Fodor's Expert Review Community Baboon Sanctuary

Spanning a 20-mile (32-km) stretch of the Belize River, the "CBS" reserve encompasses land that sprawls over seven communities. The black howler monkey (Alouatta pigra)—an agile bundle of black fur with a disturbing roar—was before then zealously hunted throughout Central America and was facing extinction. (Belizeans refer to the black howler as a "baboon," but baboons are not found in the wild in the Americas.) Today the sanctuary is home to some 2,000 black howler monkeys, as well as numerous species of birds and mammals. Thanks to ongoing conservation efforts countrywide, you can see the howler monkeys in many other areas of Belize and northern Guatemala. Exploring the Community Baboon Sanctuary is easy, thanks to about 3 miles (5 km) of trails that start near a small museum and visitor center. The admission fee includes a 45-minute guided nature tour during which you definitely will see howlers. Some guides may ask you to pay extra to hold or pet the howlers—this isn't appropriate, and don't encourage it. Other theme tours—birding, canoeing, crocodiles—are priced à la carte, although the admission per couple is little more than the per-person rate.