The Belize Zoo and Tropical Education Center (TBZTEC) is a unique wildlife sanctuary and conservation-focused destination nestled about a 30-minute drive west of Belize City along the George Price Highway. What sets it apart from typical zoos is its mission: the animals on display are native to Belize and have been rescued, rehabilitated, or born at the facility, and are showcased in naturalistic habitats that reflect the country’s forests, savannas, and wetlands. Visitors can encounter iconic species like jaguars, tapirs (Belize’s national animal), howler monkeys, macaws, harpy eagles, and many more while learning about Belize’s rich biodiversity and ongoing conservation efforts.
Adjacent to the zoo, the Tropical Education Center offers immersive lodging with a variety of accommodation options. The TEC is an 84 acre site set on tropical lowland savanna adjacent to The Belize Zoo in the heart of the Maya Forest Corridor. It serves as a lodge, learning center, and training facility.
The Tropical Education Center (TEC) offers a range of unique and nature-immersive lodging options right in the tropical lowland savanna near The Belize Zoo, ideal for travelers, students, and researchers seeking an experience close to Belize’s wildlife and ecosystems. Accommodation choices include rustic Savanna Castle dormitories with bunk beds and shared facilities for larger groups, cozy Forest Cabañas on raised platforms screened for comfort, and the more comfortable Pine Cabin with air-conditioned rooms and private bathrooms. For families or those wanting extra space, there are Pond Houses featuring kitchenettes, private baths, and screened verandahs overlooking a freshwater pond, as well as a private Casita nestled in the forest.
All stays include access to communal amenities like a dining hall, library, trails, and meals, making it a memorable base for exploring the zoo and surrounding nature.
The Tropical Education Center (TEC)
Savanna Castle Dormitories
Dormitory style; $46/person
Savanna Castle dormitory style accommodations have bunk beds and a screened in common area. All rooms have 110V outlets, ceiling or standing fans, and fresh linens and towels. The dormitories can host up to 38 guests at full capacity. Room sizes vary from one bed to eight. Hot and cold showers, restrooms, and handwashing basins are located in buildings adjacent to the dormitories.
Forest Cabañas
Raised platform cabanas with shared bathroom
$73.25/Single Occupancy, $97.45/Double Occupancy
Each forest cabaña is on a raised platform, fully screened and equipped with a full size bed or two twin size beds complete with linens and towels. This is ideal for travelers seeking that “jungly” experience. A shared shower and restroom facility for the cabañas is located nearby.
Pine Cabin
Air-conditioned with private bathroom
$95.05/Single Occupancy, $119.25/Double Occupancy
$35.10 per extra person
The Pine Cabin has five air-conditioned rooms with private bathrooms, and a shared screened-in verandah/common area. The bed configuration in the rooms are either double beds or a double bed and bunk bed.
Pond Houses
Family size with private bathroom.
$92.87/Single Occupancy, $117.07/Double Occupancy
$35.10 per extra person
These family sized pond houses are equipped with private bathrooms, kitchenette, spacious screened in verandahs, and are nestled along the edges of the freshwater pond at the TEC.
Casita
Raised house
This guest house is set back from the TEC pond, and is raised off the ground, giving you the feel of being in the forest canopy. Private parking underneath the Casita is available to guests.
Dinner & Breakfast Included
Accommodation prices include dinner, breakfast, and 9% hotel tax. Meals are traditional Belize dishes, for example dinner can be rice and beans, stew chicken, coleslaw, baked chicken, veggies with rice and green salad. Breakfast is fry jacks or creole bread, eggs, beans, bacon and fruit.
Transfer to/from the Phillip Goldson International Airport is available for $70 USD for two persons; $5 USD for every additional person (6 persons max)
Nocturnal Zoo Tour: 1.5 hour tour at 7pm
In the Neotropics, many wildlife species are most active when the sun goes down. Cooler temperatures, and the cover of darkness (for both prey and predators) are among the advantages of being nocturnal, and these species have developed amazing adaptations to thrive in the world of night.
Certain species at the Belize Zoo, such as jaguars, tapirs, and ocelots may be encountered during the day, but are much more energetic and interactive after sunset. Other species such as the margay (our smallest spotted cat), the paca (gibnut), kinkajou (night walker), and several species of owls, are only encountered at night.
The Belize Zoo At Night is an opportunity to take a walk on the wild side and being fully immersed in a nocturnal, jungle environment. Even those who have seen the Belize Zoo during the day will be impressed by the ambient transformation. Guests
are taken on an after-hours tour of the Zoo by a highly knowledgeable Zookeeper who uses skillfully aimed flashlights to introduce over a dozen native “creatures of the night.”
US $125 for 1 to 4 persons, US $25 per person for groups of 5 or more
