Short answer: To get from Belize City to the islands you either fly or take a water taxi. The flight to San Pedro or Caye Caulker is about fifteen to twenty minutes on a small plane, on Tropic Air or Maya Island Air. The water taxi, run by San Pedro Belize Express or Caribbean Sprinter, is forty-five minutes to Caye Caulker, about ninety to San Pedro, and costs a fraction of the airfare. Fly if your time is tight or your international flight lands late, because the last boats leave in the late afternoon. Take the boat if you are not in a hurry and you would rather spend the money on the island.
I see this question every week in travel groups, asked a dozen different ways. Should I fly or take the ferry? Which airport? What happens if my flight is delayed? I grew up here and I have run an independent Belizean site for over twenty years. Here is the whole system, laid out, so you can decide once and stop second-guessing it.
Flight vs. water taxi, side by side
| Flight | Water taxi | |
|---|---|---|
| Operators | Tropic Air, Maya Island Air | San Pedro Belize Express, Caribbean Sprinter |
| To Caye Caulker | ~15 min | ~45 min |
| To San Pedro | ~20 min | ~90 min |
| Cost | Higher | A fraction of the airfare |
| Leaves from | Either Belize City airport (BZE or Municipal) | Belize City water-taxi terminal, not the airport |
| Last departure | Through the day | Late afternoon, then nothing |
First, know there are two airlines and two airports
Two airlines fly inside Belize: Tropic Air and Maya Island Air. They serve the same main destinations, San Pedro on Ambergris Caye and Caye Caulker, along with Placencia, Dangriga, Hopkins, and Punta Gorda. Their schedules and prices run close to each other. You will not go wrong with either. The plane is a small prop aircraft seating around a dozen.
Belize City has two airports, and this trips people up. Philip Goldson International (BZE) is where your flight from abroad lands, and it is the country’s only international airport, so every flight from overseas comes through it. Belize City Municipal (TZA) is a small airstrip in the city itself. Both run domestic flights to the cayes, but fares out of Municipal run lower than out of the International airport. The catch is that Municipal is a taxi ride into town from where you land. So the cheaper fare costs you a transfer. Whether that math works depends on your day. If you just flew in internationally and you are heading straight to the island, connecting at BZE is simpler. If you are already in town with time to spare, Municipal can save you money.
Flying to the cayes
The flight is the fast option and, for a lot of people, the better one. The hop to Caye Caulker is roughly fifteen minutes and to San Pedro about twenty. You fly low over the reef the whole way, that line of pale water over the coral, and most people spend the flight with their face at the window. It is the rare short flight nobody wishes were shorter. You can fly directly into San Pedro’s in-town airstrip, and Caye Caulker has its own small strip too, so the plane puts you on the island itself, not at a dock you still have to leave.
You fly when your international flight lands in the afternoon or later, when you are carrying small kids or a lot of luggage, or when your time on the ground is short and an hour saved is worth the fare.
Taking the water taxi
Two companies run boats from Belize City to the islands: San Pedro Belize Express and Caribbean Sprinter. Their terminals sit close together in the city center, about twelve miles from the International airport, and they leave roughly every couple of hours, stopping at Caye Caulker first, then carrying on to San Pedro. Caye Caulker is about forty-five minutes out; San Pedro about ninety under normal seas.
A practical note for the airport-to-boat hop, because the airport is small and it confuses people. You clear customs, step straight into arrivals, and there is an ATM there for cash. Take an official taxi, the ones with a green license plate, to the water-taxi terminal in town; most drivers will assume you are going to San Pedro, so tell them where you actually want to go. The boats hold around thirty people. Morning sailings are rarely full, but afternoon boats can sell out, so in high season book ahead rather than counting on a walk-up seat.
You take the boat when you are watching your budget, when you are not in a rush and would rather put the difference toward your trip, and when you like being on the water, which, fair enough, is part of why you came.
