You Better Belize It!

Jaguar Temple, a Mayan structure at Lamanai Archaeological Reserve, Belize

After our visit to Key West, Celebrity Apex sailed to Belize. We had sort of visited Belize in 2020, but only to stop at Harvest Caye, Norwegian Cruise Line’s private island. This time we got to see the “real” Belize with a visit to Lamanai Archaeological Reserve.

From travelbelize.org: Lamanai (from the Yucatec Maya for “submerged crocodile”) was a city-state dating to 1500 BCE. Archaeological research has revealed that the site was continually occupied for 3,000 years until European contact. More than 700 Maya structures have been identified, but only a few have been excavated and studied, including a ball court, stelae, and principal structures like the Mask Temple, adorned by two impressive carved limestone masks over 13 ft. (3.9 m) in height.

The vast majority of the site remained unexcavated until the mid-1970s. Archaeological work has concentrated on the investigation and restoration of the larger structures, most notably the Mask Temple, Jaguar Temple, and High Temple. The summit of this latter structure affords a view across the surrounding jungle to a nearby lagoon, part of New River.

Lamanai Archaeological Reserve, Belize
High Temple, a Mayan structure at Lamanai Archaeological Reserve, Belize
Restoration work in process at High Temple, a Mayan structure at Lamanai Archaeological Reserve, Belize
Mask Temple, a Mayan structure at Lamanai Archaeological Reserve, Belize
Mask Temple, a Mayan structure at Lamanai Archaeological Reserve, Belize
Jairo, one of our guides at Lamanai Archaeological Reserve, Belize

We were not able to climb the High Temple, as it was closed for restoration work. Instead, we were able to climb the Mask Temple. It doesn’t have the view of the High Temple, but it was interesting and fun to climb.

Yes, I climbed it! Mask Temple, a Mayan structure at Lamanai Archaeological Reserve, Belize

Getting to Lamanai involved a tender ride from the ship (there is no cruise ship dock in Belize), an hour plus bus ride to a boat, then a boat ride to the reserve. Once there, a lot of walking, then back to the boat and do it in reverse back the ship. Fortunately, between the return boat ride and the bus ride, we got lunch!

Colorful canopies shade the walkway along the waterfront in Belize City, Belize
Colorful canopies shade the walkway along the waterfront in Belize City, Belize
Colorful waterfront in Belize City, Belize
Colorful waterfront in Belize City, Belize
Colorful buildings along the waterfront in Belize City, Belize

The ruins were very interesting, and our guides did a good job explaining the various pyramids and their uses. The Mayan culture has largely disappeared, although their descendants, including our guides, help keep the heritage alive.

Celebrity Apex anchored off the coast of Belize

2 thoughts on “You Better Belize It!”

  1. What an interesting stop. I could spend a few days with this area. Interesting how they were able to build such structures and entirely by hand. Plus they last for hundreds of years. Again, the colors used by the people are so attractive to me. Oh my gosh, that ship is huge!!

    1. We only saw a fraction of what was at that site, but it was the more accessible structures. Yes, it would have been interesting to spend some more time there, especially with someone as knowledgeable as our guides. The park has done a nice job coordinating and accommodating cruise ship tours.

      It was a pretty large ship! Not by any means the largest we’ve done, but they are all pretty big. My next post will be about the ship itself, and I’ll post a link to a larger gallery with even more photos. 😉

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