My wife and I took a vacation to Belize last month. The trip was so bad that I am now in the process of doing my best to tell everyone I can to stay away from the tour operator and Belize.
I am aware that a large portion of your nation’s income depends on tourism so I thought you would be interested in knowing that this tour operator is doing a great job at ripping people off and proving that Belize is a place to avoid.
My wife and I took a beachcat sailing trip to Belize in February 2003. The trip was such a disappointment we decided to share the experience with as many people as possible, hoping we would help others avoid our misfortune.
We were first attracted to Belize, three years ago, when we came across an online advertisement for an outfit called “Under the Sun in Belize”. We reviewed the material sent to us by the tour operator, Riley Dunn, and were quite surprised at how expensive the trip would be.
Under the Sun offers 2 basic packages, this how they are described at their Internet site.
“Sailor's Special
The Sailor's Special includes six nights lodging, an 18 foot Hobie Cat Magnum for your daily, exclusive use from the beach, and safety support for a day sail to the cays or the barrier reef (Both include a channel crossing). Two-day trips of your choice to the jungle or on a river. All guides, safety boats, ground transportation and the use of sea kayaks and bicycles are included. Meals are not included with this package, allowing you to choose your ambiance from a variety of nice, inexpensive local restaurants. Price: $825 per person.”
“Lodge Hopper's Special
Our Beach to Beach & Lodge to Lodge Hopping is the favorite tour in Belize. It is the closest thing to "Big Boat Cruising" you can get without having to babysit your boat while you play. Enjoy the luxury of staying in lodges and the excitement of sailing to your destinations and adventures on an 18 foot Hobie Cat Magnum. Have more time and energy for diving (extra), snorkeling, fishing, exploring and lounging. We make all of your arrangements and provide safety and support. Non-sailors are welcome on our support boat. Price: Eight days and seven nights are only $1,985 per person. All food, lodging, toys and ground transportation are included.”

In October 2002 we decided we would take a sailing vacation for our 30th anniversary in February, 2003. We chose to do Under the Sun in Belize, The Lodge Hopper Special.

I suppose I should have been suspicious that I couldn’t find anyone who had taken this trip, or for that matter anyone who knew anyone who had taken the trip. After trading emails with Riley Dunn, I called him at his home/office in Denver to go over a few questions. The most important questions being about our accommodations and water.
I asked Riley what the accommodations would be like with specific reference to the showers and bathrooms. Riley assured me that accommodations would be first class. In his words, “First class all the way, It’s the only way to go.” Well it may be the only way to go but it sure isn’t what we got.

We were picked up in Dangriga by a cab sent by Riley. The cab was dirtier and in worse condition then most farm trucks. We arrived in Hopkins just after dark, worn out from traveling all day. There we were given bikes so we could peddle our way to the hotel (?, that’s what Riley called it). The suggestion of riding a bike through the village sounds quaint, but you should know that the village is over run with stray dogs, has no street lights and the road is an obstacle course of pot holes.

We arrived at our “hotel”, quickly washed up, with cold water (its all that there was), and walked with Riley to one of the local restaurants. The restaurant was a small block building with 4 tables. After taking a seat our waitress/cook asked us what we would like. Our selection was, stewed chicken, fish, rice and beans, or veggie rice. For drinks the normal fare was available, Bilikan beer (the only beer), or water. By the time we left Belize we had learned that this was the normal ambiance and menu offered at the “inexpensive local restaurants” of Hopkins Village. Despite the lack of selection the meal was ok.

After dinner we returned to our hotel, ready to relax in our “luxury” accommodations.” Enjoy the luxury of staying in lodges” The Whispering Seas Vacation Lodge consists of 5 elevated concrete huts. Each hut was about 12’X 12’ and is made up of one large room with a sink in the main room, and a shower/ toilet room in one corner of the main room. The shower drain was a hole in the floor to allow the water to spill onto the sand below the shower. The room had 2 lights, one ceiling mounted 8watt florescent light in the center of the main room and another small florescent light in the shower room.

As I mentioned before we found there was no hot water in the sink. The lighting was so poor that I held a flashlight so Katherine could take out her contacts, on her knees, beside the bed, using a compact mirror from her bag. In the shower we found only one water valve. Electric wires ran along the unsupported PVC pipe with wire nuts connections to the showerhead. Hot water was supposed to be supplied by a heat element in the showerhead. There was no air conditioning in the room, but it did have 4 louvered windows, with no screens. An electric fan stood in the corner.

As soon as Katherine started to shower she called for help, the water pressure had dropped to a small trickle. Fortunately, I had a 1-liter bottle of drinking water. I used the cold drinking water to rinse off her face, then I began filling it in the sink and using it to supply the water for the rest of her shower. It took four minutes to fill a one-liter water bottle with cold water. Also, the water trickling from the hot water heater/showerhead was now scalding hot. Katherine returned the favor and supplied me with a stream of water from the bottle so I could clean up. We found that when we had adequate water pressure (which was rare) we could take a cold shower. When the water pressure dropped to the point that the water could be heated there was not enough pressure to make the shower usable. We learned to save drinking water bottles to fill for showering, after each shower we would fill all the bottles we had saved and place them on the floor in the shower. When we showered we would take turns squirting the water bottles on each other and refilling them for the next shower.

