How It Happened?
We are Bob and Wendy and we are your hosts. We purchased this property in 2015 and at the time there were 3 cabanas on the property, none of which were fit for habitation. We took 3 months to fix up the smallest cabana and when ready we moved in. That left 2 cabanas that were going to be used for guest rentals.
Over the next year or so we built out the other 2 cabanas for rentals. And I must say, we did a really decent job.
Belizean Hardwood
They are not outfitted to be high-end units, that was never the plan, but with Belizean hardwood ceilings and floors I must say they look pretty fantastic. Each of these 2 cabanas is approximately 320 square feet, open concept style. Floors were refinished, kitchen cabinets added, walls were painted, and then furniture and appliances were added. It took a bit of time to get it completed as one of the “obstacles” we ran into was knowing who to contact to do some of the custom work for us.
A Learning Curve
We were new to the Hopkins area so there was a bit of a learning curve. Hopkins is a tourist town and many of the items we required to finish our cabanas wasn’t available here at that time or we didn’t know about them.
Contana Addition
Next came the addition of our “contana”, our container cabana. We built it out originally just as a 20’ container with a scaled down kitchen and a great porch. Then we added a bedroom to the contana allowing us to expand the kitchen into a fully functioning kitchen.
Gold Standard Certified
We jumped through the hoops required to get Belize Tourism Board registered and then during COVID we became Gold Standard Certified. The Gold Standard Certification reflects a higher standard of customer service with enhanced cleaning procedures and consistent documentation.
Golden Palms
Our outside efforts have been on populating the property to reflect the name – Palma d’Oro Oasis – an oasis of Golden Palms. Sometimes when you look at the palm trees you can see colours of gold in the leaves, hence the name. We have replaced the fence around the yard, cultivated a hedge on one side, planted several palm trees, of varying varieties. Next item on the list is to finish the landscaping, including hardscapes ad softscapes.
A Good Reputation
It turns out we are pretty good at this. We have good reviews from our guests, we have return guests, both long and short term. We have some of the cutest cabanas around and our prices are reasonable enough that people can come and enjoy what Hopkins Village and surrounding amenities has to offer.