Check out these Guatemala destinations you cannot miss!
But first… a short story!
What better place to start than from the beginning? Guatemala. Up until this point, I had never traveled before.
Travelling was not a word used in our household. My parents had no experience with it and little interest. What they did have was a wayward weed growing childhood friend who had become an expat in Guatemala.
Little did I know this trip would change my life as I knew it—for the better.
Guatemala birthed a passion
I remember being filled with anxiety about booking the flight. Indecision has been a character defect that has haunted me most of my life.
This was no exception.
It was the first flight I had ever booked.
- How do I get the best deal?
- Would I choose the right one?
- What if I miss my flight?
So many questions and so few answers. Nonetheless, one evening I made the leap and booked two round-trip tickets from Los Angeles International Airport to Guatemala City!
I was boiling with excitement.
After booking the flight I really began to get excited. The excitement overpowered the fear. I went into a research frenzy. I wanted to leave no stone unturned. To see all that Guatemala had to offer, explore its mysterious ancient Mayan ruins, drink in its natural beauty, and taste its colorful culture.
I explored blogs just like this one to learn about what there was to see and do in Guatemala. I had not even taken off from the tarmac, and my passion for exploring this mystical land was growing.
Here are my favorite experiences from my trip to Guatemala.
Guatemala highlights and best places to visit
Lake Atitlan
Lake Atitlan is absolutely stunning, surrounded by volcanoes and lush green mountains. There are seven main cities around the lake, each with its own unique offering. Santiago is the village he was most familiar with and where his soon-to-be Mayan wife and her family lived.
Once we arrived at The Bamboo restaurant, we took off in his aluminum boat across the Lake in another direction to his remote property just below one of the volcanoes.
We stayed in his house. It was made of cut stones and was a beautiful house of local design. We used that as a sort of home base.
Semuc Champey
After just a few days, we took off with our backpacks to explore the rest of the country. We took the long, arduous journey via shuttle van over mountain passes and treacherous dirt roads to the natural reserve Semuc Champey, located deep in the jungle.
At Semuc we hiked to the famous mirador that overlooks the river with the limestone bridge and turquoise pools. The better part of the morning I spent swimming in the turquoise pools. This is where I met the French girl Aurelie.
We returned to our hostel that was in walking distance for lunch.
Later that afternoon went up the river the other way to for cliff jumping and to view the waterfall. There is also an intimidating rope swing for those who dare. I partook.
We did a group tubing session down the river which was interesting to say the least. The next activity was on of my favorites!
Kan’ba Cave
I never imagined doing this.
We were given candles and filed into the entrance of a dark cave one-by-one. Once inside our candles were lit. This was the only source of light. We proceeded further into the depths of the cave.
Walking turned into crawling.
Crawling into wading narrow paths in unknown depths of water. There were cables strung above the water to grab onto with your free hand because wading the entire time would have been tiresome.
Scaling slippery rocks and makeshift ladders we made our way deeper and deeper.
I passed by powerful whirlpool thinking if I got pulled into it, I would never see the light of day again.
Inside the cave our local guide marked is with a natural paint-like substance on our faces and told us some lore about the caves and their history.
The total time in and out was about an hour total. It really was a magical, thrilling experience.
After a few days there, and adding another traveler to our crew, we set out for the Petén. It is the northernmost department of Guatemala and is famous for vast tropical rainforests, diverse wildlife, and most of all its Mayan ruins.
Tikal National Park
We arrived in the capital, Flores, an island city in the middle of Lake Petén Itzá. Flores is a prime location to access the Mayan ruins of Tikal. Tikal one of the largest archaeological sites and was an urban center of the pre-Columbian Maya civilization.
We did a full day at Tikal National Park with a guided tour offered by the park, and it was superb!
Ancient ruins, temples, Mayan lore, monkeys, giant bugs, what more could you ask for?
Alices in El Remata
There is a lovely guest house in the town of El Remata you should stay at on the exterior of the lake called Alice’s Guesthouse and Restaurant. From there, you can easily get a shuttle van to Yaxha.
Alice’s is a short walk from Lake Peten Itza which offers great docks for sunbathing, swimming, and catching a beautiful sunset. Beware though, there are crocodiles in the lake! The owner only mentioned this to us after we went swimming upon their recommendation!
The water was fantastic. Clear and of a mild temperature. I only saw a few turtles. No crocodiles. I would have been extremely apprehensive if I was told there were crocodiles beforehand. I’m glad the owner did what they did.
Yaxhá
Since we were in the region, and had plenty of time with no fixed schedule, we decided to visit the lesser-known ruin site of Yaxhá. If you have the time, I highly recommend you spend a day there also.
