Fifty miles off mainland Belize, there lies a tropical oasis with a focus that reaches far past profiting off paradise. Long Caye in Lighthouse Reef Atoll, home to diver-revered Itza Resort, is possibly the most environmentally focused private-island development resort and research community in the Caribbean. Itza is the closest beachfront dive resort (just 7.4 miles) and closest boat ride to the Great Blue Hole. Combining a deep respect for nature with a desire to share the area’s natural beauty, Itza welcomes guests to fully appreciate the magnificence of wild Belize.

About Itza

Long Caye has been family owned since before Belize was Belize — it was purchased in 1967 by the family who still owns it today, when the country was still known as British Honduras. Including Long Caye, the family owns more than half of the private land in Lighthouse Reef Atoll, acting as long-term stewards of the area. Their mission on the atoll is to balance commerce, conservation and community to implement sustainable ecological development. They’re committed to actively preserving and studying the entire atoll’s stunning natural assets while promoting the enjoyment of them.

And there are so many ways to enjoy this untamed retreat. Each of the resort’s 24 rooms is situated right on the beach of Long Caye, so you are always just steps from your bed to the turquoise Caribbean Sea. Swimming, snorkeling and scuba diving the world-famous dive sites are obvious ways to spend your days on Long Caye, but if you’d rather opt to stay dry, there’s no shortage of engaging activities for you to try, from paddleboarding, kayaking or biking around the caye to lounging in a hammock or playing a game of beach volleyball. Plus, you can end your days with a spectacular sunset, a beach bonfire complete with live music and dancing, and unbelievable stargazing — being 50 miles from city lights allows the night sky to shine brightly over this slice of paradise.

Diving Belize

Lighthouse Reef Atoll offers the most remote, pristine coral ecosystems in the Americas, as it’s located 30 miles off the Mesoamerican Reef — the second-largest barrier reef in the world — and is one of only five coral atolls in the Western Hemisphere. Warm waters, calm conditions and 50- to 100-foot vis draws divers from across the world to this corner of Belize, but because you’re staying right in the heart of the atoll, you often get the sites all to yourself. Itza’s boat is the first one out in the morning to many spots, including the famous Great Blue Hole, which you can reach in under 30 minutes. That’s one of the best things about Itza: The best diving in Belize is only a short boat ride away — so short, in fact, that you return to the resort for each surface interval.

With such a wide variety of dive sites in the area, it can be hard to narrow down where to spend your dive time. To make it easy, leave the site choice up to Itza’s knowledgeable divemasters. Simply tell them what you want — walls, drop-offs, drifts, reefs, you name it — and they’ll pick the perfect site to suit your desires, ensuring that no matter your skill level or experience, your dives will be enjoyable. Don’t forget to schedule a night dive to see Belize’s incredible underwater world after the sun sets.

Eco-philosophy

As part of the area’s eco-philosophy, the majority of Long Caye’s land has been reserved as a permanent preserve and conservation zone. The entire caye is run by the Lighthouse Model for Resilience and Sustainability. The model uses science, policy monitoring, adaptive management techniques, education and an overall respect of the land to uphold three main pillars: community, culture and conservation.

This takes hold in many ways at the resort. For example, everything is built on stilts as not to disturb the local critters that live at or below ground level; each of the resort’s buildings is self-sustaining, with composting toilets, grey-water treatment and use of solar and wind energy to cut down on fossil fuels; and most on-island transportation is done by way of electric vehicles or bicycles.

The pillars are further upheld through research taking place in the area. There has been long-term undergraduate and post-doc research happening on Long Caye ever since famous oceanographer Jacques Cousteau and his team camped at the Itza site when conducting their groundbreaking research of the Blue Hole in the early ‘70s. Today, the resort partners with the Lighthouse Reef Conservation Institute, a nongovernmental organization that helps support the preservation of the caye, to welcome academics and researchers to Long Caye. When university groups visit, Itza provides an open-air, thatched-roof classroom space for students studying eco-related topics like marine biology, geographic information system mapping and Environmental Leadership & Sustainability.

Itza's commitment to preserving the land along with its private accommodations, world-class diving, breathtaking beachfront views and exceptional guest service truly set it apart from other resorts. For more information on Itza Resort and to book your stay, visit www.itzaresort.com.

Phone: (305)-600-2585

Email: info@itzalodge.com

Address: Long Caye, Lighthouse Reef Atoll Belize