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Horseback Ride to the Forgotten Jungle City: Explore Belize's Maya Mountains and Minanha Ruins
5.0
22 Ratings
San Ignacio
Prepare yourself for an equestrian journey in Belize. Traverse the core of the Maya Mountains to arrive at Minanha, the ‘Overlooked Wilderness Metropolis.’ You’ll be able to investigate the remnants of this deserted Maya metropolis, inspect a ritual cave, and gain access to hidden rooms. Your meal is incorporated.
Duration:
8 hours
Cancellation:
1 day
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Highlights
- XWPX+X8 Macaw Bank - Come adventure with us on an authentic journey to the Forgotten City and visit Maya ruin sites in their raw-form while on horseback! Guests will be picked-up in San Ignacio. Then travel to the Mystic, Maya Mountains where they will experience spectacular views of the Cayo Countryside, rural jungle, exotic flora and fauna while adventuring through the jungle on horseback to what was once one of the most populated and powerful Maya cities 1000 years ago. While venturing through the jungle to the Forgotten City on our family’s personal, and well-trained horses, guests will stop to explore Cave Isabella, the gateway to Xibala (the Mayan Underworld), which is full of ceremonial, Maya riches and artifacts. Afterwards our guests will venture further into the jungle to the main ruin site, Bitkal, where our guests will have the opportunity to be one of the few people in the entire world in1000 years to hike an unexcavated pyramid and throne of the some of the most influential Maya rulers. This is an authentic, once-in-a-lifetime adventure you will not forget! Our family is excited to show you our hidden gem of Belize!
![](https://media-cdn.tripadvisor.com/media/attractions-splice-spp-720x480/06/8d/51/2e.jpg)
What's Included
- Professional guide
- Bottled water
- Lunch
- Transport by private vehicle
What's Not Included
- Gratuities
- Hotel pickup and drop-off
Additional Information
- Dress code: Comfortable riding clothing (long pants and a sleeved shirt) are recommended
- Vegetarian option is available; please advise at time of booking if required
- Please specify if you have any dietary restrictions at time of booking
Location
Cayo Welcome Center & Tourist Information Center
Complimentary transportation to and from your hotel within San Ignacio can be provided. For guests residing in a hotel outside San Ignacio or an Air Bnb, please meet your tour guide at the Cayo Welcome Center in Downtown San Ignacio.
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Customer Ratings
5.0
(22 Ratings)
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Dawnas9041dc
Jun 18, 2024
Jungle tour/waterfall - Amazing! Highly recommend. As a fellow horse-person I completely appreciate the care/pride/and training that Robert put into his horses-especially hard during the dry season but the extra effort and associated cost showed. We were unable to complete the original ride due to fires in the area but the boys were very flexible and took us to the waterfall with a delicious lunch prepared for us as well.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
421josephineg
May 20, 2024
Horseback riding through the jungle on horseback. - I highly recommend this adventure!! So much fun and Roberto and David were great on the trails. What a adventure, was a hot day but worth the ride and adventure.
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Emily1157
Apr 23, 2024
HIGHLY RECOMMEND!! Returned forgotten GoPro - Absolutely incredible experience! We accidentally left our GoPro on site and didn't realize until we were back at our AirBnB. Roberto arranged for someone to bring it to us and it was returned promptly! After about an hour drive from the San Ignacio Welcome Center, we arrived at Roberto's family farm. The horses were so well looked after for and you could tell they were really loved. We had one girl who was decent rider but myself and my other friend both hadn't been on horses in almost 2 decades. Be prepared, the trek on the horses can be a little tough at times. There will definitely be trotting but the horses know what they are doing and I never truly felt unsafe. It is a long day, so I wouldn't recommend if you are looking for something relaxing. Roberto was very knowledgable on the local wildlife, flora, and history of the land. We stopped for lunch in front of the Isabella Cave, and it was delicious. We were able to climb down into the cave and even into some hidden caverns. Afterwards, we were lucky enough to take a ride on one of his pontoons down the river to some waterfalls. Highly recommend that tour if you are looking for a more laid back, party vibe. Overall an unbelievable experience and I cannot recommend this enough!!! Thanks to Roberto and his team!
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Erica_b
Apr 1, 2024
Take the tour to the forgotten jungle, you don’t know what you’re standing on! - What a fun experience! So cool to travel into the jungle on horseback and learn about the forgotten city. Roberto was an amazing guide and his brothers who picked us up were so nice. Their four very cute and sweet dogs joined us on the trip which was an extra bonus as who doesn’t love dogs? We stopped for a homemade lunch at this amazing cave that he then led us into to show us ceremonial areas and burial sites. I even got to hold an 800+ year old Mayan bowl that he found unexpectedly during another tour. He’s knowledgeable of the area as it’s where he grew up and was so so nice. It does get hot so be sure to wear SPF! They provide plenty of water and again, the lunch was so good and still hot to enjoy while at the cave. We will recommend this tour to anyone we know coming to San Ignacio, Belize. Just remember, if you haven’t ridden a horse in a while… your legs will hurt a bit!