We went to bed that first night wondering what we had gotten ourselves into.

The next morning we awakened at sun up to the sounds of Hopkins Village. (While in Hopkins we went to bed shortly after sunset, as there was little to nothing to do and no light to do it by. Because of the open windows, crowing chickens, and barking stray dogs, we were up with the sunrise each day.) We dressed and peddled our way to Riley's place then walked to breakfast at another village restaurant. This restaurant was a small wood hut with two tables on the front porch. Our breakfast choices were: eggs, stewed chicken, beans, rice and beans, fried jacks, or tortillas. (Fried jacks are fried tortillas). Something to drink? Water, Fanta Soda (carbonated sugar water) or beer were available, no coffee, no orange juice. We ordered eggs, tortillas and water. Then watched a small boy search the yard, bush to bush, tree to tree, finding the eggs for our breakfast. Have I mentioned the bugs? Stand still for a moment in Hopkins and they will carry you away.

After a bug swatting meal on the porch we returned to our hotel, changed and met Riley on the beach for our first sail. Winds were light, thank God, because the boats were in very poor condition. The idea of having our own boat “an 18 foot Hobie Cat Magnum for your daily, exclusive use from the beach,” to sail while there was a primary reason we chose this trip. What you are not told by the brochures, or Riley, is its yours to sail when Riley sails with you (on another boat), when Riley want to sail, and where Riley wants to go. We also did not know that Riley feels compelled to educate his guests on how to sail, regardless on your sailing ability. We tried very hard while sailing and while on land to stay as far as possible from Riley, which was hard to do, so that we could avoid having to listen to his constant instructions on everything from how to coil a rope to the proper way to bribe government officials in Belize. From sailing to Aids to international policy to drug traffic, Riley knew it all, and wanted everyone around to share in his knowledge.

On one occasion during our first few days there, while on the beach in Hopkins, Katherine mentioned all the trash that was washed up on the beach. Riley blamed it all on the cruise ships, ignoring the fact that there was trash everywhere in Hopkins. He stated that all the cruise ships dumped their garbage overboard and the tide washed it up onshore. He went on to tell us that we should keep a sharp look out along the shoreline for packages of cocaine. As he told it, from time to time a smuggler would loose a bale or two of cocaine overboard and the packages would wash up on shore in Hopkins. “Yup, find a key of coke and you’ll be set for life.” According to him the cays of Belize are a major transfer point for the drug smugglers. Riley claimed that many of the fishing camps and lodges are actually fronts for the drug smuggling business.

After sailing the first day we spoke with Riley about how disappointed we were with how everything was working out, the restaurants, the boats and mostly our accommodations. We argued our point that he had promised us first class accommodations and that what we had was a far cry from first class. His response, “well what do you expect for a third world country”? “This IS first class, for Belize” It didn’t take long for us to realize that our argument was falling of deft ears. After expressing our dissatisfaction as strongly as we could we realized our only options were to make the best of it, or go home. Having already spent over $5000 to be there and knowing it would cost more to go home then it would to stay we decided to make do and try to enjoy the trip.

The second day we sailed out to the reef with the hope that things would be better there. After all we would be sailing from cay to cay and lodge to lodge. We sailed from Hopkins out to Tobacco Cay. Riley had us booked to stay at Ocean’s Edge Lodge. Here is one of the biggest misrepresentations by Riley Dunn and Under the Sun, “Enjoy the luxury of staying in lodges and the excitement of sailing to your destinations.” Our “luxury of staying in lodges and excitement of sailing to destinations and adventures” amounted to a seven mile sail south to South Water Cay for lunch one day and a four mile sail north to a deserted mangrove island, called Columbus Cay, for an hour of snorkeling the next. There was no staying in “lodges” as the only lodge we stayed at was Ocean’s Edge Lodge.

Ocean edge describe themselves on their Internet site this way:
At Ocean's Edge Lodge, our accommodations are simple and rustic. We have seven rooms, four of which are designed for couples. The lower units will accommodate three to four people. Each room has its own shower/toilet, and hot water. There is running water and electricity. Our electricity is generated from solar power and generators. If you are looking for peace and quiet - no TV - no traffic - just nature at its best….come stay with us. Laze in the sun and do nothing at all, or go fishing, diving, snorkeling, or try an adventure tour. It's a great get away.

The description is accurate, “simple and rustic”, again louvered windows with no screens. Meals are served 3 times a day, 8 Am 12:30 and 6PM. Boarding house style. What Brenda Lee makes is what you get. Make no mistake Brenda Lee is an excellent cook and sets a wonderful table. However, if your not there for scheduled meals there is nothing else, and there is no place else to go.

