We traveled to Belize and found paradise in this wonderful lodge! The location was gorgeous... more beautiful than the pictures displayed on their own website. We rented Villa 6 and 7. The accommodations were lovely and very spacious. The views of the waterfalls from our rooms were spectacular! The river was easily accessible for swimming and our 4 children spent hours playing in the clear river. Geronimo was our guide to Barton Creek. He was very knowledgable and friendly. The cave tour(canoeing 1 mile into the cave) was fascinating. We also went by horseback to Great Rock Falls. The entire family played in the falls...the 2 guides were fantastic on this excursion. We loved seeing the properties gardens. Much of the scrumptious food that is served in the lodges restaurants is grown in these gardens. The service was top notch. We can't wait to go back!

The road to Blancaneaux is long and winding - only about 18 miles from the Western Highway, but it took us over an hour by car to traverse the mud, rocks, holes, steep hills, fallen trees, etc. And so when you finally turn into Blancaneaux's palm-lined driveway, it looks and feels a bit like heaven.

From the moment we arrived, we were taken care of like family - handshakes from nearly every staff member we encountered. Cool, casual, customer service at its best. Tracy briefly familiarized us with the grounds and then took us to our 2 bedroom deluxe villa (absolutely perfect for a group of 4 friends). While the bedrooms were perfectly comfortable, I mostly slept in the lounge area overlooking the Privassion River, either on the couch or in the hammock. I'm still for the most part speechless about the accommodations: the Japenese style bathrooms - soap on a leaf, etc., the screened porches off of each bedroom, the towering thatched roof, and the artwork are all worth mentioning.

The staff brought us coffee in the morning, covered our villa with candles in the evening, and occassionally a voice would call from a giant conch (the shell phone - que cool!) to see if we needed anything or if they should expect us for dinner. Every request, no matter how out of the ordinary, was met gladly (i.e., Thelma loaning us pots and pans from the chef's kitchen). If you do head to the restaurant, you must try the lasagna and/or the seafood risotto. There are also some nice wines available from Francis Ford Coppola's very own vineyard (I believe his wine is called The Director's Cut). The bartender was always chatty and filled with fun facts about The Blancaneaux, surrounding wildlife, the Coppola's, and Belize in general.

Apart from the staff, the most remarkable thing about Blancaneaux would have to be the way the architecture blends so effortlessly into nature - the pathways, the hot pool, the bridges and waterfalls only enhance the natural surroundings, rather than detract from them. That, to me, is what makes this place so rare. It's all very inspiring.

In short, from beginning to end we were very, very pleased. When our car broke down on the way out, it was hard not to smile at the possiblity of staying a little longer. But Lluvia (Assistant Manager) and the mechanic came to check out our car and made arrangements for a replacement. And a short while later, we were off again down the bumpy road.

Go here. Do this. You will be happy.

We arrived at the remote resort to be greeted by lush gardens and yummy "Jaguar Juice!" The staff were more than gracious and the private cabanas next to the picturesque river made me want to stay forever! It's no wonder Mr Coppola hides away here!

We strolled through the immaculate gardens which supply his kitchen and visited all the horses and barnyard animals at the stables. With the aracari and toucans flying overhead, we found it hard to tear ourselves away from what had seemed like our own private ranch!

With the Caracol Mayan ruins so close, it was no wonder that we found the lodge's most precious asset to be its staff... a gracious, humble and truly beautiful group of locals who made our stay memorable!

We were a bit intimidated by our own plans to go into Guatemala but the Blancaneaux staff arranged everything and our journey across the boarder to Coppola's LaLancha resort was fascinating and safe! We can't wait to return to our comfy Belizean secret!

Blancaneaux is a beautiful resort that makes the utmost of its setting giving each cabana a feeling of seclusion. The ambiance is fantastic and all staff from management down were friendly, accommodating and knowledgeable. We visited Blancaneaux from Dec. 19-24th and stayed in Cabanas 8 and 10. We had no problem with "bed bugs". Yes, there are insects at the resort and we did have bites when on the grounds but nothing that was not tolerable and the "Jungle Salve" is the best. Water is drinkable in the cabanas (except the shower). Morning coffee delivery and the coconut cookies were a treat. The food was very good in the main restaurant with vegetables and fruit grown on site - organic gardens are amazing (not so impressed with the Guatamala restaurant). The hike to Big Rock was worth the effort - the waterfall was stunning.