My quick jaunt to Guatemala
Mar 13th, 2015, 04:43 PM
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My quick jaunt to Guatemala
Because of an interesting airfare I decided to do a stopover in GUA on my way from Spain to Cincinnati. After reading up I decided I would not even stay in Guatemala City except the last night .. and near the airport in a gated community.
I would book a taxi from the airport straight to my simple basic hotel in the World Heritage city, La Antigua.
So many people were concerned for my safety when I said i was going to Guatemala that I kept reading suggestions and reports to get a better feel for where I was going. Yes, Guatemala does have a lot of crime, but I was convinced I would not put myself in danger in the two places I had chosen to go, ( Antigua and Lake Atitlán) nor by taking risks by walking around back to my hotel alone at night.
My daughter has a friend who goes frequently on business and always uses this taxi driver so I followed suit, especially since I was going to be alone ( I thought when I booked the trip).
[email protected] His name is Miguel but I am not sure if he speaks much English.
He has whatsapp on his phone +50245838877 and was VERY prompt in answering and confirming our arrangements. We will be using him next August when we go back for a few days. His fare was VERY reasonable compared to the fares i had read about. He does not have a LARGE car. Two people with two suitcases and two carry-ons fit, but one case was in the front passenger seat. I think he CAN get larger vehicles if he knows ahead of time.
It was so nice to have someone waiting for us .. and he drove very carefully on the 45-minute trip to our hotel in Antigua. Our hotel was "Hotel y Arte". I saw them on booking dot com, could not find any webpage for them, so made the reservation there. They do not take credit cards so I did write them closer to the date to reconfirm my reservation. This "hotel" is VERY well located. It is new. Has a young, simple vibe to it. I believe it has hostel type rooms also with no bathroom, but we had one of the rooms with a private bath.The mattress was amazing, also obviously new and of excellent quality.
The ONLY observation is that while they renovated to make bedrooms, the dropped ceiling must somehow share open space above it with the room next door because both of us mutually could be heard a bit by the other room. Fortunately next door was quiet.. except for a coughing attack. The walls are VERY thick, so the voices are not coming through there.
Staff here are very sweet. It is owned by a young man. I wish him well. All of their restaurant recommendations were taken and appreciated.
It was pitch black and late at night so we saw nothing from the taxi when we came into town except a few buildings that were illuminated, but in the morning when we woke up we were delighted to see the charm of this town. The cobble stone streets and colonial architecture, monasteries, convents and churches, with volcanos framing the background, made for some spectacular photos.
More to follow
I would book a taxi from the airport straight to my simple basic hotel in the World Heritage city, La Antigua.
So many people were concerned for my safety when I said i was going to Guatemala that I kept reading suggestions and reports to get a better feel for where I was going. Yes, Guatemala does have a lot of crime, but I was convinced I would not put myself in danger in the two places I had chosen to go, ( Antigua and Lake Atitlán) nor by taking risks by walking around back to my hotel alone at night.
My daughter has a friend who goes frequently on business and always uses this taxi driver so I followed suit, especially since I was going to be alone ( I thought when I booked the trip).
[email protected] His name is Miguel but I am not sure if he speaks much English.
He has whatsapp on his phone +50245838877 and was VERY prompt in answering and confirming our arrangements. We will be using him next August when we go back for a few days. His fare was VERY reasonable compared to the fares i had read about. He does not have a LARGE car. Two people with two suitcases and two carry-ons fit, but one case was in the front passenger seat. I think he CAN get larger vehicles if he knows ahead of time.
It was so nice to have someone waiting for us .. and he drove very carefully on the 45-minute trip to our hotel in Antigua. Our hotel was "Hotel y Arte". I saw them on booking dot com, could not find any webpage for them, so made the reservation there. They do not take credit cards so I did write them closer to the date to reconfirm my reservation. This "hotel" is VERY well located. It is new. Has a young, simple vibe to it. I believe it has hostel type rooms also with no bathroom, but we had one of the rooms with a private bath.The mattress was amazing, also obviously new and of excellent quality.
The ONLY observation is that while they renovated to make bedrooms, the dropped ceiling must somehow share open space above it with the room next door because both of us mutually could be heard a bit by the other room. Fortunately next door was quiet.. except for a coughing attack. The walls are VERY thick, so the voices are not coming through there.
