After a gorgeous 'surf & turf' experience with Casa Maya and Salamander Hideaway we actually stay at our last stop in Mexico City.
The experience at Casa Maya and Salamander was overall very nice. They both have a perfect organisation to pick you up from the airport, carry you over to their places and switch you over to the second place. Nice excursions for just us 2 with a very knowledable guide, nice food, a perfect service and this "sorrow-free" package that includes everything but the drinks was an even better experience than we expected.
We recommend both places for an overall impression of Central America for everybody who doesn't want the touristy Yucatan-all-inclusive-automated-vacation. You get everything: Information about country and people, adventure, jungle, town life (and don't miss the market on Saturdays in San Ignacio), beach, barrier reef with hundreds of species of fish, fishing, snorkeling and real authentic and nice food.
We surely will come back
:-)

Calling this an eco resort is a bit of a misnomer. The owner couldn’t tell me the best place on his property for bird watching and then proudly said that he was thinking of putting in a golf course! The cabañas are OK but a bit rundown, with dreadful lighting, and the food is nothing special. If you buy a package with tours, they are quite good, but overall I thought it over-priced, as is the case almost everywhere in Belize. Far better to cross the border into Guatemala, just a few miles away, where better prices and better food are available.

We staid at Casa Maya Resort just one week before Eastern and it was a great experience. We researched at tripadvisor and on the Casa Maya website and knew exactly what to expect.

Yes, of course we could have saved a lot of money in renting a car but we enjoyed our vacation, not care for anything, have excursions in privacy, with a very knowledgable guide (Bill the driver of Casa Maya) and whenever it was necessary they even hired a guide on site to get even more information.

The food is very good, several courses and it's a touch of Belize, Central America, and Germany in the meal plan thanks to Al the German/American owner. Very nice place with incredible nature and some nice people around.

Please listen to the silence at night - it is so peaceful that you can hear the silence. Good relation of what you get and waht you pay.

Casa Maya Eco lodge has great cabanas with 20-foot tall thatched roofs. The room was VERY large and had two queen beds, a table with 2 chairs, walk-in closet, and a large bathroom that was the length of the room. The only downside is that the finish is very rough with almost no amenities. If you're looking for luxury don't stay here...but this is an ECO lodge so how could you complain?!? The expansive grounds at the hotel were expertly maintained. We didn't eat at the hotel and it didn't look like we missed anything special.

We HIGHLY recommend renting a car if you go to San Ignacio. It's expensive for rent and gas, but you save a ton of money by going to the various Mayan ruins on your own. The only tour that you're required to have a guide for is the ATM cave. This was an incredible experience and it's not to be missed if you can stand dark caves. There are thousand year ago artifacts and human skulls in the final chamber and the trip through the cave to get there was great. Ask for the guide Eddie Panti at the tour company.