Oceans Edge was a breath of fresh air, Brenda Lee and Raymond were wonderful hosts, and had we wanted to stay at someplace “simple and rustic” we may have selected to stay there. I should point out that Ocean’s Edge is according to another island guest “…the best place to stay on Tobacco Cay. They have bathrooms in the rooms and electricity.”

The problem is we were paying $567 (US) per day for first class, luxury accommodations. Ocean’s Edge is a long way from first class, actually it’s somewhat like indoor camping, our nightly exercise consisted of rubbing each other down with bug spray then cleaning off our feet before climbing into our bed with its box-spring like mattress, But at $45 (US) per person per day they were not pretending to be first class.

After 5 days on the reef we sailed back to Hopkins on Thursday Feb. 27th. Our original vacation plans were that we would spend Friday sailing, take a river trip on Saturday, and head back home on Sunday. As soon as we returned to the Village of Hopkins we remembered how much we didn’t want to be there and decided to leave Belize ASAP. I contacted US Air, the Airline we flew to Belize on, and found that the next flight they had from Belize to the USA was on Saturday, February 29th. We booked tickets on the next flight out, and again planned to try to make the best of things.

We decided to sail again on Friday. The sailing in Belize was good. Nothing special, but good. Having sailed in the Florida Keys and now in Belize I would choose the Keys. The sailing is every bit as good at a fraction of the cost. For most of the time we were in Belize the winds were light, and it’s a good thing they were. On our last day there the winds were blowing 15-20. Good beachcat wind, not too much but enough to have a really good time. We sailed out several miles and were enjoying one of the few sails we took without the Riley escort. Having looked over this boat for several days we were not comfortable with it’s seaworthiness, so we were not pushing the boat.

After about an hour and a half Katherine pointed out that the shrouds were very corroded and suggested it would be best for us to head back closer to shore. I agreed and we turned back towards Hopkins. About 3 miles out we could see that Riley had just launched and was headed out. We were trying to decide how to avoid Riley and another of his “sailing lessons” when we noticed his sail go over in such a way that we thought he had capsized. Naturally, we tossed caution to the wind and made best speed towards the “capsized” boat. As we got closer we saw that he had not capsized but had demasted. We sailed over and offered our assistance. Riley told us he was fine and needed no help. In his words “no problem, I get demasted two or three times a year”. After he drifted to shore we learned that Riley didn’t waste money on “factory made” shrouds. He believed his homemade ones were better. With that we decided we had not only had enough of Hopkins but also enough of Riley and his tour service. We beached and headed back to our luxury accommodations for a water bottle shower.

We were so “done with it all” that we caught the first flight out on Dangriga the next morning and spent the next six hours at the Belize Int. Airport waiting for our flight to the US. We both considered a 6-hour wait at Belize Int. Airport preferable to any more time spent with Riley Dunn.

Riley had done a good job convincing us that we did have first class “for Belize” accommodations. On our flight back to the US we sat with a woman who had also stayed in the Village of Hopkins. She told us she had stayed at the Jaguar Reef Lodge, which it turns out was just ½ mile up the road form our hotel. She told us that her accommodations were first class and she was shocked that ours were so poor. I looked up the Jaguar Reef Lodge on the Internet when we returned home. “Air-conditioned rooms, coffee services to your room, built in fresh water pool, a real restaurant.” She was correct; her accommodations were first class, by American standards.

We are not upset because Belize is a poor country or that Hopkins Village has so little to offer, by American standards. We are not upset that Ocean’s Edge Lodge is simple and rustic, or that lodges serve meals “boarding house style”.
What we are upset about is that we were taken for a ride by a con man. We paid Riley Dunn, Under the Sun in Belize, $4130 (US) for an all-inclusive first class luxury accommodations trip. Had we booked our accommodations with the places Riley had us stay, the cost would have been $630 (US) for both of us, all inclusive, for the entire time we were there. Basically Riley got paid $3,500 (US) to join us on our vacation.

I looked up Jaguar Reef lodge when we returned home. An eight day, seven night, all inclusive, FIRST CLASS stay there is advertised for $1,319 per person. This includes 2 river trips, guide service, and we would hope hot water showers. My point is, there were first class accommodations there. We were promised and paid Riley Dunn, Under the Sun in Belize, $4130 for a first class vacation, what we got was a third class rip-off.

Something else to consider, I have written three letters to Riley Dunn and two to The Belize Tourism Association over the past month. To date no one has bother to send me so much as a note saying they got my letter. Possibly, Belize is exactly what Riley told us it was, “ A place where you can pay people off and do anything you want.”

The bottom line. Under the Sun in Belize is a scam to be avoided. Based on our experience I suggest caution to anyone thinking about any trip to Belize. In the words of the Belize Tourism Board, “You better Belize it”

Want some additional information on why you shouldn’t vacation with “Under the Sun”? Feel free to contact me at:
Bill Cash
205 Wissahickon Trail
Browns Mills NJ 08015
e-mail, b_cash_98@yahoo.com

This would fall into the category of a consumer report, and I would hope that the tour organizer will post a rebuttal here, because there are always at least two sides to a story.

