Our Experience of Off-Grid Living In Belize

We’ve always loved the idea of living building a homestead and being completely self-sufficient. With the world doing worldly things, we believe it’s a great idea to create a life where you do not need to rely on anyone else.

It’s highly likely that there will soon come a time when we may need to kick into ultimate survival mode and if/when that time comes, I hate the idea of being forced to depend on others.

We’ve seen what that could look like in the height of the pandemic. The scarcity and low energy that swept the world was shocking to witness. The fact that entire countries around the world shut down your ability to go outside was something I never imagined I would ever witness but it happened and what we experienced was nothing compared to what could happen in the future if we don’t prepare so when the opportunity to test out off-grid living in Belize came up it was a no brainer.

Being self sufficient for us means having location, time and financial freedom whilst creating a life where we can provide our everyday needs like shelter, food, electricity and running water without any external support. We already know how to create multiple streams of online income so we’re on our way to having that covered. If you want to learn all about the basics of homesteading and living off-grid then I suggest you start here.

Creating an off-grid life is no easy feat and we knew that if this is to be the life we were going to go after then it would be a smart idea to test it out first and I am so grateful that we were able to have that experience staying with Asli, Frank ad their beautiful children on their 6-acre homestead in the jungles of Belize.

If you want to watch our experience then check out the video below:

I actually met Asli on Instagram a number of years as we followed each others journies of living abroad. I then interviewed her for our YouTube channel just as they were finishing the build of their now homestead and told her I looked forward to visiting.

Fast forward 3 years and we finally made the 6 hour journey from Playa Del Carmen to Chetumal (the Mexican/Belize border) where Frank met us to takes us across the border and so our adventure began.

We stayed at Asli and Frank’s for 3 days and 2 nights. As a city girl who is fiercely scared of bugs, the thought of spiders and snakes petrified me and so I knew I needed to do just a few days first to confirm that I could do a longer stint. It was the perfect introduction for me. Asli and Frank are awesome, so warm and kind and super resourceful and knowledgeable. I mean when you see what they’ve created it’s easy to see why.

They built their entire homestead by hand. Their home is made out of rammed earth and wood from the trees they cut down on their land. Everything has a purpose to minimise waste. They have also built 2 studios with ensuite bethroom, flushing toilets and showers might I add and soon a small kitchenette. On top of these they also have additional guest facilities with shared toilets and shower. Their solar panels provide all the electricity you need. They have their own internet tower so we were always connected at great speeds and the water came straight from their well. It’s very rustic but you will have everything you need. One of the highlights of staying in such a remote location was the 1000s of stars we were able to see as night fell. I’ve literally never seen so many stars in my life and I’ll cherish that memory forever.

They have over 300 fruit trees including mangoes, bananas, plaintain and avocado and more vegetables than you can imagine. We harvested ginger, tumeric and countless herbs that went into the our teas and seasoned our porridge in the morning. They have chickens for eggs and meat. They’re also beekeepers and now I can say that I have genuinely tasted honey straight from the hive. I always wander if the honey we buy from the supermarkets is real or not. We’ll here, there was no need to wander.

On our second and third day we had the most delicious meal in town which tasted like it could have been straight out of Jamaica. Asli taught me how to make the immune boosting Fire Cider which I’ve always heard about. Of course we used ingrediants from their land. AJ cut down plantain, banana and helped to get their guest accomodation for their next retreat. We went to their neighbours property and got to harvest lots of tangerines, starfruit and some avocado. Its so awesome that they have such a great relationship with their neighbours who are willing to share the oversupply of their land in abundance.

This place is a true goldmine and now they are positioned to share their expertise and train up the next generation of homesteaders with their in-person homestead training, an experience I highly recommend you take if you’re wandering if this life is for you. Asli and Frank can also help you to source land in Belize and potentially help you build a starter home at fantastically affordable rate, you only need to ask. They can also share how they generate income with you as they offer investment coaching, offer relocation support and make wellness products from their land that they sell to individuals and businesses throughout Belize and abroad. They really are just getting started.

So after 3 days in the jungle, am I ready do go completely off-grid? After the big spider (the size of my palm) I woke up to after the first night, maybe not! Honestly, I’m just thankful I didn’t see any snakes or tarantulas. This experience has given me an awesome taste of what’s possible and there’s definitely aspects of it that I love, like the simplicty of their life, the solar panels, all the home grown produce and the idea that you can be completely self-sufficient on a budget. We definitely want to replicate parts of what they have but I know for me I still appreciate having some more modern conveniences and I’d definitely be willing to hire help. Building and maintaining a homestead is not for the fainthearted.

I’m so thankful to Asli and Frank for opening up their homestead for us and for creating a beautiful space for us to be, learn, connect and play in. Taji often talks about their children and wants us to visit again soon. I’m glad they got on so amazingly, it was beautiful to witness so much free play in such a safe environment. This really is how simple life should be. Now that we’ve done it once and knowing we live so close to each other, I know that we will visit again soon and I look forward to a longer stay. If you want to learn more about homesteading but are not able to go to their homestead retreats or anything else I mentioned above then you can get in touch with them via their website below.