Ian Anderson's Caves Branch Jungle Lodge

Belize

　　Hidden away in dense jungle off the Hummingbird Hwy, Ian Anderson's is a 90-sq-mile private estate that acts as a base for a variety of exclusive jungle activities on the property. Accommodations are superb jungle-chic, and guests can indulge themselves in the beautiful riverside pool and hot tub, and enjoy...

Errolyns House of Fry Jacks

Belize

　　Who said Belize had to be expensive? Locals and travelers alike descend on this neat takeout hut to chow down on the island's best-value breakfast – delicious golden fry-jacks (deep-fried dough) filled with any combination of beans, cheese, egg, beef or chicken. Cheap, filling and delicious. ...

Turneffe Island Resort

Belize

　　At the southern tip of the atoll, the fanciest of the Turneffe resorts offers gorgeous cabañas with screened porches, wooden floorboards, and indoor and outdoor showers, all set amid coconut palms just yards from the beach. There's world-class diving within minutes of the resort, and it has even established its...

Blancaneaux Lodge

Belize

　　Owned by movie director Francis Ford Coppola (who keeps a personal villa, 'the Francis Ford Coppola Villa,' complete with attendant and private pool; yours for BZ$1800 per night), this indulgent 78-acre lodge offers 20 thatched cabañas and luxury villas, spread around beautifully manicured gardens, with some looking right over the...

Turtle Inn

Belize

　　The last word in ultra-chic luxury (with price tag to match), this Balinese-themed lodge is owned by the family of Francis Ford Coppola, where the director himself maintains his own Belizean villa. The thatch-roofed cottages and villas are a combination of opulence with a hint of the rustic, while signature...

Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary

Belize

　　The Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary is Belize’s most famous sanctuary and one of its biggest protected areas. This great swath of tropical forest became the world’s first jaguar sanctuary in 1984, thanks to the efforts of American zoologist Alan Rabinowitz. Today this critical biological corridor is home to an estimated...

The Split

Belize

　　A narrow channel that splits Caye Caulker into two, the Split has clean, deep waters free of seaweed, making it one of the island's best swimming areas. This is particularly true following the recent construction of a seawall, a wading area with sheltered picnic tables, a spa, some restaurants and...

Marie Sharp's Factory

Belize

　　The super-hot bottled sauces that adorn tables all over Belize and beyond are made from habanero peppers here at Marie Sharp's Factory, 8 miles northwest of town on Melinda Rd. Free tours are usually offered during business hours (by advance reservation), and the factory shop sells hot sauces and jams...

Copal Tree Lodge

Belize

　　Formerly Belcampo Belize, Copal Tree Lodge enjoys a superb hilltop setting overlooking miles of protected jungle stretching down to the Gulf of Honduras. This beautiful lodge offers 16 spacious and luxurious suites, including four Canopy Suites, with solid wood furniture, queen- or king-size beds, full-length windows and private verandas overlooking...

Ray Caye Resort

Belize

　　This spectacular private island resort, about 18 miles east of Placencia, should fulfill all of your tropical island fantasies without completely breaking the bank. Luxurious oceanfront cabañas and rooms – with a maximum of 30 guests – are spaced among the palms, while the warm, shallow waters fringing the island...

Black Rock Lodge

Belize

　　High up the Macal in beautiful Black Rock Canyon, this is a stunning setting for a jungle adventure. Slate-and-wood cabins are fan-cooled and have lovely verandas overlooking the river and up toward towering cliffs. Black Rock is all about the location and activities; you can hike pristine trails, ride a...

Chaa Creek Natural History Center & Butterfly Farm

Belize

　　Hike up the tree-covered hillside above the Macal River to reach the Chaa Creek Natural History Center & Butterfly Farm, a small nature center with displays on Belize’s flora and fauna, as well as the early Maya. The highlight is the butterfly farm, which breeds the dazzlingly iridescent blue morpho...

Shark Ray Alley

Belize

　　Only snorkeling is allowed at this perennially popular spot, which is in a shallow part of the Hol Chan Marine Reserve. Shark Ray Alley was traditionally a place for local fishers to clean fish, and the creatures attracted to the fish guts soon became a tourist attraction. As the name...

Lazy Lizard

Belize

　　The Lazy Lizard is described as a 'sunny place for shady people,' though most folks here tend to be attractive, young travelers, swimming about and sunbathing as they are plied with booze and cocktails. The bar's 2nd-story balcony offers spectacular views of the Split, and its cornhole tournaments, beach rugby...

Half Moon Caye Natural Monument

Belize

　　Half Moon Caye Natural Monument is known first and foremost as providing nesting grounds for the rare red-footed booby bird, but the island's enchantments go far beyond that. There's also a lighthouse, excellent beaches and spectacular submerged walls that teem with marine flora and fauna. Underwater visibility can extend more...

Caracol

Belize

　　Once one of the most powerful cities in the entire Maya world, Caracol now lies enshrouded by thick jungle near the Guatemalan border, a 52-mile, roughly two- or three-hour drive from San Ignacio. Sitting high on the Vaca Plateau, this is the largest Maya site in Belize, having possibly stretched...

Belize Zoo

Belize

　　If most zoos are maximum-security wildlife prisons, then the Belize Zoo is more like a halfway house for wild animals that can't make it on the outside. A must-visit on any trip to Belize District, the zoo has many animals you're unlikely to see elsewhere – several tapirs (a Belizean...

