Driving guides, Maya sites, road trips and practical travel tips for Belize — written by the family behind Cayo Auto Rentals in San Ignacio.
Featured · Maya Sites
How to reach Xunantunich under your own steam: the hand-cranked ferry at San José Succotz, the climb to El Castillo, and what to plan for on the drive from San Ignacio.
A hilltop Maya palace, the biggest Saturday market in Belize and a town you can walk end to end. Here is how to spend a day in San Ignacio around Cahal Pech.
A practical guide to Barton Creek Cave in Cayo: the route out through Mennonite farmland, what you see from the canoe, and why the last few miles reward a higher vehicle.
Two of the easiest stops in Belize sit minutes apart on the George Price Highway. Here is how to plan a relaxed family day at the Belize Zoo and Guanacaste National Park.
How to handle Belize City water taxi parking when you have a rental vehicle, and how to plan a Caye Caulker or San Pedro stay without paying for days you are not driving.
What it actually takes to drive a rental vehicle from San Ignacio to Tikal: written consent from us, the Benque crossing, exit fees and the road on the Guatemalan side.
Crooked Tree Wildlife Sanctuary rewards birders who arrive at first light. Here is how the dry season works, what the causeway is like, and how to time the drive from Belize City.
Lamanai sits on the New River Lagoon in Orange Walk District, reachable by boat or by a long unpaved road to Indian Church. Here is how to choose, and what the drive is really like.
Altun Ha sits close enough to Belize City and the international airport to be a genuine half day. Here is the drive, the Sun God temple and where to cool off afterwards.
What to expect at the world's first jaguar preserve: the waterfall trails, the animals you will realistically spot, and the unpaved access road in from Maya Centre.
Hopkins is a long, slow Garifuna village strung along the Stann Creek coast. Here is the Southern Highway turn-off, typical road conditions and how to spend your days once you arrive.
The inland blue hole and St Herman's Cave sit side by side on the Hummingbird Highway, roughly midway between Belmopan and Dangriga. Here is how to fit both into one easy drive.
Caracol sits deep in the Chiquibul Forest, hours from the nearest village. Here is what makes Caana worth the drive, what the road is really like, and the vehicle you want under you.
Actun Tunichil Muknal near Teakettle is a swim-in, climb-up, socks-only cave with Maya ceramics and human remains still in place. Here is the honest version of the day, and the drive in.
Big Rock Falls, Rio On Pools and Rio Frio Cave make a full, satisfying day in the Mountain Pine Ridge — if you have the right vehicle and leave early enough.
The Hummingbird Highway links Belmopan to Dangriga through limestone hills, citrus groves and cave country. Here is what to stop for and how to pace the drive.
What the drive south to Placencia is really like, from the Hummingbird Highway through the Stann Creek valley to the peninsula road, and how a vehicle changes the trip.
Cayo Auto Rentals is a family-owned vehicle rental company at 89 Benque Viejo Road in San Ignacio. Everything here comes from driving these roads ourselves: how long the run to Caracol really takes, when the Succotz ferry stops for high water, which turn-offs need ground clearance, and where to stop for lunch on the way back. Pick-up and drop-off can be arranged anywhere in Belize, including the international airport.
