Carnival Checklist: 8 Things You Must Do At Belize’s September Celebrations

Words by Dion Peyre—

This week marks the start of Belize’s festive season— the September Celebrations—which officially kick off tomorrow with St. George’s Caye Day. We reached out to our Belize connect, Dion Peyre of Brotherhood Promotions, for a roundup of all the ‘must dos’ for anyone coming to Belize to celebrate. 

September is the most party-filled month of the year in Belize, because of our two biggest holidays: the The Battle of St. George’s Caye Day on the 10th, and Independence Day on the 21st. The partying starts in late August and goes all the way through the end of September. If you are in Belize for the September Celebrations, there are eight things you have to do to make the most out of your trip. Although there will be tons of parties and activities all over the country, this list is for the people who plan to make Belize City their hub.

1. Sample some local alcohol

Although most Belizeans drink Guinness and Johnny Walker Black Label like they are local treasures, I recommend you try some of our local spirits. For the beer drinkers, try Belikin beer/stout or Lighthouse Beer. For the rum drinkers, you have to try One Barrel rum. It is a little spicy but mixed with a proper ratio of local Coca-Cola (yes, our Coke tastes better than yours), you will be sure to buy a few bottles at the duty free on your way home.

2. Eat some local food

For seafood, see #3, but for the truly local fare, you have to try all of the following:

A. Breakfast – Tacos! No, no, not those kinds of tacos, Belizean tacos: soft corn tortillas filled with chicken or pork and topped with “secret” sauce/salsa, and then rolled. EVERY Belizean swears by “their” taco vendor so find a local, get up early, and order a lot.

B. Lunch – Lunch can be a variety of different things but, on weekends, and primarily during the celebrations, find yourself a good barbecue. Barbecued what? CHICKEN, what else? Although some chefs have started to barbecue steak and other meats, chicken is your best bet.

C. Dinner – Chinese food. Chon Saan Palace is my go-to restaurant. Try this and don’t be shy: fried chicken with STEAK sauce. Like I said, don’t be shy!

3. Go to one of the islands

Catch a water taxi from the city and go to Caye Caulker (45 minutes from Belize City) or San Pedro (1.5 hours) for the day. You can get the best seafood, swim in the most beautiful tropical waters and/or just take a lazy stroll on the beach.

4. Visit a Mayan ruin

There are Mayan ruins all over the country of Belize and all are spectacular. Altun Ha is within an hour’s drive of Belize City so I recommend going there for a few hours to walk off that hangover.

5. Go to the casino

Belize is no Las Vegas or even Atlantic City, but you can play a little roulette or even hit the poker room at Princess Casino for a good game of Texas Hold ‘em. Then go party off your losses at the club on the premises.

6. Party

You can do any of the above things at any other time in Belize, but you came here for the September celebrations, so let’s celebrate! You have to go to one of the many parties/sessions that will be held throughout September. The biggest and best parties are held the nights of the 9th and the 20th of September. Find a flyer with any of the following sounds playing and you will not be disappointed: Stone Jam Sound, Cloud 9, Fyah Statah, DJ Dalla, Evolution, Tagg International and, on the cayes, Blue Wave and Island Invasion. Also look out for local and international artists performing.

7. Go to the St. George’s Caye Day celebrations (10th of September)

St George’s Caye Day celebrates a battle where the English fought back the Spaniards in 1798—that’s why Belize speaks English, and not Spanish like its Central American neighbors. So brush off that hangover and get up early to go watch the St. George’s Caye Day ceremony at Memorial (formerly BTL) Park, make sure to catch the citizens’ parade, and then stick around for the block party back at the park.

8. Celebrate Independence on the 21st of September

Another ceremony, another parade, and another block party at Memorial Park. Drink some beer, eat some local food, and listen to some good music.