One month in Guatemala

Guatemala stole my heart from the first town we visited. It is such a diverse country, home to rain forests, volcanoes, beaches, colonial cities and Mayan ruins. Despite being flagged as a bit of a risky country safety wise for travelers I’ve always felt safe in Guatemala during my month stint in this multi faceted country.

Route:

Getting there:

We caught a collectivo from the Guatemalan border after coming in from Belize. Collectivos are little mini vans that cost next to nothing and the main aim seems to be to see how many people can be fitted into a 16 seater mini bus. Last count was 31. Top tip- sit on a single seat if you can, less chances of more people trying to pile onto your seat, although there’s a high chance you may be thrown a child to hold on your lap for the journey. The collectivo from the border to Flores cost 30Q (€3) and was about two and a half hours. After that we hopped into a Tuk Tuk for ten minutes to bring us to our hostel in Flores.

Flores

Flores is a quaint and picturesque colonial town located on a tiny island on Lago Peten Itza. It’s connected to the mainland via a causeway bridge. Usually people base themselves in Flores when exploring the nearby Mayan ruins such as Tikal. It’s a fairly laid back town with cute cafes and restaurants, cobbled streets and colourful painted buildings. Although Flores is used as a base for exploring Tikal, it’s worth putting aside a day to explore the tiny town and the nearby rope swing. I spent three nights in Flores which was just perfect.

Things to do in Flores:

1. Visit the Mayan ruins at Tikal: I booked the tour through the hostel and did the sunset tour. I hear from people who did the sunrise one that they didn’t get a clear view of sunset or even see sunset due to the fog in the mornings and you had a better chance of seeing a sunset. Plus I didn’t fancy the 3am start that would have been necessary for sunrise. Tikal was incredible, it feels like you are miles from civilisation. As Mayan ruins go I was facinated by Tikal. The sunset tour was slightly more expensive than the day tours as you stay in the park after it has closed. With the transport, the English speaking guide and the park entrance the total was 250Q (€27).

2. Wander the cobbled streets of Flores– this place is a photographers dream.

3. Jorge rope swing- we got a boat for the day to hit up three places, one of which was the rope swing. If you like jumping off high things into water and swinging off ropes like Tarzan you’ll enjoy this place. Or if neither of those things appeal to you, you can always just vegetate into a rubber ring and drink beers. The boat ride is about 5 minutes from Flores and it’s basically a diving board and a few ropes hanging out of big trees to swing off into the water at some lad called Jorge’s house. It cost 10Q to hang out here for the day, no matter how many times you swing from the ropes. Would recommend to a friend.

3. Hike to the lookout tower in San Miguel- the second thing we got the boat to bring us to. San Miguel is a small village located on the mainland across the lake from Flores. We didn’t go to the village, just hiked up to the look out point which gives a fantastic view of Flores. And when I say hiked up, it takes less than ten mins up a few steps.

4. Visit the beach- this is the last place the boat brought us to. A beach is a bit of a stretch but a nice area to cool off from the humid heat of Flores and chill out for a few hours. We got a sweet deal with the boat driver and he waited around for us all day while we did our bits at the various stop offs and brought us back to Flores as the sun was setting.

5. Watch the sun set over the lake: we perch ourselves on the roof top of a lovely vegetarian restaurant and watched the sun go down over the lake.

Where to stay:

If you ask any backpacker they will most likely say they stayed at Los Amigos. I loved this hostel. We got a private room which was in another building across the street from the main bar and restaurant area which meant it was nice and quiet in the mornings bar a bird at seemed as bad as the roosters we’ve encountered. If we had access to a shot gun, I’m fairly certain Juliette would have made an attempt at shooting it. The food is amazing at Los amigos, they’ve nice hammocks to chill out at, the cutest bunnies Ive ever seen to help you smooth a hangover, a beautiful courtyard to chill out and eat in, a club or bar called the night lonuge with giant Jenga and fuzzball and you can book any buses and tours through them.

Where to Eat:

• Maracuyá: lovely vegan and vegetarian restaurant overlooking the lake. They do daily specials and have a fire man Sam pole to come down if you don’t fancy using the stairs on decent from the roof top.
• Cool beans: great for breakfast and lunch. Really cute cafe over looking the lake with a gorgeous outdoor seating area.
• Sky restaurent: they do huge tasty pizzas and a great happy hour. Two cocktails for €3, can’t go wrong.
• Amigos hostel: good international menu and great salads, smoothies and burgers at backpacker friendly prices.