For instance, we have had people leave Rick's Place because they thought they had no hot water in the shower -- some people don't ask, and I always forget to tell them that in some of the rooms the controls are reversed so you have to turn the knob the opposite way to get hot water. Some people never try turning it the other way, and they "decide to leave early" and maybe they tell all their friends that Rick's Place doesn't have hot water. Meanwhile, we don't even know that they had a problem.

Maybe the organizer has to be down there, too, on these trips to Belize, just to make sure that the people taking the trip have somebody to watch out for them when they are out sailing. In places like Belize, just as in the Caribbean islands and the Virgin Islands, boat maintenance can be very difficult and expensive. I have heard reports from friends and relatives who have tried to take out beachcats from resorts in the islands and found the boats in serious states of deterioration and not really safe to use. So maybe the organizer of this tour is just being very cautious and trying to look out for the safety of his clients.

We have a friend who has a little "resort" in Belize, Bocatura Bank, which is advertised in my magazine and on this website. But it makes no pretense at being a first-class resort, although I think they do have some water, plumbing and electricity now. It is an "ecotourist resort," which means, I think, that you are very close to nature.

As with everything, it is a matter of "buyer beware" and knowing the right questions to ask before you buy a product -- or a vacation.

The problem is that people who have never been to some of these countries "south of the border" do not even know what questions to ask, since conditions can be so radically different from what we have learned to expect even in a low-budget place in the U.S.

By the same token, tour organizers to places outside the U.S. should be sensitive to the "culture-shock" factor and make sure people are aware of what they are getting into.

Thanks, Mary for mentioning that there are two sides to every story. While I don't know anyting about the company mentioned in this thread, I do operate an adventure travel business with a destination on the Mexico/Belize border. It does strike a nerve when someone's very first post to this forum includes lines like, "Based on our experience I suggest caution to anyone thinking about any trip to Belize."

Bill, I understand that you may be frustrated by what may be the company's lack of response to your complaints. However, a post like the one above goes beyond your need to vent about a bad experience. By throwing in broad generalizations, you are, in effect, making false accusations regarding the many high-quality outfitters in Belize.

Respectfully,

having read through the type'o
i found an interesting lesson in this do your RESEARCH
i have done a lot of research on where i vacation online and have found some good deals; like a one week all inclusive on The Canary Islands for $200 US. the hotel across the street started at 3500.
botom line; know where your going, what's near, and compair costs before you go.

this was no one's fault but your own.

just fyi, i got treated the same way once by a scuba instructor, but i moved on. he's out of busisness now or perhaps he's in Belieze with his brother.

Bill,

I won't be as hard on you for not doing enough research. I would like to thank you for the head's up on this. I've seen the advertisements and thought it sounded cool too. Having traveled in Mexico quite a bit I know something about substandard accomodations. And in your defense, first class accomodation means hot water and air conditioning to me too.

Sorry to hear about your misfortune.

Mike Hill
H20 #791

Are you kidding me, turtle? I understand your point of view of caveat emptor and that one should perform his or her own due diligence, but to start off a rebuttal with and go on to type in a completely incomprehensible and illiterate manner is ludicrous. Save your holier thatn thou personal judgements for when you learn to use proper punctuation and capitalization.

Mary and Rick, I am sorry for this outburst, but when an individual's response begins as an opportunity to lob an unprovoked cheap shot personal attack on someone who is simply venting and passing on information, I feel compelled to chime in.

John

Hey Kevin,
Where exactly do you get off giving Bill a hard time about his first post. Just because you chime in on near every thread doesn't give you the right to deride Bill's post,no matter how many he's made. Sounds like your in a "tourist" supported business along with Mary, I think y'all both missed the point that Bill got screwed out of $3,500 .Anyone who conducts business like that should be called a rat everywhere possible. I personally am very appreciative of his information.
The quote that seemed to bother you the most began with "Based on OUR experience..."
He didn't attack you or any of the other"high quality outfitters" in Belize.
Geez give the guy a break.
Todd A. Hart
Team Cat Fever
Todd@teamcatfever.com

Thanks, I saw the add for this place in the Murrays Catalog. Looked SWEET. I am glad to know about your experence. Think I will head to the keys instead.

Kevin
I would like 2 here about your place on the border.
Do you have a web page?


Doug Ramsey
hobie 18
#4383

Todd,

I do take offense to lines like, "Based on our experience I suggest caution to anyone thinking about any trip to Belize."

Yes, I am in the tourist supported industry, and I run quality programs. When someone trashes an entire country because of their bad experience with one person, it is not fair to the rest of us.

www.paddleways.com

Wow,

Bill post HIS experience, about ONE tour to avoid while traveling to Belize. He even mentioned in HIS post another place he found, that was better, and a better price also.

