The New River, also Río Nuevo, is a river in northern

Belize Belize (; bzj, Bileez) is a Caribbean and Central American country on the northeastern coast of Central America. It is bordered by Mexico to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and Guatemala to the west and south. It also shares a wate ...

. As the longest river that is entirely confined to Belize, it drains primarily the eastern part of the

Orange Walk District Orange Walk District is a district in the northwest of the nation of Belize, with its district capital in Orange Walk Town. Main settlements The Orange Walk District, with an area of 1,829 square miles (4,636 square km), is located north-northw ...

during its north-northeasterly course and empties into the

Chetumal Bay Chetumal Bay is a large bay of the western Caribbean Sea on the southern coast of the Yucatán Peninsula. It is located in northern Belize and southeastern Mexico. Geography The mouth of Chetumal Bay is directed southward and buffered by the ...

. The river also forms the New River Lagoon, the largest body of fresh water in Belize, just east of the

Maya Maya may refer to: Civilizations * Maya peoples, of southern Mexico and northern Central America ** Maya civilization, the historical civilization of the Maya peoples ** Maya language, the languages of the Maya peoples * Maya (Ethiopia), a populat ...

temples of

Lamanai Lamanai (from ''Lama'anayin'', "submerged crocodile" in Yucatec Maya) is a Mesoamerican archaeological site, and was once a major city of the Maya civilization, located in the north of Belize, in Orange Walk District. The site's name is pre-Columb ...

. The New River is a habitat for numerous types of fish, birds, as well as

crocodile Crocodiles (family (biology), family Crocodylidae) or true crocodiles are large semiaquatic reptiles that live throughout the tropics in Africa, Asia, the Americas and Australia. The term crocodile is sometimes used even more loosely to inclu ...

s. Boat tours are available from several sources. Tours of Lamanai use the river as transportation to reach the site.

External links

Rivers of Belize Geography of Mesoamerica {{Belize-river-stub