The 2015 Great NEWS posts share Healthy Habits to enhance family fitness, friendship and fun. Today’s post offers strategies and suggestions for Belize Family Friendly Eco Tourism travel.  Now that summer vacations are over and school is back in full swing it seemed like the perfect time to follow up on my previous post about Budget Family Friendly Eco Tourism and focus specifically on Belize family vacations.  Many people are looking for an economical, safe and special family vacation that includes a cultural, educational and learning aspect to it.   This post will offer some helpful hints on planning Belize Family Friendly Eco Tourism adventures.

While on my seventh trip to Belize I saw family’s and missionary groups enjoying fun vacations so it was natural for me to put on my interviewer hat. After returning home it seemed like the perfect time to share some ideas I learned to help others plan great eco tourism travel adventures also.  While over hearing people talk about their Belize adventure my naturally curious nature took over and it was time to start asking questions about the key aspects for a Better in Belize family vacation.

Island of Belize

While over hearing people talk about their Belize adventure my naturally curious nature took over and it was time to start asking questions about the key aspects for a Better in Belize family vacation.

The key to family members having a great time revolves around planning a variety of activities and adventures to satisfy each members personal beliefs, desires and needs.    The comments shared offered great insight into what makes a successful family eco tourism vacation really fun to remember versus a family vacation flop to forget.  See my previous post on Beautiful in Belize for reasons Belize may be a great choice for an international holiday and lifetime family eco tourism dream vacation come true. For those that have a significant desire to visit Belize and take an all inclusive tour of an amazing master planned community being created in southern Belize check out:  Kanantik Belize

A key objective must be to maintain a balance of activities, accommodations and adventure  so the entire family feels their needs were met to enhance their level of adventure, enjoyment, interest and relaxation.  One important consideration is to do the homework and research to set realistic expectations and outcomes for the adventure.  This is often easier said than done.

When you are planning a cultural, educational and practical trip for the family it is important to set expectations and guidelines based on the age and maturity of your children and level of international travel.  For them to return home with a higher level of gratitude, maturity and wisdom after the trip involves doing things to help insure the thumbs up outweigh the thumbs down by at least 7 to 1. Lots of enjoyable experiences helps them remember the Magic Moments and minimize the other less memorable ones that occur to help give us better perspective.

A great family eco tourism adventure is not about spending a lot of money on fancy tourist attractions.  In fact setting a realistic budget is important because many of the best things in life are free or almost free.  On one trip I met students whose parents spent $7,000+ for a photography trip looking for birds and butterflies in Costa Rica and the kids were fairly clueless to the health and safety factors important there.  At almost a thousand dollars a day that trip basically shuttled chaperons and students to four locations to click pictures and see some wildlife.  With their earplugs in and all their technology gadgets it is hard to imagine how connected they would actually feel to nature and the wildlife they photographed.

On the other hand I met people and heard stories of children and parents bonding deeply while staying in a Mayan village for $60 per night including meals for the family.  One especially touching story involved children from New York having tears in their eyes when they looked up and saw “billions of stars” for the first time.  In the light polluted skies of NY they have never witnessed anything like the stars over a  dark walk in the jungle at night. Sharing  a meal of beans, rice, corn tortillas, greens, coleslaw and potatoes with a Mayan family in a Cohune palm thatched roof palapa with chickens running around outside will change you.  The Mayan kids are happy, healthy and hard working along side their parents.

You can hire your own local bird watching  and eco travel guides and source local accommodations instead of staying at the big name hotels that usually serve the same type of food you enjoy back home.  Staying in the beach towns and villages of Belize you see sights and taste things that are missed by regular tourist groups staying in the high end upscale tourist lodging.

Families can enjoy a feast of locally prepared Mayan foods prepared by Mayan families and served with a genuine connection and warmth, happy to share their healthy local cuisine with you.  Enjoying the local food and social interaction are an important part of an eco tourism travel adventure and cultural experience.  When you take the road less traveled you open your family to new adventures and experiences that few others have shared.  Imagine the joy of being off the normal tourist path and enjoying local food and music in a culture exchange experience.