WTF people?

Why are so many taking this so personal, was it your tour package he was specifically referreing to? - I didn't think so,

Thanks for the report Bill.

the rest of you, Chill!

Mary, this had nothing to do with the faucets at 'Rick's Place'. He gave a personal, accurate account of his experience.

I couldn't hardly believe the responses.

Alright, I will admit that my response may have come across a bit harsh. My appologies to Bill.

However, I think that some of you may have misunderstood what I was saying. Todd B., you said, "Bill post HIS experience, about ONE tour to avoid while traveling to Belize." You followed by saying, " . . . Why are so many taking this so personal, was it your tour package he was specifically referreing to? - I didn't think so,"

That's not how I read it. Bill began his post with the line, "I am now in the process of doing my best to tell everyone I can to stay away from the tour operator and Belize."

Then, Bill went on to say, ". . . this tour operator is doing a great job at ripping people off and proving that Belize is a place to avoid."

And finally, he concluded with, "Based on our experience I suggest caution to anyone thinking about any trip to Belize."

How is that not referring to other tour operators?

Todd H., Let me ask it this way. What would your reaction be if someone had a bad experience with a shady catamaran salesman in Michigan and came to this forum to "suggest caution to anyone thinking about ever buying a boat in Michigan," or that "this dealer is doing a great job at ripping people off and proving that Michigan is a place to avoid."

For heaven's sake. I was just trying to give some balance and perspective and give examples of how there can be two sides to a story. Somebody had to play devil's advocate here. Please don't attack me for just trying to give somebody the benefit of the doubt. Faucets were the just the first thing I thought of since the water situation seemed to be one of their primary complaints.

And we should remember that this is an accurate account of HIS experience. Maybe other people have had a different experience with this same trip.

I don't buy something on the internet unless I see a number of different consumer reports. And it would be nice to see more reports on this item before people decide whether or not to put it in their shopping cart.

From Under the Sun, Sailing & Diving Belize


To whom it may concern, regarding a letter from Bill Cash

This letter is in response to allegations and threats made by a client, Bill Cash, regarding an Adventure Sailing Vacation he took with Under the Sun in Belize. The tone of his letters to us is pure extortion. We will be happy to make all correspondence with Bill available to any one that is interested.

We are also happy to make available to anyone that is interested all photos and video of the Cash’s trip as well as all promotional information we send out for these trips.

Sail Magazine took the same trip 3 weeks after Mr. Cash. Watch for their story in the December issue.

The following three letters are the first 3 e-mails in the order we received them from Bill Cash shortly after the Cash’s trip. Our response to his extortion follows his e mails.
Riley Dunn, President of Under the Sun, Sailing & Diving Belize

Letter 1:
Riley:

We have spent the last 36 hours or so talking about what to do about this trip.

I m sure you realize we were, and are, much less then satisfied. It seems that our dissatisfaction stems from two points. Your misrepresentation of the accommodations we should have received and your constant excuses, placing the blame on a third world nation.

I have to admit you almost had me convinced that the places you stashed us, were in fact, first class for Belize. Then you made the mistake of taking us to see South Water Key, Beaches and Dreams and finally Mother Natures Resort, where we had dinner the last night. While flying home I took the time to page through Destination Belize the official visitors magazine of the Belize Tourism Industry butt.

I want to remind you of a conversation you and I had, by telephone, several months ago. I asked you, POINT BLANK, what the accommodations would be like. You answered, First class of course, it s the only way to go. Clearly, You are the only one in North America or Belize who thinks that the accommodations you provide are first class.

As I flew home I pondered what to do about how you misrepresented the trip and how we felt taken by you. I also thoughts about how you went on and on that Belize had so little to offer that we should be thankful for what we had. (I m sure the Belize Tourism Board would love to hear your version of what Belize has to offer).

My first thoughts were to write every Sailing and Travel magazine I could think of and let them know that Belize is a nation of flim flam operators who pay off government officials to make things work, naturally naming you as the source of this information. I also thought of writing the Belize Tourism Association and letting them know what a wonderful job your doing of building up Belize. Then I considered setting up a web page to share our experience with every possible person we could. Actually I think these are good ideas and worthy of my time. But, after a day of traveling I decided it s not my job to notify the world of how we were taken.

Instead I decided to suggest to you that you refund to me the money I paid you for our bogus trip. If you refund the fees I paid you I will only post stories about the high points of out trip. If you do not refund the $4280 I paid you I will begin to notify everyone I can think of about how you took us.

These are the groups I intend to notify:

Belize Customs and Immigration: You went into some detail about how greasing palms made things work in Belize. Your views on how Third World Governments work should be of great interest. (Considering the upcoming election I intend to contact these folks and the Belize newspapers, by Friday 3/7)

Belize Tourism Association: I m sure your view on tourism and the rich people would help them to further develop Belize as a world tourism destination. I am also sure they will appreciate your representing Whispering Seas Vacations Inn as First class accommodations. Travelers from around the world will flock to visit Belize to stay there.