Staff here are very sweet. It is owned by a young man. I wish him well. All of their restaurant recommendations were taken and appreciated.
It was pitch black and late at night so we saw nothing from the taxi when we came into town except a few buildings that were illuminated, but in the morning when we woke up we were delighted to see the charm of this town. The cobble stone streets and colonial architecture, monasteries, convents and churches, with volcanos framing the background, made for some spectacular photos.
More to follow
Mar 17th, 2015, 12:16 PM
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Sorry I am so tardy getting my info organized with the restaurant names,etc.
What I CAN tell you is:
We had great meals at the following places:
Cafe Condesa, Cafe Luisa, Chez Christophe, Fonda Calle Real ( there are two.. we went to the one that has a colonial patio).
The street food in front of the Merced Church smelled too good to pass up. We shared a "chulapa?". A thin tortilla ( I think) wrapped around cheese, meat and something else, and then heated on a hot grill. It melted in our mouths.
We did not venture out at night to go for drinks or a disco, we are past that age, but felt very safe as we walked back to our centrally located hotel. There were plenty of other people out all the time. We never felt threatened or that we were in an undesirable neighborhood.
Antigua is a very walkable city. We took no transport whatsoever and got around to every monument plus the "Cerros" mountain lookout points where we were transported with free shuttles. One from Hotel San Cristobal, and the other from the huge handcraft shop, NIMPOT, near the arch area pedestrian street. Do not miss these two places. You may have to wait for a shuttle to take you up, or bring you back down, but the views of both volcanos are wonderful and food and snacks are served at both destinations. It is very relaxing. Two free things to do in Antigua.
Another thing I can tell you is:
Do not assume the shared shuttle you reserve will
1) Be on time ... or ...
2) look anything like the one in the photo at the agency, or go as directly to destination as you THOUGHT. But you will eventually get to your destination, but careful booking anything like that to the airport from a city too far away for same day departure.
After 3 lovely nights in Antigua we headed out to the Lake. The one they call one of the most beautiful ones in the world. The volcanos flanking the lake make it quite spectacular.
Yes, it is nice. Yes, it is worth a trip, as once you get there, it is somewhat exotic and a fun place with fun places to eat and zip around on little tuk tuks everywhere on teeny narrow paved paths.
We took a shared shuttle for $10 to Lake Atitlán direct to San Pedro de la Laguna. I will never go that direct route again. The hairpin turns and burning brakes due to the steep incline that lasted forEVER ( total trip was 3.5 hours) was really too much for this brave woman. As soon as we got off the bus in town, I went to get our tickets reimbursed to change to leave from Pana on the other side of the lake ( reachable by boat) that i had been told was a milder road.
However, we were told they could not do that and that the road from Pana was just as bad. So we decided maybe the trip UP the mountain/volcano, or whatever we were on, might be less stressful. We were right. It was not as bad. But we were very happy to arrive at our destination, regardless!
Our great hotel at the lake:
http://hotel-sakcari.com
I found this hotel on a nice blog from a fellow who frequents Guatemala and supports an NGO there. It really is quite a nice, simple, unpretentious place in an ideal location. Our room, as all, had a great view... the photos don't lie. They also have kayaks for use, some hammocks and free coffee near reception in the morning.
It was too cold and windy to even think about the kayaks, but we found plenty to do buzzing around in cheap tuk tuks from one restaurant or end of town to another.
We also took a boat to one of the other towns to explore. It was San Marcos. This is an unusual place, seemingly inhabited by new age, holistic, pro-organic pacifists. It's like an inhabited jungle with narrow paths between bamboo fences with cafés and yoga retreats spread here and there.
We also took an overpriced tuk tuk ride to the next town over to see textiles where we bought all our souvenirs, bargaining up a storm, but we still probably overpaid. Who knows? We also had bought some things at the handicraft market in Antigua.
All in all, we had a great time, although too short, in the San Pedro area.
Next time I will book Casa del Mundo hotel which was recommended by many as a unique experience, only accessible by boat. it sounds marvelous.
