Finally, we arrived at one of our Belize Highlights – the Maya ruins in Lamanai! From Caye Caulker, we headed to Orange Walk Town. After a few days of island feeling, reggae music, coconuts, and hammocks, it was time for a little adventure. Before our Belize trip, we had written down on a piece of paper everything we would like to do in this country. In addition to things like “seeing a turtle” or “lying in a hammock,” one of the things we wanted to do in Belize was visit a Maya ruin. No sooner said than done! In the following article, we’ll take you on our tour into the jungle of Belize.

What else you should know:

• Best time to travel to Belize
• Backpacking in Belize
• Belize costs and tips
• The top Belize attractions

• Currency in Belize
• Our tips for Placencia
• The dream islands Silk Cayes
• Caye Caulker Highlights & Tips

• What else you should know:
• From Caye Caulker to Orange Walk Town
• Our accommodation in Orange Walk Town
• The Lamanai tour begins
• Arrival at the ruins
• The temples of the Lamanai ruins
• The Mayan culture
• Howler monkeys
• Return trip and conclusion

From Caye Caulker to Orange Walk Town

We took the ferry from Caye Caulker to Belize City. The boat departed promptly at 12:00 p.m. We had already bought our tickets in Belize, so we didn’t have to worry about anything. In our Caye Caulker review, we already mentioned that tickets on the island are cheaper than on the mainland. This report also provides departure times to Caye Caulker and back. The trip back to Belize City took about 1 hour. Since Belize City isn’t considered particularly safe, we shared a taxi with another couple and went to the bus station (cost: €5).

It’s actually easy to find your way around the bus station; the staff are very helpful and will guide you to your “chicken bus.” All you have to do is say “Orange Walk Town” and they’ll show you the right bus. We were lucky that our bus was already ready to go. The ticket for the 88 kilometers only cost us 5 Belize dollars (around €2).

Incredible, right? Bus travel is really cheap in Belize anyway, making it a great option. You should allow plenty of time for some routes, especially if you have to change trains along the way. The route from Belize to Orange Walk Town is easy, however. Buses from Belize City to Orange Walk Town (and on to Corozal and Santa Elena) run almost hourly (departure times here).

Our accommodation in Orange Walk Town

After arriving in Orange Walk Town, we navigated the streets using Google Maps. We had saved the address of our accommodation in advance, so it wasn’t that difficult to find. The entrance to Ricky’s hostel is easy to miss, as it’s just a gray gate, which you wouldn’t necessarily recognize as an entrance.

A neighbor helped us and took us to Ricky’s. This accommodation is located on a street and somewhat hidden away. Here, Ricky offers a handful of rooms and an apartment. There are two hammocks in the garden where you can relax.

The kitchen outside the apartment isn’t particularly clean or well-equipped. Things look better inside the apartment. We were allowed to cook there on our second evening, too, since there were no guests in the apartment. Ricky is super nice and helpful. The individual rooms are furnished with a bed and a small table and chair.

A fan is also provided. Everything is very basic, but sufficient for backpackers. We were here for the adventure, not for super-comfortable accommodations. That doesn’t bother us. We paid the equivalent of €16 per night with Ricky, so you can’t really complain.

The Lamanai Tour Begins

In the evening, we asked Ricky if he could organize a trip to the Lamanai ruins for us. He pulled out his cell phone, made a call, and told us: “We’ll leave tomorrow morning at 8:30 a.m. I’ll take you to the boat!” The trip was supposed to cost €36 per person (provider: Lamanai Native Tours), which, in retrospect, was absolutely fine.

The next morning, Ricky and two other German girls took us to the boat dock, about 20 minutes from our accommodation. Boat dock? Yes! The ruins are located on the banks of the New River in a 48-kilometer-long inland lagoon. There’s also a road that leads there, which you can drive along. However, the boat ride is definitely much more exciting.

In our small “Amazon boat” and a few other guests, we sailed up the river, past waterfowl, crocodiles, iguanas, pelicans, and many other animals that live there. The guides repeatedly showed us fascinating flora and fauna. This fast-paced ride alone was incredibly fun and worth every penny. We felt like we were on an expedition in the jungle.

Arrival at the Ruins

After about 1.5 hours, we reached the jetty. We carefully disembarked from the boat and walked toward the entrance. Our tour guide was already waiting for us there. You should spray yourself with mosquito repellent by now, because the mosquitoes are even more aggressive here in the jungle.

On the grounds are a small museum, a few small shops, restrooms, and a picnic area for eating. Everything seemed very well-maintained and clean. The entrance fee on site was only a few Belize dollars. Everything was included in the price of our tour, including the entrance fee to the park.

The Lamanai ruins are located on the river in the middle of the lush tropical rainforest. Here, you’ll get a fantastic first impression of Mayan culture and the forest’s biodiversity. We hiked through the forest, and our guide stopped frequently to point out trees and plants. The Lamanai Archaeological Reserve includes a few temples and beautiful remains of this long-abandoned city. We learned that around 20,000 people once lived here in Lamanai – around 3,000 years ago. Isn’t that crazy?

