Belize Zoo by Night

Enjoy a behind the scene tour at night!

The Belize Zoo is only 30 minutes away from the Black Orchid by car. The Belize Zoo only welcomes animals native from Belize, so you will not see giraffes or lions etc. They all were wounded, abandoned or confiscated from owners who raised them illegally.

It is an exciting experience that I recommend; it will give you the opportunity to see animals by night, like you have never seen them before. Of course, you will not see all the animals of the zoo because some of them are sleeping. For instance, you will see owls, jaguars, puma, tapirs, howler monkeys, kinkajou and a lot of other animals native from Belize.

It is a really special atmosphere because you will have the impression to be in the middle of the jungle at night, with the sounds of all of the animals’ footsteps that we hear during the tour. But do not worry; you are absolutely safe! The atmosphere is much more impressive when howler monkeys start to howl. To give you an idea what it sounds, the shouts of these monkeys were recorded in order to make the roaring of the dinosaurs of Jurassic Park!

Meet the Baboons

Spend an enjoyable moment at the Baboon Community Sanctuary and discover the famous Howler Monkeys of Central America! 

The community aims at maintaining the natural environment of the black howler monkey (called "baboon" in the Creole dialect) while favoring the economic development of the nearby communities. You are probably wondering why they are called howler monkeys? Well, it is because in order to protect their territory, males howl and make a sound that we can hear at more than a mile!

The tour lasts approximately one hour. A guide takes you into the jungle in search of the howler monkeys. During your walk, he will present you various species of trees and plants that you will meet.  The guide will call the baboons by speaking to them in Creole and you will have to wait several minutes before their spectacular appearance. It is possible to approach them very closely but do not let them touch you because they can make abrupt movements.

It is a very interesting tour that I recommend, especially to families. Let me give you an advice; do not forget your mosquito protection because they love being in the jungle.

At the end of the visit do not hesitate to write a word in the visitors' book and enjoy the small exhibition of typical objects from Belize, combined with few explanations on the life of the monkeys and the community.

Zip lining in Belize: a Bird’s Eye View of the Rainforest Canopy

Belize City - A snap shot

Belize City, located on a peninsula that is the furthest Eastern point in the country, is said to have been built on a foundation of “rum bottles, logwood chips and loose coral.”  Founded in the early 1700s by the pirate Baymen of St. George’s Caye, Belize City now has a population of over 70,000 people. 

Although Belize City gives up ground to the Caribbean each year, and the government moved inland to avoid the pattern of natural disasters that strike there, it is still a bustling city filled to the brim with both residents and tourists. While one can get there by flying into the airport ten miles outside the city of Ladyville not far from downtown Belize, many tourists find their way to Belize through transatlantic cruises, as Belize City is an important port and stopping place for cruise ships. Perhaps the biggest draw to Belize is that at least fifty percent of the country is covered by dense jungle. Largely rainforest under the protection of the government, these forests remain mostly unexplored and filled with tropical foliage and animals ranging from crocodiles to jaguars and armadillos. Hosting over four thousand species of flowers and five hundred species of birds, Belize is a wildlife wonderland. With unprecedented beauty and thousands of different species of flora and fauna, visitors might have trouble planning just how to go about seeing it all. Luckily, companies like the Black Orchid Resort have already thought of this and offer guests the chance to take their cues from the winged residents of the rainforest and fly through the canopy.

Pulleys and Zip lines and Helmets - Oh My

Zip lining, also called a canopy adventure, is a tree-based aerial trekking course. While wearing helmets as well as harnesses that safely attach them to a cable, participants use natural gravity to propel themselves from platform to platform through the rainforest canopy high above the ground. Zip lining, while perhaps more of a thrill ride than what it was intended to be when first invented, started as a form of conveyance that began out of necessity. Residents and workers in areas like remote regions of China, the Costa Rican rainforest and the Australian Outback often needed to quickly transport people and supplies across impassable areas like canyons or rivers. To do this, they would create a form of gravity-fueled transport using pulleys that would thread cables between two points.

