A Maya community lived on the island in Pre-Columbian times, and made distinctive polished red ceramics, most notably small well molded figurines of animals.

 

San Pedro Town is the largest settlement and only town on Ambergris. There are also a number of small villages and resorts. Captain Morgan's and Mata Chica resorts north of San Pedro played host to the first season of Fox's Temptation Island in 2000, aired in 2001. More recently, the availability of skydiving during the winter has become a draw for tourists so inclined.

 

Tourism development of Ambergris Caye began in the early 1970s and grew considerably in the later years of the 20th century. The main attractions are the Belize Barrier Reef and its beaches. That barrier reef is the second largest in the world, after the Great Barrier Reef of Australia. The caye has a small airstrip serviced by Tropic Air & Maya Air, and can be reached by plane from Belize City as well as by numerous fast sea ferries.

 

The history of the island goes back to the days of the Maya, European Pirates, and Mexican Refugees who fled during the Caste War. The descendants from Mexico make up most of the island’s population today. The economy of the island was once dependent on the coconut industry, followed by the fishing industry, but it is now dependent on tourism.

 

Ambergris Caye is the largest of some 200 cayes that dot the coastline of Belize. Ambergris is 25 miles long and a little over a mile wide, in some places, and it is located in the clear shallow waters of the Caribbean Sea just off the tip of Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula.

Her coastline is protected by the 190 miles long Barrier Reef, the second largest living coral reef in the world. In Mayan times, Ambergris Caye was a trading post. The Marco Gonzalez ruins at the southern tip of the caye and the Basil Jones site to the north, as well as the many recently excavated “home sites” in the heart of San Pedro Town give evidence to a former Maya population of 10,000. The narrow channel that separates Mexico and Belize was dug by the Maya to provide a trade route from the bay of Chetumal to the Caribbean.San Pedro Town is the only inhabited area on the island. It’s atmosphere is that of a small bustling fishing village but with “hot spots” of events, restaurants, and entertainment.

The town is clustered with wooden houses, some with Mexican decor, others Caribbean, and some still remain with the English colonial architecture. Gift shops, boutiques, bars, cafes, and restaurants adorn Front And Middle streets (now named Barrier Reef Drive/Pescador Drive). A short walk in town and you’ll feel the friendliness of the people and witness the ease of their lifestyles as they go through daily life. Barefeet, tee-shirts, and shorts is the typical island dress code.

The people of the island are called “Sanpedranos” and speak English, Spanish, Creole, and Maya all at the same time, making it their own island dialect. They are proud of their heritage and are willing to share it with tourists. Before tourism picked up in the eighties, the islanders were mostly Mestizos (Maya-Spanish). Today they share their island with the Creole, Maya, Central American refugees, Americans and Europeans that have made San Pedro their new home.

With a present day population of approximately 7,000 in the town of San Pedro plus the island's enchanting combination of mangrove forests, tropical savannahs, lagoons, and sparkling white beaches, it is no wonder that this island has become Belize's most popular tourist destination.