Guatemala Travel Agents

Our guide Esteban was absolutely amazing. He was with us in Antigua and Lake Atitlan, and was great with the kids and with the grandparents. The whole KimKim team was very accommodating. They were attentive to our initial requests and put together the perfect itinerary that wasn't too overwhelming and allowed for some flexibility. We were a relatively difficult group, as initially we had a party of 5, then a couple of weeks before the trip we added 2 more people. The team repsonded quickly, found bigger accommodations for us where necessary, and upgraded the vehicles used to transport us everywhere. Even during the trip, we encountered an issue with one of our accommodations in Lake Atitlan, and the team mobilized quickly to rectify all issues we had identified. I got sick on one of our days in Antigua, and Esteban and the KimKim team accommodated a last minute change to our itinerary for the day, providing us with alternate options for experiences, and also being kind enough to fetch me some electrolyte drinks to keep me hydrated thru my sickness. They even offered to connect us with a local doctor.
Esteban gave plenty of recommendations for places to eat and visit during our spare time, continuing to send us recommendations via WhatsApp even after we had parted ways. KimKim was the ideal tour company for us in Guatemala, and we would absolutely recommend them again.

This was a seamless and wonderful trip! It was easy to plan and communicate through KimKim. Catherina and all of Columbus Guatemala Travel was prompt at getting back to me and answered all my questions and were flexible with our interests. Our tour guide throughout the week as JJ. He was amazing! My Spanish is intermediate so I appreciated being able to practice speaking Spanish, but it was very comforting to have a bilingual local as our guide. My daughter and I were hesitant to travel alone, but having an excellent guide eased any anxiety we might have had. Even when we explored on our own, JJ gave us advice on where to go and checked in on us from time to time. We learned so much about the culture and history from talking with JJ, that we never would have learned on our own. He even helped teach me Spanish slang/phrases that were specific to Guatemala. Columbus Guatemala Travel even welcomed us with a small party so we could meet in person the people who had helped plan our trip!

All our locations we visited were wonderful as well as the hotels. Some highlights: Antigua is a beautiful and amazing city and we loved exploring it and the surrounding towns. We went out at night on our own and I went on a solo run through the city early one morning and never felt unsafe. I normally hate to shop, but I bought souvenirs from all the shops/artisans we visited because there were amazing items I wouldn't be able to find in the States, I wanted to support the local people, and everything was very affordable.

Lake Atitlan and the surrounding towns were amazing as well! Casa del Mundo was the absolute best and most unique hotel I'll probably ever see. It was an entire experience and I could see myself bringing the rest of my family just to see the lake and stay at Casa del Mundo again. Our hike to see the sunrise was the most beautiful view I've ever seen and was totally worth the struggle with the high altitude!

The locals were very friendly and would start conversations often! Knowing some Spanish was definitely helpful, but if you have a bilingual guide and use a translating app while alone, only speaking English would not be a huge problem. Seeing how people live off the land in a developing country is very worthwhile. I could go on and on about this trip, but I will end saying I'm grateful for JJ and the entire travel company. I'm a public school teacher and I have to save up for awhile before leaving the country, and I can definitely say this trip was worth every penny!

Hotel Reviews

Hotel San Jorge

Antigua

This was a small, beautiful hotel that has a peaceful courtyard, excellent breakfast, nice views of the mountains from the balcony, and a perfect location for exploring Antigua. The staff was helpful and friendly and we felt safe enough to sleep with our window open. I appreciated all the filtered water throughout the hotel so I didn't have to buy plastic water bottles, and the availability of coffee throughout the day. Beautiful experience!

Authenticity & Character

The courtyard and decorations.

Location

Very easy to walk to everywhere in Antigua.

Staff

Friendly and helpful

Cleanliness & Comfort

Dos Mundos Monterrico

Monterrico

The grounds and buildings were beautiful. The pools were relaxing and clean. The food and service was excellent. The individual cabins were charming and relaxing. For spoiled Americans like myself, it's good to know that there is AC but not hot water. HOWEVER, I'm not complaining, because after learning about the area I understood that running water is hard to come by anyway, and it was very refreshing to take a cold shower because Monterrico is the warmest of all the places we visited. The beach has beautiful black sand, but was a little dirty. I'm not blaming this on the hotel but on people who litter. And it might have been dirtier because storms came through a few days before we did. It was very relaxing to lay by the pool or eat a wonderful meal and listen to the waves. We also booked relaxing massages and an early morning Mangrove tour, both of which were excellent.

Authenticity & Character

Location

It was a perfect location for relaxing, but not if you wanted to explore the area on foot.

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Casa del Mundo

Lake Atitlán

This is a place like no other. Absolute paradise. If I could have brought my entire family, I would want to live there! The grounds and views were amazing, the staff was friendly and helpful. This was very valuable when trying to carry large bags up all those stairs when you aren't used to the altitude! The restaurant was wonderful. I loved explored all the gardens and seeing how environmentally conscious the owners are. The traditional Mayan decorations in the rooms and throughout the property were absolutely amazing. Anyone who is interested in this hotel should look at pictures and remember that it's even better in person. My only complaint is that I was only able to stay 2 nights. I almost cried when we left. My daughter and I are athletic and in good shape, but keep in mind if you are not, or have balance issues, getting around the hotel grounds might be a little difficult!

