As the various images show, it is certainly great to be in, and under the waters off the coast of Belize! Certainly, snorkeling is my favorite thing to do here, but it is not the only thing...
Caves
Like the Yucatán of Mexico, there is the coastal cave system, where you can take guided tours through the underground caves, near San Ignacio, Belize. The Actun Tunichil Muknal or "ATM" cave tour is a fascinating tour through a cave system that was discovered to house Mayan artifacts and everyday items such as pottery, but even human remains! It is truly fascinating! It certainly is an experience to remember, which is good, because you can't rely on any photos or the ever prevalent "selfie", you may want to capture, because there are no cameras allowed! At least they weren't when I took my tour… What a bummer! |
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The tour includes transportation from San Ignacio, Belize, to the park where you hike through the forest, and traverse some shallow streams, to get to the entrance of the cave. It is a wet & dry tour, where there is light-swimming, and wading in water to get through parts of the cave. It is a lot of fun, and you really feel invested in the whole experience! Bring your own swimming or water-sports shoes, since I can't recall if they provide those. The excursion lasts the whole day, and lunch is provided. For more specific information, and tour providers click here.
Snorkel and Scuba Dive
Belize sits along the second largest barrier reef in the world, so of course you have to get in the water and check it out! Whether you hang out on the surface and snorkel, or put on the tank and wetsuit and go deep, it will be an experience to remember! Some destinations for snorkel excursions are (from north to south) Ambergris Caye (San Pedro), Caye Caulker, and Placencia.
Ambergris Caye, and Caye Caulker, are islands off of the northern mainland, and you can easily arrive by water taxi from Belize City. These islands offer tours to protected state parks where you can swim with and pet the sandpaper-skinned nurse sharks, view manatees, underwater, in the distance, and hover over sting rays the diameter of a dining room table!! Yes... That will get your heart racing!
There are also excursions to a large phenomenon in the middle of the ocean -- the big Blue Hole! I have yet to see this natural wonder up-close and personally, but it is a large, perfectly-round crater in the floor of the ocean about 43 miles from Belize City. From previous research, I have found that you can take tours to scuba dive into the hole, or take a helicopter tour where you fly above it to see it in its entirety!
Mayan Ruins
As previously mentioned, I saw the ancient Mayan ruins at Lamanai, south of Orange Walk Town, Belize. The tour starts off with a boat ride down the river, to the Lamanai site, where you may catch some of the small monkeys in their natural habitat... if they haven't been scared off by the buzz of the motor boat! But the tour guide will usually coax them closer with the temptation of a banana. So the ride to Lamanai, is a treat in itself.
There are several other excavated sites to visit, that will surely amaze, such as Cerros, Caracol, and Lubaantun. Cerros is particularly interesting to me, because it is on the coast of the Caribbean Sea, much like the ruins in Tulum, Mexico. Caracol is in the western district of Cayo, and is the largest Mayan site in Belize, and Lubaantun the southernmost Mayan site, of Belize, is in the Toledo district. Those are just a few to get you interested to research your own Ancient Mayan Adventure in Belize!
Snorkel and Scuba Dive
Belize sits along the second largest barrier reef in the world, so of course you have to get in the water and check it out! Whether you hang out on the surface and snorkel, or put on the tank and wetsuit and go deep, it will be an experience to remember! Some destinations for snorkel excursions are (from north to south) Ambergris Caye (San Pedro), Caye Caulker, and Placencia.
Ambergris Caye, and Caye Caulker, are islands off of the northern mainland, and you can easily arrive by water taxi from Belize City. These islands offer tours to protected state parks where you can swim with and pet the sandpaper-skinned nurse sharks, view manatees, underwater, in the distance, and hover over sting rays the diameter of a dining room table!! Yes... That will get your heart racing!
There are also excursions to a large phenomenon in the middle of the ocean -- the big Blue Hole! I have yet to see this natural wonder up-close and personally, but it is a large, perfectly-round crater in the floor of the ocean about 43 miles from Belize City. From previous research, I have found that you can take tours to scuba dive into the hole, or take a helicopter tour where you fly above it to see it in its entirety!
Mayan Ruins
As previously mentioned, I saw the ancient Mayan ruins at Lamanai, south of Orange Walk Town, Belize. The tour starts off with a boat ride down the river, to the Lamanai site, where you may catch some of the small monkeys in their natural habitat... if they haven't been scared off by the buzz of the motor boat! But the tour guide will usually coax them closer with the temptation of a banana. So the ride to Lamanai, is a treat in itself.
There are several other excavated sites to visit, that will surely amaze, such as Cerros, Caracol, and Lubaantun. Cerros is particularly interesting to me, because it is on the coast of the Caribbean Sea, much like the ruins in Tulum, Mexico. Caracol is in the western district of Cayo, and is the largest Mayan site in Belize, and Lubaantun the southernmost Mayan site, of Belize, is in the Toledo district. Those are just a few to get you interested to research your own Ancient Mayan Adventure in Belize!
For more ideas and useful tips, click on the images, below!
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