ROARING RIVER GOLF COURSE

An unpretentious, executive-type nine-holer (1,909 yards, par 32), Roaring River Golf Course (Mile 50 1/4 Western Highway, tel. 501/614-2031, martin@btl.net) is the only mainland course currently in operation. (On Caye Chapel, there’s an upscale 18 holes.) The feel of the course, clubhouse, and equipment is perfectly Belizean: a bit rough around the edges but in a natural, comfortable way. A round is only US$15 per person, plus US$5 to rent clubs and pull carts. The course is well maintained, with a level layout, but with interesting landscaping dividing the fairways; greens boast Bermuda grass, grown from seed, and Paul, the South African owner, notes that his course uses very limited chemicals—“just a bit of spraying for the ants.”

After sweating out a round, dip in one of the cool, shady pools of the river that runs through it; the water is fresh from the Thousand Foot Falls just upstream. Plant your non-golfing family members in the Roaring River for the day while you hit those links and confront the crocodiles in the water hazards.

If coming from San Ignacio, you can warm up on a driving range in Georgeville, on the north side of the Western Highway. There’s also a new miniature golf course in San Pedro.