Popular especially in countries with large rain forests or canyons, zip lining can now be found all over the world in correlation with busy tourist-filled cities. Part of the reason for its popularity is the way participants get around within the Zip line course. By setting the pulleys at different levels throughout the canopy, participants do not need a lot of upper body strength or to be especially fit. This is advantageous not only for participants who might not have ever had a chance to see the rainforest from a bird’s eye view, but it also allows companies to make a profit from an activity that is neither expensive to produce nor intrusive to the environment through which participants zip line.

In Belize we have the Longest Zip Line course in Central America. We have 12 platforms through the pristine jungle in the Mayflower Bocawina National Forest. The longest zip line run is 2,300 feet long and is considered the longest in Belize. We also offer night zip lining. Hear the noises of the night as you zip through the jungle with our experienced guides. And it’s even more spectacular during a full moon! 

World’s Biggest Zip lines

Now that zip lining has taken off as both a sport and a tourist attraction throughout the world, there have of course been some extreme examples built in order to achieve certain world records. The Eye of the Jaguar is the longest zip line in the world. Constructed from a single cable, participants reach an astounding speed of 110 kilometers per hour. This zip line is located 45 minutes north of Cusco, in Peru, and is 2, 130 meters or 1.3 miles long. On the other side of the Atlantic in Snowdonia, Wales, there is a zip line that reaches speeds of over 100 miles per hour, and travels 500 feet above the mountain lake at Penrhyn Quarry for almost a mile. It is exactly 1,600 meters or just under a mile long.

Fly Through Belize

If you’ve never zip lined before, but have a desire to experience the rainforest and aren’t quite sure what that might mean — consider flying through the canopy absorbing all that nature has to offer. You won’t be disappointed, and odds are you’ll remember your adventure for the rest of your life.

contributor, Susan Gibbons

The Chiquibul Forest Reserve

The Chiquibul National Park is the largest protected area in Belize and encompasses 16% of all protected areas in our country. It is home to Belize’s highest biodiversity and a natural habitat to many of Belize’s exotic plants and animals like Jaguars, Pumas, kinkajous, ocelots, margays, tapirs, monkeys and a wide array of tropical birds including the magnificent ScarletMacaws.

In this forest lies some of Belize’s dynamic natural & cultural resources including massive underground caves, rivers, limestone reserves, ridges and not to mention The Ancient Maya City of Caracol, the largest man made structure in Belize to date. Caracol has been designated as an archaeological reserve and is frequently visited by tourist to Belize.

Main attractions to the unique reserve includes the Chiquibul Cave System which is one of the largest caves sytems in Central America and stretches all the way into Guatemala, Overnight camping and jungle treks, and Scarlet Macaw Monitoring Tour on the Challilo Lake to name a few.

Black Orchid Resort moving forward in 2014

The new year brought many positive changes and game changing moves for the directors and team of Black Orchid Resort. Never before have we seen so many changes and developments in such a short time! Recently we completed the Thompson Building which includes 3 Garden View Luxury Suites and 4 River Front Luxury Suites, The Sky Roof which includes the roof top lounge and mini pool and The Spa at Black Orchid Resort.

With all the new developments  comes new personnel and at Black Orchid Resort we did just that by hiring the best employees in all of Belize. This action has yield positive guest feedbacks and increase efficiency in customer service delivery and quality assurance. We would like welcome the following personnel who we are confident will make your stay at Black Orchid Resort a super experience.

Raul Rodriguez

As a young and vibrant individual Raul has excelled in his young life and comes to Black Orchid Resort with positive energy for development. Raul has ten (10) year experience in various capacities in the hospitality industry including: food & beverage manager, concierge, tour guide, front desk manager, reservations manager, & recently sales & marketing manager.

The team at Black Orchid Resort welcomes Raul as the sales & marketing manager and look forward to all the positive developments.

