Journeys End Resort San Pedro

My husband and I spent 5 nights at Journey's End on AMbergris CAye in Jan. and it was wonderful. The bungalow's were cute and the staff was great. Their new chef was wonderful.

Journeys End was a 'Last Minute' deal for us and it was definitely worth the price. We took a couple with us who had never been to Belize and they were overwhelmed by the beauty and serenity of this place. Peaceful, quiet, wonderful staff, and great masseuse.....it doesn't get much better. I believe they had recently renovated each individual cabana, (our ceiling wasn't finished), but the rooms are nice and the showers are awesome! Mesquito netting over the beds, dark woods, and windows to open to allow the breezes to flow through...(even though they do have air conditioners that work well!) I have travelled to several luxury hotels in Mexico, US, and Canada, and this was just as good if you prefer simplicity. Hammocks to rock in, golf carts to ride into town, a taxi boat, kayaks, etc. ...a very nice place to stay.

've been meaning to write a review for Journey's End since we went on our honeymoon there in July 2004. We were upgraded to a cabana, which was great. The place was pretty deserted at the time, so it made sense to give us a nicer room, since there were plenty that were empty. We went snorkeling through the dive shop, which was fun, and also kayaked out to the reef. We also went canoeing on the lagoon in the back which I would NOT recommend. The water is so shallow and muddy-we were lucky to get out of there without my husband getting stuck in the mud. We also rented a golf cart and took it into San Pedro-also a good time.

The restaurant was ok, but personally I thought ALL the food in Belize was mediocre, and most of it was overpriced.

The room was clean and comfortable, but not huge.

The staff was helpful and friendly.

The only thing I wish I had know before was that you have to take the water taxi into town and it's expensive. It cost us $20 US to go up and back for the two of us. This really adds up after a while.

Journey's End is a perfect spot to unwind. It's instant vacation--the beautiful setting, the balmy tropical weather with gentle trade winds, the warm and friendly staff, and the unpretentious but clean and comfortable accommodations. Some people use the resort as a center for seeing the rest of Belize, with day trips to the mainland jungle and ruins, cave tubing, and even a long day excursion to Tikal, in Guatemala. Others enjoy the fishing, or free Hobie cats and kayaks in the lagoon on the back side of the resort or in the ocean out to the reef in front. We went there mostly to dive. Steve, the head divemaster, is relaxed but knowledgeable. He sets the tone for the whole operation: the staff knows how to stay out of the way until needed. Like most Belizeans, they are friendly, happy and seemingly without worry. Except when we spotted two hammerhead sharks on one of the dives (to Pescador) - but even then the divemaster stayed in control, gave the danger sign and hid us behind a wall until the sharks had passed. Most dive sites are a 5-10 minute boat ride away, just outside the reef, with big and small fish, turtles, manta rays, gentle nurse sharks, lobster, etc. Steve caters to the diving ability of the guests. If you need some handholding, he senses it and accommodates. If you are experienced, he sends you out with another divemaster who leads unobtrusively.

The resort takes full advantage of the natural beauty of Ambergris Caye. It is situated about four miles north of town, connected by a dirt bike path along the lagoon, a path along the beach, and an hourly water taxi (the most popular means of transport). Other resorts are strung along the waterfront north and south of this one. We thought the balance of low-key elegance and lack of pretension was just right at Journey's End.

We stayed in the first semicircle of cottages along the oceanfront. Two other semicircles have garden or pool views. The cottages are clean, with good, quiet air conditioning or, for those like me who prefer fresh air, they have windows on three sides and a ceiling fan. The Tamarind Restaurant is quite good; it offers local Belizean dishes and fish as well as a wide range of standard fare, from Italian to cheeseburgers to Indian curry.

