How to Plan a Last-minute Belize Vacation

Okay, so you’ve got the itch to travel to somewhere new, somewhere cool, somewhere exotic, or just anywhere that’s different. No problem! Belize is just a short flight from the United States and Canada, and all the biggest airlines now operate non-stop flights to this jewel of a country.

Truth be told, you could grab a last-minute fare and enjoy some Belize travel without any advanced planning and still have a great time. But if you really want to experience all the best stuff in the country, it’s usually best to book your stay around three weeks ahead of time since many Belize resorts offer discounts on advanced bookings.

Our advice is to first head to your favorite travel agent or airline website and see what’s being offered for a non-stop flight to Belize City (all international flights to Belize land in Belize City). 

Once that’s settled, make sure your passport is in order and has at least six months left to go before it’ll expire. After that, your next question is probably, “Where to go in Belize?”

Well, you simply can’t go wrong no matter what you choose. Belize has the largest coral reef system in the Northern Hemisphere, perfect for activities like snorkeling, scuba diving, windsurfing, and sea kayaking. Islands like Ambergris Caye and Caye Caulker are great for seafood, too, all of it fresh-caught right from the surrounding Caribbean.

But don’t think it’s just about the islands. The mainland of Belize is amazing, too, with lots of wildlife to see and exotic birds. There are thick jungles, rainforests, and majestic waterfalls. Oh, and there are ancient Maya pyramids, palaces, and temples all over the place, too.

But what if you’re interested in Belize vacation packages? The good news is that all the top resorts offer great deals for one fixed price that usually include ground transportation, meals, lodgings, and even guided Belize trips to nearby attractions. They often throw in some great freebies like wireless internet and the use of bicycles or golf carts to get around, too.

If you’re looking for the best resort to stay in Belize, be sure to stay at the fabulous Chabil Mar Resort located on the beautiful Placencia Peninsula.

Visit our website Chabilmarvillas.com for more information on Belize and Chabil Mar, and don’t hesitate to send us an email, or call & chat with us via WhatsApp Free Worldwide: +501-633-7547, Local: (011-501) 523-3606, if you have questions or need help in planning a Belize vacation.

Xunantunich Mayan Ruins

 

Xunantunich Mayan Ruins in Belize

Xunantunich ruins

Pronounced shoo-na-too-nitch by most people, this ancient Maya site is one of the most popular tourist destinations in Belize. With an interactive museum on site, visitors can learn about this majestic city that was once a luxury residence for Maya elites. Today, visitors approach the site by crossing the Mopan River using a hand-cranked ferry and then climbing to the top of one of the site’s fabulous temples to be rewarded with an amazingly panoramic view of the countryside.

About Xunantunich

Xunantunich tours

In modern Belize, Xunantunich is located just a short distance from the town of San Ignacio in Cayo District and one mile north of the border with Guatemala at Benque Viejo. Built on a natural limestone ridge, the site was constructed to serve elite nobles and their retinue during the Classic Period.

With a central area measuring just 300 square meters (3,230 square feet) in size, Xunantunich isn’t the largest Maya ruin in Belize, but it’s unique residential structures and ceremonial center make the site one of the top attractions in the country. One of the first lost cities rediscovered in the modern era (excavations first began in 1892), archeological renovations at Xunantunich have revealed three ceremonial plazas, houses, and a large palace decorated with friezes and masks.

The most famous building in Xunantunich is “El Castillo” (The Castle), a pyramid soaring 130 feet above the main plaza. El Castillo was the tallest man-made structure in the country until the Sky Temple at the Maya site of Caracol was discovered a few decades ago. El Castillo is remarkable due to its large stucco frieze on its eastern side that details stories of the gods and stories from Maya creationist myths. Xunantunich was heavily populated until an abrupt event in the Classic Period that left the top of “El Castillo” partially damaged.

Although no one knows the original name of the city, today the site is called the “Stone Lady” (Xunatunich in modern Mayan) due to persistent stories of a woman in white that haunted the original British archeologists and has been regularly seen even up until modern times.

