10 Best Sights in The Deep South, Belize

Lubaantun, which lies beyond the village of San Pedro Columbia, is southern Belize's premier Maya site and sight. The Late Classic complex was rediscovered in 1924 by German archaeologist Thomas Gann, who gave it a name meaning "place of fallen stones." Lubaantun must have been an awe-inspiring sight: on top of a conical hill, with views to the sea in one direction and the Maya Mountains in the other, its stepped layers of white-plaster stone would have towered above the jungle like a wedding cake. Lubaantun's structures are notable for their rounded corners and precision cutting, with no mortar needed to fit the stones together. No one knows exactly what function the structures served, but the wealth of miniature masks and whistles found suggests it was a center of ceramic production. (The altars so common to other Maya sites are nowhere to be found here.) The trio of ball courts and the central plaza with tiered seating for 10,000 spectators seems like a Maya Madison Square Garden, and you'll occasionally see kids kicking around a soccer ball here. There's a small visitor center at the site. Although this is southern Belize's largest Maya site, visitors are few during the week, and you might find you have the whole place to yourself. Most tour operators in Punta Gorda can arrange trips to Lubaantun, or you can visit by rental car, an easy trip down the San Antonio Road.

Nim Li Punit, a Late Classic site discovered in 1976, has 26 unearthed stelae, including one, Stela 14, that is 30 feet tall—the largest ever found in Belize and the second largest found anywhere in the Maya world. It's a fact that the original names of most Maya complexes in Mesoamerica are lost to to the ages. In a right and rite of first modern encounter, the archaeologists rediscovering each site conferred their own descriptive Modern Mayan, Spanish, or English names on them, and here is another example: Nim Li Punit, which means "Big Hat" in the Kek'chi Mayan language, is named for the elaborate headgear of a ruler pictured on Stela 14. Shady trees cool you off as you walk around the fairly small site (you can see it all in an hour or so). Stop by the informative visitor center on the premises—it's one of Belize's best such facilities—to learn more about the site. Nim Li Punit is near the Kek'chi village of Indian Creek, and children (and some adults) from the village usually come over and offer jewelry and crafts for sale. It is easily accessible via a short dirt road off the Southern Highway.

Hot springs, freshwater lagoons, caves, and hiking trails dot the 6,000-acre Agua Caliente Wildlife Sanctuary. The sanctuary is known for its water birds, including ibises, herons, egrets, woodstorks, and kingfishers. A half-mile boardwalk gives access to the visitor center. Navigating the trails can be tricky; use a local guide or one affiliated with an area tour operator. During the dry season you can hike under the forest canopy and through wetlands to the warm springs at the base of the Agua Caliente hills. During the rainy season, canoes are available for hire.

Although the Maya are by far the largest population in rural Toledo, the district also forms part of Belize's Garifuna homeland. Barranco, a small village of fewer than 150 people about an hour by road from Punta Gorda, is the largest Garifuna center in Toledo. This southernmost coastal village in Belize has electricity, a couple of shops, a bar, a police station, a health clinic, and a school. Old-timers lament that young people don't want to stay in Barranco; they leave for the bright lights of Punta Gorda, Belize City, or beyond. In fact, remittances sent back home from those who are working elsewhere contribute substantially to the village's economy. One local kid who made good was Andy Palacio, the famed punta rock musician. A guided village tour includes, in addition to a visit to Palacio's gravesite, stops at the Dabuyaba (Garifuna temple), the House of Culture, and a cassava factory. Lunch in a local home is also possible. TIDE Tours, PG Tours, and other tour operators offer trips to Barranco, or you can drive yourself.

See exotic spices such as cardamom, vanilla, nutmeg, clove, cinnamon, and sandalwood growing at this spice farm just off the Southern Highway at Golden Stream. Black pepper is grown in enough quantity (about 10,000 pounds of peppercorns per year) for commercial sales in Belize. The spice farm is part of a 500-acre tract now producing mostly citrus fruits. Visitors are given a guided tour of the farm on a cart with seats pulled by a tracked tractor; walking tours are also available. The last stop on the tour is the drying room, full of wonderful spice aromas. Tours generally start every hour on the hour from 8 to 4, but it's advisable to call ahead. The restaurant accommodates tour groups and other visitors.

Ever been freshwater snorkeling? Check out the Bladen River in the Bladen Nature Reserve. The river snakes through the reserve, allowing for excellent kayaking, canoeing, swimming, and, yes, some freshwater snorkeling. The 100,000-acre Bladen Reserve is comanaged by the Belize Forestry Department and the Ya'axche Conservation Trust, an environmental NGO based in Punta Gorda. Bladen is the center piece of the Maya Mountain Corridor, creating a crucial link in the last remaining large, intact block of forest in the region. Additional parts of this corridor are protected by the Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary, the Columbia River Forest Reserve, and the Chiquibul National Park and Forest Reserve, all bordering Bladen. Tours of the Bladen Reserve also are given by interns from a private reserve managed by the Belize Foundation for Research and Environmental Education (BFREE). Camping and simple bunkhouse accommodations are available for around BZ$80–BZ$120 per person per day, meals included. Additional charges may apply for transportation, canoe rental, laundry, and other services.

From cacao beans to final candy bars, you can see how chocolate is made at Cotton Tree Chocolates, a small chocolate factory on Front Street in Punta Gorda. It's associated with Cotton Tree Lodge. You'll get a short guided tour of the chocolate-making process and you can buy bars of delicious milk or dark chocolate. Cotton Tree Lodge also offers guests a program on sustainable cacao growing, producing, and harvesting.

This tiny national park (500 acres) has a big waterfall—the Rio Blanco, which splashes over rough limestone boulders into a deep pool; you can jump into it for a refreshing swim. The waterfall can be reached via a well-marked hiking trail. Upstream a short distance from the falls is a nice area for a picnic, shaded by trees and flowering bushes. The park is managed by residents of nearby Maya villages including Santa Elena, Santa Cruz, Golden Stream, and Pueblo Viejo. You can visit on your own, though Punta Gorda tour operators include Rio Blanco in their offerings.

You could find yourself in this Kek’chi Maya village of 400 people if you book one of the area homestays with the Toledo Ecotourism Association (T.E.A.). Residents here are accustomed to visitors and actively participate in their programs. St. Michael is the patron of the town; his statue stands guard over the altar in the parish church. The aroma of homemade tortillas wafts from homes as you walk down the street. The Rio Grande becomes a veritable beehive of community activity on laundry day.

One of the wildest and most remote areas of Belize is the Sarstoon-Temash National Park, between the Temash and Sarstoon Rivers in the far south of Toledo District on the border of Guatemala. Red mangroves grow along the river banks; animals and birds rarely seen in other parts of Belize, including white-faced capuchin monkeys, can be spotted here, along with jaguars (if you're lucky), ocelots, and tapirs, along with more than 200 species of birds. The only way to see this 42,000-acre area is with a guide by boat. Contact the Sarstoon-Temash Institute for Indigenous Management (SATIIM), which manages the park in conjunction with the Belize Forestry Department, for a guide, or check with the BTIA office on Front Street in Punta Gorda, home to the Toledo Tour Guide Association. SATIIM, among other things, is involved in efforts to oppose oil and gas exploration in the Sarstoon-Temash.

The park has been a flashpoint in Guatemala's long-standing claims to Belizean territory, most recently in spring 2019. Check with the institute for developments, although the dispute should not affect you as a visitor.