Actun Tunichil Muknal

This is the acclaimed “Cave of the Crystal Maiden,” featured in National Geographic Magazine and quickly becoming Belize’s most popular underground experience. This cave is for fit and active people who do not mind getting wet and muddy—and who are able to tread lightly! After the initial 45-minute hike to the entrance (with three river fords) and a swim into the cave’s innards, you will be asked to remove your shoes upon climbing up the limestone into the main cathedral-like chambers. The rooms are littered with delicate Maya pottery and the crystallized remains of 14 humans. There are no pathways, fences, glass, or other partitions separating the visitor from the artifacts. Nor are there any installed lights. The only infrastructure is a rickety ladder leading up to the chamber of the Crystal Maiden herself, a full female skeleton that sparkles with calcite under your headlamp’s glare, more-so during the drier months.

Please be careful—the fact that tourists are allowed to walk here at all is as astonishing as the sights themselves (at the time of this writing, somebody had already trod on and broken one of the skulls). Only two tour companies are licensed to take guests here: Pacz Tours and Mayawalk, both based in downtown San Ignacio.