Get Straight To It

Guatemala is an adventure and nature lover’s paradise. I am truly shocked at how underrated Guatemala is! This is an extremely affordable trip with so much to do and see. I’ve heard all about all about Lake Atitlan and I knew I had to see it for myself. I choose to spread my time between two different areas on Lake Atitlan according to the research I had gathered. I choose to stay in Panajachel, which is the closest starting point of Lake Atitlan from Guatemala City and the largest area on the Lake. It’s also where you will likely enter and exit no matter if you choose to stay there or not. The second area I choose was San Marcos which is a hippy town. San Marcos is peaceful and great for yogis and vegetarians. The transportation on Lake Atitlan is essentially tuk tuks and boats. Those are the fastest and most accessible forms of transportation at the lake. You can get around fairly easily by bus as well if you’re willing to experience local transportation.

The buses are also known as chicken buses. Chicken buses are school buses that have been tricked out and used for local transportation. The buses are decked out as if they were featured by an episode of Pimp my ride. The drivers are proud of their buses, when I took a video of all the decked out buses at a bus terminal the drivers turned on their lights and sounds and put a big smile on their faces to show off what they had created. It was similar to a car show when many are gathered. They have decorative lights, paint jobs, and whatchamacallits (I know nothing about cars so all the custom additions are whatchamacallits to me). The buses are a staple in Guatemala. If you choose to ride them they are affordable and locals hop on to sell passengers snacks. The snacks range from fresh chopped fruit to street food.

The people in Guatemala were helpful and the Spanish is easy to understand (Guatemala is one of the best places to take Spanish lessons). I had a list of things to do in Guatemala but I didn’t prebook anything besides the hotels. Each time we needed help finding a place to eat or do an activity there was someone willing to help.

While in Panajachel we ate our first meal at the bed and breakfast we were staying in, Jenna’s. We had fish and veggies and the food was fresh, flavorful, and filling. At Jenna’s the owner is very present and makes arrangements for tuk tuk pick ups and can recommend activities and such around the Lake. The bed and breakfast is an eco lodge which was a fancy tent/hut made of natural materials. The decor is centered around nature and rightfully so. Each room has its own balcony with grand views of the lake. Absolutely stunning place to stay.

In Panajachel we explored the main shopping area by the pier. There you will find endless stalls of food, clothing, and souvenirs. In Pana there happened to be an event called Volks Fest going on, so we got to jam to the music and see all the Volkswagens gathered for the festival. We also went to Hotel Atitlan to do stand up paddle boarding but they were only offering jetski, so we did that instead. The hotel also has a scenic swing with a mural on the deck and the Lake in the background. The hotel has such a stunning outdoor space that there was a formal event going on in the adjacent area (looked like a graduation).

We explored not only Panajachel but also Santa Catarina Palopo, which is nearby. Santa Catarina Palopo is much quieter, smaller and slower pace than Pana. I found the town to be colorfully decorated and there are nice immersive experiences there such as the natural hot spring, and the tiny museum filled with historic items. Finding the hot spring was wild. If you get dropped off where the pier is you need to walk along the path of the water. Hopefully you see locals because they know exactly which spots in the water that the holes with boiling water are coming from. You may find locals gathered in a small area of the shoreline that will be surprisingly hot amongst the cold water and waves. The pockets of heat amongst the cold body of water was unlike any other hot spring I’ve ever been to. The museum, which we wondered into by following a child who solicited us and we went down a little alley way up to what appeared to be steps to someone’s home but turned out to be a small museum. The museum featured traditional clothing, tools used, etc. On the second story of the museum the guide taught me to play an ancient game with colored rocks and I had alot of fun. The tour was completely in Spanish just an FYI but there were many photos and items to view that told the story. They also had a small family restaurant on the roof.

