Tour Name

El Pilar Archeological Site (City of Voices), Cayo (Belize)

Tour Length

Tour normally takes between 1.5 - 2.5 hours.

Tour Type - MILD

Tour requires a lot of walking and climbing, depending on the weather, it can be humid, hot, wet or just that perfect cool day. (Your guide will make suggestions on what to take depending on local weather forecast)

What to Bring   

  1. Bug repellant

  2. Sun Block

  3. Hats/Caps

  4. Binoculars

  5. Comfortable walking/climbing shoes

  6. Dress to the weather.

Price - starts at $60US pp

Price varies according to location.

Price from the central area of San Ignacio  is $60 USD per person. Group rates are offered.

Ask our Travel Specialist about prices and transportation information from your location.

What is Included

  1. Transportation

  2. Licensed Guide

  3. Park Entrance Fees

  4. Water

  5. Lunch with soda or juice

Tour Chronology

San Ignacio is the gateway to El Pilar, which is located 12 miles (19km) northwest of the town. It is accessible by road through the village of Bullet tree falls. It is a scenic journey of pastures, farm lands, and lush vegetation. After crossing the Mopan river, there are numerous “El Pilar” signs that guide you on your journey. This all-weather road takes you the last seven miles to the site. Easy to reach by vehicle or horseback, and hiking or cycling is recommended only for the experienced, as the road is steep and hot. (Take lots of water.)

Upon arriving there you will be greeted by the caretakers who live in a green-roofed house by the road near the site. They can give you an over-all trail map, and are happy to show people around. But, if you have a guide with you he will proceed to take you on the tour.

Tour Description

The El Pilar Archaeological Reserve for Maya Flora and Fauna is located just 12 miles (approximately 19 kilometers) north of the western Belizean town of San Ignacio, astride the Belize-Guatemala border. The ridge land escarpment where El Pilar is situated extends from Guatemala's Peten into Belize, north of the Belize River valley.

El Pilar has more than twenty-five identified plazas in an area of approximately 100 acres (38 hectares), ranking it equal with major centers of the lowland Maya region.

It is the largest center in the Belize River area, more than three times the size of other well-known centers such as Baking Pot or Xunantunich. There are more than a dozen large pyramids and many range buildings. The site is divided into three primary sectors: Xaman (North) Pilar, Nohol (South) Pilar, and Pilar Poniente (West). The eastern and western sections are connected by an offset causeway system extending between two large public plazas. Survey and excavations have been concentrated in the eastern side of El Pilar within Belize. The western section, Pilar Poniente, is across the border in the Republic of Guatemala and surveying conducted in 1998 suggests there is still more monumental architecture to be found.

While the site is quite large, visitors still experience a sense of discovery while walking through the plazas, as most of the structures have been left intentionally uncleared. In contrast to neighboring Maya sites, El Pilar remains essentially the same as when archaeologists first identified it. The large-scale clearing of rainforest and structures has been rejected in favor of environmental trails and the exposure of choice examples of architecture, a stair here and a room there. This concept prevents the degradation of exposed structures and preserves important archaeological information for future generations and archaeological technologies. There are, however, significant consolidated structures open for the public including an underground corbeled tunnel, a standing temple and examples of elite architecture. In addition the preserved rainforest is home to hundreds of species of birds and animals which will delight the visitor. One area of the site is the site of an ongoing project to recreate a Maya "forest garden" surrounding an elite residence.

The area has long carried the name of El Pilar and while the origin of this name is obscure, the numerous natural sources of water speak to the old Spanish word for watering basin or pila, whose collective would be designated in Spanish as El Pilar. Two local streams have their origins at El Pilar, one to the east, which we call El Pilar Creek, and one on the west referred to generally as El Manantial (the Spring). About 1.2 miles (or 2.3 KM) east is Chorro, a lovely delicate waterfall. Not far from this waterfall is a minor center named Chorro, after the falls. The abundance of water in the vicinity of El Pilar is rare in the Maya area; the venerable ancient city of Tikal (just 50 KM west) had no natural water sources at all.