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Driving to Belize (August 2002)Charles wrote to me and said." I am considering taking my family on one of our 'Great Adventures' to Belize by land from Florida. How much do you suppose it would cost and how long a trip is it from Texas to Belize?"Here was my answer:Charles,My wife tells me that I'm a terrible passenger, and I guess I'll acknowledge that. I probably won't drive it again, but you can. It was only harrowing because a) We were towing a trailer with the Scout and b) We took the mountain route instead of the toll roads. (My driver had never towed a trailer before.)Gas in Mexico is a little more expensive than in the US. It's a three day trip, so it's probably a little over a thousand miles. You have to allow for getting lost in towns if you leave the toll road to find lodging. Hotels range from dirt cheap to reasonable. (The Holiday Inn is by far the most expensive hotel in Chetumal, for example.) Getting through the tex/mex border can be time consuming -- you should have insurance, and all up-to-date papers on your car. (They are worried that you will sell your car in Mexico without giving them their just deserts.)They have a big campaign going to end the "mordidas" (bribes) but I don't know how successful it is. A BIG bribe is $20 -- not a hundred. A friend of ours who has made a dozen trips keeps a box of Marlboros on the dashboard, gives them that, and tells them (in English) that she speaks no Spanish whatsoever. She has never had any trouble, ever!You will need a Mexican Tourist Visa to travel around in Mexico. You can get one at a Mexican Consulate, free, but you validate it at a bank after you get into Mexico, for 170 pesos (about $US18) Tell them you will make several trips into the interior over 180 days. That will make your return easier.If I were going on a "great adventure", I would spend a little time in Mexico, probably by driving to Merida, Chichen' Itza, & Cancun, before coming down the Yucatan Peninsula to Belize. Cancun is expensive, but there are nice cheap hotels downtown (not on "the strip.")Suerte,Sr. ricNewer: I, along with my son Tim, did drive from Colorado to Corozal in November 2004. Our adventures are chronicled here.
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