Sarteneja

Sarteneja sits at the end of a peninsula on the northern coast, a village of some 3,500 people, Spanish-speaking and largely descended from Yucatec Maya and Mestizo families who came south in the nineteenth century. It is the largest fishing community in Belize and its boatbuilders still make wooden sailing sloops by hand, which race in a regatta each Easter. The name comes from a Maya phrase meaning water between the rocks, said to refer to ancient wells cut into the limestone. There is a small sea walk, a long dock, and almost no tourism, which is the reason to come.

History

The name comes from the Yucatec Maya Tza-ten-a-ha, water between the rocks, after 13 ancient wells cut into the limestone, and in the Classic and Postclassic periods the place was a prosperous Maya seaport and trading centre. The modern village was founded around the middle of the 19th century by Mestizo refugees from the Caste War of Yucatán; in 1955 the edge of Hurricane Janet put it under 8 to 10 feet of water and flattened it, and the rebuilt village became the country's leading fishing community, one of the last places in the Caribbean where wooden fishing boats and sailboats are still built by hand (Wikipedia, Sarteneja).

What's there

• The boatyards - wooden sailing sloops built by hand on the shore.
• The Easter regatta - the sloops raced off the village.
• The fishing fleet - the largest in the country.
• The seafront - a long dock and sea walk with almost nobody on it.

When to go

December to April is the dry season. The regatta is at Easter and is the busiest weekend of the year. The road in is long; there is also a boat from Corozal that is quicker and more pleasant.

Things to know

There is very little here for a visitor beyond the village itself: a handful of guesthouses, a few places to eat and no organised activities beyond Shipstern nearby. The road is rough for the last stretch. Spanish is the working language and English is less widely spoken than elsewhere in Belize.

Nearby

Shipstern reserve is fifteen minutes; Corozal is across the bay by boat.

Key facts