Scary in a Good Way: The ATM Cave in Belize

Being “outside my comfort zone” defined my whole week in Belize, but nowhere more so than in the Actun Tunichil Muknal cave outside San Ignacio. Nicknamed the “ATM cave” so that tourists can pronounce it, the location is the biggest attraction in the area—and also the most intimidating.

When my boyfriend suggested the trip to San Ignacio, and the ATM cave, I hemmed and hawed for weeks over whether the cave was something I should visit. I’m fairly outdoorsy—I love hiking, swimming, and seeing new places—so why should this be so scary? 

If you’re a similarly cautious person who’s trying to decide whether to visit the ATM cave on your trip to Belize, here’s why you should.

Because you only live once. 

I’ve never been to a cave any smaller than the gorgeous but domesticated Luray Caverns in Virginia, and the ATM cave reportedly involved several hours of swimming and scrambling through fairly dark, enclosed spaces. What if I discovered a previously unmanifested claustrophobia? Some blogs I read shared sensationalistic accounts of visits to the ATM cave, making it sound like you’d be lucky to get out alive—scraped, bruised, and possibly bitten by scorpions. 

For me, though, the sticking point was that you cannot bring anything—even a water bottle—into the cave, where you’ll be for two to three hours. I’m the person who brings an emergency kit on a two-mile hike, so this seemed crazy. (It’s a rule they instituted in recent years, after a tourist dropped their camera on a thousand-year-old Mayan skull.)

It seemed so cool, though. What an adventure: to explore an ancient cave used for religious rituals, in a Central American country I might only visit once. How could I pass up this opportunity?

Once I read a few more reviews on TripAdvisor and satisfied myself that I was unlikely to actually die on the excursion—my low bar for making the decision—I set about trying to prepare as best I could, by planning my outfit and snacks for maximum Cave Danger Mitigation.

Because some basic prep will keep you going. 

I took less stuff with me than I’d take on a hike through the woods, but I did worry about what to wear, and whether I’d have enough water.  

Tips for the journey:

• Bring a small backpack for the walk to and from the cave itself. It’s an easy walk over a wide, flat footpath framed on both sides by beautiful jungle foliage. The tour companies will tell you it’s 45 minutes each way, but it didn’t take our group that long. You will also make several stream crossings, so put anything you don’t want to get wet in a plastic ziplock bag.

• Tote some snacks. Munch on trail mix and drink water throughout your walk to the cave entrance area. You’ll also have a few minutes to stock up at the holding area near the entrance, and to use the bathroom (i.e., the woods). I recommend eating and drinking enough to boost your energy, but not so much that you actually feel full.

• Wear clothes you can be wet in for several hours. I wore quick-dry hiking undies under a long-sleeved poly shirt and swim pants. Yes, apparently there is a thing called “swim pants.” This was one of my best purchases ever, because they were super comfortable and kept me from being too cold in the water—and from being worried about scratching my legs against every underwater rock. Lightweight sneakers or water shoes make good footwear, and the guide will hand everyone a helmet with headlamp (and offer the option of a life jacket).

• Have your coffee that morning. If you’re used to caffeine, you’ll want to have some before the trip. I found that the intense mental focus, not the physical exertion, was the most fatiguing aspect of the activity.

Because it’s the most awesome thing you’ll do in Belize.

The ATM cave and the whole environment leading up to it is luxuriously beautiful. The entrance area is like a scene from a movie—giant leafy palm trees, ferns, vines, moss, curved rock. “Welcome to Jurassic Park,” intoned our guide, Oscar, as we arrived.

Oscar guides with Pacz Tours, and is one of only about 30 experts certified to lead tours at the ATM Cave. Oscar has explored this cave hundreds of times, and he scrambled over the rocks with a carelessness and dexterity that seemed half for fun and half for showmanship. 

Our group was a collection of eight visitors from several different U.S. states, all fit, curious explorers who had a common preference for a fairly quick pace. However, the ATM cave is doable for people of any age and most physical abilities—you just have to make adjustments for pace. There are a couple of climbing points, once onto a high rock, and once at a small ladder, but there are no places where an assisting hand or a more careful movement cannot make it work.

At the cave entrance, the pool of water is an inviting, subdued aqua. You glide in and notice tiny fish swimming below you. Once fully inside the cave, it’s completely dark, except where your and your companions’ headlamps are shining. But I never felt frightened for a moment inside the cave. It felt inherently safe, and capacious, and old, and oddly unaffected by the hundreds of tourists that swim through it every day.

Oscar gave explicit directions on where to place our hands and feet as we went along. These directions were relayed back down the line, so a group effort kept us continually concentrating on stepping in the right places and sliding through the gaps carefully. The chance of injury is very small, because the directions are so clear.

Along the way, Oscar pointed out out cave formations, which vary from sleek stalactities and lumpy stalagmites to sparkling sheets, textured drapes, wide columns, and smooth walls with mysterious holes. He also played shadow puppet with formations that the ancient Mayans are believed to have modified to create silhouettes of gods and spirits. 

The Mayan artifacts are up high on ledges at the far end of the cave. We stood right next to ancient vessels and skeletons used in religious rituals. It was impossible not to feel awestruck and humbled by being in a sacred site that is so incredibly well preserved. 

In the Tapir Mountain Nature Reserve, about to start the hike to the cave.

I did get a little tired on the way back out. With a fast metabolism and a small body, I need frequent snacks and water to keep my energy up, so not having access to those things did make me a bit clumsier and slower on the return trip, but I managed, with moments of assistance here and there from my boyfriend, who followed me in the line. Did I mention this cave tour is a group effort? 

At various points, I saw a spider about eight inches across and a colony of small bats, both of which I viewed with interest, but no scorpions, to my relief. No premature death by cave that day!

Before I knew it, we were blinking in the sunlight of the cave opening again. It felt so good to get the helmet off my head and chug some Gatorade back at the picnic tables.

Because you can call yourself a spelunker.

Now that I’ve toured the ATM cave, I can’t believe I ever hesitated. On various forest hikes, I’ve been way more tired, thirsty, or cold than I was at any point on this cave tour. Was it a bit of a challenge? Yes. Was it extremely difficult? No.

If you ever have the opportunity to tour the ATM cave, do it. It would be worth it just to take in the incredible variety of cave formations resulting from millennia of water carving stone, even if you weren’t also seeing ancient artifacts that you’d normally be separated from by museum glass.

Plus, you can officially call yourself a spelunker. I do.