Introducing The Highlands

Guatemala’s most dramatic region – the Highlands – stretches from Antigua to the Mexican border northwest of Huehuetenango. Here the verdant hills sport emerald-green grass, cornfields and towering stands of pine, and every town and village has a story.

The traditional values and customs of Guatemala’s indigenous peoples are strongest in the Highlands. Mayan dialects are the first language, Spanish a distant second. The age-old culture based on maize (from which the Maya believe that humans were created) is still alive; a sturdy cottage set in the midst of a thriving milpa (maize field) is a common sight. And on every road you’ll see men, women and children carrying burdens of leña (firewood), to be used for heating and cooking.

Most towns here were already populated by the Maya when the Spanish arrived. History turned bloody and inhumane with the beginning of the civil war in 1960, when the Highlands were targeted heavily by guerrillas and the army alike.

The poster child for Guatemala’s natural beauty, the volcano-ringed Lago de Atitlán has been attracting tourists for decades. Surrounded by small villages, the lake deals with its popularity well. The only place that feels really played out is Panajachel – the other villages maintain a quiet air, while offering a reasonable degree of comfort. This area was particularly badly hit by Hurricane Stan in late 2005 and the whole village of Panabaj disappeared under a landslide. Reconstruction work – for the most part by local communities and international organizations – is ensuring a slow but sure return to normality for this region.