Authenticity & Character

The decorations were amazing!

Location

You have to take a boat to get to this hotel and the surrounding towns but it adds to the experience.

Staff

Very helpful and polite. I was amazed at how strong the young men were at carrying our bags up all those stairs.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Perfect

Activity Reviews

Thank you

Guatemala

JJ made sure we go to the airport on time and we were sad to leave!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Visit San Juan La Laguna

Guatemala

This is an absolutely beautiful city. We had a lovely and relaxing breakfast. We visited several shops in the area and saw demonstrations by Mayan women or locals. I was able to buy many things for my family and learn about the culture at the same time!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Welcome to Guatemala

Guatemala

JJ was our guide and picked us up on time and we immediately felt comfortable with him!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

JJ was an amazing guide!

Transport

Villages Around Antigua By Chicken Bus

Antigua

This was fun and informative! JJ taught us a lot about the history and culture of the area. The land and weather was beautiful. And the people were friendly. I loved visiting the local shops/artisans and learning about how the different items were made!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Antigua Street Food Tour

Antigua

This was a walking tour, which is the best way to learn about Antigua! We learned about the food and culture and history of the area. We were so full of wonderful food that we didn't have to eat for quite awhile! JJ, as always was a great guide.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Hike Rostro Maya or Indian Nose

Guatemala

Indian Nose: This was a very early morning hike and absolutely worth the lost sleep! I'm very athletic but the hike was challenging, especially for those of us who live at sea level and aren't used to the altitude. But I love challenges and the view at the top was the best I've ever seen! Watching the sun rise over Lake Atitlan was an amazing experience.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Wonderful! Thanks to Chris and our guide Joel for putting together a great itinerary and shepherding us through a phenomenal trip. I traveled to Guatemala with 4 teenagers...who thought this might have been our best adventure yet. Chris and the team suggested a great itinerary, matched the level of adventure + downtime our group was into, were collaborative with adjustments, helped manage within our budget, and communicated well throughout. If we return to Guatemala, we'll work with Chris again....and I'll recommend him to friends.

From the first interaction, the experience was outstanding. I entered the basic ideas around the type of trip, I wanted to plan for me and my nine year old son. Alex took those basic ideas and shaped an unforgettable trip filled with adventure. I didn’t want to stay in “budget” hotels but certainly didn’t have the need to be at glamorous hotels either. Alex found the perfect balance! The hotels were beautiful, amazing staff, great restaurants onsite and amenities.

There were a couple of times that I even went back to Alex and mentioned some other ideas or tweaks we were interested in making to the itinerary. He helped us figure out those adaptations within budget. Alex was a fabulous partner at each stage before, during and after our trip.

Alex was unavailable to be our guide during the dates of our trip but he substituted his brother Viny, who was also fantastic. Although Alex was away from the office, he gave me a proactive heads up about Pacaya being unavailable. This was one of our primary goals for our trip so we were very concerned and were debating to postpone - just as we were getting ready to catch our flight out. Alex, his cousin and brother who all work for OTO, worked to get confirmation about whether we could go to Pacaya or not and how to make it happen safely. It gave us the confidence to continue with our trip and really appreciated their attention to it in short order.

Viny was such a friendly, warm and knowledgeable guide. Since this was supposed to be just a mom and son trip, my son was very concerned that a third person would be with us. The end of the trip my son said he missed a Viny and having a guide was a great idea! Viny made it very easy, taking charge to manage our timeline, transportation coordination with local guides, different sites and coordinating with hotel, concierge and restaurants. He really removed all of the administrative efforts for me so that I could focus on being with my son and enjoying our time together and experiencing Guatemala.

We went the zip lining, hiking Papaya and roasting marshmallows where Viny prepared a nice picnic, and kayaking at Atitlan, and went to Mayan Ruins. We were originally supposed to do more hiking, but my son was all hiked out, so Viny adapted our itinerary last minute so that we could go to textile and a cacao shop.

Then on our last night, Alex got a hold of me to alert me to a local event transpiring that roads were potentially going to be blockaded and we could get stuck potentially missing our flights the next day. I told Alex that I would prefer to leave Lake Atitlan that night and head to Guatemala City. He swiftly arranged transportation, and a safe and comfortable hotel stay in Guatemala City at no extra charge. We caught our flight the next day with no issues.

I’m so grateful for Alex’s attention to detail and genuine concern for us and our trip or we wouldn’t have known in real-time what was happening. I highly recommend Alex, Viny and OTO. This was my second time to Guatemala and we’re already planning the third trip. Definitely will be looking to use them again!

Hotel Reviews

Porta Hotel Antigua

Antigua Guatemala

Beautiful experience, great rooms, water filters amongst other amenities, staff offers high service level and the onsite restaurant is fantastic. I needed laundry done before leaving and the staff took it late in the day after the cut off and returned it to me that night. Highly recommended!

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hotel Atitlán

Panajachel

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Review

Zipline Adventure at Lake Atitlán

Guatemala

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport