Beautiful Belize - June 16, 2012

Arrive at the Belize City airport and transfer to your jungle retreat. Along the way stop at the Belize Zoo, where in typical Belizean fashion animals roam 29 acres in large natural enclosures. The jungle lodge is tucked next to the Tapir Mountain Nature Reserve and Roaring River. This evening, enjoy meeting the rest of your group over dinner at the lodge.

After a leisurely morning and breakfast, you head off to paddle down the Macal River for your first introduction to Belizean wildlife. Your guide will help you spot iguanas, peccaries, coatimundis and a myriad of bird life. After lunch in town, we will visit the Maya ruins of Xunantunich, once a major ceremonial site and the second tallest ruin in Belize. From atop, enjoy a breathtaking panoramic view of the Cayo District of Guatemala.

This morning, you will have the thrilling opportunity to soar through the jungle treetops high above the forest floor. A short hike up into the rainforest leads you to the first of five platforms where you begin your exciting trip back down through the jungle canopy on a series of cables. In the afternoon, you will take a leisurely float through the caves and majestic jungle on inner tubes. You will hike to the put-in to the Cave's Branch River with your inner tubes. From there, enjoy a float through a series of caves with glimpses of the towering rainforest in between.

We wake early for our unforgettable adventure into Actun Tunchil Muknal, a journey into the Maya underworld. Start the trip from lodge doors, crossing creeks and journeying deep into the Belizean jungle to the opening of the sacred Actun Tunichil Muknal - the Cave of the Stone Sepulcher. At the entrance we gear up with helmets and waterproof headlamps, then wade into the emerald colored water flowing from the cave's gaping mouth. Our journey follows the river's flow through wet and dry caves encased in hanging stalactites and towering stalagmites. Our final destination is the spectacular primary chamber where ancient kings and priests made blood sacrifices to appease the Maya gods. Our lights illuminate the ghostly outlines of skeletal ritual victims and scattered ceramic shards of ancient rituals. Tunichil is an active archeological site, so we're careful not to disturb the sleeping skeletons and ceramic pieces before returning to the light above ground. This is a fairly rigorous trip and travelers should be in good shape. For those looking for an alternative trip, a visit the the Barton Creek Cave is an excellent choice. There are also other activities available for those who prefer life above ground. Click here for alternative excursion at Barton Creek Cave

Early this morning you will be picked up and transfer to the Belize City airport. From there connect with a 15 minute flight over crystal Caribbean waters to Ambergris Caye. Settle into your beach side hotel and relax into the Caribbean spirit of the cayes. Tomorrow morning you're off on a snorkeling trip to Hol Chan Marine Reserve and Shark Ray Alley for your first introduction to the wonderful world of the Belizean reef. Sea turtles, eagle rays, nurse sharks and hundreds of species of fish, coral, and sponges create one of the worlds most diverse underwater ecosystems. The rest of the time is available for you to arrange activities locally. You can take a PADI scuba diver Resort Course, explore the island by bicycle, rent a catamaran or just relax on the beach. The island has plenty of services for daytime adventure and nighttime dining.

Take a return flight back to Belize City to catch your international flight homeward.