For Canadian agents, seeing is Belize-ing

Belize braved the cold to share the latest with industry partners last night, making its final stop in a Canada-wide promotional tour hitting Vancouver, Calgary and Toronto throughout January.

The annual visit was led by Karen Pike, director of marketing & industry relations and Deborah Gilharry, senior travel trade officer of the Belize Tourism Board for an evening of agent-focused information on the destination.

“We want Canadian travel agents and wholesalers learn more and be able to sell Belize for us,” Pike said of the event, where more than 50 agents and wholesalers attended to learn more about the tropical nation.

The tourism board was joined by a variety of private sector properties, including: Best Western Belize Biltmore Plaza Hotel, located in Belize City; Sunbreeze Hotel on the tip of Ambergris Caye; Hatchet Caye, a private island resort off the Placentia peninsula, and Belcampo, a jungle lodge, organic farm and nature reserve in a remote area of Punta Gorda.

The range of options served to represent Belize’s diverse touristic offerings, with the main takeaway being that there is something for everyone’s travel style.

Located in Central America to the east of the Caribbean, Belize is bordered by Mexico in the north and Guatemala to the south and west. While it boasts 386 kilometres of coastline, the country is also home to a diverse offering of swamps, jungles, rainforest wildlife reserves and caves – which Pike says helps separate it from the pack.

“Belize has a great offering for Canadians,” she told PAX. “It offers an escape away from the cold, but where we’re different is our mix of sun, beach and inland jungle activities – all available to experience within a single trip.”

Canada ranks as Belize’s third largest market, and made up seven per cent of the destination’s overall arrivals in 2015 (behind the U.S., at 63 per cent, and Europeans, at 12 per cent). The country saw 39,977 overnight visitors in December, and enjoyed a total of 957,975 cruise passenger arrivals throughout the past year.

The tourist board attributes Belize’s overnight arrivals growth of 50.3 per cent (from 2014) to an increase in airlift, with December marking the start of Copa Airlines’ twice-weekly flights from its Panama hub – which the airline services from Toronto five times a week (and from Montreal four times a week).  Sunwing also flies to Belize on a seasonal basis.

Among the resources available for agents to learn more about the multi-faceted region is the Belize Travel Agent Specialist program, which offers recognition on an exclusive, searchable expert list and a printable diploma of qualification in exchange for completing a 25-question quiz.

For more information, visit: traveltrade.travelbelize.org/travel-trade/become-a-specialist.

Fast Facts on Belize:

• English is the official language
• Average yearly temperature of 29 degrees
• Peak season is between February and May (June-December is the wet season)
• The Belizean culture is a blend of Maya, Mestizo, Kriol, Garifuna, East Indian, Mennonite, Arab and Chinese.
• Boasts largest reef system in Northern Hemisphere, the Belize Barrier Reef, spanning nearly 300 kilometres
• Is also home to the Blue Hole, 407 feet deep, full of sharks and one of the top diving sites in the world