Guatemala Info and Opinions

Hello - we just returned from a trip to Guatemala. Thought I'd post some info/opinions in case they might be helpful:

San Pedro: The Cooperative Spanish School was wonderful. Helpful, professional staff, great location with a gorgeous view, nice activities. Zuvuya Books - new bookstore in San Pedro, not a lot of inventory yet, but what they do have is the good stuff. Jarachik - great laid back garden restaurant/bar with nice food and ambiance. (They also have rooms for rent.)

Antigua: Don't forget to check out some of the "ruins" right in the city, we really enjoyed them and they made for great photos. Pacaya volcano trip was great, with actual hot, flowing lava. Went with Gran Jaguar agency, which was inexpensive and did a good job.

Pana: Mario's Rooms (recommended by Goodtimebob) was wonderful. Great value, and great atmosphere, right in the heart of Pana. If you're shopping, go ahead and buy from the Maya ladies in the street - they definitely offered some of the best deals on handicrafts, and I wish I'd bought more.

Flores: Go ahead and do the 3:30am Tikal sunrise trip, you won't regret it!! We used San Juan Travel, and it was spectacular - it included a guide for 5 hours and we saw some very cool wildlife too. The day after Tikal, if you're still worn out from the early trip, chill out at the pool at the hotel Isla la Casona. Pretty pool with a waterfall and a lake view, no charge as long as we had lunch there. If you're headed for Belize, you can take the direct bus with San Juan Travel or Linea Dorada, and you CAN get off in San Ignacio with either (although agents might tell you that you can't with Linea Dorada).

Hope this info is some use!

You hit some of my favorite spots from my visit last August. Glad you enjoyed the Cooperative school - I had an excellent experience there and look forward to going back. Thanks for sharing!

Thank you for taking the time. I wish I had stared that early in Tikal...

shock! Happy San Juan Travel passenger?!?

Extraordinary

Yep, I was skeptical about San Juan too, after reading the stories. Thought it would be nice to share a positive story about them - the Tikal trip really was perfect. (We used them from Palenque-Flores, too, which worked out pretty well - but we didn't love their hard sell techniques trying to get us to book tours before we even reached Flores. We ended up booking a few days later.........)

Nice positive report. A joy to read it.

Good report--but nothing about the Coffin store in San Pedro--still closed?

Jarachik is a cool place to hang out at....Lots of the expats nurse their hangovers there in the morning with a little "hair of the dog".If the locals hang out there,you know it's good.Also,try "the Buddha",another locals hangout along "the Maze".Say hi to Mike,the owner,for me when you get there....Buena suerte......

Thank you for sharing. I'm thinking of going to Guatemala mid-December for 2 weeks, and was considering going to the Cooperative school in San Pedro. I keep hearing great things about it. Did you stay with a host family? How long were you there? I'm not sure yet if my husband is traveling with me, so I may be alone. How safe did San Pedro and other parts of Guatemala feel? And finally, how many days did you spend traveling to/from Tikal and around the ruins. I would like to make it there, but I don't want to spend most of my 2 weeks traveling from place to place. Thanks!

#8 if you are flying to Guatemala you better book right away. I booked my flight for Christmas time and I did it in February. This is a time of year many folks from Guatemala return to visit family. Photos of Guatemala see my website wolfcalls.com

#9: I enjoyed your Guatemala pictures...thanks! Yes, I feel like I'm a little late getting my plane ticket and will probably have to pay too much for it, but I think I'll go for it.

Well good luck. I am leaving on December 20th with a return of January 7th. Guatemala is always a great place.

portlandia - I stayed week in San Pedro with a lovely host family. The school had evening activities and I always felt safe walking to my host family, 8 or 10 blocks away on one of the main roads. There were political parades in the evenings sometimes, and my friend and I caught a 4 am bus when we headed out - never felt safety worries. In Antigua we walked in the main areas between the plaza and our hotel after dark - lots of people and felt safe. Only once was it after 8 pm or so. In CA I rarely go out after dark and often taken a tuktuk if I do. I also keep my wits about me, know where I'm heading, travel really light and wear valuables under my clothes on transition days, all so I'll feel more confident and safe. If you attend the Cooperativa school please say hi to them from Stacey from Oregon. Photos and travelogue linked below if you're interested.

hopefulist, thanks for the tips. San Pedro sounds wonderful and I looked at your pictures and got even more excited. If I go to the Cooperative school, I will definitely tell them hello for you. Did you spend any time in Xela? I'm wondering if it's worth spending a night or two there. I live in portland, do you?

I live 80 east in The Dalles. I haven't been to Xela since the 80's, wasn't too fond of it then and haven't been back. The surrounding area is beautiful, though. Our son Isaac spent 6 weeks near there last summer volunteering and serving as an international observer for popular referendums associated with the terrible mining problems up there. I wouldn't make a separate trip that way if you only have a night or 2 - too much bus time. If you only have 2 weeks I'd spend a few days in/around Antigua and a few in Flores/Tikal in addition to your week in SPLL. You'll have afternoons to explore other villages around the lake if you're interested. That's basically what we did last summer but we had 3 weeks and spent an additional language school week in Nebaj. Instead of flying to Tikal and back we bused there with a 2 night layover in Rio Dulce (OK but not all that IMO) and flew back in time to connect with our flight home. Keep us posted!

I had a REALLY BAD experience with El Gran Jaguar travel agency in Antigua. We used them to take us to the airport in the early morning. First, the driver was late. Second, he could barely get the back door open for our luggage. The side door didn't even open at all. Then he got lost going to the airport. I was thinking he knew a secret route when he blew by the airport signs. It turns out he couldn't even read. Then he took us to the TACA corporate office, not the airport. When we FINALLY arrived at the airport, the back door wouldn't open and we had to shove the suitcases through a window.

Avoid el Gran Jaguar Travel Agency in Antigua. I speak relatively good Spanish and was able to book my trip with no problems. However, there were other travellers there as well who did not speak Spanish. The agency had no one who spoke English. I ended up translating, but the other travellers (Scotish) were disgusted with the Jaguar and went down the street.

I am sorry about your experience with Gran Jaguar, zaxinc. I was very satisfied with their service. I guess sometimes it's about luck.

Yeah, win some, lose some. At least we got to the airport on time. The rest of the trip went without too much trouble, even getting surrounded by a mob of people in a small village outside of Sayache in our car.

Glad you had a good time in Guatemala.

We've spent 3 months (on a boat in the Rio Dulce) in Guatemala, interspersed with some travel 'inland', including

- Pacaya
- Antigua
- Chichi
- Panajachel and Lake Atitlan
- Coban, Lanquin, Semuc Champey
- Rio Dulce
- 2 weeks at La Union language school in Antigua.

Links to info here:

Blog (Our experiences and photos, in reverse chronological order)

Photos

Facts and Details (PDF/doc file with links, recommendations, and phone numbers)