This is the second-largest archeological site in Belize and well worth the visit. 1. Avoid the afternoon heat and the lines that can form at the river ferry by arriving when the site opens for the day. Whether morning or afternoon, bring sunscreen and water. Both will be helpful as you summit the Castillo. 2. A tour of the site, inclusive of ferry and drive to the site, will take ~2/3 hours. 3. Park entry is $5 USD per person. 4. Tours Guides can be hired once you cross the river (on the hand-cranked ferry). All the guides generally have similar talking points and are doled out/assigned as you arrive (without your input). Cost of the guide is $40 USD. 5. While it's nice to have a trained professional to guide you, Wikipedia has a great summary of the site and an overview of Mayan history. Also, there is a great museum just beyond the park's entrance with most of the information shared by our guide .. would highly recommend visiting even if you opt for a tour guide. 6. Families of Howler Monkeys can regularly be seen at the archeological site (in the trees above the Ball Court) or in the trees on the road leading into the park. 7. The hand-cranked ferry has a professional operator. However, he'll let your child try their hand at the crank if you ask.

We rented a car from Belize City to San Ignacio so we could explore the ruins and waterfalls. At first we went to Cahal Pech. I don’t typically like using your guides bc I think of large slow groups that are hard to hear unless you’re at the very front. We walked around and climbed the ruins but you don’t really learn about the history because there aren’t any information posts. The next day we drove to Xunantunich. At the ferry, a tour guide named Eddie Panti asked if we wanted a tour. We quickly had to decide since we had already begun loading into the hand-cranked ferry. We said yes and he got into our car and rode with us to the top. Eddie is a local to the area and had an immense amount of knowledge about the trees, animals and most importantly the history of the Mayan Ruins. We learned so much that we would’ve otherwise never known. We booked him for tours to go zip lining, cave tubing, and Caracol the next days. He took us to unique spots at each, told us about the archeologists he’s worked with from around the world to excavate the ruins and so much more! I guarantee that our experience would not have been the same if it wasn’t for Eddie and 100% recommend to book a tour guide at the ferry in Xunantunich when exploring the ruins. His prices were also less than the tours we had seen posted online too, but that could’ve been because we used our own car.

I mainly wanted to write this review in order to give a shout out to Dino, one of the independent tour guides at the ferry entrance. My group of 6 looked at different tour companies, and found them all to be quite expensive per person. We were staying in nearby San Ignacio, and instead booked 2 taxis to drive us (3 in each taxi) and they waited for us in the parking lot while we were touring. Taking a taxi allowed us to be the first ones there at 8am, and we had the whole place to ourselves before other tourists started to arrive. We met Dino at the ferry entrance, and gladly paid his tour guide fee because he definitely enhanced our understanding of Mayan culture. He's a great value for a party of 6, and took his time with us in climbing up the many structures and answering all of our questions. El Castillo is the tallest structure, and worth the climb up. Xunantunich is an impressive structure to see and worth the effort to get there. Arrange your own transport, get a guide at the ferry, and be sure to bring water, sunscreen and bug spray! You will be treated to an archaeological delight!