Discover Rio Dulce & Livingston

The Río Dulce is a 43 km river flowing east from Lake Izabal—Guatemala’s largest lake at approximately 589 km²—to the Caribbean at Livingston, entirely within the Izabal Department. The river begins where it exits the lake, passes beneath one of Central America’s longest bridges at Fronteras, and moves through three distinct segments: a wide upper section with marinas and jungle lodges; El Golfete, a shallow lake-like expansion thick with aquatic vegetation and mangroves; and the Boquerón Canyon, where the river narrows between limestone walls rising 91 m (300 ft) before opening into the Caribbean at Livingston.

The canyon section—approximately 10 km—has limestone walls draped with ferns, orchids, and tropical vegetation, with hot springs seeping from the rock face. In the rainy season, waterfalls cascade down the walls. Río Dulce National Park covers 130 km² along the river banks and El Golfete. The whole system functions as a continuous ecological and cultural corridor connecting the Guatemalan highlands to the Caribbean coast, with the Biotopo Chocón Machacas manatee reserve in El Golfete as its most significant protected zone.