NancyKrause

We will be in Belize at the end of May and would like to go to one of the ruins while we are there. There seem to be three or four different choices. We are staying on Ambergris Caye so we would take an excursion from there. Which ruins are the best choice?

hopefulist

I think if I was staying on Ambergris Caye I would choose to take a day trip up the New River to visit Lamanai; I haven't been but you could find more information by searching on the www.belizeforum.com site.

That said, we loved the ruins in the San Ignacio area, especially Xunantunich, and I highly recommend a visit to Tikal which is across the border in Guatemala, about 2 hours from San Ignacio. If not this trip, maybe next time? Belize has wonderful inland places to explore and I think only about 15-20% of it's visitors stay anywhere but Ambergris Caye.

Have a wonderful trip, whatever you decide!

JeanH

From Ambergris Caye, I would definitely recommend Lamanai, specifically with Tanisha Tours. Daniel Nunez is a wonderful guide, I was amazed at the wildlife he could spot. It's a long day, we were picked up at the dock at 7am and didn't return until 6pm. Two different boat rides and a ride through the countryside in between. Light breakfast, lunch and Belikin on the way home included. Lots of wildlife, in addition to the very beautiful ruins. Lamanai is in the middle of the jungle, the scenery is awesome.

Pumpy

Xunantunich would make for a very long day from Ambergris Caye. However, we thoroughly enjoyed our time there. Not trying to throw a wrench in you plans, but have you given thought to spending at least a cpl nts in or around San Ignacio? We originally planned to spend our whole time on AC but Katie Valk from this site (thank you Katie) recommended we divide our time. As it turns out, we probaly enjoyed our time at Chaa Creek/San Ignacio area the most. Enjoy!

CaymanSue

This summer we went to Lamanai with Lamanai Eco-Adventures (e-mail [email protected]). Errol Cadle was our guide, and we had a terrific time! We went on Sunday and had the place virtually to ourselves (no cruise ship folks). I also enjoyed Xunantunich, but that trip we were at DuPlooys and had a car.

NancyKrause

We arrive in Belize on a Wednesday and leave the following Monday so we only have four days there and that Saturday is my daughter's wedding. We want to snorkel one day, do the ruins one day, have one day to just relax and one day for the wedding. That is why we are not able to move inland on this trip. So most of you think Lamanai is the best option for a day trip from Ambergris Caye? Hopefully we can come back again another time to spend some time inland.

hopefulist

Yep - a full day without being mostly on the road. I've heard the river journey is wonderful. Congratulations to your daughter and future son-in-law and have a wonderful trip!

LooneyMan

If you don’t mind an all day trip, a bit more expensive, and a couple of short flights, you can not beat going to Tikal.

Once you go there, you probably would not need to visit any of the other Mayan sites. It is the largest of them all.

We just came back from a trip that was great. Our guide was the most knowledgeable that I have ever experienced.

Tropic Air arranges the trips from AC to Tikal.

Feel free to email me directly about our trip if you wish.