There’s a giddy, childlike feeling one gets while climbing 1,000-year-old stone structures in the middle of the God-blessed jungle—a fairytale, Tolkienesque mood of mystery as you scramble over winding, crooked staircases and tunnels while strange creatures hoot and holler from the surrounding forest canopy. Belize offers dozens of such sites to explore, some fully excavated and restored, others still hidden under a carpet of dense vegetation.

Archaeologists estimate that at one time, between one and two million Maya lived in the area that is now called Belize—a fantastically huge number when compared to the relatively tiny population of today. More domestic, ceremonial, and agricultural sites are discovered each year, and it’s quite common for Belizean families to have ruins in their backyards without official archaeological knowledge. These are often small oratorio-style buildings or caves with artifacts that date back hundreds of years. As money becomes available, whether from the government or outside universities, more discoveries are made and it becomes apparent that Belize is a veritable treasure chest of Maya culture.

You’ll find that nearly every destination in Belize offers at least one day trip to a Maya archaeological site, and that may be enough for you. If you’re on San Pedro or Caye Caulker, this means making a boat-bus commute to and from a site like Altun Ha or Lamanai—by nightfall, you’ll be back in your beach chair. If you’d rather get closer and wake up to a Maya dawn, consider a stay in Chan Chich, Lamanai, or Pook’s Hill, all accommodations built among the ruins themselves. You’ll have easy access to archaeological sites from any other lodge on the mainland, many specializing in trips to the ruins closest to them.

The most spectacular and exciting sites include Caracol, Xunantunich, and Lamanai, where impressive excavations have been done in recent years, making these ceremonial centers more accessible to tourists. Most sites now boast visitors centers that act as both mini-museums and interpretive centers. Although many sites are quite accessible (especially Altun Ha, where the parking lot is on even ground with the main plaza), many more require at least some level of physical activity to reach, and can be explored by foot, horseback, canoe, or mountain bike.