Palmento Grove Garifuna Eco-Cultural & Healing Institute is the only full service indigenous owned vacation service provider in Hopkins offering authentic Garifuna & Belizean Cultural Experiences. We are please to share our culture with our guests while our business also serves to provide & fund Garifuna Cultural Preservation Projects to our Garifuna Community of Hopkins. We are located at the Freshwater Lagoon Estuary which is the most popular fishing spot in Hopkins. Over Johnson Island was originally the home of 3 Yugandan sisters from which Hopkins derived its Garifuna name Yugada. In the early 1900s a British overseer succeeded in occupying the island. The island then became a hub for commercial activities such as agricultural farm management, timber extraction & cattle farming. Over Johnson Island is known to have the oldest well that provided portable water in the Commerce Bight Area that has been there for over 70 years. The island continues to be of great historic significance after Hurricane Greta in 1941, when the inhabitant It is the first & only Cultural & Fishing Lodge authentically operated by Indigenous Garinagu in Hopkins Village spanning 3 generations.

Palmento Grove Eco Cultural and Healing Lodge located on Kalipuna Heritage Island on the north end of Hopkins is truly an Afro-Indigenous cultural gem that have embodied a long history of resilience. Established in 2007 by Uwahnie Martinez with the support of her family they aimed to utilize tourism as a positive tool to empower and inspire indigenous people in their communities. The objective being, to improve the quality of cultural tourism experiences in Belize while helping to preserve culture with economic incentives derived from guests’ engagements. Having risen through the ashes, Palmento Grove has earned its respectful space as Belize’s premier (Garifuna) afro-indigenous cultural tourism provider offering authentic, education, inspiring and entertaining cultural experiences in Belize. Located on a 62 Acres Island of great historical significance the cultural stewards have come to embrace their culture with pride as they live it daily engaging in fishing, farming, beekeeping, agro-processing and cultural tourism. Sustainable livelihood is in full display as Kalipuna Island home to Palmento Grove has been designed to provide guest with nostalgia as they interactively engage in travel and learning about the Garifuna Culture & Garifuna People who are afrodescendants living in Belize. The island showcases indigenous architecture with vibrant painting by Garifuna artist and powered by renewable solar energy. The Martinez family is always glad to share their sacred space, welcoming guests wanting varying degree of immersion experience into a uniquely vibrant black culture that has been proclaimed an intangible heritage of humanity by UNESCO. Cultural & Healing Experiences includes homestay on the island occupying the beautiful rustic jungle accommodations while participating in daily activities such as the signature tour (Garifuna Cultural & Culinary Tour) or simplified experiences of younique interest such as lessons in cooking, food tasting & drumming.

Palmento Grove Garifuna Eco-Cultural & Healing Institute in Hopkins Village, Belize that offers an amazing and enriching Garifuna Cultural & Healing Experience with memories to last a lifetime. Welcome to our unique & Historical Garifuna Island Haven, the first & only Cultural & Healing Institute of its kind authentically operated by Indigenous Garinagu on the northern end of Hopkins Village. Palmento Grove Garifuna Eco-Cultural & Healing Institute welcomes you to submerge yourself in the unique primitive elegance of historical Hopkins Belize to enjoy all the wonderful cultural, fishing, open dinning, gallery, kayaking, birding, bioluminescence, rainforest, reef adventure & Natural attractions. Enjoy our primitive elegance, rustic and native exotic Cultural & Fishing Institute while being hosted by our hospitable host spanning 3 generations. Come experience Palmento Grove Garifuna Eco-Cultural & Healing Institute in Hopkins Belize located on the beautiful Fresh Water Creek Lagoon that is rich in ambiance and historical significance. Our Lodge is nestle in a quiet, peaceful, spacious and boastfully save property that is just a 5 minutes-walk off the coastline.