Semuc Champey

Semuc Champey is a series of limestone bridges and caves that weave through part of central Guatemala, connects with the Cabahón river. With the limestone rock and the river, you get a series of tiered pools that resemble something from fairy land.

Semuc Champey isn’t easy to get to. The best way is booking a direct shuttle from Antigua or Flores or wherever you are coming from. I booked my bus from Flores to Semuc Champey through Los Amigos hostel. There is only one time option for this long bus ride, the bus leaves at 8am and there’s no night buses. I was spoils in Mexico with buses. The buses in Guatemala tend to be small mini vans where even I at 5’6 are able to lick my knees they tend to be forced up to my chest for 10 hours. The bus was about 10 hours from Flores to Antigua with terrible roads for the last hour. We had two toilet and food stops but the choice is usually fairly woeful so bring snacks or a packed lunch.

What to do:

1. Hike to the viewpoint: From Lanquin we got a pickup truck for 30 minutes to the park of Semuc Champey. The walk to the view point is a steep non stop uphill for 20 minutes but doable for all. I wore flip flops but it can be slippy, especially with wet and sweaty feet so I’d suggest something sturdier. You will be rewarded with incredible views and see that it’s far more beautiful than Instagram has portrayed.

2. Swing off into the river and give yourself the worst belly flop of your life. Throughly enjoyable, would recommend to a friend to not go in stomach first.

3. Check out the waterfall: this is really near the rope swing and nice for a swim and a picture.

4. Swim in the limestone pools.

5. Explore the wet caves via candle light: I know, wet caves and fire don’t tend to go well together. You will be in pitch dark.

6. Tube down the river with bag o’ cans: I’ve no pictures of this as I didn’t take anything, everything will get lost or wet so just take yourself and some beers whilst you lie back and mossy down the river. The rapids are very tame.

Where to stay:

Zephyr Lodge. Hands down the best hostel I’ve stayed at in Guatemala. You aren’t near much here so we ate all our meals in Zephyr which was perfect as the food was delisious, reasonably priced and plenty of choice. Go for the delux dorm, it was only an extra €2 and well worth it for the privacy, bathroom and views. Everything is done on a tab system in Zephyr, down to the tours and booking buses onwards from there. You can check your bill at anytime but of course I left it until I was checking out, like how you’ve the fear to check your bank account on a Sunday morning when you wake up next to a bag of curry chips. I’m still not ready to talk about my bill. I’m fairness it wasn’t that bad for 3 days of drinks, food and buses. Top tip: do not get involved with the dice game. I played three times, rolled a one every single time and had to buy shots for a million people. Although it can be really fun if you don’t lose every time. It is a bit of a party hostel but the rooms are far away from the bar so you can do an Irish goodbye, sneak off and sleep very soundly in the outrageously comfy beds. The wifi is on from 7am -8pm which is good, forces people to be social.

Antigua

There are few cities I can list of the top of my head that rivals Antiguas beauty. It’s a small colonial city surrounded by volcanoes, some of which are active and can be seen going off throughout the day. It is a post card perfect Unescorted- listed city with so much charm, culture, art and Instagram opportunities. The colourful buildings and cobbled streets with erupting volcanoes in the background make it a perfect city to wander around. It has an abundance of cute cafes,great restaurants and a lively bar scene.

From Semuc Champey, Antigua was a bitch to get to but I think anywhere from Semuc Champey is a headache to get to. It was another ten hour bus with two stops, one of them seemed to be a shop that only sells crips. From Guatemala City or Lake Atitlan, Antigua is only a two hour shuttle away.

There is so many great places to eat, stay and things to do so I figured it deserved a post of its own. Have a look at my top things to do in Antigua for things to do, where to stay and most importantly, where to eat.

After three days in Antigua I got a shuttle to Xela to begin a week of language school before heading towards Lake Atitlan from Xela via a gruelling but amazing three day hike.

Both of these experiences, my week in Spanish school with a homestay and the three day hike with Quetzaltrekkers to Lake Atitlan were highlights of my month in Guatemala so I’ve covered them in separate posts.

