Out and About in Guatemala

We’ve gone on a number of trips around Guatemala since our first visit to Lake Atitlan in December.  Most of these were limited to extended weekends or day trips and included trips with family and friends alike.  Some stops along the way were new to us, while we returned to many others.  Here is a recap of our Guatemala 2024 tour to date.

Lake Atitlan Revisited:

As I discussed in my previous blog, Lake Atitlan is one of the most beautiful lakes in the world.  Its shores are dotted by nine villages, but we’ve only stayed in Panajachel so far.  We’ve visited and learned about a few more since December.  Santa Catarina Palopó is the only other village that is easy to reach by car and is known for being blue.  I mean that literally: nearly every building is painted sky blue, a fun way to set itself apart from the other towns on the lake.  It’s also known as a great destination to buy ceramics, so if you do make the trip in a car, save some space for souvenirs.  San Marcos and San Pedro have developed a reputation as a destination for westerners looking for yoga retreats and vegan food.  I didn’t find San Marcos to my liking, as there were too many Americans and Europeans in need of showers and shampoo with expensive backpacks and Alo yoga gear, diluting the authenticity of such an otherwise interesting atmosphere. 

Tecpan:

For those making the drive up to Lake Atitlan, you must put aside a few hours to stop in Tecpan.  It’s roughly halfway between Antigua and the lake and just over an hour from Panajachel.  If you are hungry, you can stop at one of many highway-side restaurants such as Bonanza, Rincon Suizo (an alpine-themed restaurant with a separate farm slightly off the main road), or the local favorite of Katok (chapines love the chancol cheese). 

Your best bet is to combine food with history and make a trip to Iximche.  Iximche is an old Maya site and former capital before the Spanish pushed them out in the 1524.  I highly recommend using Melvin as your guide, who speaks English, Spanish, and the Maya dialect Kak’qi’kel.  It was really fascinating getting his insight into the significance of the ruins, and entry is only 50 quetzales (about 7 USD).  Do be sure to leave your dogs behind since this is a historical site.  Directly outside the park is a little farm to table restaurant that made everything fresh to order.  We watched them pick herbs for our cocktails seconds before delivering them to our table.  The food was inexpensive yet one of the best meals we’ve had in Guatemala.

Pacaya:

My sister and I hiked the Pacaya volcano during her visit in January. It was a manageable hike but still a good workout. The pathways are all well maintained and clear enough to follow, but we were still advised to hire a local guide because thieves will target foreigners and rob the vulnerable. The trek was a little over 3 hours round trip, including a break for pizza cooked in ovens built into the volcanic rock. It was a delicious, yet very expensive, break in our hike. Unfortunately, the typically stellar views were obscured by really poor air conditions. Wildfires combined with pollution account for the layer of grey seen in the photos below. Pacaya is still quite active, and vendors at the top sell merchandise from the most recent lava flows. The black, jagged landscape feels like walking through Mordor. Speaking of Lord of the Rings….

Hobbitenango:

A very fun, albeit bizarre, stop in our tour of Guatemala was Hobbitenango, a little slice of J.R.R. Tolkien’s fantasy world stuck in the mountains outside of Antigua.  This Shire-esque village has hobbit holes you can stay in overnight, a mini-golf course, a rope swing, a restaurant, a bar, and tons of photogenic locations spread across the grounds.  A few words of caution, though.  First, the hobbit holes sell out quickly, so book far in advance.  Second, the other accommodation you can stay in is two rooms built into what looks like a shed.  While the quarters are comfortable, the bathroom is outside.  Due to the altitude, it can get incredibly windy, so much so that during our night there our sleep was severely disrupted.  Plus, there was damage to the water system the following morning and we couldn’t flush the toilets.  Finally, drivers beware.  The ride up to the location is very steep, and though you park at a lower lot and are driven up by trucks, you may want to make sure your car is able to manage the incline on less-than-ideal dirt roads. 

Semuc Champey:

This is the most remote location we visited, but definitely worth the drive.  Located in Alta Verapaz, the whole trip takes close to seven hours.  We opted to get an Airbnb in Coban, the capital and largest city of the department, which is four to five hours from Guatemala City depending on traffic.  From there, Semuc Champey is slightly over two hours away.  We recommend taking an SUV or other 4X4 vehicle as the roads leading up to the park are hilly and unpaved.  A day at the park starts with a short, uphill climb to a picturesque lookout spot.  If you go on a weekend, you will likely spend as much time waiting in line for the perfect selfie over the pools as it took to reach the location in the first place.  While you wait, be sure to buy a fresh coconut to restore your strength; you’ll have plenty of time to finish it.  Once you get down to the pools, change into your water shoes, leave your things in one of the lockers, and jump into the refreshingly freezing pools.  The water is crystal clear and the little fishies will gladly feast on the dead skin on your feet for a free spa treatment.  The rocks in the pools are very slippery, so proper footwear is strongly recommended.  If you have time, you can also go cave diving.  We were planning on doing this the following day, but a combination of norovirus and rain derailed our agenda.

That sums up an eventful Q1 2024 for us.  Outside of Guatemala, we’ve also made two trips to Mexico and one to Bogota.  Those trips, and more, will be recounted in the posts to follow.