North America > Belize > Belize City (BZE)
The Car or no Car advice for Belize City can be broken down into three similar questions - do you need a car in Belize City ; is it worth it (based on costs), and ultimately - should you rent one? (a balance of the two).🚆 🚌⛴️ Do we need to rent a car in Belize City ?
These scores are based on the quality of public transport and other travel options. If these are good enough to see the main points of interest, then you don’t need to rent a car.
💰💶💳 Is it worth hiring a car in Belize City?
These scores reflect the practical factors that affect whether renting a car is convenient, good value, and stress-free.
Getting around without a car 🚶♀️🚌
Within Belize City itself, a car is rarely necessary. The central areas are compact, taxis are inexpensive, and most visitors only stay one night at most. Moreover, the city is not especially pedestrian-friendly outside the core areas, which further reduces the appeal of driving yourself around town. For short transfers between the airport, ferry terminal, and hotels, taxis or hotel shuttles are the default choice.
Crucially, Belize City is the jumping-off point for water taxis to Caye Caulker and Ambergris Caye, which depart from the city’s ferry terminals. Since these islands are best explored on foot, by bike, or by golf cart, renting a car in the city before heading offshore makes little sense 🚤.
When a rental car starts to make sense 🚗🌳
The logic changes if Belize City is your starting point for inland travel. Destinations such as San Ignacio, the Maya ruins of Xunantunich and Caracol, and the cave systems of western Belize are far easier to reach by car than by public transport. Buses do exist, but they are slow, infrequent, and not well suited to travellers with tight schedules.
A rental car is also useful if you plan to cross borders by land, for example into Guatemala or Mexico, although this requires checking insurance and paperwork carefully in advance.
Safety, traffic, and practicality ⚠️
Driving standards in Belize are generally relaxed, roads are improving, and traffic congestion is limited compared with larger Central American cities. That said, Belize City itself is not where most people want to practise city driving, especially after a long flight.
Conclusion: should you rent a car in Belize City? 🤔
For most visitors, the answer is no. Belize City works best as a transit hub, with taxis, ferries, and buses doing the heavy lifting. However, if you are heading inland to jungles, ruins, or borders on your own schedule, renting a car becomes genuinely worthwhile once you leave the city behind 🌎.
