Cave Exploration in Belize
Belize's ancient Mayans believed that caves served as an entrance to the underworld. Many of Belize's caves contain ceramics and human remains. Some are wet caves, with a river or a creek that flows through the subterranean complex. In addition to exploring the caves, you'll also get to go canoeing or tubing.
Cave tubing and a visit to the Belize Zoo will bring you face-to-face with Belize’s incredible outdoors. First you’ll visit the Belize City Zoo, which is known for its rehabilitation programs for endangered animals. Then you’ll head to the Caves Branch River, where you will ride on an inner tube through the ancient caves of the Maya
Actun Tunichil Muknal cave is the doorway to Xibalba, the Maya underworld. This cave contains ceramics and human skeletons that have fused with the walls of the cave. The most famous of these remains is the Crystal Maiden, a skeleton of a young woman believed to have been a sacrifice. Her bones are now partially covered with the sparkling build-up of cave sediment.
This 6-hour tour takes you two of Belize’s most interesting inland nature attractions – St. Herman’s Cave and the Inland Blue Hole. In addition to sightseeing, you’ll also get in some hiking through the forest and a swim in one of Belize’s prettiest swimming holes.To reach these spots, you’ll make your way through a lively jungle, where you’ll have the chance to see a huge variety of birds. Keep in mind that this hike is on the more challenging side, so make sure you’re ready for an active day.
This aquatic tour will take you down the most interesting waterways of St. Herman’s Blue Hole National Park. Your will begin with an airboat ride through the park’s wetlands, where your guide will point out some colorful local wildlife. Then you will visit the Crystal Cave, which you can enter only with the help of a guide.
We begin by making our way to the mainland & up the Belize River. Along the way as we serve breakfast keep an eye out to spot crocodiles, iguanas & possibly manatees.
This tour will bring you to the top of a Maya temple, and then to the entrance of the Maya underworld. The temple is inside the Maya city of Xunantunich, which is located near the border of Guatemala. Its name translates to “Maiden of the Rock.” After you ascend the walls of its temple, you’ll continue the tour to the Cave Branch River, where you’ll follow the river into a series of caves that had intense spiritual significance for the Maya.
This is an adventurous tour of the jungles of central Belize. You’ll see the treetops on a zip-line ride and the depths of the caves in an inner tube.
Take this tour into depths of the mysterious and enchanting Barton Creek Cave. Barton Creek flows through the cave, allowing you to paddle through its interior. This tour also introduces you to some interesting archeological remains.
Take this adventurous tour to combine zip lining and cave tubing, so you can get the most out of Belize’s lush inland rainforest. Neither of these activities require any experience, but they do offer a lot of excitement. That being said, this tour is best suited for travelers who are prepared for moderate physical demands.
On this tour, you’ll get to see two very different Maya sites. The first, Xuanantinuch, is the ruins of a compact but impressive Maya city. Here visitors can stroll around multiple plazas and temples. At the nearby Barton Creek Cave, you’ll see a cave that served as an entrance to Xibalba, the Maya underworld.
Actun Tunichil Muknal is one of the most impressive caves in the Maya world of Belize, named after a sacrificial chamber deep within the ATM Cave. This wet cave is located within the Tapir Mountain Nature Reserve in the Cayo district.
For this tour you will hike through the forested foothills of the Maya Mountains to a brink overlooking a river. From there you will descend into the Actun Loch Tunich sinkhole.
This is an all-day, seven-hour tour that takes you to one of the most famous Maya sites in Belize. The Actun Tunichil Muknal Cave is a fascinating cave that preserves the remains of Maya culture. It’s best known for the skeleton of a sacrificial victim – a young woman whose remains have lain in the cave for over 1,000 years. Over time, the bones have formed a layer of crystallized minerals, which has led to her nickname, “the Crystal Maiden.”
This tour takes place on a pontoon boat called La Capitana, on a man-made reservoir of the Macal River. Macal River makes its way through the Cayo District, which has large swaths of wild jungle.
Take an off the beaten path look at one of Belize’s top Mayan attractions. Swim across the creek and under the jungle overgrowth to see the Actun Tunichil Muknal. It is one of the most interesting Maya sites in the world, and a has a chamber where you can see the crystalized, skeletal remains of a teenage sacrifice victim.
This tour introduces you to Belize’s wildlife. You’ll explore jungle rivers and take an educational trip to the Belize Zoo.
In the Actun Tunichil Muknal Cave you get to explore both a natural wonder and an archaeological goldmine. ATM is a wet cave that the Maya believed served as an entrance to the underworld. They used it for ceremonial purposes, and left plenty of evidence behind.
In the Nohoch Che'en Archaeological Reserve, the winding Caves Branch River flows underground through ancient caves, once traveled through and even inhabited by the Maya. Just an hour from Belize City and a half hour from Belmopan is The Outpost, a well-stocked base camp for cave tubing and zipline-riding in the midst of this history-rich area.
This tour combines relaxation with archeology and adventure, on a tubing adventure to one of the most intriguing Maya sites Belize. It begins by climbing into a rubber tube and taking a peaceful float down the river, and ends with an exhilarating zip-line ride through the jungle.
Take a half-day tubing tour to see Caves Branch Cave, one of the main caves that the Maya considered sacred openings to the underworld.