This was our second trip to Journey's End, after a seven year hiatus - so we needed little convincing. A couple from New Jersey, whom we met the first day, was just the opposite. The wife seemed disappointed there weren't more people (we were there the slow week after Thanksgiving) or high-rise buildings. By the end of the week, they too had been won over - going around barefoot, sailing the Hobie cat out to the reef, visiting Tikal, and turning it down a notch. The resort was planning on full occupancy, about 100 people, the following week, which more resembles the atmosphere during our visit seven years ago. The property is large enough that there is still plenty of privacy when the resort is running at capacity. But we felt quite fortunate to be there during a slow week. One of the owners, who hails from Houston, was there and remembered us from seven years ago. His generosity makes Journey's End even more special.

Journey's End always has great service, a great bar and a very laid back atmosphere. I'll happily stay there again. The dive shop is top notch and everyone is friendly.

The rooms are average. The service was good. The reef is beautiful. It took us only 10- 15 minutes to paddle out to the reef and it is well worth it. You can snorkel for hours and hours and see everything (sharks, rays, fish, corals). No tv or phone in the rooms.

This place was so awesome. The dive shop was the best. I made excellent friends with the employees and cannot wait to go back next summer. They made me feel very welcome, and i recommend this resort to anyone. The food was great and so were the people.

My husband and I stayed at Journey's End Resort for 5 nights in February 2004 on our honeymoon. We were downgraded, even though we had booked an oceanfront cabana months in advance. A group of students booked 4-5 rooms and they wanted to keep the group together, so they stayed in our honeymoon oceanfront cabana!In addition to being downgraded on our honeymoon:False advertising: Food - The food is very bland, boring, served cold and overpriced. The website states "The Tamarind Restaurant is the featured eating establishment at Journey's End Resort. Here you'll find a delicious blend of Caribbean cuisine with specialties in seafood and local recipes." The food at the Taramind is bad American food, not Caribbean cuisine and no local recipes. We were very disappointed as we expected more from a resort that charges over $200.00 per night and advertises Caribbean cuisine. This is false advertising.The wait staff at the restaurant is inattentive. On the first night the manager said they would give us a special dinner on the beach and we asked if we could eat at 6:30, they said no problem. We showed up at 6:30 and hate to wait until 7:00 for them to set up our table, then waited until 7:30 before they came and asked us if we wanted anything to drink. It was almost 8:00 before we they brought us a glass of water.False advertising on website: Website states "Journey's End Resort is proud to present a new and exciting event that is on our weekly schedule for Wednesday and Saturday nights. It's the Carnival on the Caye Beach BBQ and it's open to all guests and island goers in and around San Pedro. Incredible food, fun local entertainment, Karaoke and unlimited drinks from 6-7 pm. If you're staying with us be sure to take part!" We arrived on Saturday afternoon expecting to enjoy the Beach BBQ and were told that they were not having it that night.A service charge is included in everything but they do not tell you and happily accept your tips. This information is stated on the price list for the rooms "Prices listed below do not include government room tax (7%) or service charge (10%)" but Journey's End also includes this service charge for everything else at the resort, including food, drink and activities. We tipped the wait staff and bartenders every time they serviced us over a five-day period. Not once did they tell us that they were also getting a 10% tip that they would include later. A 10% service charge is added to everything, but they don't make this clear. We tipped 10 to 15% for all services, not knowing that this means we actually tipped 20 to 30% for all services.False advertising on website on the Q&A page: "Can I drink the water at Journey's End" "Yes. We have a reverse osmosis water desalination system on the property that filters all water. The water at the resort is of the highest standard and is monitored frequently." When you arrive the staff happily tells you that you can purchase bottled water from either the Toucan bar or the gift shop. No one at Journey's End drinks the water. Even the staff does not drink it because of the high sulfur content. Journey's End charges twice what you would pay elsewhere for bottled water but guests are stuck paying the high price because the resort is so isolated. If we had known the water was not drinkable, we could have purchased bottled water in San Pedro before arriving at Journey's End.False advertising from the website: "Our Ocean Front Cabanas are situated right on the beach just yards from the clear waters of the Caribbean". The oceanfront rooms are so far from the ocean that you cannot see the ocean. Of course this did not matter much too us since we were downgraded. For all except one of the "oceanfront" cabanas, there is no view of the ocean. The dive shop overcharged us and it took an hour to resolveManagement is around when your happy but they disappear when you have a complaint, Maid service is sporadic, On the third day I decided to use the coffee maker and found it full of old coffee and coffee grounds from previous guests. One night I got into bed after not being in the room all-day and there was sand on the sheets. Obviously the maid did not change the sheets. I hope she at least changed them after the previous guests checked out of our room!The entire resort has plumbing problems,More false advertising on website from Q&A section: Website states, ""IS THERE SNORKELING AND SWIMMING IN FRONT OF THE RESORT? Yes. Swimming is good for children and adults alike in front of the resort. The ocean floor is a mixture of soft sand and eel grass. We recommend that guests kayak out on one of our complimentary Ocean kayaks (about 10 minutes) to snorkel. The water depth is 3' - 6' and once you've experienced the fish and coral on the second largest barrier reef in the world, you probably won't want to snorkel right in front of the resort." You cannot swim at their beach because the sea grass is dangerous. The staff was sure to make us aware of this. My husband is in very good shape and it took him over 20 minutes to kayak to the reef.False advertising on the website: "The artificial reef at Journey's End is about complete. We are actually adding two section of reef; one between the rock jetty on the north end of the property and the other between our main pier and the dive shop dock (area pictured). Within about 12 hours of putting down the first bits of rock and material we started getting a congregation of small fishes and other creatures moving in. It won't be long until we have a bona fide snorkeling area for the guests. " This artificial reef is made of old tires and garbage. I asked the staff if we could snorkel there and they said no. They told me the fake reef was built to protect the beach from sand erosion, not so people could snorkel in front of the resort. Once again they emphasized that the sea grass is dangerous and we should NOT snorkel in front of the resort.False advertising: Website states ""Room Service - Room service is available upon request." There are no phones in the room so you cannot order room service.

