PANAMA CANAL & CENTRAL AMERICA

Known as the 'Venice of America,' Fort Lauderdale is a city of islands, built on a network of canals, rivers, bays, and waterways. With 23 miles (37km) of beaches, this is a popular stop for cruise ships in Florida. This sophisticated yet casual resort town situated in the heart of the Gold Coast, attracts families and couples from all over the United States, and beyond.

Boating is a favourite Fort Lauderdale pastime, as is cycling, or simply strolling along the beachfront promenade. Near Fort Lauderdale, divers can enjoy one of the only living coral reefs in the United States accessible from shore. There are sporting facilities galore throughout the city, particularly the world renown golf courses.

Those in search of culture will be captivated by the Broward Center for the Performing Arts, the Florida Grand Opera, the annual Film Festival, and numerous art galleries and museums. Fort Lauderdale's downtown shopping street is the broad avenue of Las Olas along the river, lined with fashion boutiques, art galleries, restaurants, and sidewalk cafés. Diners are supremely well catered for, with more than 3,500 restaurants covering greater Fort Lauderdale. These range from intimate cafés to al fresco waterfront terraces, quaint bistros, and ethnic eateries to cosy steakhouses. As with most of Florida, the local treat is fresh seafood.

Fort Lauderdale's facilities and attractions will please any visitor on holiday, and if that is not enough, the exciting city of Miami lies only 40 miles (64km) away, perfect for a day trip.

In Belize nearly all journeys begin and end in Belize City, the country's biggest urban enclave and port of entry, though in truth it's not a very enticing tourist destination in itself. Belize City sits in a swamp that stretches across Haulover Creek at the mouth of the Belize River, criss-crossed with narrow streets and rather smelly canals which are lined with a jolly jumble of buildings, some little more than dilapidated shacks and others attempts at rather pretentious modern stores. In between are some pretty wooden houses and colonial landmark buildings.

The city has clung tenaciously to its muddy roots since it was abandoned as a Mayan fishing camp in the 1600s and taken over by pirates and buccaneers as a logging camp. Late in the 17th century, the Spanish cut down the mahogany upriver, floated the logs downstream and exported them from the motley little encampment at the river mouth. Later the British established Belize Town, which began the city's formal, rather tragic, passage into modern times. Three times devastated by fires, scourged by disease epidemics, flattened by hurricanes and tidal waves, the city somehow survived. Today, in the new millennium, it subsists on tourism and fishing, remaining the cultural, commercial, and social centre of Belize despite the capital having been moved to Belmopan in 1969.

Most visitors to Belize City come ashore on tenders from dozens of luxury cruise liners that include the city in their itineraries, mainly to allow passengers to take adventure excursions to see and experience the wonderful natural attractions of the interior and coastline of Belize. Cruise passengers are welcomed at the showpiece Belize Tourism Village, where courtyards and attractive buildings contain a variety of restaurants, souvenir shops, craft stalls, and other facilities to cater for their needs. It is the departure point for numerous land and marine tours.

Independent visitors to Belize also generally start their exploration of the country in Belize City, and can find some sights of interest to fill a few days layover in the town, including the world's only manually operated swing bridge, some colonial architectural treasures such as the Paslow Building, the novel St John's Cathedral built by slaves from bricks brought as ballast in ships from Europe, and the art gallery at the Bliss Institute, bequeathed to the city by British Baron, Henry Bliss, who died on his yacht in the harbour. Also well worth a visit are the Maritime Museum and Museum of Belize.

Experience true Caribbean island bliss, during your time on the immaculate paradise of Roatan, which is the largest of the Bay Islands. This slim island is framed by glorious powdery white beaches, and rich ocean beds carpeted with diverse coral reefs - alive with fish and marine life. Curious dolphins roll through the waves just offshore, while beach dwellers soak up the sun, and enjoy coconut cocktails, beside leaning palm trees. The beaches here are nothing short of dreamy - with wooden piers teetering out over the water, and thatched roofs providing welcome shade, as you dangle your legs towards the water.

The provincial capital of Colón, beside the canal's Atlantic entrance, is named for the Spanish-language surname of Christopher Columbus, though the Americans called it Aspinwall in the 19th century.. The city was founded in 1850 by Americans working on the Panama railroad and named Aspinwall for one of the railway engineers. Following completion in 1855, Colon gained in importance, which was furthered by the plans for an isthmian canal. During the time of the French canal attempt, a fire in 1885 burned the city nearly to the ground and left thousands of people homeless. Colon was rebuilt in the architectural style then popular in France. Buildings from that era plus the ones constructed by Americans between 1904 and 1914 are still in use today, although the majority is on the verge of collapse. In addition to its importance as a port, Colon boasts the world’s second largest duty-free zone, known as Zona Libre, which is contained in a huge fortress like, walled-off area with giant international stores. However, most of the merchandise is sold in bulk to commercial businesses throughout the country.

The north coast of Jamaica is the island's popular riviera area, and at the centre of this resort paradise is Montego Bay, known affectionately as 'MoBay' to locals and regular visitors. The area has a sparkling 10-mile (16km) shoreline, fronted by coral reefs and aquamarine lagoons, backed by green hills shrouded in sugar cane, banana palms and lush tropical vegetation.

Christopher Columbus was the first European tourist to step ashore at Montego Bay in 1494. The Spanish settlement was founded in 1510. It has grown into Jamaica's second biggest city, but is first choice for holidaymakers. The beaches in the area are picture-perfect, while there is also bird watching, music festivals, horse riding trails, golfing and floating down the river on a bamboo raft.

The Montego Bay area also has a fascinating historical background, not all of it pleasant, which lives on in the legends and stories surrounding the few remaining great plantation houses belonging to dynastic families that grew rich from slave labour in past centuries. Several of these are open to the public.

Known as the 'Venice of America,' Fort Lauderdale is a city of islands, built on a network of canals, rivers, bays, and waterways. With 23 miles (37km) of beaches, this is a popular stop for cruise ships in Florida. This sophisticated yet casual resort town situated in the heart of the Gold Coast, attracts families and couples from all over the United States, and beyond.

Boating is a favourite Fort Lauderdale pastime, as is cycling, or simply strolling along the beachfront promenade. Near Fort Lauderdale, divers can enjoy one of the only living coral reefs in the United States accessible from shore. There are sporting facilities galore throughout the city, particularly the world renown golf courses.

Those in search of culture will be captivated by the Broward Center for the Performing Arts, the Florida Grand Opera, the annual Film Festival, and numerous art galleries and museums. Fort Lauderdale's downtown shopping street is the broad avenue of Las Olas along the river, lined with fashion boutiques, art galleries, restaurants, and sidewalk cafés. Diners are supremely well catered for, with more than 3,500 restaurants covering greater Fort Lauderdale. These range from intimate cafés to al fresco waterfront terraces, quaint bistros, and ethnic eateries to cosy steakhouses. As with most of Florida, the local treat is fresh seafood.

Fort Lauderdale's facilities and attractions will please any visitor on holiday, and if that is not enough, the exciting city of Miami lies only 40 miles (64km) away, perfect for a day trip.