When it was time to leave we got on our shuttle to Antigua and endured the 3+ hour drive back up and down the mountains. It was more bearable and we enjoyed conversing with the other passengers. The majority were aid workers, volunteers, in between work on a two or three day leave, going back to a rural town near Antigua or actually flying back home.
The only glitch on our trip was the following. We had contracted a shuttle to Antigua to our hotel to collect my large bag I had left there. All good.
Then we were to continue on the same shuttle ( we assumed) to the airport hotel, or so we thought. The driver drove around Antigua picking up other passengers and suddenly took us back to an office near our hotel and told us we were on the wrong shuttle.. that he was not supposed to take us to the airport, even though he was going there.
Bye bye! Luggage off roof of van.. we waved goodbye to our van companions with a perplexed look on our faces.
After many phone calls from the office, they finally arranged for another shuttle ( much nicer van BTW) to collect us and get us to our airport hotel. This shuttle came at least 45 minutes later than our original shuttle was supposed to leave. The people on the shuttle were livid because THEY thought they were going straight to the bus station in G. City to catch a bus. But once in Antigua they had been told to get OFF the van onto another one.. then THIS new van kept stopping and picking up passengers at hotels all over Antigua. When they finally came for US.. this is what happened.
What I CAN tell you is:
We had great meals at the following places:
Cafe Condesa, Cafe Luisa, Chez Christophe, Fonda Calle Real ( there are two.. we went to the one that has a colonial patio).
The street food in front of the Merced Church smelled too good to pass up. We shared a "chulapa?". A thin tortilla ( I think) wrapped around cheese, meat and something else, and then heated on a hot grill. It melted in our mouths.
We did not venture out at night to go for drinks or a disco, we are past that age, but felt very safe as we walked back to our centrally located hotel. There were plenty of other people out all the time. We never felt threatened or that we were in an undesirable neighborhood.
Antigua is a very walkable city. We took no transport whatsoever and got around to every monument plus the "Cerros" mountain lookout points where we were transported with free shuttles. One from Hotel San Cristobal, and the other from the huge handcraft shop, NIMPOT, near the arch area pedestrian street. Do not miss these two places. You may have to wait for a shuttle to take you up, or bring you back down, but the views of both volcanos are wonderful and food and snacks are served at both destinations. It is very relaxing. Two free things to do in Antigua.
Another thing I can tell you is:
Do not assume the shared shuttle you reserve will
1) Be on time ... or ...
2) look anything like the one in the photo at the agency, or go as directly to destination as you THOUGHT. But you will eventually get to your destination, but careful booking anything like that to the airport from a city too far away for same day departure.
After 3 lovely nights in Antigua we headed out to the Lake. The one they call one of the most beautiful ones in the world. The volcanos flanking the lake make it quite spectacular.
Yes, it is nice. Yes, it is worth a trip, as once you get there, it is somewhat exotic and a fun place with fun places to eat and zip around on little tuk tuks everywhere on teeny narrow paved paths.
We took a shared shuttle for $10 to Lake Atitlán direct to San Pedro de la Laguna. I will never go that direct route again. The hairpin turns and burning brakes due to the steep incline that lasted forEVER ( total trip was 3.5 hours) was really too much for this brave woman. As soon as we got off the bus in town, I went to get our tickets reimbursed to change to leave from Pana on the other side of the lake ( reachable by boat) that i had been told was a milder road.
However, we were told they could not do that and that the road from Pana was just as bad. So we decided maybe the trip UP the mountain/volcano, or whatever we were on, might be less stressful. We were right. It was not as bad. But we were very happy to arrive at our destination, regardless!
Our great hotel at the lake:
http://hotel-sakcari.com
I found this hotel on a nice blog from a fellow who frequents Guatemala and supports an NGO there. It really is quite a nice, simple, unpretentious place in an ideal location. Our room, as all, had a great view... the photos don't lie. They also have kayaks for use, some hammocks and free coffee near reception in the morning.
It was too cold and windy to even think about the kayaks, but we found plenty to do buzzing around in cheap tuk tuks from one restaurant or end of town to another.
We also took a boat to one of the other towns to explore. It was San Marcos. This is an unusual place, seemingly inhabited by new age, holistic, pro-organic pacifists. It's like an inhabited jungle with narrow paths between bamboo fences with cafés and yoga retreats spread here and there.
