Firsthand, detailed, and practical guide to discovering the off-grid paradise of Tobacco Caye.
During our visit to Belize, we stumbled across the hidden gem Tobacco Caye by what Bob Ros would call a happy accident – and we couldn’t be happier that we visited. Without further ado, here’s our travel guide to this off-grid paradise island!
Tobacco Caye is a tiny island in Belize, about 10 miles (16 kilometres) east of Dangriga. It lies within the Belize Barrier Reef and the South Water Caye Marine Reserve.
Tobacco Caye is approximately three acres (0,0121406 km² 😅) in size. The north-south length is 240 m (2787 ft) and the east-west length is 125 metres (443 ft).
Tobacco Caye has a permanent population of only about 20 people.
Despite being a Caribbean Island, Tobacco Caye does not have beaches. That doesn’t mean that you can’t swim though.
Tobacco Caye is the perfect place to unplug and unwind – and to explore the Belize Barrier Reef.
To get to Tobacco Caye, you have to get to Dangriga first. Dangriga is well connected to other Belizean destinations like Belize City and San Ignacio (change in Belmopan) as well as Hopkins and Placencia. Boats leave from Dangriga in the morning so we highly recommend staying there for one night.
If you stay on Tobacco Caye overnight, your accommodation will help you with the transport arrangements.
If you only want to visit for a day, you can head over to North Stann Creek in Dangriga and make an arrangement with the local fishermen. Expect to pay around 50$ round trip.
The boat ride takes around 45 minutes. When we went, the water was quite choppy and we found it a bit challenging to make the crossing in the tiny open boat.
There are currently 5 accommodations on Tobacco Caye
As of today, you can’t find any of them on online booking platforms like booking.com but they all do have websites with the current prices and booking options.
The best thing to do on this island paradise is to do nothing.
Snorkelling on Tobacco Caye is lovely and the best spot is clearly signposted. You don’t have to swim far out to see sting rays and other cool inhabitants of the Belize Barrier Reef.
You can also book snorkelling tours by boat at your accommodation – or a guided night snorkelling tour for some adrenaline.
Both Tobacco Caye Paradise and Reef’s End Lodge have PADI dive centres. They offer dives at different dive sites for certified dives and Discover Scuba dives for first-time divers.
Most accommodations on the island rent out kayaks or SUPs.
It will not take you more than 10 minutes but it’s still very worthwhile.
How long you want to stay on Tobacco Caye strongly depends on your ability to unplug and do nothing.
For some people, a day trip might be enough, others would want to spend weeks at a time.
While the accommodations do claim to have WiFi don’t expect it to work – and if it works, it definitely does not work fast enough for anything more than writing messages.
Our local SIM card did not work at all. We heard the rumour that Digi offers some connection on Tobacco Caye.
The island is tiny. There are no ATMs. At the time of our visit, it was cash only as the internet connection was not reliable enough for credit card payments.
There are no shops or restaurants on Tobacco Caye. At the time of writing this blogpost, all accommodations on the island offer meal plans including three meals per day. They are mostly mandatory, if not, we strongly recommend booking a meal plan.
If you like a drink, you can head to Reef’s End Bar or Sunset Bar.
Honestly, it depends. If you’re a beach bum or a snorkelling enthusiast like us, this place is heaven. If you like being surrounded by action and people, this is not the place for you.
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