Review provided by Viator
Hansing
Mar 31, 2024
Absolutely incredible experience - Robert and team are excellent across the board. Pickup and transport details were communicated well. The drive is a rough road which can't be helped by the tour/team. This was well communicated also. The team is super friendly and knowledgeable so the drive was very pleasant despite the road condition.
Robert took us out on Azteca and Firefly. The trail is beautiful... a large chunk of it is under jungle canopy but we absolutely needed long pants and long sleeves to protect from the sun. (I still tanned through my waffle knit shirt).
It's about 3 miles out and 6 miles RT. The turnaround spot is a magnificent cave. Robert is passionate and knowledgeable about Mayan history and culture. His reverence for the past is contagious and the experience made an indelable impact on both of us.
Lunch was delicious! Empanadas!
We then road back 3 miles... we are healthy and physically fit but we were physically exhausted after the ride.
Robert took us down to the river to cool off. We saw a crocodile and played in a waterfall.
The whole day feel unreal in the best imaginable way.
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Jesse_o
Dec 15, 2023
Best experience ever! - Truly one of the best guided experiences we’ve ever had! Horseback riding through the jungle is surreal and exciting. Robert did an incredible job creating the trails as least invasive to the natural habitat as possible. It feels as if you are an explorer in the jungle. We learned so much about the Mayan culture from Robert during our journey, and we highly recommend for everyone to do this tour!
Review provided by Viator
Tinalocklear
Dec 9, 2023
Awesome Jungle Ride - We had a really awesome time riding well cared for horses in the jungle today. Robert was a fantastic and knowledgeable guide. His property was gorgeous. We ate a delicious lunch right outside an enormous dry cave before we went in to explore. I definitely recommend this activity and tour company!
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Cruiser533450
Nov 6, 2023
Memorable experience, in the rain - Robert communicates very well and quickly with answers to questions, confirming excursions, and places where we were meeting up. This was one of three excursions my husband and I booked through "Jungle Splash Tours".
It was raining pretty good the morning of our scheduled horseback ride and Robert sent me a message to confirm and make sure we still wanted to do a full day ride because the forecast was not going to lighten up. My husband and I figured that we were there, and not going to be dry no matter what we chose to do that day, so we went ahead and did the ride. Due to the rain, we were not able to do the typical excursion, so we did not see the cave but we did go up to Minanha ("the forgotten city") on the horses with four dogs in tow, and it gave us an very wet experience of trekking through the jungle up and down some muddy, slippery, rocky slopes with Robert in the front forging the way using his machete when needed to clear out everything on the path. We all returned with boots soaked and full of water.
While at Minanha (which is a massive complex now all overgrown by vegetation), he showed us photos and a survey drawing that was done by the archeologists who partially excavated the area in the 1990's, showed us where to look for certain areas on the survey, a copal tree, and other things of interest.
We had all sorts of questions and Robert answered all of them as well as taught us a lot about the culture and the area.
We also didn't do the typical picnic lunch because of the rain, so Robert arranged that lunch be prepared for us and ready at our place when we returned (we were staying close to Vaca Lake).
It had been many years since I had been horseback riding and the same with my husband. The horses are well behaved but also willing (in other words, they aren't worn out horses who want to just stay in the pasture) and so the experience was really good and I was able to just let the horse figure out where it needed to go for stepping on the trail (for the most part anyway, aside from them wanting to eat along the way (the typical) and the areas where it was tight near some trees and the horse needed to adjust so my leg wasn't being rammed in to a tree).
Review provided by Tripadvisor
911tamid
Sep 14, 2023
An emotional and amazing experience. 10 outa 10 - Part 3
I do not know where to even begin explaining my experiences today. I did things I never thought I would do. Conquered fears I never thought I could. Seen things I never thought I would. Honestly this whole week has been like this but today was truly special. We rode horses through the Mayan jungles of Belize, saw ancient artifacts, bones and ruins, visited a sacred cave and climbed through burial chambers.. I’m very claustrophobic but I did it!!, listened to a powerful thunder storm while eating a homemade Belizean lunch.. I could go on and on.. this has been such a beautiful and emotional experience. One that I will NEVER forget! ❤️🥹❤️
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569mistyd
Sep 14, 2023
Absolutely amazing!! - Omg where do I even start.. Today was indescribably amazing. We rode horses into the jungle to a cave that is privately owned. As soon as we got there a thunderstorm hit and down poured. I love thunderstorms. We ate our yummy lunch there at the mouth of the cave in the storm. We went in to explore the cave. It felt like we had just discovered it. We found so many Mayan artifacts and he convinced us to climb, on hands and knees through a very small, long burial chamber. It really made us face our fears of small spaces. Robert, our, guide was so great. I could never describe this experience in a post. Life changing!! My horse Azteca was the best❤️
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