Blancaneaux Lodge is one of our favorites: a riverside lodge set within the Maya Mountains of western Belize. Francis Ford Coppola purchased the property in the 1980s as a private family retreat. Today, 20 guestrooms are now set among the flowers and palms of Blancaneaux’s riverside gardens. The guest rooms feature thatched roofs, outdoor showers, and fully-screened windows without glass. Each is furnished with security box, hammock, mini-bar, hairdryer, bathrobes, and sandals. Guestrooms at Blancaneaux do not have air conditioning, television, or telephone; the Mountain Pine Ridge is generally cool, and reception can be reached via “shellphone” intercom. Wi-Fi is available throughout the property. Food is a highlight at Blancaneaux; the lodge has three restaurants (Italian, Guatemalan, and garden) many of the ingredients are grown on property. Other hotel amenities include a riverside hot tub, a swimming pool, a spa pavilion (specializing in Thai massage), stables, gardens, and hiking trails. Birding, hiking, and river tubing excursions are available to guests at no charge. Riding and massages can be arranged for an additional fee. Service is warm and genuine; the hotel staff treat guests and each other like family.

Turtle Inn is Francis Ford Coppola’s beachfront resort on the Central Coast of Belize. Located just outside the town of Placencia, Turtle Inn is a perfect base for exploring the region’s white-sand cayes, atolls, and reef. Turtle Inn’s gardens and guest rooms have a Balinese feel; Mr. Coppola fell in love with Southeast Asia while filming there in the 1970’s. He imported the resort’s hand-carved pavement stones, wall decorations, and furnishings from Bali. He also designed the guest cabanas with thatched roofs and outdoor showers. Guest rooms are fully screened and shuttered but dispense with window glass or air conditioning—another reflection of Bali’s open- air style of living. Guest rooms at Turtle Inn are furnished with a security box, mini- bar, ceiling fans, cookie jars, bathrobes, and beach sandals. The rooms do not have television or telephone; reception can be reached via “shellphone” intercom. Wi-Fi is available throughout the property. Turtle Inn has three restaurants, a bar, two swimming pools, a spa (specializing in Thai massage), and a dive shop. Service is warm and genuine; many of the hotel staff have worked at the property for more than a decade.