After Panna San Marcos was actually an happy accident. I intended to stay in San Pedro but when looking for accommodations ended up finding a place of interest in San Marcos, the next door area. San Marcos is most definitely a hippy town. The change of pace is apparent. The town is much slower and honestly you’ll find a certain demographic there as well. The yogis and vegetarians are abundant. Just a warning, MOST of the restaurants in San Marcos (the main street) have vegetarian menus. I am NOT a vegetarian and didn’t eat meat for 2 days while in San Marcos just because it was not offered in the restaurants that I went. Even my hotel only had vegetarian options for breakfast. We found meat in San Marcos on day 3 smh. Here I took an aerial class, got a massage, and island hopped. The towns are just a short boat ride away from each other. At any time you can walk to the dock and they will ask you where you are going and get you on the next boat headed that way. There is no schedule or pre-booking, they just wait until the boat is mostly filled up and then they go. On San Pedro I visited the hot tub baths. We called a couple of hours prior to going to reserve a tub and paid a small fee. The tubs are filled with hot water and the view is stunning. There is a cold tub filled as well which is an amazing sensation after you soak in the hot tub for awhile. We ate at restaurants in different areas each day just to get a feel of each place. The boat rides as transportation to the nearby towns made the experience even more unique.

After Lake Atitlan we headed to Antigua. In Antigua we visited the famous yellow arch and went chocolate tasting. On day 2 we visited the hobbit park Hobbitenango. There you will find hobbit houses (you can reserve one for about $120/night), a picturesque hand bridge, and old school games. The park prides itself on the wifi free fun. Some of the activities include mini golf with large hammer clubs, a sling shot game, bow and arrow practice, axe throwing, pony rides, photo ops, and a adrenaline ride (a swing similar to bungee jumping but more tame).

Accommodations

Jenna’s River Bed and Breakfast (Panajachel)

Lush Atitlan (San Marcos)

Naif Boutique Hotel & Gallery (Antigua)

Hostal Villa Toscana (Guatemala City)

Transportation

IAD-SAL-GUA via Avianca

Private Shuttle from GUA to Panajechel ($200)

Private local boat ($20 total)

Tuk Tuk ($3-$5 on average around Lake Atitlan)

Four local buses (Chicken Buses) from Panajachel to Antigua ($6/person total)

Local Bus (Chicken Buses) from Antigua to Guatemala ($3/person)

GUA-SAL-IAD via SA Avianca

Activities

Visit Hobbentiango the hobbit town with plenty of activities and the picturesque hand bridge photo op

Stand up paddle boarding (150 Q/person at Venga Atitlan Outdoor Adventure)

Santa Catarina Palopo Aguas Termales- hot springs

Visit Santa Catalina Arch

Jetski (Hotel Atitlan)

Atitlan Nature Preserve for the waterfall and botanical gardens

City hop around Lake Atitlan

Chocolate tasting

Other Things to do

(Things that I didn’t get a chance to do)

Paragliding

Mayan weaving Class

Kayak on the lake

Hike Volcan San Pedro

Black Sand Beach

Mayan Cooking Class

Mayan Ceremony Cave

Semuc Champey pools and cave

Take a Spanish lesson

Recommendations

Food: Try the meat stews (caldos), soups, tamales, and the coffee.

Culture: Learn about the Mayan culture. There are endless ways to discover the culture in Guatemala from the cave tours to the ancient weaving classes to a Spanish lesson.

Planning Tools

Minimum Budget	$25/night Hotel (average $60/night) $15/day meals $10/day activity
Recommended Minimum Duration	A week +
Best time to Visit	November to April but year-round temperatures between 72-90 deg F

Inside Scoop

Guatemala was one of my favorite trips because Lake Atitlan is absolutely stunning and the best part is that it isn’t crowded. It feels like a well kept secret. The food is flavorful, the people are kind, and the adventures are endless.

Accessibility in Guatemala would be hard, especially around Lake Atitlan. There are not wheelchair friendly ways to access some of the hotels and attractions I visited. For example, the journey to Eagles Nest Atitlan the road to get there is narrow and uphill, I also didn’t see any cars in San Marcos which means you would need to take a tuk tuk and then you must hike a good distance for the entrance. I’m sure there are ways to manage such as by giving a local some money to carry your bags in the entrance but in general I found that accessibility would be a struggle for people with disabilities.

Transportation can definitely add up really quickly so my suggestion is stop being bougie if you want to save some coin and take a chicken bus. You can also use the shuttles which are an affordable option to and from the lake. The only con to the shuttles are there are only about 3 times available/day.

The inside scoop is you need to hop on one of those $150 flights to Guatemala! It’s too cheap and too bomb to pass up.