Turtle Inn: Where Sofia, Roman and Francis Ford Coppola Like To Stay

December 10, 2012 at 6:32 PM | by jimmyim | Comments (0)

Lagoon Bungalow at Turtle Inn�

Ever wanted to live vicariously through a Coppola? You know, make a film or two, become a household name, travel affluently?

Well, we can promise you only the latter, friends, as we now have the official 4-1-1 on where Francis, Sofia and Roman stay when they travel to Belize. Obviously, they're going to crash at the Turtle Inn, a 17-acre beachside property FFC bought back in 1999.

But which rooms do they shack up in?

First, let's talk about Turtle Inn. It's the only luxury resort in the fisherman village of Placencia, Belize, reachable by a 30-minute puddle jumper from Belize International Airport. There's 25 rustic villas and cottages, two salt-water pools, three restaurants, a beach bar and a memorable staff to boot (shout out to Rudy!).

Accommodations come equipped with outdoor showers and gardens, homemade cookies (in a bottomless jar), screened porches and thatch roofs reaching up to 30 feet. The spa is fronted by Thai masseuses who can have you knackered in minutes and the new Miss Ellie dive boat that can drop you off at a deserted island within an hour.

Should you want to do the Coppola resort like an actual Coppola, you have three accommodations to choose from...

Sofia takes the Beach House, right on the sea with its own pool. It's incredibly stylish, thanks to architect Laurent Deroo, whose Harajuku A.P.C store actually served as a location in Lost In Translation. Obvi, Sofia loved him so much, she asked him to create something natural-modernistic. Expect teak wood, slab slate and aluminum design in the main house, in addition to a bungalow out back for two more guests.

Francis takes the Family Pavilion, which, like most of the resort, is Balinese-inspired. Expect hand-carved wooden doorways, stone sculptures and all artwork hand-selected by the director and his wife, Eleanor. There's two bedrooms with en-suite bathrooms, as well as a third loft bedroom accessible by a ladder. Throw in a private pool, a comfy living area, screened porch, writing desk and wet bar, and you've got yourself a pad The Godfather himself would approve.

Last but not least, Roman's preferred accommodation is the Lagoon Bungalow. We have to admit, this one's our favorite. It's on the other side of the resort on the Placencia Lagoon (just a two-minute walk from the lobby, and right next to the spa and Auntie Luba's Kitchen, one of the three restaurants on site) so it's completely removed.

The bungalow has an art-deco theme with porthole windows and all things nautical. In fact, the interior makes you feel like you're on a yacht.

And speaking of floating vehicles, Roman's private Chris Craft boat is docked here, and can be rented out. Its claim to fame? John F. Kennedy once rode the vintage, wooden boat. You better Belize it.

We stayed here as a guest of the resort, but all opinions expressed are entirely our own.

[Photo: Jimmy Im for HotelChatter]

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