Rough Guides - The Rough Guide to Belize

This Rough Guide is one of a new generation of informative and easy-to-use travel-guide ebooks that guarantees you make the most of your trip. An essential tool for pre-trip planning, it also makes a great travel companion when youre on the road.

From the section.

Detailed area maps feature in the guide chapters and are also listed in the , accessible from the table of contents. Depending on your hardware, you can double-tap on the maps to see larger-scale versions, or select different scales. There are also thumbnails below more detailed maps in these cases, you can opt to zoom left/top or zoom right/bottom or view the full map. The screen-lock function on your device is recommended when viewing enlarged maps. Make sure you have the latest software updates, too.

Throughout the guide, weve flagged up our favourite places a perfectly sited hotel, an atmospheric caf, a special restaurant with the author pick icon . You can select your own favourites and create a personalized itinerary by bookmarking the sights, venues and activities that are of interest, giving you the quickest possible access to everything youll need for your time away.

Despite its small size, Belize offers a phenomenal range of experiences, whether you snorkel the longest barrier reef in the Americas, dive the inky depths of the Blue Hole or embark on thigh-aching treks up ancient, soaring pyramids. And while geographically it may belong to Central America, and has grown out of a historically Maya foundation, at heart Belize is Caribbean and today thrives as a unique blend of all these cultures.

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Wedged into the northeastern corner of Central America, Belize features some of the most breathtaking coastal scenery in the Caribbean. Throw in vast archeological sites and wildlife to rival any destination in the region, and its easy to see why the number of visitors is steadily rising year upon year.

Belizean territory comprises marginally more sea than land, and for most visitors the sea is the main attraction. An astonishing natural wonder lies just offshore the dazzling turquoise shallows and cobalt depths of the barrier reef . Beneath the surface, a brilliant technicolour world of fish and corals awaits divers and snorkellers, while a chain of islands known as cayes , scattered along the entire reef, protects the mainland from the ocean swell and holds more than a hint of tropical paradise. Beyond the reef lie the real jewels in Belizes natural crown three of the only four coral atolls in the Caribbean.

Having long cherished its natural wonders, Belize holds the highest proportion of protected land in the hemisphere. As a result, its densely forested interior remains relatively untouched. The rich tropical forests support a tremendous range of wildlife , including howler and spider monkeys, tapirs and pumas, jabiru storks and scarlet macaws. Although its the only Central American country without a volcano, Belize does have some rugged uplands the Maya Mountains, situated in the south-central region, rise to over 3600ft. The countrys main rivers start here, flowing north and east to the Caribbean, forming some of the largest cave systems in the Americas on the way.

Belize also boasts a wealth of archeological remains. The ruined cities of the ancient Maya , who dominated the area from 2000 BC until the arrival of the Spanish, emerge mysteriously from the forests all over the country, while the caves too, once seen as the passageways to the underworld, conceal remarkable relics. Although only a few sites have been as extensively restored as the great Maya cities of Mexicos Yucatn Peninsula, many are at least as large, and in their forest settings youll see more wildlife and fewer tour buses.

Culturally, Belize is a cosmopolitan blend of races and cultures that includes Caribbean, Central American, Maya, mestizo, African and European. English is the official language Belize only gained full independence from Britain in 1981 and Spanish is equally common, but its the rich, lilting Kriol , based on English but essentially Caribbean, thats spoken and understood by almost every Belizean.

BARTON CREEK CAVE, CAYO