It was a completely different experience and vibe compared the Tikal. Less gatekept. It felt like a real experience of exploring ancient Mayan ruins. Many of the ruins in Yaxhá you can climb. It’s far less touristy and there were very few people when I went.
Fun fact—Survivor: Guatemala Season 11 was filmed at Yaxhá.
Do not swim in Yaxhá Lagoon! There are many crocodiles and signs are posted.
After exploring the Mayan ruins in the jungles of the northern highlands we set off to the tropical rainforest of Rio Dulce.
Rio Dulce
We took a passenger van to get to Rio Ducle. Passenger vans are a huge part of the transportation system in Guatemala. There seems to be travel agencies just about everywhere that can arrange where you want to go for relatively inexpensive prices.
Rio Dulce is located in the department of Izabal. We went for two main reasons: Finca el Paraiso and the Castle of San Felipe.
Castillo de San Felipe
This castle was built by the Spanish around the 1600s to prevent pirates from looting the villages! It is a true fortress and is open for exploration. It guards the entrance to Lake Izabal. The Caribbean Sea flows into the Rio Dulce which made it a target of pirates.
Finca El Paraiso
It translates to “The Paradise Farm” and is literally what this place is. It is the most unique hot spring I have ever been to. Image this: you enter a cool river in the middle of the jungle. There is a 12-meter-high waterfall cascading down a rock face into the river. When you go stand under the waterfall and discover the temperature is around 104 degrees!
Cool below—steaming hot above. It makes the mind go wild. Sensory overload.
To top it off, the entrance fee is unparalleled. 10 Q. It’s on private property so you are also supporting locals to boot.
Puente de Rio Dulce
I didn’t know this was actually a thing at the time I was talking on it gazing out upon the beautiful, enormous Lake Izabal. Apparently, this is the longest bridge in Guatemala. We had finished a filling dinner. The sun was starting to set and a walk to the center of the bridge looked enticing and was needed to walk off our full bellies. It didn’t disappoint. It has a marvelous view.
Antigua
Antigua is a Spanish Colonial city surrounded by volcanoes. It’s also one of the most popular cities in Guatemala. When I was doing my research, it came up the most. It’s actually not a very big city, but, in my experience, most of the cities in Guatemala were not big. At least in the sense of being from the states near the Los Angeles area.
Antigua is beautiful. It is steeped in a variety of cultures and has a rich history. Antigua actually served as the capital from 1542-1773. If you love older Spanish colonial architecture there is plenty of it here. Especially in the form of churches.
I came here to explore the colonial city vibes and most of all, plan my trip to hike Volcán Acatenango.
Volcán Acatenango
Acatenango is a 13,045-foot dormant stratovolcano. It has not erupted in some time but offers splendid views of its active sister Volcan de Fuego. This hike is not for the faint of heart. It is a strenuous 4,900-feet elevation gain over 4 to 6 hours. You need you need to be in decent physical fitness in my opinion. It’s also considered a high-altitude hike. I did not experience or feel any changes due to the altitude change. But I will say I have been in Guatemala for a few weeks by that point traversing various altitude gains.
Not 13,045 feet though.
The hike takes 2 days and 1 night. Without a doubt, hire a guide with a reputable tour company. People have died trying to hike this on their own. They froze to death if my memory serves me.
I had no cold weather gear. I mean who would on a trip to Guatemala? The locals got you covered! At the base of the volcano there is a little village where we picked out jackets, gloves, beanies, sleeping bags, and anything else we would need. This was included with my tour package. I thought that was just great.
I also rented a walking stick for 5 Q and was thankful that I did.
Day 1
I was picked up from my hotel in Antigua by the tour guide and his driver. A few others were already in the van and we picked up a few more. There was 6 of us total going on the hike with the guide. A small intimate group.
We drove for a while until we got to the small village at the base of the volcano I mentioned above. There we picked out our cold weather gear. I think they even had backpacks available for those who didn’t have one. I had unloaded most of my stuff from my backpack and left it back at my hotel in Antigua.
Then, just like that we began the hike!
It starts out walking through some trails between corn fields. Even here at the base we were hiking up hill. Prepare for this for the entire hike. After all, you will be hiking up a volcano. There is a sign the says ‘I ❤️ Acatenango’. A perfect location for a photo to memorialize your suffering ahead. After that, the incline really starts to increase.
Soon enough I found myself crawling up the steep mountainside trail. Thankfully it is carved in cutbacks for some parts making it more manageable.
