Ruby's Hotel, San Pedro, Ambergris Caye, Belize

In June of 1978, Ruby's Hotel opened for business. Romel and Ester Gomez are the owners of Ruby's Hotel. Along with their three children- Ester ("Vidy"), Ruby, and Nesto - they lived on the beach front next to the hotel. The original Ruby's Hotel was made up of four rooms. According to "Vidy," the business has always been a family business and will always be. "When the hotel first opened we got most of our business from the British soldiers. They brought us a lot of business.
We still have many of our first customers visit us every year, except those that have passed away," she said.

The primary success of the business is due to solely "word of mouth." In time the Gomez family learned about the value of advertising and had brochures and business cards made to publicize their hotel. Today, the majority of advertising is done on the Internet. "We get a lot of our bookings through the net," she said.
Ruby's Hotel is now made up of 21 rooms, a cafe, and a fishing and snorkeling shop.