What's on in Placencia, Belize through the year

Shoulder season — school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it, an ordinary month

Nothing new starts in January.

Peak crowds — Dry season, Placencia Sidewalk Arts Festival

• Season

  Dry season

  1 Feb – 31 May · usuallyCrowded

  The rain stops and the sea flattens off the peninsula, which is when the cayes and the outer reef are at their clearest. The village runs at capacity through to Easter.

• Festival

  Placencia Sidewalk Arts Festival

  7–8 FebMajor festivalCrowdedBook early

  Two days when the village's famously narrow sidewalk becomes the exhibition: painters, carvers and bands along its whole length, and every room on the peninsula taken. Source ↗

Busy — Dry season, school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it

• Nature

  Whale sharks at Gladden Spit

  15 Mar – 15 Jun · usuallyDive seasonBook early

  Cubera snapper spawn at Gladden Spit, 22 miles offshore, in the days after each full moon and whale sharks come up under them to feed. April and May are the best of it; the reserve permit and a long boat ride come with it. Source ↗

Still on: Dry season (1 Feb – 31 May (usually))

Busy — Dry season

• Season

  Sargassum on the peninsula

  1 Apr – 30 Sep · usuallySargassum season

  The long east-facing beach collects weed through the summer and the hotels rake their own stretch. The cayes offshore and the lagoon side are unaffected. Source ↗

Still on: Dry season (1 Feb – 31 May (usually)), Whale sharks at Gladden Spit (15 Mar – 15 Jun (usually))

Busy — Dry season

Nothing new starts in May.

Still on: Dry season (1 Feb – 31 May (usually)), Whale sharks at Gladden Spit (15 Mar – 15 Jun (usually)), Sargassum on the peninsula (1 Apr – 30 Sep (usually))

Busy — Placencia Lobsterfest, school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it

• Hazard

  Hurricane season

  1 Jun – 30 Nov

  A sand spit with one road on and off it, so the peninsula evacuates early. Belize's exposed weeks run from August into October, and some places close for September altogether. Source ↗

• Festival

  Placencia Lobsterfest

  20 Jun – 10 Jul · usuallyMajor festivalCrowdedBook early

  Three days at the point a couple of weeks after the season opens, with the whole village cooking lobster on the beach and a stage that runs to the small hours. Source ↗

Still on: Whale sharks at Gladden Spit (15 Mar – 15 Jun (usually)), Sargassum on the peninsula (1 Apr – 30 Sep (usually))

Busy — Placencia Lobsterfest, school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in July.

Still on: Sargassum on the peninsula (1 Apr – 30 Sep (usually)), Hurricane season (1 Jun – 30 Nov), Placencia Lobsterfest (20 Jun – 10 Jul (usually))

Shoulder season — school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it, an ordinary month

Nothing new starts in August.

Still on: Sargassum on the peninsula (1 Apr – 30 Sep (usually)), Hurricane season (1 Jun – 30 Nov)

Shoulder season — school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it, an ordinary month

Nothing new starts in September.

Still on: Sargassum on the peninsula (1 Apr – 30 Sep (usually)), Hurricane season (1 Jun – 30 Nov)

Quiet — one of its worst months for weather

Nothing new starts in October.

Still on: Hurricane season (1 Jun – 30 Nov)

Busy — Garifuna Settlement Day

• Holiday

  Garifuna Settlement Day

  19 NovMajor festivalCrowded

  Dangriga and Hopkins, an hour or so up the coast, drum the 1832 landing in before dawn and re-enact the arrival from dories. The peninsula empties north for the day. Source ↗

Still on: Hurricane season (1 Jun – 30 Nov)

Shoulder season — school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it, an ordinary month

Nothing new starts in December.