Guatemala Itinerary - Winter 2023 — Tuljak! Travel Blog

Oh, Guatemala! How you bedeviled me! Since we visited Peru earlier this summer, I have been itching to return to Latin America. Given that we only had limited time over the Thanksgiving break, I focused on Central America, a region I have yet to visit. Guatemala immediately jumped out to me because of its well-developed tourism infrastructure and tolerable security. November also happens to be the beginning of Guatemala’s dry season. The ‘eternal spring’ of the highlands is particularly tempting; it was just the winter escape we were looking for.

The ruined of the Metropolitan Cathedral.

Unfortunately, Guatemala is not immune from corruption and political instability. If you watched the news, you might have heard of a slow-moving coup happening there. There have been regular protests throughout the country over the past few months. The most common type of protest has been blockading roadways. Typically, I was not easily fazed by protest. However, given how tight our travel schedule was, any blockade could cause some problems for us. On the other hand, I worried that Guatemala's political situation might escalate. I am genuinely afraid Guatemala could be the next Israle or Syria.

Day 1 - New York - Guatemala City- Antigua Guatemala

To save a hundred dollars, I elected to book our tickets with a four-hour layover in Miami. In hindsight, it was probably not the best choice, given how short our trip was. When we arrived at La Aurora International Airport in Guatemala City, it was three in the afternoon already. If Google Maps were to be believed, it should be about an hour’s drive to Antigua, the tourist magnet of Guatemala. But as soon as we entered our Uber, it became clear Google underestimated the travel jam of Guatemala City. It ended up taking us three hours to travel just 25 miles.

Finally, we arrived at the lovely Porta Hotel Antigua just after six. We were both thoroughly exhausted. We can’t believe it took us twelve hours to get here. After a quick freshen-up, we were out and about looking for dinner. Our first impression of Antigua was great. It reminded us a lot of the Yucatecan city of Merida. The cobbled streets only added to the city’s historical ambiance. Our search for dinner led us to Los Tres Tiempos, an upscale Guatemalan restaurant serving traditional dishes such as pepián. It was a lovely welcome to Guatemala. Since we were exhausted, we were in bed by nine o’clock!

Day 2 - Antigua Guatemala

I woke up early this morning to take advantage of the clear sky. I was immediately taken by Volcán de Agua, which towers over the city like a sacred guardian. Antigua was sirene at this time of the day, and it was perfect for photography. After about an hour, I met Brian for breakfast back at the hotel. Their Guatemala breakfast buffet was good, but the real star was the spectacular view of the volcano from the dining terrace. Unfortunately, the cloud rolled in so quickly that the sky was overcast before we finished the meal.

The view of Volcán de Agua from Antigua’s Parque Central.

Because this trip was so last-minute, I did very little research about Antigua ahead of time. I signed up for a last-minute free walking tour with Guate Tours. Before joining the tour, we had time to try our first cup of Guatemalan coffee at La Vid Coffee Roaster. I think it has been more than fifteen years since I last joined a ‘free” walking tour. I was apprehensive about these free tours as they often involve stops at the gift shops. My fear quickly materialized as our tour started with Casa del Jade. Fortunately, the sales pitch was not intense, and we did learn something about Guatemalan jades.

In the end, we enjoyed the tour. Unlike free walking tours in Europe, the walking tours here were led by professional guides from the local community. Not only did we have an overview of the various historical monuments, but we also learned about Guatemalan history and contemporary politics. During the tour, the guide recommended a couple of places for lunch. One of the places was Rincón Antigüeño, a local favorite spot known for its grilled chicken. We can’t help ourselves by ordering their version of pepián. It was a third of the price of the dish from last night but just as delicious.

After lunch, we visited the National Art Museum of Guatemala (MUNAG). Located within the Royal Palace of the Captain General, the museum holds a sizeable collection of art from the pre-Colombian era to the contemporary time. The museum also houses some of the most significant documents in Guatemala, including the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the first draft of the National Anthem. Given the presence of these important artifacts, we were shocked that there were barely any visitors, both locals and foreign tourists. Few travel bloggers wrote about this place at all.

As the weather deteriorated, we retreated to the comfort of Rooftop Antigua. Brian discovered the great IPA from the local brewery Antigua Cerveza. Judging from who was at the bar, it seemed like Antigua was a magnet for digital nomads and Spanish language schools. We can see why this city is so popular with foreigners and why it is one of the most attractive places to live. We ended our evening with dinner at Como Como. Unbeknown to us until later, it was a Belgian restaurant and probably not the most sensible choice for our short stay in Guatemala.

