Belize is a gorgeous country with an incredibly diverse landscape bursting with wildlife. Located just 2-5 hours flying time from major cities across the United States and Canada, it’s now easier and more affordable to visit this lovely Caribbean gem.
Here are the top 5 Belize excursions you can enjoy on your vacation:
The Belize Barrier Reef is a UNESCO World Heritage Site with hundreds of gorgeous islands and coral atolls. Coral reefs are home to 25% of all marine species on the planet, making them the perfect place to see enormous schools of fish, sharks, dolphins, turtles, rays, and colorful flora.
Very aptly named, the Monkey River is a pristine waterway in southeastern Belize. Most visitors tour the Monkey River by boat, heading far inland to see unspoiled nature at its finest, including large troops of the black howler monkeys that gave the river its name. Tours of the Monkey River usually include a stop at a jungle village for an authentic meal of the local cuisine.
Cockscomb Basin Nature Reserve
Measuring more than 150 square miles in size, the Cockscomb Basin Nature Refuge is a huge roadless wilderness bursting with wildlife and beautiful flowering plants. Perfect for day hikes or overnight trips, the Cockscomb Basin is also the world’s first wilderness sanctuary for the native jaguar.
Xunantunich
One of the largest ancient Maya cities ever discovered, Xunantunich is a vast urban complex that once was home to hundreds of thousands of people during the height of the ancient Maya civilization. The most distinctive structure in Xunantunich is the massive “El Castillo” (The Castle) temple that measures 130 feet tall, making it the second-tallest structure in the entire country.
Actun Tunichil Muknal or ATM Cave for short is a vast underground complex that lay undiscovered for more than 1,000 years. Only rediscovered in the 1980s, ATM Cave was once used by ancient Maya priests to conduct some of their most solemn ceremonies, including human sacrifice. Today, visitors can see the remains of young children and adults still lying where they fell more than a millennium ago, including the famous Crystal Maiden whose bones have become calcified until they acquired a spooky metallic sheen.
Barefoot Rentals is the go-to car rental company in southern Belize. Locally owned and operated, Barefoot Rentals has a wide variety of vehicles available to let you explore the country at your own pace.