Guatemala Volcano & Coast Adventure - 12 Days

Highlights

• Walk the cobbled streets of Antigua and take a food tour
• Hike up Acatenango volcano and camp overnight
• Surf the waves at El Paredon and visit Maya markets
• Go kayaking on Lake Atitlán and tour local villages

Brief Itinerary

Detailed Itinerary

Day 1: Arrive in Guatemala City, Transfer to Antigua & Food Tour

Welcome to Guatemala! Not only is this Central American nation a hotbed of colonial and Indigenous history dating back thousands of years, but it also features some of the most incredible landscapes in the Americas. You'll get to explore these highlights, which will take you from historic towns to glassy lakes and all the way up to volcano peaks.

After touching down at the airport in Guatemala City, a driver will pick you up for the one-hour transfer west to the city of Antigua. This UNESCO World Heritage Site was once the capital of Guatemala and is known for the Spanish colonial Old Town around its main plaza, Parque Central. It's also surrounded by three volcanoes, whose peaks loom large over Antigua's cobbled streets.

After checking in to your hotel, you'll meet a local guide for a three-hour food walk focusing on both the traditional and contemporary mestizo food of Antigua. It's an adventure full of authentic flavors and colonial history as you visit historical landmarks while sampling delicious local dishes and street food. After you wrap up the tour, you can spend the rest of the day relaxing.

Day 2: Bike Ride & Coffee Tour, Guatemalan Cooking Class

Your guide will pick you up early for today's combined mountain bike excursion/coffee tour. Pick your bikes up in Antigua and then ride to the De la Gente coffee cooperative. On this half-day tour, you'll visit DLG's large-scale production farm. The site is part of a community on the flank of Volcán de Agua, where farmers work together to grow, pick, and process coffee. DLG works with these farmers to help brand their coffee and export it to global markets.

Upon arrival, your guide will lead you on a short hike around the fields, where you'll meet some of the farmers. Then, visit the roasting house to see how they toast the beans one small batch at a time. A real treat is when you sit down to lunch with one of the local families, sample their coffee, and learn a bit about life on a working coffee farm. After the meal, you'll transfer back to Antigua.

Day 3: Hike Acatenango Volcano & Camp Overnight

Wake up early and meet today's hiking group at your outfitter's in Antigua, where you'll fill up water bottles and stock up on gear. Then take a one-hour drive to the slope of Acatenango volcano and the village of La Soledad, where the trailhead is located. The route up the volcano has four microclimates, each of which will take you about an hour to hike. You'll start by walking up a steep path through farmland, which is the same trail used by villagers to reach their crops. The first hour of hiking is a nice warm-up for your leg muscles in preparation for the rest of the journey.

The second phase of the hike passes through an old-growth, high-alpine cloud forest. This type of forest exists on the higher slopes of many of Guatemala's tallest volcanoes and is home to many exotic birds, including the famous resplendent quetzal. After emerging from the cloud forest around mid-day, you'll be treated to fantastic views of the other highland volcanoes: Atitlán, Tolimán, San Pedro, Santa María, Santo Tomás, and Tajamulco. You'll have plenty of time to admire the scenery as you take a break and enjoy a picnic lunch.

Temperate and tropical forests characterize the third part of your ascent, which leads to the storm-beaten tree line of the volcano. Your campsite is just below this tree line and offers sweeping views of the Antigua Valley and the adjacent Fuego volcano. After setting up camp, take some time to stretch out and relax while your guide prepares dinner at 12,300 feet (3,750 m). Enjoy your meal while marveling at the awe-inspiring spectacle of Fuego volcano's eruptions.

Day 4: Sunrise on Acatenango & Descent

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Depending on weather conditions, your group will rise early, enjoy the sunrise over volcano peaks, and embark on a 45-minute/one-hour trek up a gravel trail through a pine forest. This is the steepest trail yet, and it leads to the rocky, windy summit of Acatenango's peak.

At the summit, rest and enjoy breathtaking views of the Guatemalan highlands stretching all the way to Mexico. After breakfast and breaking camp, you'll begin the three-hour descent back to La Soledad. This route follows a different trail, so you can enjoy even more beautiful scenery as you descend through different microclimates. From La Soledad, you'll hop in a vehicle and transfer back to Antigua.

Day 5: Transfer to El Paredon

In the morning, your driver will pick you up in Antigua for the 2.5-hour drive south to the coast. Your destination is El Paredon, a laid-back fishing village and the premier surf town in Guatemala. After checking in to your hotel, you'll have the rest of the day free. You can do some surfing, sunbathe on the volcanic black sands, and take advantage of the incredible budget-friendly cuisine, which includes fresh seafood, burritos, vegetarian options, and more.

Day 6: Free Day in El Paredon

Today is yours to enjoy El Paredon however you like. Naturally, the main draw here is the coast, which draws surfers from around the world for its reliable 3-12-foot (1-4-m) beach-break waves and barrels. If you aren't a seasoned rider, you can take a lesson at one of the local surf schools.

After riding a few sets, you can spend the remainder of the morning relaxing and then have lunch at a café in town. Another option is to visit a local sea turtle conservation sanctuary and release hatchlings onto the beach. At the end of the day, enjoy dinner in town or at your hotel.

