Entertainment in Guatemala
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Café Baviera
This European-style café has good coffee, roasted on the premises, and is a decent place for breakfast or a snack (crepes, croissants, soups and salads). The wooden walls are hung with countless photos and clippings on Xela and international themes.
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El Portal
This atmospheric old drinking den serves fine draft beer and free tapas. Che Guevara was once a patron. Sit at the long wooden bar or one of the wooden tables. Clients are mostly, but not exclusively, men. To find it, enter the Portal del Comercio arcade from 6a Av a few steps south of the Parque Central.
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Café La Luna
La Luna is a comfortable, relaxed place to hang out and eat a cake, salad or sandwich. The hot chocolate is the specialty - the coffee is so-so. Choose any of several rooms: decor is in similar vein to Café Baviera but the music is classical instead of jazz.
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Reilly's
Guatemala's only Irish bar (so far), Reilly's is sociable and relaxed, with a young international crowd. Sadly, small bottles of Guinness are more than double the cost of local beers! The Sunday evening quiz is one of Antigua's most enjoyable events.
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Café El Cuartito
Xela's hippest café does a good range of snacks and juices and coffee just about any way you want it. On weekends it often has DJs spinning laid-back tracks, and there's always art on the walls by local contemporary artists.
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El Establo
This mellow watering hole attracts both foreigners and locals with its pub-style layout, three-sided, brass-topped bar, good pub food and enormous range of music spun by the German owners.
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Pool & Beer
An excellent place for some drinks and a few games of pool. At the time of writing, the tables hadn't been trashed and the cues were straight.
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El Muro
A friendly little neighborhood pub with a good range of beers, some decent snacks and plenty of sofas to lounge out on.
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Blue Town Café Bar
If fellow live music venue La Bodeguita doesn't suit you, check out this nearby youthful spot with live bands.
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La Chimenea
This is the latest hot spot for salsa and merengue dancers.
reviewed
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Café Sky
This is a very popular place for sunset drinks.
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La Bodeguita del Centro
There's a hopping, creative local scene in Guatemala City, and this large, bohemian hangout is one of the best places to connect with it. Posters featuring the likes of Che, Marley, Lennon, Victor Jara, Van Gogh and Pablo Neruda cover the walls from floor to ceiling. There's live music of some kind almost every night from Tuesday to Saturday, usually starting at 21:00, plus occasional poetry readings, films or forums.
Entry is usually free Tuesday to Thursday. Food and drinks are served. Pick up a monthly schedule of events.
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Café-Bar Ubafu
Probably the most dependable entertainment option. Supposedly has music and dancing nightly, but is liveliest on weekends. A traditional Garífuna band is composed of three large drums, a turtle shell, some maracas and a big conch shell, producing throbbing, haunting rhythms and melodies. The chanted words are like a litany, with responses often taken up by the audience. Punta is the Garífuna dance; it's got a lot of gyrating hip movements.
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Bars
A handful of bars down on the beach to the left of the end of Calle Principal pull in travelers and locals at night (after about 22:00 or 23:00). It's very dark down here, so take care. The bars are within five minutes' walk from each other, so you should go for a wander and see what's happening. Music ranges from punta to salsa, merengue and electronica. Things warm up on Friday but Saturday is the party night - often going 'til 05:00 or 06:00.
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Las Cien Puertas
This superhip (but not studiously so) little watering hole is a gathering place for all manner of local creative types (and a few travelers) who may be debating politics, strumming a guitar or refining the graffiti when you show up. Tasty snacks such as tacos and quesadillas are served. It's in a shabby colonial arcade that's said to have a hundred doors (hence the name) and is sometimes closed off for live bands.
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Genetic
One of the few local gay venues, this used to be called Pandora's Box, and has been hosting Guatemala's gay crowd since the '70s, although it gets a mixed crowd and is one of the best places in town to go for trance/dance music. It has two dance floors, a rooftop patio and a relaxed atmosphere with a mainly under-30 crowd.
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El Animal Desconicido
Really the only bar in town, this gets very happening on weekends, with happy hours, cocktails and excellent music. Comfy seating fills up early out front, and the rest of the place starts rocking around 23:00. To find it, go down the main street 'till you hit the beach, then walk 200m to your right.
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Proyecto Cultural El Sitio
Proyecto Cultural El Sitio is an arts and cultural center with lots going on, from music, dance, cinema screenings and theater events (including plays in English) to music classes and art exhibition openings. The website has a schedule and information in English.
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Riki's Bar
Behind Café La Escudilla, this old favorite gets packed every evening with Antigua's young, international scene of locals, travelers and language students. For quieter moments, slip through to the low-key Paris Bar in the rear.
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El Barrio
This cozy little bar on the path between the two docks has one of the most happening happy hours in town, food till midnight and drinks till one. There's a good cocktail and snacks list and a couple of chilled-out outside areas.
reviewed
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La Estación Norte
As far as mega discos go, this one around the corner from Cuatro Grados Norte is kind of interesting. It's done out in a train theme, with carriages for bars and platforms for dance floors. Dress well, but not over the top.
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Freedom Bar
The hardest-partying bar in town, the Freedom has good lounging areas, a pool table, a (relatively) huge dance floor and often hosts guest DJs on weekends. It's on the first street to your left coming up from the Pana dock.
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Salón Tecún
On the west side of Parque Centroamérica, and busy all day and night with a healthy crowd of Guatemalans and foreigners, the Tecún claims to be the country's longest-running bar (since 1935). Don't miss it.
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Onis
With a back terrace overlooking the illuminated ruins of San Agustín church, Onis is another travelers' and students' haunt. Unlike some Antigua bars, it has a liquor license. There's good, economical food too.
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Mi Guajira
This happening little disco/bar has a pretty good atmosphere and goes fairly light on the snob factor. Music varies depending on the night, but be prepared for anything from salsa to reggaeton to trance.
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