Xunantunich

Belize

　　Set on a leveled hilltop, Xunantunich (shoo-nahn-too-neech) is one of Belize's most easily accessible and impressive Maya archaeological sites. Getting here is half the fun, with a free hand-cranked cable ferry taking you (and vehicles) across the Mopan River. Xunantunich may have been occupied as early as 1000 BC, but...

Hol Chan Marine Reserve

Belize

　　At the southern tip of Ambergris, the 6.5-sq-mile Hol Chan Marine Reserve is probably Belize's most oft-visited diving and snorkeling site. It offers spectacular coral formations, plus a rich abundance and diversity of marine life – not to mention its proximity to the cays. Hol Chan is Maya for 'Little...

Clock Tower

Punta Gorda

　　The clocktower is a useful landmark in the center of Punta Gorda's downtown, as well as being a small cafe. ...

Belize Archives Department

Belmopan

　　This local history collection is mainly a reading room and research facility with computers for public use. You can stop by and chat with the researchers on anything to do with Belizean history. ...

George Price Center for Peace & Development

Belmopan

　　This museum and conference center celebrates the life of Belize's beloved statesman and first prime minister after independence, George Price, who died in 2011. As well as photographs and information panels, there's an archive of documents and letters written by Price. ...

Billy Barquedier Waterfall

Belmopan

　　This magnificent waterfall cascades into a cool swimming hole located a 15-minute walk off the Hummingbird Hwy (signposted). A further one-hour walk brings you to a lovely viewpoint. If there are no volunteers there to take your entry fee, it may be risky leaving a vehicle unattended. ...

Guanacaste National Park

Belmopan

　　Belize's smallest national park was declared in 1990 and is named for the giant guanacaste tree on its southwestern edge. The tree survived the axes of canoe-makers but has now died naturally, though it still stands in its jungle habitat. The 51-acre park, off the highway at the Belmopan turnoff,...

St Herman's Blue Hole National Park

Belmopan

　　The 575-acre St Herman's Blue Hole National Park contains St Herman's Cave, one of the few caves in Belize that you can visit without a guide. The visitors center (where flashlights can be rented for BZ$3) is 11 miles along the Hummingbird Hwy from Belmopan. From here a 500yd trail...

Sacred Heart Church

San Ignacio

　　Landmark church in San Ignacio. ...

St Andrew's Anglican Church

San Ignacio

　　On pedestrian Burns Ave, this is a popular parish church. ...

House of Culture

San Ignacio

　　In the former hospital behind the town hall, the House of Culture has regular art, history and cultural exhibitions, as well as being a local meeting place. ...

Branch Mouth

San Ignacio

　　Branch Mouth is the meeting place of the Mopan River, coming from Guatemala, and the Macal River, flowing down from Mountain Pine Ridge. The confluence of these rivers forms the beginning of the Belize River, which flows northeast to the sea. It's a cool spot for a swim on a...

Cahal Pech

San Ignacio

　　High atop a hill about a mile south of San Ignacio, Cahal Pech is the oldest-known Maya site in the Belize River valley, having been first settled between 1500 and 1000 BC. Less impressive than Xunantunich and Caracol, it's still a fascinating example of Preclassic Maya architecture and an easy...

Green Iguana Conservation Project

San Ignacio

　　On the lush Macal Valley grounds of the San Ignacio Resort Hotel, this excellent program collects and hatches iguana eggs, raising the reptiles until they are past their most vulnerable age. The iguanas are then released into the wild. On the guided tour you'll get plenty of opportunities to stroke...

Court House

Belize City

　　You can’t miss the prominent Court House on Regent St, built in 1926 as the headquarters for Belize’s colonial administrators to replace an earlier wooden structure of similar design that was destroyed by fire. It still serves administrative and judicial functions. ...

Digi Park

Belize City

　　A pleasant waterside recreation area complete with food huts selling local and international cuisine, a playground and a walled-in sandy area with water access, although you'd probably want to avoid swimming here. There is also a stage where concerts and cultural events are held. ...

St John's Cathedral

Belize City

　　Immediately inland of Government House stands St John's Cathedral, the oldest Anglican church in Central America. It was built by slave labor between 1812 and 1820 using bricks brought from Britain as ballast. Notable things to see inside are the ancient pipe organ and the Baymen-era tombstones that tell their...

Government House

Belize City

　　Fronting the sea down at the end of Regent St, this handsome two-story wooden colonial mansion served as the residence of Britain's superintendents and governors of Belize from the building's construction in 1814 until 1996. At the time of research the building was undergoing renovation and was closed to the...

Image Factory

Belize City

　　The country's most innovative and exciting art gallery stages new exhibitions and hosts regular book launches, usually of work by Belizean artists. Opening receptions are mostly held early in the month, out on the deck, which looks out on Haulover Creek. ...

Swing Bridge

Belize City

　　This heart and soul of Belize City life, crossed by just about everyone here just about every day, is said to be the only remaining manually operated bridge of its type in the world. The bridge, a product of Liverpool's ironworks, was installed in 1923, replacing an earlier bridge that...

Goff's Caye

Belize City

　　Some of the most spectacular snorkeling in Belize happens just a short swim off the powder-white sands of Goff's Caye, a tiny, uninhabited island just a 30-minute boat ride to the southeast of Belize City. With nothing but some coco palms and a couple of palapa-covered (open-air shelter with a...

Museum of Belize

Belize City

　　This modern museum in the Fort George District provides an excellent overview of the story of Belize, told through exhibits housed in the country's former main jail (built of brick in 1857). Fascinating displays, historical photos and documents bear testimony to the colonial and independence eras, along with an exhibit...