Belize is an English-speaking tropical country with a democratic government and a culturally eclectic population of less than 250.000. Bordered by Mexico and the Yucatan Peninsula in the north, Guatemala to the west, Honduras in the south and the warm Caribbean waters to the east.

Home to 4,000 species of native flowering plants, 250 species of orchids, 700 species of native trees and 550 species of birds, Belize is the last refuge for the jaguar and has , as a country , adopted a conservation ethic. National parks and conservations areas now account for nearly one-third of the country and the spectacular Mayan ruins found throughout are largely intact. (Franz O. Meyer, Diving & Snorkeling Belize 1998)

Although most of Belize's 8,970 sq miles (23,000 sq km) is tropical lowland, the Maya Mountains in the western part of the country where lush, wet forests thrive, rise to almost 3,300 ft (1,000 meters). Belize City on the Caribbean coast is the population center and was the country's capital city until a hurricane in 1961 all but destroyed it, forcing the government to build a new centrally located capital in Belmopan. Although no longer the capital, Belize City is where you'll find world-class hotels, shopping and transportation to other parts of Belize, including the offshore cayes. Half of the visitors to Belize follow the limestone shelf that stretches under only five meters of crystalline water to the offshore islands, where most of the diving takes place.