USA, IRS: I don t know for sure if your keeping them notified about Under the Sun, but I m sure they would love to chat with you about it.


Sail Magazine: They don t need to bother doing a trip with you about adventure sailing. Ill tell them about our trip.

Internet: I will set up a WebPage, linked to the Belize Tourism Board and to the Under the Sun. My web page will warn people about you, in particular, and about Belize in general.

Be assured, when I came to Belize I intended to put the word out to close to 1000 sailors DIRECTLY, and well over a million through our web site, about the experience. I still intend to do so. Your decision, to refund my $4280 will determine if I tell them about the high points, or if I begin a quest to tell everyone I can about how you ripped us off.

BTW. The attached link, http://groups.yahoo.com/group/beachcats/message/40847 is to our email group that automatically sent my post to 612 email accounts. All of them beachcats sailors. (Up till now none of them knew anyone who took a trip with you.) By pressing the send button I reached 612 sailors and their families in one short step, consider how many potential visitors to Belize I could reach over the next month or so if I put my mind to it. You ll notice, if you read the attached story, that I left the story about our dolphin encounter open-ended How you respond now will determine the rest of the story.

As I mentioned above I intend to reach out, first, to the government officials in Belize by 3/7, unless you decide to do the right thing and refund the money we paid us. In which case Ill consider you a reputable businessman.

I look forward to hearing from you very soon

Bill Cash

PS, A copy of this letter will go out on Thursady 3/6 at 8AM to the Belize Tourism Board.


Bill

Letter 2:
Between the dates of Feb 20,2003 and March 1, 2003 my wife and I were vacationing in Belize. Belize seems to be a nation intent on becoming a major vacation destination. Therefore I thought I should share our experience with you.

First some background. My wife and I share a love for sailing, in particular sailing small, high performance catamarans, these boats are commonly called beachcats. For the past 3 years were have been planning a vacation around our 30th wedding anniversary. Over the course of the last 3 years we contacted resorts all over the Caribbean. One tour operator , Under the Sun in Belize seemed to offer what were looking for. Their ads and brochures offered luxury, first class, accommodations, along with the use of a Hobie Magnum (18 beachcat). http://www.underthesunbelize.com/1a7_info.html#packages

We selected their Lodge Hopper special vacation package, as it seemed to offer us everything we could hope for. Between November 2002 and the end of February 2003 we traded numerous e-mails and phone calls with Riley Dunn, the owner of Under the Sun in Belize. In our conversations with Riley I asked him about our accommodations on several occasions. He assured us that our accommodations would be first class. Infact his statement to me was. First Class all the way, that s the only way to go .

I don t want to take up your day by explaining all the things that were wrong with this trip. However I feel I should point out a couple things that would cause me tell everyone I can that they SHOULD NOT go to Belize.

Our accommodation were anything BUT first class. Mr. Dunn had us staying in a lodge in Hopkins. The room/building wee stayed in had limited electric,& next no no light. It had lots of windows, but no screens. The windows had to be kept open because the room had no air conditioning. Your web site suggest people try to avoid bug bites, hard to do with no screens. The worst problem was the lack of water. In the morning and evening (the time when people tend to bath or shower) the water pressure was so bad that showering was out of the question.

Ill tell you about our first night as an example:
After traveling from 8:30 in the morning we wanted to clean up (8PM) and go to bed. After using a flashlight to remove her contacts because there was soo little light, Katherine, my wife, was first in the shower. There is only one water valve, for cold water. We discovered that the Inn owners had installed a point of use water heater in the shower. If we had enough water to shower, which we did when Katherine got in, then the water was cold. If the water pressure dropped, which it did, then the water was scalding hot. Katherine was doing her best to get a shower with what was available and then she calls out to me that she has no water. I check and sure enough the water has dropped to a trick le. Fortunately I had a letter of drinking water handy to rinse her face with. To rinse her off the rest of the way I begin using a water bottle and the sink. It takes 4 minutes (I timed it) to fill a 1-liter water bottle.

Does this sound like first class to you? We brought this to Mr Dunn s attention the next morning and he went to great lengths to explain that Belize is Third World Nation and we should be glad to have such accommodations. It may be a Third world nations but I don t think you want your tour operators using that as an excuse, do you?

While flying home from Belize on Saturday 3/1, (we came one day early , we would have left sooner is we could have) I was looking through the magazine put out by the Belize National Tourism Association. It looks to me like your trying to build Belize into a World Tourism destination. If what we had, is what you consider first Class then you need to up the standards some. If you truly do offer first class accommodations then I recommend you take a look at the people who are bringing people into Belize and see what kind of operations they are running.

Mr. Dunn and his Under the Sun in Belize are doing a great job as portraying Belize and a Third World Nation with Third-rate accommodations. I asked Mr. Dunn about how he was able to run his service in Belize (as he is US citizen) and he went to explained that you can do just about anything in Belize, as long as you take care of the right people.

I have demanded a refund from Mr. Dunn. I informed him that if he did not refund the fees I paid him that I would begin a quest to notify everyone I possibly could that his operations and Belize should be avoided. This letter is my first step in keeping my promise to him. Over the next few days Ill be composing letters to be sent to every sailing, diving and vacations magazine I can come up with. I ll also start work on a website to further notify the world that Under the Sun and Belize are anything BUT first class.

Thank in advance for any assistance you may offer,

Bill Cash
PS: not everything about our trip was bad. We tried to make the most of it. We had a great sail with some ptotted dolphins on 2/24. I posted a story about it on one of the emailservers I belong to. This story went ou to 612 homes. http://groups.yahoo.com/group/beachcats/message/40847 . I am waiting for Mr. Dunn's response before I begin telling "the rest of the story.'


Bill


Letter 3:

My wife & I just returned from a trip to Belize. WE spent 9 days with Riley
Dunn at "Under the Sun in Belize" sailing 18' Hobie Beachcats.

Riley mentioned that your magazine is planning on doing a story about his
opperation, Under the Sun in Belize. I would be pleased to share our
experiances with you and your staff. Naturally, I will be sharing it so
that you can use it in whatever articvly you plan to write about this
"advanture Vacation"

Attached is a short piece about one of the days we had there.

Ill be in touch with "the rest of the story" soom.

Bill





We returned home from our trip to Belize around midnight last night.
Ill be working on a story while the pictures are developed.

Below is a portion of the story and by far the best part of the trip.


The high point of the trip came on our 30th anniversary, Feb 24th.
We were on a morning trip headed South from Tobacco Key (located 15
miles offshore) to South Water Key. South Water Key is 7 miles south
of Tobacco Key. Winds were fair, 10 knots or so, and blowing from
the NE so we went out through the reef into the deep blue sea, and it
is deep. After crossing through the reef the water quickly drops off
to 100 fathoms, 600 feet.
Our plan was to reach WSW 4 or 5 miles then turn ESE and surf the 4-
5' rollers to South Water Key.
About 3 miles out the wind started to die. Despite the light winds
we were enjoying the sail. Katherine and I were about 200 yards
ahead and leeward of the other boat. Glancing back I see a dolphin
surface about 100 yards behind us. I alert Katherine, jump up on the
wing and holler to the other boat pointing where the dolphin was. At
the same time the other boat sees dolphins around them as well.
Before we know it we are surrounded by dolphins, it seems like they
are everywhere, hundreds of them. They are ahead of us, behind us
all around us. We look to the other boat and see groups of dolphins
in every wave between our boat and theirs. As far as we can see
behind the other boat dolphins are coming to join us.

Katherine and I are now sitting on the forward hulls, trying to keep
our speed us, lost in the thrill of sailing in a huge pod of "spotted
Atlantic dolphins". Its no use trying to go fast to play with them,
as the wind is dying so we heave too.
Jerome, crew on the other boat, puts on a mask and snorkel and slides
into the water. It's not long before Katherine and I do the same.
They are all around us, as far as we can see below us and in every
direction underwater. Their chatter, clicking and squeaks come from
everywhere.
At one point Katherine is floating between our hulls looking down and
a dolphin is directly below her, vertically suspended in the water
gazing up at her as she looks down.... We swam with them for about
15 or 20 minutes then sailed with them again untill they continued
off whereever they were going. All in all we were "among them" for
about an hour.

After reaching South Water Key we talked about the size of the pod
(pod seems too small a word) with a member of the Marine school
there. She pulled Spotted Dolphins up on the Internet and we found
that Pantropical Spotted Dolphins are sometimes seen in groups of
over a thousand. http://www.nsrl.ttu.edu/tmot1/stenatte.htm However,
no one we spoke to could recall ever hearing of anything like this.
This was truly a once in a lifetime experience and without a doubt
the high point of our trip and what made it all worthwhile.

All in all we are glad we took the trip BUT wouldn't bother to go a second
time. The sailing was good but no better then we find in the Fla.
Keys (at a fraction of the cost) Its good to be back in the USA

Bill

Our response,

The tone of Mr. Cash’s letters is one of threats followed by an offer to tell the truth for money.

The facts of the trip are that Mr. & Mrs. Cash booked an adventure sailing trip with us in mid January 2003 for February 18 to 27. Their First contact with us was November 2 2002. There was no 3-year correspondence with them. They booked our Lodge Hopper Special in late January for 8 days and 7 nights with an extra two nights and 3 days for side trips on the main land. For the extra days we offered to make the boats available as well as provide day tours to the jungle and ruins at $100 a night for the both of them. This included the hotel, guides, boats, auto, and in addition because they were staying extra nights we stayed an extra night at the cays for them.