One thing the boat is not: a way out of the international airport directly. The water taxi leaves from the city, not from BZE. If you land at the International airport, you first get into Belize City, about twelve miles, and only then can you catch a boat. That transfer is exactly why the late-arrival problem below matters.
The mistake to avoid: a late international arrival
This is the one that strands people. The water taxis stop running in the late afternoon, with the last boats out reported around 5:30 in the evening. If your flight from abroad lands late in the afternoon, by the time you clear customs, ride the twelve miles into the city, and reach the dock, the last boat may be gone. Then you are spending an unplanned night in Belize City when you meant to wake up on the island.
If your international flight lands late, fly to the island. Book the domestic connection out of the International airport the same day, skip the trip into the city entirely, and sleep where you wanted to. The extra fare is cheaper than a forced hotel night and a wasted morning. Leave yourself a sensible buffer between the two flights, too; you do not want to clear immigration and sprint for a domestic gate.
Caye Caulker or Ambergris Caye?
The other question I get every week. Ambergris Caye, where San Pedro is, is the larger and busier island, more developed, more to do, more places to eat and stay. Caye Caulker is smaller, slower, sandier underfoot, the “go slow” island. Neither is better; they are different moods. Families and people who want options and nightlife tend toward Ambergris; budget travelers and people who want to do very little tend toward Caye Caulker. They are a short hop apart by plane or water taxi, so if your trip is long enough, see both.
So which is best?
There is no single answer, but there is a right answer for your trip. Land early and traveling cheap? Take the water taxi. Land late, or short on time, or loaded down with family and bags? Fly, and fly out of the International airport so you never leave the terminal complex. Staying a while and counting every dollar? The boat, and put the savings into one more night or one more dive.
Just arrived from Mexico? See Chetumal to Belize and how to get from Cancún to Belize. Heading to the Maya world next? How to get to Tikal from Belize. The whole trip is in the Belize travel guide.
Frequently asked questions
Should I fly or take the water taxi to San Pedro or Caye Caulker?
Fly if your time is short or your international flight lands late in the day, since the water taxis stop in the late afternoon. Take the water taxi if you arrive early, are not in a hurry, and want to save money.
Can you fly directly into San Pedro or Caye Caulker?
Yes. Both Tropic Air and Maya Island Air land at San Pedro’s in-town airstrip on Ambergris Caye, and Caye Caulker has its own small airstrip. The plane drops you on the island itself.
How long is the flight from Belize City to the cayes?
About fifteen minutes to Caye Caulker and around twenty minutes to San Pedro, on a small prop plane.
How long does the water taxi take?
Roughly forty-five minutes to Caye Caulker and about ninety minutes to San Pedro, leaving from the Belize City terminal every couple of hours.
Which airline flies within Belize?
Tropic Air and Maya Island Air both fly the domestic routes to the cayes and the south. Their schedules and fares are similar.
What is the difference between the two Belize City airports?
Philip Goldson International (BZE) handles flights from abroad. Belize City Municipal (TZA) is a small in-town airstrip with lower domestic fares, but it is a taxi ride from where your international flight lands.
How do I get from San Pedro to Caye Caulker?
They are a short hop apart. Take a quick domestic flight or one of the water taxis that runs between the two islands; the boat is the cheaper and more common choice.
Can I take a water taxi straight from the international airport?
No. The water taxis leave from Belize City, about twelve miles from the airport, not from BZE. You first travel into the city, then catch the boat. If you land late, fly to the island instead.
About Joe Post
Joe Post is the founder and editor of Belize News Post. He grew up in Corozal Town, Belize, on the Caribbean sea with a view across Corozal Bay to Cerro Maya. He has lived in Costa Rica, Kenya, England, Spain, and the United States. He grew up cooking alongside his mother and grandmother, and has personally tested the vast majority of the recipes on this site. He started BNP in the early 2000s as one of the few independent Belizean news sources online. Over the years, the food became the stickiest thing. News comes and goes. Food stays.
