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Belize

Caribbean Islands

Yacht charter in Belize

Choose from 16 yachts across Belize. Spread over 1 sailing regions. Prices from €4,310 per week.

Browse 16 yachts See regions
  • 16
    Yachts available
  • 15
    On campaign
  • €4,310
    From / week
  • 1
    Charter regions
  • 2
    Marinas

Why this country

Sailing in Belize

Belize has the most specific rulebook of any destination in this guide, and getting it wrong costs you the charter rather than a fine. Three things you need to know before you book anything else.

First, you need a temporary Certificate of Competency issued by the Belize Port Authority in order to take a bareboat here. It is a government document, not an operator form, and the application should go in at least two weeks before you arrive. Nowhere else in our catalogue asks you to deal with an authority in advance.

Second, night sailing is forbidden. Every leg has to start and finish in daylight, which rewrites how you plan a week — you are not choosing between a long day and an overnight passage, you are choosing between anchorages you can reach before the light goes.

Third, bareboats must stay inside the barrier reef. The three great atolls — Glover's Reef, Lighthouse Reef with the Blue Hole, and Turneffe — sit outside it in open water, and reaching any of them requires a local skipper aboard. If an atoll is the reason you are going, book the skipper at the same time as the boat.

What those rules protect is one of the best shallow-water cruising grounds anywhere. The Belize Barrier Reef is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and the largest reef system in the northern hemisphere, and the water between it and the mainland is a wide, flat lagoon scattered with low sandy cayes. Our 16 boats — all catamarans, which is no accident in water this thin — lie at Placencia in the south, with an average build year of 2024, the newest fleet in our catalogue.

On the water

Sailing conditions in Belize

Prevailing wind
Easterly trades, 10–20 kn

Steadiest from December to April. Inside the reef there is wind but almost no swell, which is the particular pleasure of sailing here.

Where you can go
Inside the barrier reef only

Bareboat charters are confined to the lagoon. Glover's Reef, Lighthouse Reef and Turneffe need a local skipper on board.

Night sailing
Forbidden

Every passage must be completed in daylight. Plan the week by what you can reach before dusk, not by distance.

Typical boat
Catamaran — all 16

Averaging 13.8 m and 3.9 cabins, with an average build year of 2024: the newest fleet we list anywhere. Shallow draught is the reason there are no monohulls here.

Hurricane season
June – November

Belize is inside the belt. Availability and insurance terms both change in that window.

Worth the detour

Where to drop anchor in Belize

  • 1

    The Belize Barrier Reef

    A UNESCO World Heritage Site and the largest reef system in the northern hemisphere. It runs the length of the country a few miles offshore, which is what makes the lagoon inside it so calm.

  • 2

    Ranguana Caye

    A tiny private caye on the reef east of Placencia, with moorings and a bar. One of the standard first nights and a good introduction to how thin the water gets.

  • 3

    Silk Cayes and Gladden Spit

    A marine reserve south-east of Placencia where whale sharks gather around the full moons of March to June. Snorkelling here is guided and permitted rather than free.

  • 4

    South Water Caye Marine Reserve

    North of Placencia: a line of cayes right on the reef with the drop-off a few metres off the beach. The best reef access you can reach on a bareboat.

  • 5

    Tobacco Caye and Coco Plum

    Small, sandy and sitting almost on the reef crest. Moorings rather than anchoring in most of the reserve areas.

  • 6

    Placencia

    The base: a long sand spit with a single footpath for a main street. Worth a night either side of the charter for provisioning and the Garifuna side of Belize.

  • 7

    Cayo Rosario and the Pelican Cayes

    Mangrove cayes in the lagoon rather than sand on reef — different water, different wildlife, and almost no other boats.

  • 8

    The atolls — with a skipper

    Lighthouse Reef holds the Great Blue Hole; Glover's and Turneffe are vast shallow lagoons ringed by reef. All three are outside the barrier and all three need a local skipper aboard, which is a cost and a booking, not an afterthought.

Suggested routes

Where a week in Belize could take you

Inside the reef from Placencia

7 days

A bareboat week as the rules allow it: north up the inside of the reef and back, every leg finished in daylight. Flat water, wind, and depths that keep you honest.

  1. 1

    Placencia

    Saturday handover and the Port Authority paperwork check; short hop to Ranguana or Placencia Caye.

  2. 2

    Silk Cayes / Gladden Spit

    South-east to the marine reserve; guided snorkelling.

  3. 3

    Pelican Cayes

    Mangrove cayes in the lagoon — a change from sand and reef.

  4. 4

    South Water Caye

    North to the reserve, with the drop-off off the beach.

  5. 5

    Tobacco Caye

    Almost on the reef crest; moorings only in the reserve.

  6. 6

    Back south — Coco Plum or Ranguana

    Work back down the inside of the reef.

  7. 7

    Placencia

    Final daylight leg for the Saturday handover.

Find a boat for this route

With a skipper — the atolls

7 days

The only way to see Lighthouse or Glover's. Book the skipper with the boat; it is a requirement rather than an upgrade, and the passages outside the reef are real open water.

  1. 1

    Placencia

    Handover with the skipper aboard; position north inside the reef.

  2. 2

    South Water Caye

    Stage for the crossing out through a reef cut.

  3. 3

    Glover's Reef

    Outside the barrier; a shallow lagoon inside its own ring of reef.

  4. 4

    Lighthouse Reef — Half Moon Caye

    The natural monument and the booby colony; the Blue Hole is here.

  5. 5

    Turneffe Atoll

    The largest of the three, and mostly mangrove rather than sand.