Day 3 - Antigua Guatemala - Panajachel

Despite the grim weather forecast I saw last evening, I woke up early today to see whether the sky might be clear by magic. To my surprise, we had a bright sky for much of the morning. It confirmed my suspicion that the Guatemalan weather forecast was unreliable. Given the unexpectedly good weather, I hiked to Hill of the Cross (Cerro de La Cruz) just north of the colonial city. The hike was short but steep in some sections. The views from the viewpoint were breathtaking. You get a beautiful view of Volcán de Agua and two other volcanos, Acatenango and Fuego. Among them, Acatenango stands out because of its regular eruptions.

The ruined Church of Our Lady of El Carmen.

After my hike, Brian and I met up for breakfast at Cafe Cafe Gutamela. Unfortunately, Brian was not feeling the best. He headed back to the hotel to rest until the check-out time. I took my time to visit some historic monuments we missed out on yesterday: the ruins of the Metropolitan Cathedral and the Museum of Colonial Arts. The staff at the museum was kind to point out that the museum’s courtyard is on the 100 Guatemalan quetzal bills. I was surprised that this museum was not more popular among the visitors.

Our next stop was the town of Panajachel, the gateway to Lake Atitlán. Because we all had only two days at Lake Atitlán, Panajachel was the obvious choice for setting up a base. The shuttle showed up promptly at 12:20 pm. Once again, it took over three hours to cover a short distance. Guatemala certainly needs some serious investment in transportation infrastructure. We had a lovely serviced apartment on Calle Santander, the commercial thoroughfare in town. Once settled in, we had an early dinner at Guajimbo's, a Uruguayan restaurant. It was our first time trying Uruguayan food, and we were amazed by the quality of the meal. It was our favorite meal on this trip.

With streams of tuk-tuks and roadside vendors, Panajachel reminded me of Southeast Asia. It certainly did not have the charms I imagined of a Mayan town. We were eager to see Lake Atitlán, but unfortunately, the weather was not great. We could hardly see the volcanos in the distance. That said, the atmosphere along the lakeshore was festive. Watching local families enjoying the street foods and the water was just part of the fun.

Day 4 - Panajachel - San Pedro La Laguna - San Juan La Laguna - Santiago Atitlán - Panajachel

Today was our only full day at Lake Atitlán. Sadly, we woke up together again this morning with an overcast sky. We were ready to take on the lake after a quick breakfast of Greek yogurt. Amazingly, we got at least a peek at the blue sky as we arrived at the public ferry dock. The public ferry, or lanchas, is an affordable way to travel to different villages along the shore and is a part of the cultural experience. There were at least five stops before getting to our first destination of the day: San Pedro La Laguna. It is one of the larger towns on the lake. It is a magnet for backpackers and purportedly “the place” for nightlife.

View of Lake Atitlán from Mirador Kaqasiiwaan.

Despite its towering reputation, I did not quite see the charms that all travel bloggers were talking about. After our morning coffee at the charming Tornado's Coffee, we made our way to discover some of the sights in town, including the street market and the Church of Saint Peter. It did not take long before we felt we had seen the whole place. After a short tuk-tuk ride, we arrived at the neighboring village of San Juan La Laguna, the artsy town of Lake Atitlán. I could immediately tell how this town was more to our liking. Our first order of business was to hike up Mirador Kaqasiiwaan. This is a kiddie version of the famous Indian Point, which is said to be the prettiest spot along the lake.

The view from the viewpoint was great, but it was hardly the most beautiful that I have seen. I began to question why everyone spoke so highly of Lake Atitlán. Perhaps I was the victim of unrealistic high expectations. After the hike, we took a stroll down La Calle de las Sombrillas, the main commercial strip of San Juan. As the name suggests, the street was covered by countless umbrellas, which made it instantly Instagrammable. Lining streets were many shops selling Mayan textiles and paintings. As colorful as the street was, it was too busy to be enjoyable.

La Calle de las Sombrillas in San Juan La Laguna.

After a lovely lunch at Utz Food I Bar & Restaurante, it was time to move on to our day of village hopping. Our next stop was Santiago Atitlán on the south shore of Lake Atitlán. But to get there, we had to backtrack to San Pedro’s dedicated dock for Santiago. At this point, I was thoroughly annoyed. So far, our day on the lake was quite anticlimactic. I did not see how many travelers could spend a week around the lake. Was I missing something?

