Belize uses a number of different designations for protected areas. National Parks is only one. There are also national monuments, wildlife sanctuaries, wildlife preserves, marine parks, community sanctuaries and forest reserves to name but a few. For these pages we chose to refer to these areas as 'national parks' because that is what most people are used to hearing when it comes to the protection of natural places. So be aware that while Belize has a number of National Parks, this tour will provide a small sampling of many different types of protected areas.

This National Parks Tour guides you first through some of the land protected areas, then through some of the marine protected areas. Each stop will provide a map of the area, a brief history of the area, and highlight some of the wildlife or sites that make the protected areas so special. Should you ever get disoriented as to where you are in the tour, you can click on the small map (as shown to the left) in the upper left corner of each page of this tour and return to this page. From here you can click on the map or the legend to start where you left off.