From the laid-back yet uniquely hip atmosphere, to the idyllic and secluded setting and the excellent service, a stay at Matachica is a truly wonderful experience!

My wife and I stayed in a beachfront casita for 8 nights in early March. I won’t go into a detailed description of the resort or the casitas because I think most of the reviewers on this site have captured the essence of those pretty accurately. Suffice to say that the resort and the casitas are well-appointed, very comfortable and fastidiously clean (which is not easy given (i) the resort is surrounded by sand, and (ii) there’s an almost constant breeze coming off the ocean).

The real appeal of Matachica lies in the wonderfully secluded and relaxed atmosphere that they’ve managed to create. If you are looking to get away from the stress and hassle of everyday life, not to mention the snow and the cold, you won’t find a better place. The pace of life is delightfully unhurried, perfect for lazy hours spent on the beach or by the pool blissfully unaware of the time of day. Everything about the resort is brilliantly casual and there’s nothing that recharges the batteries better than going shoeless for almost an entire week.

The highest accolades for Matachica, however, are reserved for its amazing staff and the excellent service they provide. The staff is extremely warm and sincere and the service is efficient and attentive without being obsequious. We travel extensively and have stayed at some very high-end resorts, but can honestly say that the people at Matachica are amongst the best. In particular, we’d highly commend Ismael, Oswald, Abby and Reuben.

Matachica isn’t perfect – if you look closely you’ll certainly find broken shutters, dripping faucets and other aspects of the resort that need work or upgrading as others on this site have pointed out.

Nor is Matachica for everybody – if living on a beach under a thatched-roof 15 minutes from town doesn’t sound like your idea of a good time then you won’t like it (hint: stay at Victoria House).

That’s okay - it means there’ll be more room for us and other people like us who appreciate that Matachica has managed to create something that many other (much more expensive) resorts have failed to - a true escape!

P.S. The food at Mambo is excellent and is by far the best on the island. Try Elvi's Kitchen in San Pedro for authentic Belizean food and we hear Rojo Lounge next door to the resort is very good (it was closed during our stay)...but otherwise don't waste your time going elsewhere - you'll be disappointed.

As a single woman, I was a bit wary of going to a small resort. But my main goal was to relax in a beautiful setting and escape from life's routine. Matachica was all it had promised and more.
From the moment one is picked up by the resort's motorboat and a drink order is placed, ready for your arrival on the longest pier jutting into the most turquoise waters I have ever seen....a guest is immediately transported to a cocoon of beauty and peace.

I discovered that the previous owners were European and their exquisite design sensibility was evident throughout. My private casita on the beach was a dream come true, with rose petals on my bed! Every day, the splendid linens were complimented by a new floral arrangement and the bathroom towels were displayed differently...it was a treat to come back to the room and discover a new creation each time.
I felt at home, welcomed by the most delightful staff and charmed by their pride in their work.
Apparently the new owner is a Parisian-trained chef who has focused on updating the menu and it was evident in every dish I tasted. And the limes!!! I was truly in heaven.
I never felt any unease at being alone; I was able to enjoy my time for relaxation, reading, swimming, snorkelling and kayaking. I was inspired to buy some lovely beach sarongs in Matachica's small boutique after seeing how gorgeous they looked on the female staff and even found original jewellery and clothing in Ambergris Caye's picturesque stores.
I would recommend this hotel highly to anyone seeking a 'time
out' from children, work and life's demands.

I would actually give this place a 3.5 if it was an option... it was our honeymoon and while it was beautiful and relaxing we really felt that for the price we paid it should have been so much better.

What we loved:
- We stayed in a beachfront casita and it was absolutely stunning. We loved opening the shutters and being greeted by the glorious water and sand in front of us. We've had great views in other places but this is so special being right on the beach in your own little casita. And the property is quite secluded (15 minute boat ride from town), and because there are only a small number of casitas it's very private (although I read that the Montreal owners are planning a big expansion). We loved that it was far away from the chaos of San Pedro.
- The rate includes a vast array of extras: kayaks and snorkel gear (as other reviewers mention you have an easy trip out to the reef with good snorkeling); bikes, a large screen tv in the common room with a great selection of movies (we watched four different James Bond movies which was fun), two computers, wireless internet, trips in and out of town if the boat is going in, purified water, a large continental breakfast (2 baked good, toast, fruit, yogurt and cereal!), books, magazines, pool, hot tub.
- Plenty of comfy beach chairs to lounge in;
- Rojo lounge. It's right next door and is hands down some of the best food we've EVER eaten. We ate there 5 times and everytime it was as good or better than the time before. Jeff is an incredible chef, and they run a gorgeous property and a fantastic restaurant. For lunch we just ordered one dish and it was always enough food for us both. And if you want a capuccino or latte they have 11 or 12 different types of espressos to enjoy - which was a BIG highlight for us. The coffee at Mambo was average... so it was such a wonderful treat to drink coffee at ROJO Lounge (in the AZUL resort)
- the towels were heavenly... I still think about them 3 weeks later. They were large and fluffy and sooo soft. It was wonderful to towel off from a shower or an ocean swim with those big towels.