Day 7: Transfer to Lake Atitlán, Village Tour & Chichicastenango Market

After breakfast, you'll make the three-hour drive north into the highlands and Lake Atitlán, the most beautiful lake in the country. Once here, you'll check in to your hotel, then hop on a boat for a tour of the waterfront towns around Atitlán. In the company of a local guide, you'll stop at villages far off the tourist trail and experience their authentic culture. For example, you'll visit a local women's weaving co-op and see how they turn cotton into beautiful textiles by hand. You'll also visit a shrine to Maximón, an infamous Maya saint known for his depraved behavior.

Then, you'll hop in a vehicle and head north from the lake to Chichicastenango. Known as "Chichi" to locals, this village has been a hotbed of Maya culture for more than 4,000 years and is most famous for its bi-weekly market. Here vendors sell everything from flowers and fresh produce to handicrafts and handwoven textiles. On a visit, you'll browse the market, whose vendors sell everything from handicrafts and textiles to fresh produce and street food. You'll even get to visit an artisanal mask factory.

You'll also stop at the nearby Iglesia de Santo Tomás. This 16th-century Roman Catholic church is built on the site of a former Maya temple and is a striking example of Guatemalan syncretism (a mix of ancient Maya religious beliefs and traditional Catholicism). Besides sightseeing and sampling typical foods like Guatemalan bananas and pan de muerto (bread of the dead), you'll also browse a local textile factory to see the process of making the traditional outfits of the region. After watching a traditional dance performance, you'll then return to your hotel back at the lake.

Day 8: San Pedro Volcano Hike

In the morning, you'll take a boat to the west side of the lake and the town of San Pedro. This is the main hub for trips to the most iconic landmark in the area: a 9,900-foot (3,020-m) stratovolcano that towers over the glassy waters of Atitlán. And today, you're going to hike it. Once in town, you'll ride a tuk-tuk for a few minutes to the trailhead of Volcán San Pedro. At the visitor's center, you'll meet your guide and learn a bit about the history of the volcano as well as the geology of Atitlán, which itself is a crater lake formed by volcanic eruptions. Then it will be time to embark on the 5-mile (8 km) hike, which starts with a stroll through coffee fields offering great views over Atitlán.

The trail you'll follow is an ancient Maya single-track path that rises into the cloud forest on the volcano's slopes. There are many stunning lookout points on this route, and the area is home to endemic wildlife like foxes and the turkey-like horned guan. In total, the change in elevation is about 4,000 feet (1,219 m), and once you reach the summit, you'll be treated to incredible views of Lake Atitlán, its villages, and surrounding volcanoes. After enjoying the scenery, you'll hike back down to the visitor's center and transfer back to your hotel.

Day 9: Kayaking & Hiking Lake Atitlán, Transfer to Antigua

Fuel up with breakfast, then meet your guide for today's five-hour expedition on and around Lake Atitlán. Start in a kayak as you paddle westward along the north shore of the lake for roughly two hours. Pass villages perched on lakeside cliffs, hop in the water for a swim, or even do a little cliff jumping.

Eventually, you'll arrive on the shore between the villages of Tzununá and San Marcos La Laguna, where you'll leave the kayak behind and lace up your hiking boots. Follow the trail between the villages, taking in views of the San Pedro, Tolimán, and Atitlán volcanoes. Hike along the shoreline and through small villages for about 1.5 hours until the circuit leads you to the town of Jaibalito. From there, you'll hop in a vehicle for the three-hour ride east back to Antigua.

Day 10: Antigua Walking Tour & Chocolate Workshop

Bright and early, you'll meet a local historian, and the two of you will embark on a walking tour of Antigua. During this excursion, you'll visit 18th-century landmarks like the Palacio del Ayuntamiento ("City Hall Palace"); Casa Santo Domingo, a former convent that is now a hotel and museum; the Palace of the Captain's General; and La Merced Church, whose canary-yellow Baroque facade is a hallmark of the city. As you stroll the Paseo de Los Museos ("Museum Path"), you'll delve into the roots of Maya archaeology and culture. 

Later, you'll participate in a two-hour "bean to bar" chocolate workshop. Besides crops like coffee and bananas, Guatemala also produces cacao (cocoa), the main ingredient in chocolate. This crop has been cultivated here for thousands of years and was even enjoyed by the ancient Maya. During the workshop, you'll learn about its history, the growing and harvesting process, and roasting the beans. You'll even get to prepare your own traditional Maya cacao drink and make custom chocolates to take home with you.

Day 11: Pacaya Volcano Day Hike

Get an early start and meet your group for a guided climb up the 8,370-foot (2,552 m) Pacaya volcano, whose slopes are home to some of the most impressive volcanic landscapes in Central America. Set in its own national park, Pacaya cuts an imposing figure with a continuous plume of smoke drifting from its summit and the massive lava field at the base of its caldera.

The trip up and back takes about six hours, but horses are an option for those who'd prefer a more relaxed ascent. Upon arrival at the summit, you'll enjoy a picnic lunch amid panoramic views of nearby volcanoes Agua, Fuego, and Acatenango. The hike down traverses more dried lava fields before descending through tropical forests and farmland on your way back to Antigua.  

Day 12: Transfer to Guatemala City, Depart

Unfortunately, all great adventures must come to an end. In the morning, your driver will pick you up at your hotel in Antigua for the 1.5-hour ride back to Guatemala City and the airport, where you'll catch your flight home. Safe travels!

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