• United States!

    United States: Theodore Roosevelt National Park. Go Now!

    United States
    Explore the vast openness and wildlife found roaming in the western United States, including Theodore Roosevelt National Park (pictured) in North Dakota. Begin Your Journey!

  • Trinidad & Tobago!

    Trinidad & Tobago: Beautiful Coastline. Go Now!

    Trinidad & Tobago
    These Caribbean islands mix Indian, African, and European cultures alongside beautiful beaches. Go Now!

  • St. Kitts & Nevis!

    St. Kitts & Nevis: Nevis Island. Go Now!

    St. Kitts & Nevis
    This island nation mixes aspects of European, African, and Caribbean culture... not to mention incredible beaches. Go Now!

  • Honduras!

    Honduras: Children. Go Now!

    Honduras
    The original banana republic, Honduras has made a name for itself with the banana trade; however foreign influences have also vastly altered the culture. Go Now!

  • Mexico!

    Mexico: Sunrise over the mountains in Puerto Vallarta. Go Now!

    Mexico
    Although many people just go for the beaches, Mexico offers impressive mountain vistas (pictured in Puerto Vallarta), great food, and historic ruins that compete with the best in the world. Begin Your Journey!

  • Barbados!

    Barbados: Pier on the beach. Go Now!

    Barbados
    This Caribbean island has hints of British culture, but is wholly Caribbean as well. Explore Barbados!

Social Life in Belize

Behavior

The Belizeans are conservative in most aspects of their lives and this is best seen in their behaviors, dress, and dining etiquette. They tend to dress and act conservatively, much of which is based on the doctrines of their Catholic faith.

As a visitor to Belize try to follow the lead of the locals by dressing conservatively (see below for details), dining in the local etiquette (see our Belize Dining & Food Page), and avoid sensitive conversation topics, such as politics, finances, and business unless initiated by your local counterpart. Also try to avoid being loud, rude, showing off wealth, or getting noticeably drunk in public.

Dress

The traditional dress in Belize is heavily based on Spanish colonization, but also has roots in other Mayan culture and dress; today generally the only people that still wear this clothing are the ethnic Mayans. For women this tends to be long, colorful dresses with patterns of various colors on them. Often times the sleeves are short and the dresses are on a white base, but all colored bases exist, including black. Men traditionally also wore European-inspired clothing as shirts and pants with a vest were the norm. Again these clothes came in numerous colors but were often based on white or black. Hats, for both men and women were, and still are fairly popular.

Today most of the people of Belize wear western clothing, but can be fairly conservative in the way they dress. In cities long pants and long-sleeved shirts are common for most occasions, but on weekends and along the beaches shorts and short-sleeved shirts are popular. As a visitor you are welcome to wear nearly anything, but dress for the occasion as visiting churches requires long pants and preferably also shirts that reach to at least the elbows. Likewise, business settings are obviously more formal, while time on the beach tends to be very casual, although sunbathing naked is rarely permitted.

This page was last updated: December, 2013