosphere and people don't measure up. In this regard PRV comes up real trumps. Even though last week was the quietest week of Low Season the magic of the whole PRV experience was undiminished. The gorgeous infinity pool always invites you to cool down from the hot sun and the pool bar is ready to provide refreshing drinks and snacks at any time of the day. The people though - this is probably the main reason PRV was so outstanding for us. From the first email inquiry, my contact was with Lori, the beating heart of Pelican Reef. As efficient as she is friendly, no request was too much trouble and even the most banal question was answered authoritatively and accurately. Lori and her partner, Greg work tirelessly to make PRV the outstanding resort it is and my wife and I are so grateful for their passion and commitment to the place. They actually arranged a 'renewal of vows' on the beach for my wife and I which was one of the most moving experiences of our lives (and we have the photos as a permanent keepsake). Thank you, Lori!

We also had some terrific bar-side chats with the owners, Joe and Rhonda who work behind the scenes and also seem to do an awful lot for the Ambergris community generally. Lovely people whom we now consider personal friends.

And then there was Cesar - available all the time with a fantastic smile and an eagerness to provide a drink, a chat, a joke or just a recommendation for a restaurant. Our vacation wouldn't have been the same without Cesar and again, we consider him a friend. This is the sort of person who can make or break a vacation. He certainly helped make it for us.

In closing on this, I cannot recommend Pelican Reef Villas highly enough. In fact, we cannot wait to go back (which we definitely will) and that, in my book, is the greatest compliment we could pay.