Birthday Trip to Central America
 

I am in the midst of planning a trip for my wife's "milestone" birthday in January 2026. The reason for planning so early is to secure Amex/Avios companion tickets from Madrid to Central America as soon as they become available 355 days in advance.

I posted on TA Guatemala forum and got some valuable input from hopefulist who I think also posts here from time to time. Below is the itinerary I have come up with:

4 nts Antigua
5 nts Lake Atitilán
2 nts Tikal
4nts Belize Jungle
5nts Belize Beach (mainland or Cayes, possibly some diving)
1 nt Guatemala City (for flight home)

​​​​​​​I think what I am looking for is a fairly relaxed pace, some nice hotels (but not outrageously expensive), good food and obviously to see stuff we haven't seen before. This is our first time to Central America so I am not yet too sure about how easy it is to get around. Have looked at te cost of rental cars and it seems v.expensive so I will likely just look at hiring private drivers to get between locations and maybe hire a guide or two as and when.

​​​​​​​Any thoughts or suggestions re the above, or suggestions for accomodation, tours etc would be much appreciated.

I chose Guatemala based on our nieces' visit there last year. They moved it BUT they are twenty something backpackers with different tastes! I also have the option of getting open jaw tickets and flying into Guatemala and out of another Central American say Costa Rica, Panama or El Salvador . Or even getting a return tkt and spending all our time in one of those countries worth considering.

​​​​​​​Any thoughts or opinions would be much appreciated.

Only time we spent in Guatemala was a day trip from San Ignacio, but spent two weeks in Belize at four different places:

1) Caves Branch Lodge south of Belmopan. An adventure lodge in a jungle area on the river, says they have AC now that they didn’t when we went. Nice open accommodations, decent food, and good guides. Highly recommend the Waterfall Cave Expedition if you go and are up to it.

2) Cahal Pech Resort in San Ignacio. Not really a resort, but clean, pool, nice view over town, walk (steep hill) into town, small set of ruins adjacent. Used this mainly as place to stay and visit Tikal and ATM Cave (highly recommend).

3) Blackbird Caye Resort on Turneffe Atoll. Nice cabanas on the beach, good food, friendly staff, great diving/snorkeling. Four-night stays go to the Blue Hole that was pretty exciting for us after seeing it in pictures.

4) Chan Chich in Gallon jug. Jungle setting, nice accommodations, good food, friendly staff, ruins/mounds surrounding cabanas, flew there on private single engine prop. Pretty expensive and wouldn’t do it unless into birding.

Four of us, 2 adults two teen boys. Rented a car the first week, easy driving after getting away for the airport - stop at the zoo small but nice.

I just looked at the Blackbird Caye website. They used to offer four and three night packages (we did four), but now appears only 7 night packages.

Guatemala has a good network of private tourist shuttles. They're minivans that seat 12-15 people and are a lot more comfortable than taking a public bus. They can get you from GUA airport to Antigua and from Antigua to Lake Atitlan and back. You'd need to reserve your seat at least a day in advance. They'd go around picking up passengers with reservations at various hotels in Antigua and then off you'd go to Lake Atitlan, for example. That's how they work.

Tikal is a good 10 hours overland from Guatemala City, and if you're at Lake Atitlan, that adds another two hours. Avianca, the regional airline, flies from the capital to Flores, the major town in northern Guatemala, about 90 minutes from Tikal itself.

During your days at the lake, be sure to take in the famous market at Chichicastenango on Thursday or Sunday. It's an hour away, and you could get there and back on one of those tourist shuttles. Some say it's "too touristy." I think it's a lot of fun.

How do you plan to get from Belize back to Guatemala City for your flight home?

My only Guatemala visits were day trips from the port, I loved Antigua. Also went to a finca for a bird thing.

PS Costa Rica not especially interesting as far as culture, IMO. Good birds, though. Of the three countries you mentioned, Panama might be of some interest but I would be inclined to focus on Guatemala and Belize. (When I visited Costa Rica my hosts mentioned they liked to vacation in Panama.) There are some nice lodgings in Costa Rica, it is popular with American tourists. English widely spoken.

Thank you all for your input.

DaveS - thanks for the accommodation suggestions. Loved the look of Blackbird Caye though not the eye watering rates! Above our budget for that type of place.

Jeff - thanks for the info on getting around and for the timings. A much needed reality check! I hadn't really appreciated the time needed to get from A to B. I had considered using private drivers as an alternative which would reduce travel times somewhat as there would be no hang around for the passenger, but 10-12 hour journeys in either minibuses or private cars is possibly not something we want on this particular trip. Have done too much of that in SE Asia. Also thanks for raising te question of getting back to Guatemala City to from Belize. Had thought of time on one of the Cayes which would require a ferry to BC and either a 12 hour bus ride or an 90 min but seemingly hugely expensive flight, neither of which appeal!

mlgb - good to hear from my LA bodyguard! I trust that you and yours were not too badly affected by the terrible fires in California? Thanks for the insight on the relative merits of Guatemala and Belize v Costa Rica and Panama I did look further at both and neither are calling me.

I am going to reset and consider maybe a simplified itinerary with fewer locations and less travel and will return (or maybe consider a return to Mexico or Argentina or Colombia which are all options with companion ticket availablity !)