One of my favorite aspects of the hike was the changing ecosystems. It went from agricultural fields of squash and corn to cloud forest. The cloud forest was a lush moist environment with old-growth trees. I kept my eyes peeled trying to spot myself and elusive Quetzal! After traversing through the cloud forest for some it turned into tropical alpine/subalpine forest.
The moist, lush greenness peeled away as well as the temperature. Pine and Oak trees dominated the flora.
After about 5 hours of hiking and with a few breaks, we reached the camp. The camp is about an hour’s hike below the summit. We picked out our tents an dropped off our gear in them.
Not long after arriving at the camp, out guide informed us that we were going to hike across the saddle to Volcan de Fuego. The active volcano that erupts every 15 minutes or so!
Fuego Night Hike
We head back down and across the Mestiza saddle. We began to hike up the saddle and closer to the erupting Fuego. A sign distinctively said “DANGER: Do Not Enter” but our guide assured us it was safe. He had my trust. Not too sure about the others but we all pushed on.
By the time we reached the location that would serve as our viewpoint to watch smoke and lava spew from Fuego it was dark and visibility was very low. A thick cover of clouds had rolled in, and we sat and stared into a white wall. Unfortunately, our front row seats of the show had been blocked. You can’t win them all.
We headed back to camp back down and across the saddle. It was now the thick of night and quite windy. Thankfully most of us had flashlights. It didn’t matter though, at this point we were a unit, a family, and were looking out for each other.
Dinner by the Camp Fire
Upon returning to camp, we ate a home cooked meal by the fire under a small log built lean-to. Once night had fallen I could really see the lava erupting from Fuego next door. Nighttime without a doubt has the best viewing experience. The thick white clouds still lingered around the top.
Still, I was able to see the violent release of gases and light from the eruptions. On the larger eruptions I would see the white cloud light up and see lava come shooting out of it! The temperature dropped to near 0 degrees at night and the wind was insufferable. My fingers were so cold trying to get decent footage with my phone’s camera was difficult. Plus, this was before I started bringing battery packs with me and my phone was low on battery. I wanted to save some for photos of the summit the next morning.
I watched for a while longer from the inside of my tent peering out through the half open door before I curled up in my sleeping bag in an attempt to warm my bones.
Day 2
The next morning, we woke up long before dawn. Weather conditions were prevailing, so we began hike to the summit. It was about an hour to the top. The closer we got to the top, the more groups of hikers I began to see. It had felt like we were the only group up there the night before. Apparently, there are quite a few other camps situated around the top of the volcano.
Near the top the ecosystem was Alpine and consisted of volcanic rock, scree, and some high altitude plants. Pretty barren for the most part. The temperatures were still very cold.
We summitted just in time to watch the sunrise! The wind was very strong on top making it feel about 10 degrees colder than it actually was. We took some photos. Watched some early morning eruptions of Fuego in the dim light and drank in the sun coming up over the horizon. I witnessed one of the coolest effects—seeing the shadow of Acatenango cast upon the Earth. There skies were crisp and clear. It was one of the most beautiful sunrises I’ve ever experienced.
We trekked the hour back down to base camp. Ate some breakfast. Packed up our belongings and headed back down. The hike down seemed to pass by quicker than the hike up, but I feel like it’s always that way.
This was one of my favorite experiences in Guatemala. If you are physically fit and mentally prepared you must do it! And even if you’re not!
You can either find a reliable travel agency in Antigua to book either hike with or book in advance with GetYourGuide.
Volcan Picaya
If you can’t envision yourself hiking Acatenango or don’t have two days to dedicate to it then you should go to Picaya. It is an easy hike compared to Acatenango, maybe still moderate since it is uphill. But, you can rent a horse to take you up if you wish! The locals will try very hard to sell you on this the entire walk up.
Picaya is an active volcano. You don’t hike to the top of it. Just to the base where you can see the lava flows from some of the recent eruptions. One of the highlights here is roasting marshmallows using the thermal heat. There are pockets in the rocks that are hot enough to get a marshmallow nice and golden brown!
The views overlooking the land below are breathtaking!
Guatemala highlights: Final thoughts
This was my first travel adventure, and it completely ruined my life. I wouldn’t take it back for the life of me.
It changed me. Forever.
I returned home a different person. I now had an insatiable lust to travel and see more of the world. Life back home wasn’t the same. I moved into a new place back home and began another chapter of my life. Travel changes you. It expanded my mind and my perspective of the world.
I made a vow to myself to travel abroad at least once a year, and I have been fulfilling and exceeding that goal each year.
Guatemala is an excellent place to begin your first travel adventure. I hope my post has inspired you to do so!