Imagine a trip or vacation where the parents and children have the opportunity to meet, mingle and mix with new cultures.  What will happen when children actually take an active role in planning and preparing for the trip instead of simply passively following along?

Beautiful Belize

Beach

Experience a Caribbean beach!

Here are some of the great things to experience in beautiful Belize.

  • Beautiful beaches on the Caribbean
  • Bird watching
  • Boating to the islands
  • Cacao farm tour (Mayan organic chocolate)
  • Fishing
  • Flowers and orchids
  • Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary (Jaguar Preserve)
  • Kayaking
  • Mayan farming tours
  • Mayan ruin tours
  • Missionary work for schools and villages
  • Night jungle tours
  • Rain forest nature hikes
  • Photography
  • Sailing
  • Snorkeling the second largest barrier reef
  • Scuba diving

One of the best feelings you can have is helping your children to be prepared for the time when they will be on their own and able to make smart decisions and utilize good judgment.  Children need challenges, experiences, independence, opportunities and training to build their confidence and decision making skills.  Eco tourism adventures in countries like Belize help them see how many things they have to appreciate and be grateful for.   It can help open their eyes to the challenges of education, literacy, rain forest destruction, pollution, global resource distribution and poverty while they discover other cultures and think about how we are all interconnected.

Family eco tourism is a great way to help you help your children gain educational experience and valuable insights  while having a special time connecting with the Mayan culture and mother nature.   Families will learn about a diverse and wonderful world by learning about international conservation, countries, cultures and cuisine.

Benefits of Parent and Children Eco Tourism

Imagine a terrific trip to the tropical rain forest of Belize after a short plane ride that quickly immerses you in a totally different country and culture.

This is a beautiful and different country to what we experience back home in Canada or the US.  Many people have not heard of Belize or where it is located let alone traveled there.  This English speaking country is blessed with some of the most beautiful rainforest, reefs, rivers, ruins (Mayan) and reserves in Central America. Because English is the official language it offers easy travel and safe opportunities for developing international travel experience and discovering more about our neighbor to the south.

As you can see there are many exciting family eco tourism opportunities for experiential learning and great family adventures and fantastic fun in

Healthy Habits

The Healthy Habits 2015 series shares simple suggestions to help promote family happiness and health. Belize Family Friendly Eco Tourism is a great way for families to experience new cultures and easy access destinations without spending big bucks.    By planning far in advance can save you money and time  With Southwest Airlines opening up new routes to Belize in October the air fares are much more competitive than before.  Involving each member of the family to participate in the planning and research helps children learn value critical thinking and logistics skills that will serve them well later in life.  When they see what Belize has to offer they will be begging to plan a Belize Family Friendly Eco Tourism adventure.

This Great NEWS post on Healthy Habits shared some simple suggestions to see if Belize may be the ideal choice for a future family vacation.  Eco tourism is a way for the entire family to have fun and learn valuable life lessons about the people, planet and plants that make up our world.

What is your current Gap?

Are you traveling to the typical all inclusive, all you can eat American buffet style destination that is far removed from the cultural experience and eco tourism?  Imagine what it would be like to enjoy an eco tourism educational excursion and save money while you and your family discover why Belize may be the best choice for international family travel.

Mastery Action Plan (MAP)

Imagine a country where the official language is English and they have a democracy based on English law. How much better would you feel when you are in a safe country where the people speak English like you?  How much money could you save by traveling to a close destination only 2 1/2 hours from Houston with lots of connecting and direct flights each day.  A Belize Family Friendly Eco Tourism adventure may be the perfect family vacation.  Why not start creating a mastery action plan for planning and preparation to create a magic moments family vacation.

Call to Action

What comments, commitments or concerns come to mind regarding the benefits of Belize family friendly eco toursim?   What other ideas and inspiration will help motivate us towards better behaviors, beliefs and biology for a better 2015 and beyond?

Next week the Great NEWS blog will share:

Intermittent Fasting and Paleo Principles

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