Home Destinations Mexico and Central America Belize Belize City Sights Belize Zoo

Belize Zoo Review

Read our Belize City sights reviews. Or post your own.

Belize Zoo

Address: Western Hwy., 30 mi (49 km) west of Belize City
Phone: 220/8004
www.belizezoo.org

Category: Zoos/Aquariums
Location: Belize City

Write a review

Fodor's Review:

Turn a sharp corner on the jungle trail, and suddenly you're face-to-face with a black jaguar, the largest cat in the Western Hemisphere. The big cat growls a deep rumbling threat. You jump back, thankful that a strong but inconspicuous fence separates you and the jaguar.

One of the smallest, but arguably one of the best, zoos in the world, the Belize Zoo packs a lot into 29 acres. Containing more than 125 native species, the zoo has self-guided tours through several Belizean ecosystems—rain forest, lagoons, and riverine forest. Along with the rare black jaguar and the spotted jaguar, you'll see the country's four other wild cats: the puma, margay, ocelot, and jaguarundi. Perhaps the zoo's most famous resident is April, a Baird's tapir that is more than a quarter century old. This relative of the horse and rhino is known to locals as the mountain cow, and is also Belize's national animal. At the zoo you can also see jabiru storks, a harpy eagle, scarlet macaws, crocodiles, and many snakes, including the fer-de-lance. New at the zoo are bird-watching tours, ranging from day and overnight trips to week-long birding safaris.

The zoo owes its existence to the dedication and drive of one gutsy woman, Sharon Matola. An American who came to Belize as part of a film crew, Matola stayed on to care for some of the semi-tame animals used in the production. She opened the zoo in 1983 and in 1991 it moved to its present location. She's also an active environmentalist. "The Zoo Lady" and her crusade against the Chalillo Dam is the subject of the 2008 book The Last Flight of the Scarlet Macaw: One Woman's Fight To Save the World's Most Beautiful Bird by Outside magazine writer Bruce Barcott.

Besides touring the zoo, you can also hike or canoe through the nearby 84-acre Tropical Education Center. The center is involved in a green iguana breeding project. Dormitory accommodations, with outdoor toilets, are available at the center for BZ$60 per person; spiffier cabins go for BZ$132—BZ$143 double, including breakfast, dinner, and taxes. Cameron Diaz and the late Steve Erwin have stayed here. Overnighters can take a nocturnal zoo tour for BZ$30. For Tropical Education Center accommodations, call in advance, and be aware that the lodging area is a long hike from the zoo.

Cost: BZ$16 adults, BZ$8 children
Open: Daily 8-5

Find more sights in Belize City »