Explore the Maya Underworld
Cave Tubing
& Belize Zoo
Your adventure begins after an hour boat ride to Belize City as you head for the wildlife habitat known as The Belize Zoo. The zoo was created as a sanctuary for the country’s indigenous species and is now home to an impressive array of large cats, primates, reptiles, and birds. A visit to the zoo gives you the opportunity to see Belize’s amazing wildlife in one location. The adventure continues with a scenic drive up the Western Highway to the Cayo (pronounced Ky-o) District. After lunch make your way along the winding waterway of the Caves Branch River as you tube through the ancient caves once inhabited by the Maya.
Includes: Light breakfast, transportation from/to Portofino, guide, lunch, refreshments.
Cave Tubing
& Ziplining
After a 15-minute flight or an hour boat ride to Belize City, you will embark on a 1-hour drive via the Western Highway to Caves Branch Outpost, your adventure headquarters for the day. The Outpost is located a few hundred feet from the Caves Branch River and its winding waterway through the ancient caves once inhabited by the Maya. Become a “Zip rider” today as you connect to a series of overhead cables crisscrossing the rainforest canopy. The zipline course features a “beginner’s zip run” of only 150 feet. Six other zip runs range in length from 200′ to 600′ between treetop platforms secured in the canopy of tropical hardwood trees. Intriguing karsts limestone cliffs provide a scenic backdrop as you zip through the rainforest canopy.
Includes: Transportation from/to Portofino, guide, lunch, bottle water.
ACTUN TUNICHIL MUKNAL (ATM)
Cave Exploration
Actun Tunichil Muknal “Cave of the Stone Sepulcher” is one of the most impressive caves in the Maya lowland. Located in the heart of the Belizean rainforest, this cave was a sacred place to the prehistoric Maya of Belize, who first began to use the entrance during the early classic period (300-600 A.D.).
It was not until the late terminal classic period (700-900 A.D.) that the Mayas traveled deeper into the cave to conduct their ceremonies. The cave system consists of a series of chambers, ending in a 300 by 50-meter cathedral where sacrificial ceremonies once took place. Here you will be exposed to the individuals sacrificed to the gods of the underworld. Visitors to this cave have the unique opportunity to travel into the Maya past and witness a living museum where the human sacrifices and artifacts can be viewed in their original context.
About the Tour: Visitation to this site is limited to 5 persons per guide. At the end of an exciting drive, you’ll trek for 45 minutes through dense jungle in the Tapir Mountain Nature Reserve and wade across three streams before reaching the cave entrance. At the entrance to the cave, you’ll be outfitted with the necessary equipment and some swimming will be required. This is a premier, world-class caving and archeology experience that is unexploited and generally restricted to limited visitation.
Includes: Transportation from/to Portofino, guide, lunch, bottled water.
XUNANTUNICH Ruins
& CAVE TUBING
After an hour boat ride to Belize City, your adventure will begin with a scenic drive up the Western Highway to the Cayo (pronounced Ky-o) District. Xunantunich (Maya for “Maiden of the Rock”) sits just inside the Western border of Belize. Before reaching the entrance of this ancient city, your party will board a 19th century hand-cranked ferry which takes you across the Mopan River. The ruins are actually located on one of the highest plateaus in the area and it is possible to climb to the top of “El Castillo”, the largest of the temples at this site. From this vantage point, one gains a panoramic view of the Cayo District and nearby Guatemala.
After lunch you enjoy cave tubing in the Caves Branch River and its winding waterway through the ancient caves once inhabited by the Maya.
Includes: Includes light breakfast, lunch, beverages, guide, and transportation from/to Portofino.
