Museum of Belize

Built in 1857 as Her Majesty's Prison when Belize was a British colony, the building was renovated in the 1990s and opened as a museum in 2002. In addition to revealing the country's 3,000-year-old Mayan legacy through its small collection of artifacts, it explores the more recent history of Belize—including its dark chapter as a slavery settlement, when the British imported thousands of slaves from Africa. There's also a colorful collection of postage stamps, as well as photographs of the devastating effects of the many hurricanes that have hit the area.