Why we were disapointed by Matachica:
- Mambo food was expensive and average. When we asked where else we could eat they didn't even recommend Rojo lounge next door... instead they recommended the Green Parrot which is a 20 minute walk north and also has mediocre food, or places in town which you have to pay to get to.
- It was our honeymoon and we were there for a week. They never got to know our names, and didn't do anything special for us. We thought that they would at least learn our names since we saw the same 5 people every day! And the property was not full when we arrived so it's not as though they were too busy to be able to try to remember us.
- The snorkel gear had many problems. When we would tell them it leaked or was missing a piece they would say "oh sorry" and toss the defective gear back into the bucket and offer the same defective ones back to us the next day!! They should check it out for themselves and replace the ones that were broken.
- We had massages which were great!! But we also wanted to have pedicures. Their "spa" doesn't offer them. Their spa also isn't air conditioned or really that beautiful considering the luxury and beauty of the setting. But for a pedicure they told us they would arrange one downtown and let us know. They never did, but as we walked up the beach we found a place about 5 minutes away Xantuna or something like that - that offered pedicures. Why wouldn't they have just sent us there?! Better yet, why don't they offer pedicures themselves?!!!
- We fought with our door constantly! Several of the shutters were broken so we had to go outside to open or close them. Our door was really tough to close and lock and required a struggle for every entry and exit. Once again... just little things but we expect more for our dollar.
- They add a 15% gratuity on top of everything. I would have happily tipped some people 15% or more, but there are others that didn't deserve that.

Overall, we enjoyed plenty of romance, relaxation and luxury surrounded by the beautiful water and beaches. It's not that this place isn't lovely and wonderful - it really is. But, because we spent over $500US/night on this place plus nearly $100/day on food and drink we expected A LOT more from it.

We stayed at Mata Chica Feb 9-13, and did not start off on the best of attitudes. Upon landing in Belize, we found that our transportation had not been paid for yet (Tropic Air to San Pedro), though we had a confirmation #. We had to wait an additional hour for MataChica to return the calls from Tropic Air to get us on a flight. We purchased a package thru Chaa Creek and Mata Chica, the Surf and Turf package. Upon purchasing the package I printed out screen shots as well as email correspondence, we booked thru Chaa Creek, but it was a package between the two resorts, I brought all of this with me just in case there were any issues... unf there were. Upon checking in we were told that our Sea View Bungalow didnt exist (though I had abundant paperwork stating that is what we purchased). They have Sea View Suites and Sea Breeze Bungalows. All this time (we purchased in Oct of 2007) we had planned on a sea view, but they put us in Grapes, which is a sea breeze. I have waited a week before posting a review to see if my temper simmers down, but not once since our return has MataChica attempted to contact us. I did talk with Burga (Ms B) via the phone while there, and she said she couldnt help us. So I totally feel we we purchased a Sea View and got a Sea Breeze (minus the breeze the 4 nights we were there).
Grapes was a nice place, but not what we felt we deserved. The property was beautifully maintained, and though we were told the place was full, we never had any problems getting a pool chair or beach lounge. In fact, most of the time we ate/lounged/hot tubbed by ourselves.
Mata Chica is very secluded from town, and even though there is a resort property next door (the other side is still undeveloped), you feel miles from anywhere. Which can be great if that is what you want.
The room was air conditioned, there was wireless internet and 2 computers in the main area with internet access for guest to use.
We had a daily iguana visitor to our room, which we enjoyed, but other people may not think its so cute. Our room was made nicely each day and I felt it was clean.
The food, while beautiful to look at, was just average. We were told every morning that continental breakfast was included. We had an all inclusive plan so we ate every meal there. If you want to eat else where there are two places within walking distance, but they are both pricey (if you are just looking for a sandwich expect to pay 15$ atleast, plan on 50$ pp for dinner w/o drinks or appetizer) or take the boat to town.
We both got massages. The massage area is towards the back of the resort. It is very small with a curtain separating the two massage beds. They can definitely improve on this. The massage was nice, but why not offer a massage on the beach, or to the other extent a massage in airconditioning?
Mata Chica staff were very nice. We particularly noted Ishmael and Anita as outstanding employees. The male manager asked us 3x if we just got there today (on different days and once on the same day). So he didnt take note to remember us.
Our trip wasnt horrible, but there are tons of beautiful places to stay. We would definitely try one of them next time instead of returning to a place that doesnt make customer service a priority but wants to be respected as a 4-5 start resort.