Beaches and Dreams is building a second location, Cabana Village, opening in December, 2025.
Planning a New Resort for Hopkins, Belize
After buying what used to be Jungle Jeanne’s in August of 2022, we immediately decided to keep the existing cabanas and gut-renovate them into beautiful, modern ocean front rooms. Cabana Village is just a quarter mile south of the village of Hopkins, Belize. We want the style and structure of each room to reflect the style of the village. Ryan worked with a architect to determine the location and height of each cabana. Cabanas in the front row are low to the ground, while cabanas that sit behind another, are raised up on stilts. And every cabana has a private balcony or porch. Take a look at the full property diagram below.
What's in a name? Birds of Belize!
As you can see in the diagram above, each cabana already has a name. We decided to name each cabana after a bird that can be found in Belize. There is no shortage of birds to choose from. I wanted names that were easy to remember but less well known than say, the Toucan. We also decided to paint each cabana the color of the bird after which it was named. Each cabana needs to be a different color, and thus, I searched for birds by hues.
I really enjoyed finding these birds. I think my favorite might be the Crossbill. I learned that its top beak overlaps its bottom beak at an angle which is why he is called “Crossbill”. This unique bill helps the bird crack open cones to eat its favorite seeds.
Before and After of Three Cabanas
Now, a bit of a reveal. I’m so happy I found this before and after match up. I did take a lot of photos during the renovation, but it was not easy to remember the exact angles and distances to make matching cabana photos. Sometimes, cabanas were relocated or mounds of dirt were obstacles to taking a good shot. But, tada! Look at Jacamar, Honeycreeper and Tanager! The first photo was taken in August of 2022, the second was taken in August of 2023. The dug out area in the foreground is where the pool will be.
