Hiking in Guatemala – where to go?

Anyone wants to climb a volcanoe?

Guatemala is a very beautiful country with many high mountains, volcanoes and a very varying landscape, and as such it is as if it was made for hiking. And yes, the Guatemalans take advantage of that and offer quite a few hiking opportunities. Here’s a summary of the most talked-about, and my recommendation.

Antigua: Antigua is of course the center for Spanish-langauge education in Guatemala, but it is also situated in the shadow of three really big volcanoes and a smaller (but active) one. Unfortunately in low season there are very few people interested in trekking, so I couldn’t do the more extensive hikes. Read more about the Pacaya hike in the Antigua entries.

Lake Atitlan: Atitlan is truly one of the most beautiful places yhat I’ve been to, and the volcanoes surrounding the lake really calls to you. One-day hikes by yourself would be excellent, but unfortunately it is still huge problems with robberies along the hiking paths, so it is not really recommended. I did do a very short hike between two villages (see the Atitlan entries) and that really wet my appetite, so I just wish it was possible to do more!

Quetzaltenango: the second biggest town in Guate and the biggest one in the mountainous northwest, Xe-la (as it is known) is mostly famous for it’s growing language school scene, but it is also home to the most respected trekking company in the country, Quetzaltrekkers. Unfortuantely I did not go there myself, but I only heard great things about them, and they also do treks to nearby regions. Also, since they are big, they almost always have treks going. I wish I had gone there...

Nebaj: A new and rising star in Guate trekking, Nebaj is a small and very rural town in northern Guatemala. It has only one place that arranges treks (Guide Ixil), but if they were good it would certainly be enough. The landscape was beautiful, but unfortunately the guide that we had anyway was a big disappointment. The trek in itself was good enough, but if I were to go back, I would head for Quetzaltrekkers...