We sent them our promotional material, which describes the trip and the accommodations. Bill asked once in a phone conversation in late January about the accommodations. I informed him that we were based in the Fishing Village of Hopkins where the trip would start and end and that the accommodations were individual Beach Bungalows that had private baths, hot showers, were bug free with fans and good beds. There was also a small refrigerator in their Bungalow for cold drinks that I hadn’t mentioned. When asked by Bill if the accommodations were first class I told him “yes that they were comfortable and first class accommodations for the area, on the beach in Hopkins Village and at the cays on the barrier reef, it isn’t Florida but the accommodations are good.”
The water problem that Mr. Cash alludes to was a temporary interruption that occurs occasionally through out the village. The hot water heads are common to the area. The owners of the hotel are very nice folks and would have been happy to instruct Mr. & Mrs. Cash on the proper use of that type of shower if they had asked or informed them or me that they were having trouble with the operation of the hot water heads. Since the recent e-mail allegations from Mr. Cash I have again checked the Bungalow in which Mr. & Mrs. Cash stayed in Hopkins and found every thing clean, critter free and in good working order. These accommodations are equal to those the Cashes stayed in on the barrier reef. Mr. Cash is holding it against the Inn that the infrastructure in Hopkins is not up to wealthy New Jersey standards.

Several facts that Mr. Cash left out are that:

1. He was unable to pay us in the usual manor and we allowed him a month grace on the final payment for the trip. We didn’t receive our final payment until they arrived for their trip in Belize.

2. The Hotels that Mr. Cash prefers to stay in are not in Hopkins Village and are no more comfortable than the hotel he stayed in. If any thing they are in a more buggy area.

3. On the day the Cashes were to arrive their flight was delayed by snow for two days. We changed all of their accommodations, air & ground transportation dates, guide & safety boat arrangements and rearranged our February & March schedule to allow them the full vacation they booked. In short more than 15 people and 3 Lodges changed their arrangements to accommodate the Cashes rescheduled vacation. All at no cost to the Cashes even though Tipple Tree Bahia demanded a two-day cancellation payment when they were unable to accommodate the Cashes new vacation schedule on immediate notice. Under the Sun paid and never asked to be reimbursed for the cancellation charge.

4. As Tipple Tree was unable to provide accommodations for the days necessary, Whispering Seas Vacations Inn rearranged things on short notice to accommodate the Cashes in their Beach Bungalows.


5. Mr. Cash goes on to imply that Under the Sun is operating illegally. We are fully registered in Belize and in the United States. All of our equipment is legally imported, in good safe operating condition, and we are very well thought of throughout Belize which is why we were able to rearrange everything necessary to accommodate the Cashes on their delayed vacation.

6. As to operating in Belize or anywhere even in the US, as I informed Mr. Cash in a conversation during dinner one evening, that it is a matter of getting to know people and developing working contacts through out the government and the industry you work in. That is the only way we in the tourism industry can rescue snow-delayed vacations.

7. The Cashes had an excellent trip. The wind didn’t fully shift to the strong easterly south easterly that we would have liked but we had good wind for the trip. According to the gps. Mr. Cash used daily to keep track of their sailing, they were sailing more than 25 knots daily and average speeds were above 11 knots. Every day they sailed into new territory. They sailed out side the reef several times and for almost two hours were able to sail & snorkel with hundreds of Pantropic Spotted Dolphins that migrate through the area in late February and March. We sailed to other lodges on other cays and beaches for lunch & beers. We sailed through the range cays and to Man-o-War / Bird Island. We sailed 20 miles in the Glass up close to the Barrier reef and sailed several miles out in the Deep Blue. Every day they saw rays and most days sighted dolphins. Snorkeling was great and the food was good. They never got sick and after 9 days in the tropics went home with only a half dozen bug bites.


8. The Cashes declined to take other side trips (citing allergy problems) that we had arranged at their request for their extra 3 days, including a jungle river tour and a trip to Cayo to visit the ruins. These trips were prepaid by Under the Sun and due to the short cancellation notice no refunds were available.

9. The Cashes flew home one day early citing allergy problems for Mr. Cash. At the time Mr. Cash expressed his gratitude for a once in a lifetime trip.

In short the sailing trip was excellent and the accommodations and food were very good. Mr. & Mrs. Cash had every opportunity to enjoy their Adventure Sailing Trip of a lifetime with us as hundreds of others have and the photos and video of their trip show that they did completely enjoy the trip. I personally am dumbfounded at the allegations & fabrications they are spreading. Again we are happy to provide any and all information including photos & video of this trip as well as references and articles from previous trips to all interested parties.

Yours Riley & Dorothy Dunn,
Owners of Under the Sun, Sailing & Diving Belize

Hopkins, Stan Creek Dist 1407 3945 Lane
Belize, Central America Paonia Colorado 81428

970 527 8996 – 800 285 6967
www.underthesunbelize.com
sail@underthesunbelize.com From Under the Sun, Sailing & Diving Belize