Hotels in Antigua/Atitlan & Best Markets

Cheers for the link Bob (cracking site too). Booked my flights yesterday for a couple of weeks in February and will be looking for a hotel with a garden for a relaxing afternoon reading and having a couple of beers. Plenty choice.

When shopping for textiles and crafts in Antigua, go here:

Nim Po't

Oops! That was the Feedback page. Here's the Home Page:

Nim Po't

I love Nim Pot and they take VISA too.

Glad to see NYC Girl mention Aaculaax, the hotel in San Marco. We are staying there in August, has anyone from TT actually stayed there? It would be nice to get a first-hand comment. It sounds fantastic. Their site is www.aaculaax.com.

Hi LoveMyDogs,

Regarding Aaculaax -- We toured the property and ate at the restaurant. My opinions:

- Beautiful property. Green and on a hillside. Full of trees and foliage. Great views of the water.

- Creative design. It was built by hand, and we met someone who helped with the painting (an artist working for her lodging). Built with love and a lot of Left-Brain imagination.

- Rooms vary by size and ameneties. The lower-priced rooms have no windows and have a shared bath. The higher-priced rooms are huge, beautiful, and have a fantastic balcony/view of the lake.

- Prices are more expensive than the rest of San Marcos.

- Much quieter than the rest of the hotels in San Marcos because it is located just on the edge of town and closer to the water. The rest of the village is subject to the annoying loud noises ALL NIGHT LONG by a pack of wild dogs and the Evangelical churches blaring their terrible music over the loudspeakers (yes at 2AM, 4AM, 6AM, etc). But Aaculaax seemed much much quieter.

- The restaurant has a gorgeous view and neat atmosphere. But terrible menu and overpriced. When we were there (in February 2007), there was a new chef/manager whom we met. She was interesting. She explained that the menu was Tapas-style, so was going to be tiny portions. I have eaten Tapas all over - from Spain to Argentina to the US, etc. THis was not tapas. It was terrible food in INCREDIBLY small portions - at prices that were 3 times that of a regular meal at the best restaurant in the village. Every other person who visited the restaurant had the exact same sentiments (we should have listened to their warnings!)

Cheers,
Kay