Opening caveat: We stayed there in 1996, so perhaps it has changed since then.This was advertised in a guide I found at the bookstore as being a resort, as being featured on lifestyles of the rich & famous, and even as having a casino. Not that I would want a casino at a resort, but it seemed to lend a sense of scale to the place.When we arrived there we were shocked at the conditions. It was this bad: we left as soon as we could, paying our own money to stay at a hotel in Belize City the next day.What was bad? The room we were promised was not available. When we asked why we were shown - the whole building that room was in looked ready for to be condemned. They tried to put us in a lessor room and it took a lot of arguing to convince them they had to put us in a room of equal or greater value.There's more. There were bulldozers operating most of the day right in the middle of the compound. There was an open trench of garbage in the middle of the compound. There was a small oil slick outside our room. There was garbage everywhere, especially on the beach -- the latter was Mexico's fault, we were told.Still more. The shower was not fresh water, it was salt water. The mattress was stained. The lamps were broken. The room wasn't clean. The facilities (the roofs of common buildings and the volleyball area for example) were exceedingly worn down. Very third world feeling. We didn't trust any of the water equipment (small boats, etc.) that they had available.Good things: They had a decent (but small) bar and the dinner at the restaurant was actually quite good.Oh, and the casino? Apparently they had had one slot machine in a back room but it had broken down some time ago.I've stayed in worst places, happily. I once paid $2 a night in Warsaw (Poland) for example. However, they charged us resort prices and gave us hostel quality. We paid for a honeymoon special and it was a disaster. Hopefully my story benefits you dear reader. We took pictures as proof.We never did get our money back even though we ended up not staying there. Awhile back I received an email from someone that said it was much better recently - I can't speak to that, I can only relate my own experiences. Please be careful. If you go, please write your own review - I'll want to read it.