Chabil Mar in Placencia Belize & Xunantunich

Belize Luxury Resort

The lovely Chabil Mar resort on the Placencia Peninsula is close to all of the most exciting mainland destinations in Belize. Guests of the resort can include a visit to Xunantunich as part of one of Chabil Mar’s fantastic Belize Reef & Jungle vacation packages.


Visit our website Chabilmarvillas.com for more information on Belize and Chabil Mar, and don’t hesitate to send us an email, or call & chat with us via WhatsApp Free Worldwide: +501-633-7547, Local: (011-501) 523-3606, if you have questions or need help in planning a Belize vacation.

3 Beautiful and Enchanting Mayan Ruins to Explore in Southern Belize

The Maya Empire was among the most advanced civilizations in the world for more than 2,000 years, and the epicenter of the civilization was located in Belize. At the civilization’s peak, the area now known as Belize was home to more than two million Mayan people, making it one of the most densely populated areas of the Mayan civilization in Mesoamerica.

Many who visit Belize today will take time to explore some of the Mayan sites located across the country, and three of the most overlooked yet fascinating archaeological sites to visit are Nim Li Punit, Lubaantun and Uxbenka. With a closer look at what these Mayan ruins have to offer, you may decide to spend time exploring them on your upcoming trip to Belize.

Nim Li Punit

nim li punit
The Nim Li Punit ruins sit in a scenic location overlooking the Toledo plains and rain forest area. The site features a ball court, a pyramid and a main plaza as well as several other buildings that you can explore in greater detail. The area notably has 26 stellas and fascinating carvings that make it unique from other Mayan ruins. In fact, one of the carved columns is the largest of its kind in Belize.


See also: The Best Maya Temple Sites to Visit in Belize


Lubaantun

Lubaantun-Mayan Ruins Belize

Situated in the southern end of the Toledo District, the Lubaantun ruins are also worthy of spending time exploring while you are in southern Belize. Lubaantun was once a ceremonial center of the Mayan civilization, and it boasts several large pyramids and residential buildings that you can explore in greater detail during your visit. The ruins uniquely have no mortar binding them, and some of the buildings were made from perishable materials. Because of this, the area is known as the “Place of the Fallen Stones.”

Uxbenka

Uxbenka

Uxbenka is the smallest of these three Mayan ruins, but it is fascinating to explore. It is also a ceremonial site that offers stunning views of the Blue Creek Canyon and the Maya Mountains in the distance. Notably, the area has a main plaza and several smaller plazas, terraced grounds, seven stellas, a water supply tower and an open tomb.

Visit our website Chabilmarvillas.com for more information on Belize and Chabil Mar, and don’t hesitate to send us an email, or call & chat with us via WhatsApp Free Worldwide: +501-633-7547, Local: (011-501) 523-3606, if you have questions or need help in planning a Belize vacation.

Snorkel with Whale Sharks, Stingrays and Manatees in Placencia, Belize

Placencia is a beautiful, 16-mile long stretch of golden sand beaches in the Stann Creek District of Belize and serves as the gateway to some of the country’s most spectacular marine wildlife, including whale sharks, stingrays, and manatees.

Whale sharks are the largest fish in the ocean and can measure up to 12 meters (41 feet) long and weigh up to 21 tons. Despite their enormous size, whale sharks pose little danger to humans as they feed on tiny krill and fish spawn. Every spring, the whale sharks migrate to the outer areas of the Belize Barrier Reef in southern Belize, and a limited number of divers get the amazing opportunity to interact with these immense creatures.

Whale sharks circumnavigate the globe every year. They normally spend their time in very deep waters that are inaccessible to humans, but they rise to the surface in conjunction with the phases of the moon in order to feed.

