Northern Belize Itineraries

If You Have 3 to 5 Days in Northern Belize

If you are starting in Belize City, rent a car and drive to Crooked Tree Wildlife Sanctuary, which has great birding and offers the chance to see the jabiru stork, the largest flying bird in the Americas. Spend a few hours here, canoeing on the lagoon and hiking trails. If you have an interest in birding, you'll want to overnight here at one of the simple lagoon-side lodges, such as Bird’s Eye View Lodge or Crooked Tree Lodge. Otherwise, you could drive on to Maruba, an upscale jungle lodge and spa. The drive from Crooked Tree takes about 45 minutes. While you're at Maruba, visit the Altun Ha Mayan site, which you can see in a couple of hours. On the second day, drive to Corozal Town, about 1½ hours from Maruba or Crooked Tree. Base here in Corozal Town for two days, at one of the small hotels on Corozal Bay such as Almond Tree Hotel Resort or Tony's Inn and Beach Resort, making day trips by boat to Lamanai and Cerros ruins (or you can drive). If you have additional days in the north, you can add a visit to Sarteneja or cross the border into Chetumal, Mexico. Alternatively, after the first night in Crooked Tree or at Maruba, drive to the Lamanai Mayan site and spend the night there at Lamanai Outpost Lodge on the New River Lagoon, or, for a different experience, proceed to Blue Creek Village, a Mennonite area, and spend the night at Hillside B&B, or at La Milpa Field Station. Then, continue on through Programme for Belize lands to Chan Chich Lodge and spend the rest of your time in northern Belize at this amazing jungle lodge. If money isn't much of an object and you want one of the best jungle lodge experiences in Central America, then ditch the car and fly from Belize City to Chan Chich, where you can spend all your time looking for jaguars and listening to the howler monkeys.

If You Have 1 Day in Northern Belize

With only one day, head to Lamanai, which with Caracol in the Cayo District is the most interesting of Belize's Mayan sites. Although you can drive, the most enjoyable way to get to Lamanai is by a 1½-hour boat trip up the New River. Tour boats (BZ$80–BZ$100 per person) leave around 9 am from docks near the Tower Hill bridge over the New River just south of Orange Walk Town, or from a dock in town. If you're staying overnight at Lamanai, your hotel can arrange boat transportation.