Belize is hands down one of the best destinations for you to visit – all 8,867 square miles of it. From its lush and beautiful jungles to breathtaking and scenic hills to its relaxing and refreshing sandy beaches and azure blue Caribbean Sea. Belize is home to many ecosystems and biodiversity, all of which you can experience for yourselves. This makes it perfect for any traveller; especially eco and adventure travellers.
In every district there is something for everyone to do, whether you’re looking for a little bit of adventure or for an extreme adventure – the tour companies and guides make it possible to find the right fit for you. We now look at the various adventure tours that are offered throughout Belize.
Northern Belize
Let’s begin in northern Belize – the Corozal district. Here you can visit two of Belize’s historical Mayan sites: Cerros and Santa Rita. If you’re a traveller that’s looking for adventure but nothing too exciting, then visiting the Mayan ruins would be a great option for you. Next, we move onto the Orange Walk district, better known as “suga city”. Mayan ruins such as Colha, Lamanai, Cuello, and La Milpa can be found here. Lamanai meaning submerged crocodile is one of the largest and oldest ceremonial Maya sites in Belize and getting there is quite an experience; you will need to get on a boat from Orange Walk and travel down the New River where you will see various species of birds, animals, and even crocodiles. When you arrive you will be able to explore the entire site and climb the temples if you so choose.
In the Belize District, you can take a visit to Altun Ha – one of the most common Maya sites in the country, it’s a small site and the temples aren’t very tall so if you’re afraid of heights then this is somewhere you’d want to visit. Another place is the Crooked Tree Wildlife Sanctuary; visitors are able to take the birding-by-boat cruise and experience the 574 species of birds in this area – namely the Jabiru Stork, Egrets, Herons, and the Northern Jacana. This is perfect for the eco traveller and someone looking for a little bit of adventure.
Western Belize
Now we move down to western and southern Belize where you will find the most adventurous activities. Starting with the Cayo district – the largest district in Belize filled with rich tropical forests, tall hills, pulsating rivers, various Maya sites and mysterious caves. Travellers can visit Xunantunich Mayan Ruins by going on a very short ferry ride across the river or they can take a 4 hour horseback riding tour and get an amazing experience. You can also go cave tubing through the Mayan underworld “Xibalba” and zip lining at Jaguar Paw near the Belmopan area.
Cayo is home to beautiful waterfalls that you can visit any time at the Mountain Pine Ridge Forest Reserve, which includes Thousand Foot Falls (the highest waterfall in Central America), Five Sister Falls, and Big Rock Falls. This location is quite suited for the adventure traveller – you can take a hike and then have a dip in the refreshing water at Rio on Pools. If that’s not adventurous enough for you then you can explore the Rio Frio Cave; this is only half a mile in length so it’s perfect for those visiting a cave for the first time.
Southern Belize
Southern Belize consists of the most beautiful scenery when travelling on the Hummingbird Highway. The Stann Creek District is home to the kulcha capital – Dangriga, as well to beachside villages such as Hopkins, Placencia, and Sittee River. If you’re looking for water sports, diving, snorkelling, or fishing, then this is where you want to be.
However, if you’d rather be inland then you can visit the Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary and go trekking through the jungle and relax at one of their waterfalls. Within the boundaries of this preserve, you can find two of Belize’s highest peaks: Doyle’s Delight and Victoria Peak. As well, travellers can visit Bocawina National Park which offers accommodation at their eco-resort and includes thrilling activities such as climbing up to thousand footfalls and then rappelling to the bottom of the waterfall or you can take a ride on the longest zip line in Belize through the lush rainforest.
In the Toledo District also known as the “forgotten” district, there are a few things for you to do. There are five Maya sites located here – Nim Ni Punit and Lubaantun are the most common and easily accessible while Uxbenka, Pusilha, and Xnaheb are more difficult to access and require a guide. Travellers can also hike to the Blue Creek Cave other known as “Hokeb Ha”, after the hike you can enter the cave and swim into the beautiful cerulean blue pool.
There are no limits to the things you can experience here in Belize. This is only a look at some of the activities, as there are much more for you to discover here in this small destination with very big adventures.
Written by Reyann Garcia
