Tikal Tours From Belize

Tikal tours from Belize collect you in San Ignacio or at the Melchor de Mencos border, about 114 km from the park, and show you Tikal in a day. Take a daytime tour of the central city, or stay past closing time for sunset. Bring your passport, and cash for Belize's exit fee.

Tikal tours from Belize, with San Ignacio pickups

Top rated

Tikal SUNSET, Archeological focus and Wildlife Spotting Tour (South and East)

★★★★★ 5.0 (193 reviews · 6 hours)

4.5 h in the parkFrom San Ignacio or FloresPark + sunset fee extraMax 9Lunch included

An afternoon in the south and east of the city that stays past closing time for sunset. Pickups run from Flores to Melchor de Mencos and San Ignacio, and the fare rises with the pickup point. Lunch is included; park and sunset fees are extra.

From $91 per person

The From price is the lowest pickup option; the fare varies with the pickup point you choose.

Free cancellation up to 24 hours ahead.

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Top rated

Tikal Full Day with Dedicated Exploration of the Archaeological Monuments.

★★★★★ 5.0 (75 reviews · 4 hours 30 minutes)

4.5 h in the parkFrom San Ignacio or FloresPark ticket extraMax 9Lunch included

A daytime tour of the central city, from the Central Acropolis to Temple IV, with lunch and nine people at most. Choose your pickup from Flores, the border or San Ignacio; the From price is the lowest option. Park entry is extra.

From $85 per person

The From price is the lowest pickup option; the fare varies with the pickup point you choose.

Free cancellation up to 24 hours ahead.

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What a Tikal tour from Belize actually is

A tour from Belize is a guided day at Tikal that starts on the Belize side, in San Ignacio, or at the Guatemalan border town of Melchor de Mencos. The van takes you across the land border and on to the park, about 100 km from the border post. A bilingual guide walks you through the ruins, and lunch is in your fare.

Gem Trips sells both from a menu of pickup points: Flores, Santa Elena, San Benito, San Andrés, San José, El Remate, the park hotels, the border and San Ignacio. The fare varies with the pickup point you choose, and the From price on each card is the lowest option. Check the price for your own pickup point before you pay.

Neither fare includes the park ticket. As a foreign visitor you pay Q150 for entry, plus Q100 for the sunset ticket if you choose the sunset tour.

Why choose a tour from Belize

No night in Flores

You leave from where you are staying in Belize and you are back the same day.

The border crossing is part of the day

Your van takes you through Melchor de Mencos. You bring the passport and the cash for Belize's exit fee.

Small groups

Nine people at most share the guide on both, and a private version of each costs more.

Daylight or sunset

Choose the full day for daylight at every stop, or the sunset tour to stay in the park after the 18:00 close.

Tikal tours from Belize vs a night in Flores

The alternative is to cross on your own, sleep in Flores and join a tour there, sunrise included. Here is the trade.

Check availability — From $85

If you have one free day in San Ignacio, a tour from Belize is the simpler plan. If sunrise is the reason you came, cross the day before and book one of the Tikal sunrise tours from Flores.

Crossing at Melchor de Mencos

Bring your passport. You cross from Belize into Guatemala at the land border. You show it again at the park gate, with your ticket, to get your wristband.

Carry cash. Belize charges an exit fee at the land border. Check the current amount before you travel, and have it ready in cash.

Sort the park tickets. The simplest way is online at boletos.culturaguate.gob.gt, up to 30 days ahead, paid by Visa or Mastercard. In Guatemala, Bantrab sells them for cash, and it has a branch in Melchor de Mencos. Banrural no longer sells Tikal tickets; that ended on 17 January 2025. The outer gate at Tikal also has a Bantrab window, cash only.

What you get, and what you don’t

You get pickup at your chosen point, an air-conditioned vehicle, a bilingual guide, a Tikal map, mosquito repellent and lunch on both tours. The sunset tour adds water refills in the vehicle and time in the park after 18:00. The full day ends at Temple IV, the tallest structure at Tikal.

You don’t get the park ticket on either: Q150 for a foreign visitor, Q25 for a Guatemalan with DPI, and free under 10. The sunset tour also needs the Q100 sunset ticket. Belize's exit fee is yours to pay too.

Planning a Tikal tour from Belize

• Price: $85 and $91 a person from the lowest pickup point; check the fare for San Ignacio or the border when you book.
• Time: about four and a half hours in the park on both, plus a drive of about 114 km each way from San Ignacio.
• Documents: your passport for the border and the gate, and cash for the exit fee.
• Tickets: bought online before you travel, or in cash at Bantrab.
• Season: a sunset visit between October and February is a dusk visit, because the sun sets before 18:00; the full day avoids that.
• Book: once your dates are fixed; both refund in full up to 24 hours ahead.

Who should choose something else

• Sunrise seekers. Neither tour enters for sunrise; cross the day before and book the sunrise wildlife tour from Flores.
• Travellers who want the tickets in the fare. Both leave the park fees to you; the extended private sunrise from Flores includes them.
• Anyone without a passport to hand. You cannot cross the border without one; visiting Tikal sets out what to show at the gate on a visit from Flores.
• Travellers in Guatemala City. The fly-in day trips are your one-day route from the capital.

Frequently asked questions