Belize
I visited Belize for work in January 2014, and was able to tack on a weekend of diving at the beginning just for fun. I was staying on Caye Caulker, a fun little island just a short plane flight or boat ride away from Belize City. This spot was a great getaway from the city, and is the epitome of "no shirt, no shoes, no problem." The island has a nice mixture of backpackers, expats, and locals - I think just about anyone would fit in here. As far as topside activities, I would highly recommend Caribbean Colors Arts Cafe for great breakfast and also great local art.
I was able to do one day of diving in Belize, where we went to Esmeraldas and the Tackle Box, two sites located in front of Ambergris Caye and part of the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef (about a 45 minute boat ride from Caye Caulker). Visibility was decent (70+ feet), although the water temp was colder than expected - I was very cold at the end of both dives while wearing a 3mm shorty. The dives were quite nice though, with several sitings of nurse sharks, sea turtles, morray eels, goliath groupers, trumpetfish, etc. I did not see a whole lot of small guys for the macro underwater photographer, but that may have been a function of my dive guide who was moving much too quickly. Coral cover and diversity was decent, and these sites in particular highlighted some beautiful coral canyons.
Overall, I really enjoyed my scuba diving experience in Belize. However, if I'm able to go back to Belize, I would really like to focus instead on the offshore atolls (Lighthouse, Glovers, Turneffe) and of course the Blue Hole. I have not yet been to these locations, but hear rave reviews.