Upon disembarking at Santiago, my impression of this town was not much better. But getting past the souvenir rows that lead from the dock, the city has a workday and a cosmopolitan vibe compared to San Pedro or San Juan. Santiago is the largest and the most “native” town along the lake. After about half an hour, I slowly warmed up to the city. After visiting the city’s main church and paying tribute to Stanley Rother, we set out to hunt down Santiago’s most famous resident: Maximón. This enigmatic folk Catholic diety is known as a chain-smoking saint who embraces all the vices in life. Maximón is hosted by different families each year. It is a thrill to figure out where he lives in town. Thanks to modern technology (aka. GoogleMaps), we tracked down Maximón without hiring a guide. Our visit to his home was a definite cultural highlight in Guatemala.

After bidding goodbye to Maximón, we were ready to head back to Panajachel. We were both thoroughly exhausted. On the ferry back to Panajachel, we overheard conversations about Lake Atitlán being the most beautiful and relaxing place they had ever visited. It just showed how each traveler could have dramatically different experiences. We capped our day as we did yesterday, with dinner at Guajimbo's and a stroll along the waterfront. Luckily, the weather was better this afternoon. I could at least see the faint outlines of the volcanos across the lake.

Day 5 - Panajachel - Santa Catarina Palopó - Antigua Guatemala - Guatemala City

The weather was amazing this morning. I was so glad we found a morning of crisp blue sky. At last, we got the “perfect” Lake Atitlán we had been hoping for. It certainly changed our perspective of the lake. It was too bad that we only had a few more hours before our shuttle back to Antigua. Today was Sunday, and it was significantly more subdued than previous days. Roughly a third of shops were closed, and it was a nice reprieve from the hecticness of this tourism-driven town. On the other hand, the dining options are much more limited; our breakfast at Lazzaroni was vile.

It may be cheesy, but I got to admit this was a great shot of Lake Atitlán.

The aim for this morning was to visit the nearby village of Santa Catarina Palopó, which is easily accessible via a quick 15-minute tuk-tuk ride. But despite its proximity to Panajachel, Santa Catarina was rarely visited by foreigners until a few years ago. To beautify and revitalize the town’s economy, Guatemalan journalist Harris launched an initiative called Pintando Santa Catarina Palopó. The goal was to bring forward social changes through painting all the houses in various shades of blue with Mayan iconography. The result was a stunning village filled with vibrant colors and vitality. According to the young woman we spoke to at the initiative’s office, they have painted 750 out of 950 houses in Santa Catarina. I could objectively say this is my favorite village on Lake Atitlán. Despite the lack of direct access to many other lakeside villages, we won’t hesitate to make Santa Catarina Palopó our home base for our next visit to Lake Atitlán.

Since very few tuk-tuks were passing through Santa Catarina, we decided to hop on the back of a pickup truck to get us back to Panajachel. This was how locals commute between the towns and a unique cultural experience. The driver dropped us off at Panajachel’s Church of San Francis, which we somehow missed until now. Our shuttle ride back to Antigua was slow but otherwise enjoyable. We rolled into Antigua just before sunset. After last-minute souvenir shopping, we ended our day having a couple of beers at Antigua Cerveza and a lovely dinner on the rooftop terrace of 27 Adentro. We could not think of a better way to spend our last hours watching the erupting volcano while enjoying delicious Guatemalan dishes.

In the past few days, Brian and I debated whether we should spend our last night in Antigua or Guatemala City. As much as we loved Antigua, we did worry about getting to the airport in time from Antigua in the morning. Ultimately, we made a last-minute reservation at Wyndham Garden Guatemala City, a stone’s throw from the international airport. Luckily, the traffic from Antigua was decent this evening. We were able to reach the hotel in just over an hour. Hallelujah!

Day 6 - Guatemala City - New York

We woke up this morning refreshed and relaxed. On one hand, I was disappointed that we did not get to spend a night in Antigua. But we were also glad not to be stressed about battling the traffic from Antigua. Since our flight home was at 12:30 pm., we did have a couple of hours to spare in the morning. As much as I wanted to see Guatemala City, I was taken aback by all the warnings about the city’s sordid reputation for safety. I wish we had at least half a day to take a guided tour of the historic center. Well, maybe next time!

A spectacular view from our hotel room in Guatemala City.

Overall, I consider the trip an enormous success, albeit slightly stressful. We managed to cram a lot into our six-day visit. But we underestimated the time it took to get from one place to another. Our trip could have been significantly more enjoyable with just a few more days. That said, we won’t hesitate to return to visit other places we missed on this trip, such as Tikal and Chichicastenango. I would be happy to give Lake Atitlán another try.

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Guatemala Itinerary - Winter 2023