Crellston— I loved my trips to Belize (1x) and Guatemala (2x) and hope you’ll enjoy. To address the return from Belize to Guatemala City, if you need to fly back home from the Guatemalan capital, as much as I think Belize is fascinating, I think it might make sense to shave off a day or two from Belize beach or jungle and get back to Flores, Guatemala earlier in time for a domestic flight to Guatemala City. When I visited Belize in 2018, I took a shuttle bus called Marlin Espadas from Chetumal, Mexico to Belize City that was continuing to Flores and there may be other bus or shuttle lines that can get you from Belize (San Ignacio?) to Flores? From my research, Flores seemed appealing, so I would be tempted to spend 2 days there; I've never been though so hopefully others who have been there can advise.

Best wishes, Daniel

Hi crellston, thanks for the shout out. I was not personally affected but like almost everyone, know people who lost everything and others who evacuated and are now dealing with those hassles. And today we are awaiting our first real rain in nearly a year. Hope your Pasadena friends fared okay?

I think you get a good sense of this looking at a map: Northern Guatemala (Tikal and area attractions) is easily accessible from Belize. In fact, many Belizean tour operators operate cross-border excursions. BUT ... Belize is nowhere near the standard Guatemala tourist orbit (Guatemala City, Antigua, Lake Atitlan, Chichicastenango). That doesn't mean you can't combine the two countries, and you certainly have enough time to do so. You just can't be out in the Cayes in Belize the day before you have to fly home from GUA airport.

[QUOTE=crellston;17627152]I am in the midst of planning a trip for my wife's "milestone" birthday in January 2026. The reason for planning so early is to secure Amex/Avios companion tickets from Madrid to Central America as soon as they become available 355 days in advance.

Is Carolyn 29 again?

Good to know mlgb. Our Pasadena friends sold there place and moved to Minnesota so not affected. We met up with them a couple of weeks ago when the fires warfront and centre in the news here, they were devastated for there many friends in the LA area that had lost everything and felt powerless to help. Fingers crossed for you guys that that rain does turn up.

Many thanks for your further thoughts Daniel, extremely helpful. As many here will know, we are well used to rough and complex travel BUT on this trip we are leaning more towards comfort and simplicity rather than authenticity/"living like a local " etc... so I am trying to keep things as simple as possible.

However, your comments did spark the idea of looking at open jaw tickets. I check with BA/Iberia and it seems it is possible to get an open jaw ticket into MEX or Cancun and visiting Belize via Chetumal at the beginning and then on to Jungle /Tikal and then Atitlan/Antigua before flying out of Guatemala City.
I feel a spreadsheet session in my future!

[QUOTE=Tdiddy12;17628276]Carolyn sends her regards and said to tell you you are true gentlemen!

Thanks Jeff. I spent some time on google maps and one or two blogs and see what you mean. I guess I was looking at it too simplistically. I was just thinking an hour on the ferry to Cay Caulker and a flight to GC , overnight in there and fly out the next day - then I remembered the problems we had with Volaris in Mexico last year and that would have secreted up our international flight!

As mentioned in my response to DaveS above , I am now looking at open jaw into MEX (no hardship to spend a few more days in Mexico City!) and out of Guatemala and if that works I could put Belize beach at the start and then work back to GC via Tikal and a flight from Flores. No longer sure about a jungle fix as we have done rainforests all over the world (but maybe we can combine Tikal and a jungle experience somewhere nearby?) . This way I would only need to worry about getting from Antigua to GC on the day of our flightier the night before.

I think your original plans are doable. You just need to make your way back to Guatemala City sooner than the day before you have to fly home. TAG Airlines, a Guatemalan airline, flies between BZE and GUA once a day. I've read mixed reviews about their punctuality.

Your "fly into CUN and out of GUA" plan is intriguing and would save you all that backtracking. Realize that Cancun to Chetumal is at least 5&1/2 hours on the bus, with some services longer.

If you want to spend a few days in Mexico City, you can roll the dice and fly on Viva to Chetumal? But all of that travel may not be the relaxing 29th birthday experience you are seeking.

Many thanks for all the input. I have decided that Guatemala is not going to fit the bill for this trip. All the info is not wasted though, as we will defer until another time, probably late 2026 and incorporate into my long held bucket list plan to tick off the whole of the Pan-American highway.

For Jan 26 I have just booked flights from Madrid to Buenos Aires to complete the last remaining section of the Panamerican, south from Bariloche. I shall post more in the South America forum later.

:lol: Still p***ed of re Mexican airlines!

LOL but Argentina gives a good run for the money.
https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fod...a3555374e0.jpg
Ushuaia Airport

Ha ha! You just reminded me why, in our many months travelling in Argentina we took dozens of overnight buses without incident and one flight which was a disaster!

For future ref:

Noting that there are now 2 shuttle companies that connect Flores with Palenque Mexico, so an overland trip Cancun>>Belize>>northern Guatemala>>Palenque>>Oaxaca is now possible if that mostly lowland experience interests you.

​​​​​​​I am visiting Belize in December and rather stumped finding a decent beach, something that’s not just a pathetic scrap of sand.