Master Chef Dennis Roache

Chef Dennis was born in Kingston Jamaica. He has over 30 years’ experience and specializes in Jamaican and International cuisine. He was trained at the Jamaica Cooker’s School, Oceana Hotel and most 5 star properties in Jamaica.

Chef Dennis arrived in Belize in 1994 in search for a home where he can apply his love for food preparation. He was firstly contracted by Petrojam Ltd. and work as a head chef at the Santa Cruz Lodge for several years. Over the years Chef Dennis shared his experience in several high end properties including Best Western, Captain Morgan’s, Caye Chapel, Cayo Espanto and most recently at the U.S. Ambassador’s residence in Belmopan.  

We welcome Chef Dennis to the Black Orchid Resort and look forward to delicious gourmet meals!

Cesar Elder Vasquez

Cesar was born in the beautiful Spanish speaking town of Orange Walk. Throughout his childhood he moved constantly and relocated to different towns and villages since his dad served in the police department. His love for his country became evident at an early age as he traveled every year to a different location in Belize.

Cesar has worked in the Tourism Industry for over
12 years in a wide range of capacities which include Marine Guide & Supervisor, Boat Captain, Terrestrial Guide, and Dolphin & Animal Care Trainer. He has special training in Customer Service, Historical and National Interest, Archeology, Natural History, & Healthy Reefs and Animal Care. He is an advocate for responsible tourism and ensures that this is promoted in his tours and activities.  He has led both international universities and college groups throughout various locations in Belize always ensuring that each and every client need is well taken care of.

We are happy to Welcome Cesar to our team at Black Orchid Resort and know that each minute spent in his capable hands will be worth your while. Click here to view tour options

 

 Staicy Montero

The very young Staicy recently joined our team as the spa therapist for the newly constructed Spa at Black Orchid Resort. Staicy received all her training from the Holistic School of massage and has worked at a very prominent facility before joining the team at Black Orchid Resort. We guarantee that every time spent with her will be revitalizing, relaxing and rejuvenating. Click here to view our spa facilities and treatment options.

 As 2014 proceeds we will continue to bring exciting news as we look forward to hosting you on your next Belize Vacation.

THE BLACK HOWLER MONKEY

The Black Howler Monkey, (Alouatta pigra) known as the ‘baboon’ in Belize has very limited range including Belize, Southern Mexico and Northern Guatemala. It is one of the six howler monkey species found in Central and South America. One of the most remarkable traits of the howler monkey is its loud, rasping howl, which can be heard roaring across the forest for well over a mile. Throughout most of its range, the Howler Monkey is endangered from hunting and habitat destruction. Fortunately, Belize has a healthy population of these loudest of primates. Visitors to Black Orchid Resort are most likely to come to a very close encounter with this specie especially if they opt for a river cruise down the Belize Old River!

The black howler monkey typically lives in troops of 4-12 individuals, with one to three adult males and multiple females and a dominant male heading the troop. The monkeys are strictly vegetarian eating a wide variety of leaves, flowers and fruit.

Howler monkeys have short snouts and wide-set, round nostrils. Their noses are very keen, and the Howler monkey can smell out its food up to 2 miles away. Their noses are usually roundish snout-type, and the nostrils have many sensory hairs growing from the interior. They range in size from 2 to 3 ft. excluding their tails, which can be equally as long, in fact in some cases the tail has been found to be almost 5 times the body length. This is a prime characteristic. Like many New World monkeys, they have prehensile tails. They can grasp items with it, hence why they are often found using their prehensile tails for picking fruit and nuts from trees.

They have lifespans of 15 to 20 years. Males are, on average, 1.5 to 2.0 kg heavier than females.

Howler monkeys generally move quadrupedally on the tops of branches of trees along the Belize River, usually grasping a branch with at least two hands or one hand and the tail at all times. Their strong prehensile tails are able to support their entire body weight. Fully grown adult howler monkeys do not often rely on their tails for full body support, whereas juveniles do so more frequently.