The Lodge, for wildlife wonders

Vacation rentals at this jungle retreat – just beyond the tiny hamlet of Big Falls, in Belize’s far south – are pure rustic chic. Settle in and admire your thatch-roofed, Mayan-inspired cottage or wood cabin – they’re scattered around a lawned garden fragrant with tropical flowers and shaded by huge rainforest trees. The best of them overlook a rushing mountain river and have hammock-slung terraces and simple but spacious terracotta-tile and whitewash bedrooms. Walk-in en-suite showers brim with exuberant tropical plants. Tours – including guided wildlife-watching trips in Toledo District’s protected rainforests – are very good.