Lake Atitlan

Lago de Atitlan is one of the major tourist attractions in Guatemala. It is the deepest lake in Central America at 300m deep and is 18km x 8km. The lakes basin is volcanic in nature and was formed 84,000 years ago.

Santa Cruz:

Santa Cruz is a tiny village on the lake. I stayed here for one night in Free Cerveza who were having their second year anniversary. It was like Fyre Festival. Teepee style tents with mattresses on the floor. Unlike Frye the tents had power outlets and lights. The showers are great here and the toilets are compostable. After shiting in the woods for a few days any toilet was better then a literal hole in the ground. They do communal dinners and everything is run on a tab system which is handy. From 5-7pm with the purchase of dinner you get free unlimited beer, hence the name. It’s right on the lake and had a nice deck to chill out on or jump into the lake.

San Marcos

I got a boat from Santa Cruz to San Marcos for a night. San Marcos is known as a hippy part of the lake and is very chilled out. They have lots of spiritual ceremonies and yoga workshops. I ever saw a flyer for a cuddling workshop while I was there. Basically anything goes. I stayed just one night. Its fairly small and after one evening of drum circles and a morning of chanting yoga, I had reached my threshold. One other thing, there was one ATM in San Marcos that was out of service so make sure you bring ebkigh cash with you.

Where to stay:

Hostel Del Lago: this was a nice hostel with a great terrace in front of the lake. They provided a good free breakfast from the main menu, yoga classes and had a great restaurant and bar on site.

Where to eat:

There is an abundance of vegan, vegetarian and amazing restaurants to choose from in San Marcos. My time was limited here but I made it my business to try as many of the recommended places as possible.

• Circles cafe– great for sandwiches, breakfast, coffee, acai bowls and one of the best chocolate brownies I’ve ever had.
• Fe- good choice on the menu. The curries are excellent and good sandwiches at lunch time.
• Samsara– vegetarian and vegan restaurant. Not huge portions but very tasty and healthy food. They also have one in Antigua.
• Hostel del Lago– amazing sandwiches, good pancakes for breakfast and had a very good vegan and vegetarian menu. Most things were vegetarian or vegan actually. The peanut butter power balls are a must try.
• Dolce Gelato– Ferro Roche and Kinder Bueno gelato. Need I say anymore.

San Juan

San Juan is a bigger village on the lake and has more of a local feel. It is known for its weaving. The local women sell woven items which are beautiful. The walls are covered with colourful habdpainted murals.

Where to stay

We treated ourselves and stayed in ECO Hotel Uxlabil Hotel. A lovely hotel with free breakfast and kayaks over looking the lake. It was equal walking distance between San Juan and San Pedro towns. We got a triple room between three so it wasn’t too expensive but more expensive then a dorm and shared bathroom.

Where to eat

Cafe El Artesano. A gorgeous Italian wine and cheese restaurant. Book at least two weeks in advance. They book up ages in advance.

San Pedro

San Pedro is much bigger and more of a backpacker vibe then the other towns. It’s more lively and has more of a going out scene. San Pedro was probably my favourite town for just things going on and to be able to walk around.

Where to stay

I didn’t actually stay in San Pedro but friends of mine did and had good things to say about Hostel Fe and Mr Mullets.

Where to eat

• Shanti Shanti- they serve literally everything. Really reasonably priced.
• Ya hummus- drinks for 10Q no matter what the time and great cheap lunch and dinner options. Lots of falafel, hummus, salad and veggie options but they do have serve meat options too.
• Idea connection- good WiFi, pasta, breakfasts and French bakery.

After four relaxing days at Lake Atitlan I got a shuttle to Antigua which took about 4 hours and cost 50 Q. I spend another two nights in Antigua. I mainly went back to Antigua to catch a bus to El Salvador but also to attend the all night pool party in an abandoned pool 20 minutes outside of Antigua.

Other popular backpacker places I skipped in Guatemala:

• The beach at El Paradon
• Rio Dulce
• Livingston

That wraps up an amazing month in Guatemala. So far Guatemala is my favourite country I’ve visited. The people, the culture, the diversity of the landscape and the epic volcanos made it an incredible month. I got a bus from Antigua to Santa Ana in El Salvador, to where the journey continues…