  6. 6

    Back inside the reef

    Through a cut and down the lagoon.

  7. 7

    Placencia

    Return leg for handover.

Find a boat for this route

Before you book

Local rules and paperwork in Belize

Certificate of Competency
Required, issued by the Belize Port Authority. A temporary certificate is needed for every bareboat charter here. Apply at least two weeks before you arrive — this is a government document and the timescale is not negotiable at the dock.
Night sailing
Forbidden. All movement must be in daylight. It changes the shape of the week more than anything else on this list, because the reef and the cayes are unlit and the water is shallow.
Inside the barrier reef
Bareboats may not go outside it. A local skipper must be aboard for any excursion beyond the barrier, including Glover's Reef, Lighthouse Reef and Turneffe. Arrange it when you book, not on arrival.
Depth and eyeball navigation
You pilot by water colour. The lagoon is shallow and coral heads are unmarked. Move between mid-morning and mid-afternoon with the sun high and behind you — which is also why the night ban is less of a restriction than it sounds.
Marine reserves
Moorings and fees in the reserve areas. South Water Caye, the Silk Cayes and Gladden Spit are all managed areas. Buoys rather than anchoring, park fees collected locally, and guided snorkelling in places.
Whale sharks
Around the full moons, March to June. Gladden Spit is one of the reliable aggregation sites. Access is licensed and seasonal, so it is a reason to pick your dates rather than something to hope for.

Checked October 2026. Rules change — confirm the detail that matters for your trip when you book.

What is here

The Belize fleet at a glance

The fleet in Belize is made up of 16 catamarans.

Most boats here are catamarans, averaging 13.8 metres.

Weekly prices start in the €3,000 – €6,000 range, where 5 boats are listed.

Boats sleep between 6 and 12 guests, with cabins up to 5.

The most common size band is 13 – 16 m, with 9 boats.

6 boats can be chartered with a skipper; 16 are available bareboat.

The fullest month on the calendar right now is Oct 2026: 100% of the fleet already has at least one booking, while 0 boats are still completely open.

16
Catamarans
from €4.310

Budget

Charter prices in Belize

Weekly rate, set by the operator. No booking fee.

Space on board

Boat sizes

Sleeping 6–12 guests

  • 10 – 13 m 7
  • 13 – 16 m 9

Availability

How full is the calendar in Belize?

Share of the Belize fleet that already holds at least one reservation, for each of the next twelve months. Taken from the operators' own calendars and refreshed daily — a boat with one week booked can still be chartered in the others.

Months further out look emptier simply because they are further away — most charters are booked a few months ahead, not a year.

Most booked month

Oct 2026

100% of the fleet already booked

Most still open

Jun 2027

12 boats with no booking yet

Pick a month to see what is still open that week.

  • Quiet
  • Picking up
  • Busy
  • Peak
100%
Oct
’26
0 open
100%
Nov
’26
0 open
100%
Dec
’26
0 open
100%
Jan
’27
0 open
88%
Feb
’27
2 open
100%
Mar
’27
0 open
75%
Apr
’27
4 open
56%
May
’27
7 open
25%
Jun
’27
12 open
50%
Jul
’27
8 open
44%
Aug
’27
9 open
44%
Sep
’27
9 open

Most common models in Belize

Counted from our live catalogue.

Leopard Catamarans Leopard 42
5 available · from €5.635
Leopard Catamarans Leopard 50
3 available · from €10.329
Leopard Catamarans Leopard 45
3 available · from €4.310
Leopard Catamarans Leopard 46
2 available · from €7.510

The fleet

Yachts in Belize

16 yachts available · from €616 / day

−10% Early booking New
6
catamaran

Sunsail 454L Premium

Placencia

4 cabins 10 guests 13.72 m 2024
From €659 / day €4.610 / week campaign week €9.342
View
−10% Early booking
6
catamaran

Sunsail 424/4/4 Classic

Placencia

4 cabins 10 guests 12.8 m 2022
From €805 / day €5.635 / week campaign week €9.449
View
See all 16 yachts Filter by dates, size and budget

Where to sail

The one sailing region in Belize

Every region we have boats in, largest fleet first — with the number of departure bases so you can see where a week actually starts.

Caribbean Islands

Mostly Catamarans — 100% of the local fleet.

Yachts
16
Bases
2
From
From €616 / day €4.310 / week

Good to know

Frequently asked questions

Weekly prices in our catalogue break down as: €3,000 – €6,000 (5), €6,000 – €12,000 (10), over €12,000 (1). The lowest published weekly rate is €4,310. These are the operators' own prices — we add no booking fee.
Our Belize catalogue currently lists 16 catamarans.
Booking pressure is highest in Oct, when 100% of the fleet already holds at least one reservation. Jun is the quietest month in our calendar. Availability shown on this site is synchronised daily from the operators' own reservation systems.
16 of the 16 boats we list in Belize are available bareboat, meaning you sail them yourself. A recognised licence is required; the listing states which. 6 boats can be chartered with a skipper.
Boats in Belize sleep from 6 up to 12 guests, with the largest offering 5 cabins. Most groups book a boat in the 13 – 16 m size band.

Read first

Guides for this coast

All guides →
Best Time to Sail Belize: A Month‑by‑Month Guide for Charterers
Sailing tips

Best Time to Sail Belize: A Month‑by‑Month Guide for Charterers

For most charterers the dry season (roughly November–May) is the best time to sail Belize; this guide breaks down weather, winds, diving visibility and hurricane risk month by month.

Ready to explore Belize by sea?

16 verified yachts across 1 regions.

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