BELIZE

BELIZE IS A COUNTRY WHERE A PRISTINE ENVIRONMENT greets visitors from around the globe, where living coral gardens and exotic marine life highlight the Western Hemisphere's largest barrier reef. Onshore and off, Belize has more than its share of natural beauty. To the East, Belize is graced with the Caribbean and 174 miles of an unbroken barrier reef. Coral structures, caves and marine life provide beautiful underwater expanse for snorkeling and scuba diving. Fishing, waterskiing, windsurfing, boat races and swimming are also favorite activities. Miles of white beaches and secluded island retreats complete the water enthusiast's affair with the sea.

On the mainland are ancient Maya temples and monuments dating back thousands of years. In the interior's tropical rain forests, you will find intriguing and diverse animal and plant populations, limestone caves, scenic rivers and Maya temples.

Since the early 1980s, sustained development has become a watchword for Caribbean tourism. Belize is well known for the preservation and conservation of its natural and cultural resources. Currently 40 percent of its land is protected. Some newer additions to Belize's growing list of Eco-tourism sites and ecological preservation efforts include:

Programme for Belize: 260,000 acres of tropical forest in the northwest are used for research and visited annually by hundreds of U.S. students, who are given week-long courses in rainforest ecology and marine biology. The program also involves bird conservation and is visited by numerous bird enthusiasts.

Chaa Creek Blue Morpho Butterfly Breeding Centre: a resort and compound where visitors enjoy an education about the butterfly's metamorphosis from caterpillar to striking blue butterfly. About 45 percent of the 200 butterflies breeded each day are released.

San Ignacio Resort Hotel -- Green Iguana Conservation Project: Once plentiful, but in decline in recent years due to habitat loss and hunting, the green iguana is protected through the project's efforts. Visitors are encouraged to tour the project to understand the importance of the species.