10 Free Things To Do In San Ignacio Belize

San Ignacio Town is jam-packed with activities to do in the area. I recommend making it your home base to explore the area a few days.

1. Swim at Bullet Tree Falls #

Bullet Tree Falls, a small village, is only a 10-minute drive away from San Ignacio Town and you can swim all along the riverside at no cost. The river is called the Mopan River. Fortunately this isn't on trip advisor yet.

2. Visit San Ignacio Market #

San Ignacio Town happens to have one of the most vibrant and diverse markets in the entire country of Belize. On weekends, the market is busier than most days. It's filled with locals visiting from the surrounding villages restocking on supplies, enjoying street food, and swimming in the river.

3. Chill by the Macal River #

This Macal River is located behind the San Ignacio Market. On weekends, locals from surrounding villages visit the market and then chill by the river side with their families.

4. Belize Botanic Gardens #

This botanic garden is located 25 minutes away from San Ignacio town and offers a rich array of flora and fauna through a well-maintained trail.

Bird watchers have the possibility of spotting the trogon, motmot, jacamar and several others.

5. Mountain Pine Ridge Reserve #

Mountain Pine Ridge Reserve is filled with the most beautiful, untouched areas in Belize. You can visit a slew of attraction at this site including: Big Rock Waterfalls, Rio on Pools, Rio Frio Cave, Thousand Foot Falls. Caracol Archeological Reserve is also found in the region.

If you only want to visit one attraction in the area, I recommend going to Big Rock Falls. It's the closest attraction from San Ignacio Town. There are no public buses to the reserve as yet.

6. Xunantunich Mayan Ruin #

Xunantunich is one of the many ancient ruins in Belize. This one is special though and worth exploring from my point of view. It's a much larger and impressive complex compared to Cahal Pech Mayan Ruins, another ancient ruin in San Ignacio.

7. AJAW Chocolate Tour #

I'm not a big fan of tours honestly but being a huge fan of chocolate makes this experience a no-brainer. The short chocolate tour shows you how the Mayas created their traditional chocolate from their precious superfood, the cacao.

8. Cahal Pech Mayan Ruin #

Cahal Pech can be seen as Xunantunich's little brother, smaller and wilder in nature. After visiting this ancient ruin couple of times, I began to appreciate its intricacies. The site is like an ancient jungle maze that's smack in the middle of town. The site's neighbors are literally local homes with people going about their daily business.

9. ATM Cave Tour #

For many visitors, the ATM cave tour is the #1 reason they come to Belize. The cave experience has gained so much popularity that it's bordering a natural wonder of the world I think. At first, I thought this cave tour was overhyped but after finally doing it, I personally think it's bloody unreal that a tour of this nature exits. Let me explain why.

10. Green Iguana Tour #

The Green Iguana Conservation Project is rated as the #1 tour in San Ignacio. But is it worth it? If you love iguanas, I think it is. There is the question of ethics in having animals caged up but the iguanas are released after they are mature enough to be reintroduced into the wild.