With a generous helping of goosebumps, we entered an area that is still full of magic, mysticism, and history. With respect and awe, we walked step by step through the forest. In front of us were enormous trees that somehow had that “Tomb Raider” charm. Everything seemed so natural, yet deserted. Nature had long since reclaimed everything, so it was no surprise that many of the ruins’ stones were covered in moss. But that’s precisely what makes this complex so special.

The Temples of the Lamanai Ruins

During our tour, we visited three temples: the Mask Temple, the Jaguar Temple, and the High Temple. You can climb the High Temple via a wooden staircase on the side and enjoy the view over the “jungle.” While all the visitors went up, we stayed down there out of respect and enjoyed the view from there.

The High Temple is the tallest building in the complex. The Mask Temple was particularly impressive. It was decorated with a mask over 4 meters tall. It depicts a former Mayan king. These masks are made of stone. We couldn’t get enough of the sight. It’s just totally surreal!

The Jaguar Temple is a 9-tiered temple that reaches a height of around 22 meters. There is a staircase on the north side. In addition to the temples, you can also see the Ball Court. This court was once built for ball games. To this day, it is the smallest court ever found.

Ball games used to be a popular pastime in Central America. The Maya also saw a ritual function in them. Games were played here with a hard rubber ball. It’s kind of crazy that people were playing here as early as 4000 BC to 3000 BC. Such games took place in the 1st century BC.

The Culture of the Maya

Our guide told us many interesting things about the Mayan culture. The people were the most highly developed culture on the American continent. And then they suddenly disappeared, as if swallowed by the earth. Numerous magnificent buildings, temple complexes, and mysterious inscriptions remain to this day.

While the Maya built large settlements with room for tens of thousands of people between 400 and 900 AD, Paris and London were still small villages. They developed complex irrigation systems to ensure the cultivation of grain and vegetables. The settlement areas were densely populated, so there had to be sufficient food available.

They were also masters of mathematics. This is at least supported by the Mayan calendar “Haab,” which divided a year into 365 days. Not into 12 months like ours, but into 18 months with 20 days plus 5 remaining days. They built observatories, observed the stars, developed a unique script, and were passionate art lovers. To date, approximately 800 characters of the script have been discovered, but not all of them have yet been deciphered.

And then, around 900, a large part of this population suddenly disappeared, and the large Mayan cities were abandoned. The remaining Maya stopped building large temples and changed their architecture. Opinions differ here, however; there are too many legends. It is said that the Maya no longer wanted to serve rulers and wanted to devote themselves to their own prosperity. As the script became increasingly deciphered, it was discovered that the Maya waged war among themselves, and human sacrifice was commonplace.

Once the enemy was defeated, the heads were collected as trophies. Crazy, right? Tikal and Calakmul are considered the centers of the two power blocs of approximately 50 city-states. Theories also state that the people perished not only from wars, but also from their size. Reckless exploitation of nature may have destroyed their livelihoods. Or was it drought? It is believed that a severe dry period occurred in Mayan territory. But to this day, no one knows exactly what happened to this people.

But the descendants of this advanced civilization lived until the 16th century. Then the Spanish came and claimed the land for themselves in bloody wars. They were indifferent to unique relics from the Mayan period; everything was destroyed. The last great Mayan city, Tayasal, was conquered in 1697. Thus ended the history of this unique Mayan world. Today, around 6 million descendants of the Maya live in Central America.

Howler Monkeys

After we finished our truly amazing tour of the complex, we looked around the museum. Suddenly, we heard a strange, recurring noise. Something between a dying dinosaur and an angry alien—no kidding! At first, we thought the sound was coming from the museum speakers—as a special effect.

At some point, we went outside and realized that it wasn’t sound effects, but the real, genuine screaming of the howler monkeys! We followed the sounds and found a few of these monkeys high in the trees. You can’t imagine how loud their screaming is! Still a little shaky (from fear or joy?) and with weak knees, we stood there for twenty minutes listening to the unique concert. With that sound, you’d think there were giant, scary, and powerful monkeys sitting up there.

They aren’t particularly big, though, and they use their screams to communicate with other monkeys from miles away. This is how males recognize each other if they belong to the same pack. They use their screams to drive strangers out of their territory. One reason for the screaming could also be that they feel threatened. Listening to them was one of the most impressive moments of our Belize tour. Pure goosebumps!

Return Trip and Conclusion

At the end, our group gathered at the picnic area. There, we all had rice, chicken, vegetables, drinks, and dessert. While everyone was still eating, I strolled over to one of the shops. The friendly owner explained the different Mayan calendars to me and told me other amazing things about the culture. I realized more and more how special this people was and how proud I could be to have visited this place. Slowly, unfortunately, this trip was coming to an end. We boarded the speedboat again and drove back toward Orange Walk Town. The return trip only took about 50 minutes, as we didn’t stop and drove straight through. From the dock, we drove back to Ricky. For us, this Lamanai tour is one of the absolute highlights of our trip through Belize. The Lamanai complex is, of course, very touristy, but we still found it quiet and serene. The ruins are beautiful, as is the surrounding area, the river, and the rainforest.

We found the value for money (€36 per person) to be really excellent. This tour could actually be a bit more expensive, after all, we got a 5 or 6-hour program with lunch, ruins, rainforest, Howler Monkeys (coincidentally), a speedboat, and wonderful information. If you’re near Orange Walk Town, we highly recommend this tour. The day was absolutely unique!