Stingrays are powerful hunters, but their prey in the waters of Belize are small fish and squid. Natural channels in the reef serve as “superhighways” for fish and other marine life, drawing in vast schools of stingrays. Divers and snorkelers face little danger from stingrays, and being surrounded by stingrays as they flit and dart through the water is a truly magical experience.

Sometimes known as “sea cows” and sometimes known as “mermaids,” manatees are gentle, vegetarian mammals that thrive in the shallow, warm waters of Belize. Feeding on the vast beds of seagrass along the coast and estuaries of Belize, manatees are a wonder to behold.

Manatees pose no danger to humans, but their numbers have dwindled over the past century as boat propellers can easily injure or kill them. Today, manatees in Belize are protected animals. Manatees are very docile animals, slowly swimming through the water, but they are very intelligent, often recognizing human beings after just one meeting.

Visitors to Belize are not permitted to touch manatees, but it can be very enjoyable watching them play and frolic. Manatees breathe air and must surface every 15 minutes, making them easy to spot. Manatees communicate with one another with whistles and clicks in a similar manner as dolphins.

Chabil Mar has a number of Belize vacation packages that include snorkeling, visiting the manatees, and diving with whale sharks. To book these activities or to learn more about customizing the perfect Belize vacation, contact Chabil Mar reservation’s office today!

What It’s Really Like To Dive The Great Blue Hole

The Mysterious Belize Great Blue Hole is a large underwater hole off the coast of Belize. It lies near the center of Lighthouse Reef, a small atoll 100 kilometers (62 mi) from the mainland and Belize City. The hole is perfectly circular in shape, over 300 meters (1000 ft) across, 3140 feet circumference and 125 meters (410 ft) deep.

Read also: Dive the Great Blue Hole of Belize with this Vacation Package

It was formed as a limestone cave system during the last glacial period when the sea level was 400 to 500 feet below present time and was dry land. Last glacial period began about 120,000 years ago and end about 15,000 years ago. Reaching the maximum extension 26,500 years ago. At the end the ocean began to rise, the caves flooded, and the roof collapsed.

Believed to be the world’s largest feature of its kind, the Great Blue Hole is part of the larger Belize Barrier Reef Reserve System, a World Heritage site of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

The hole itself is the opening to a system of caves and passageway that penetrate this undersea mountain. In various places, massive limestone stalactites hang down from what was once the ceiling of air-filled caves thousand of years before the end of the last Ice Age 15,000 years ago. When the ice melted the sea level rose, flooding the caves. This process occurred in stages. Evidence for this are the shelves and ledges, carved into the limestone by the sea, which run the complete interior circumference of the Blue Hole at various depths.

great_blue hole of belize

The Blue Hole is a “karst- eroded sinkhole.” It was once a cave at the center of an underground tunnel complex whose ceiling collapsed. Some of the tunnels are thought to be linked right through to the mainland, though this has never been conclusively proved. Notable are the large population of sharks such as lemon, black tip, reef, hammerhead, and bull sharks.
Mysterious and legends always have been around the Belize Blue Hole.

Read also: Scuba Dive the Great Belize Barrier Reef with this Vacation Package

This was the entrance to Xibalba?. It’s the kind of underwater geology that inspires speculation about aliens creating geometrically perfect anomalies, mermaids and monsters living in darkness.

I explored the bottom of the Blue Hole perimeter (3,140 feet circumference). To do this I dove down twice, reaching the depth of 375′ feet which took 4 to 5 hours of diving each day.
Video Music:
Start to 2:18 min. “Dawn From Four Sea Interludes” by Benjamin Britten
2:18 to 4:37 min. “300 Violin Orchestra” by Jorge Quintero
4:37 to End “Groove Armada” from Tomb Raider Soundtrack

Video and Blog courtesy of Ramon Llaneza

Visit our website Chabilmarvillas.com for more information on Belize and Chabil Mar, and don’t hesitate to send us an email, or call & chat with us via WhatsApp Free Worldwide: +501-633-7547, Local: (011-501) 523-3606, if you have questions or need help in planning a Belize vacation.

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