We also took an overpriced tuk tuk ride to the next town over to see textiles where we bought all our souvenirs, bargaining up a storm, but we still probably overpaid. Who knows? We also had bought some things at the handicraft market in Antigua.
All in all, we had a great time, although too short, in the San Pedro area.
Next time I will book Casa del Mundo hotel which was recommended by many as a unique experience, only accessible by boat. it sounds marvelous.
When it was time to leave we got on our shuttle to Antigua and endured the 3+ hour drive back up and down the mountains. It was more bearable and we enjoyed conversing with the other passengers. The majority were aid workers, volunteers, in between work on a two or three day leave, going back to a rural town near Antigua or actually flying back home.
The only glitch on our trip was the following. We had contracted a shuttle to Antigua to our hotel to collect my large bag I had left there. All good.
Then we were to continue on the same shuttle ( we assumed) to the airport hotel, or so we thought. The driver drove around Antigua picking up other passengers and suddenly took us back to an office near our hotel and told us we were on the wrong shuttle.. that he was not supposed to take us to the airport, even though he was going there.
Bye bye! Luggage off roof of van.. we waved goodbye to our van companions with a perplexed look on our faces.
After many phone calls from the office, they finally arranged for another shuttle ( much nicer van BTW) to collect us and get us to our airport hotel. This shuttle came at least 45 minutes later than our original shuttle was supposed to leave. The people on the shuttle were livid because THEY thought they were going straight to the bus station in G. City to catch a bus. But once in Antigua they had been told to get OFF the van onto another one.. then THIS new van kept stopping and picking up passengers at hotels all over Antigua. When they finally came for US.. this is what happened.
Mar 17th, 2015, 01:07 PM
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Thanks - really enjoyed this! We are heading to Guatemala on Thursday, a night in Antigua before spending 3 weeks in San Pedro La Laguna, then a night near the airport before an early flight home.
Re: shuttles, totally not true that the road leading down to Pana is as bad as the road down into San Pedro - they aren't even on the same planet. We had a truly frightening experience with failed brakes on that road when we couldn't continue up past a big truck at a corner - we try to avoid that road unless we're heading to Xela.
When we head back from San Pedro we boat across to Panajachel (for future reference - probably the best shopping in Guatemala) and take a private shuttle from there; that's the only way you can go from there to the airport without those frustrating stops in Antigua. Last year I did it each way twice; the private shuttles both took well under 3 hours and the share shuttles both took over 5 hours.
Maybe add Santiago Atitlan to your list for next trip - some really unique features.
And a question: was it Santo Domingo that had the free shuttles up to a viewpoint restaurant? If that wasn't 1 of the ones you did, keep it in mind for next time.
Thanks again for posting!
Re: shuttles, totally not true that the road leading down to Pana is as bad as the road down into San Pedro - they aren't even on the same planet. We had a truly frightening experience with failed brakes on that road when we couldn't continue up past a big truck at a corner - we try to avoid that road unless we're heading to Xela.
When we head back from San Pedro we boat across to Panajachel (for future reference - probably the best shopping in Guatemala) and take a private shuttle from there; that's the only way you can go from there to the airport without those frustrating stops in Antigua. Last year I did it each way twice; the private shuttles both took well under 3 hours and the share shuttles both took over 5 hours.
Maybe add Santiago Atitlan to your list for next trip - some really unique features.
And a question: was it Santo Domingo that had the free shuttles up to a viewpoint restaurant? If that wasn't 1 of the ones you did, keep it in mind for next time.
Thanks again for posting!
Mar 17th, 2015, 01:30 PM
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Thank you! I learned not to believe half of what I was told. I will definitely do Pana and the boat and check out Santiago next time. Thanks for the heads up.
I was the only Spanish speaker on the shared shuttle to San Pedro.. and everyone was muttering about how this driver would not stop to cool off the brakes. I finally laid into him to stop because the brakes were burning but he responded that "no pasa nada.. hago este viaje todos los dias dos veces" ( don't worry, I do this trip twice a day).
yea.. until the brakes fail.
Yes, the free shuttle was from Santo Domingo.
I was the only Spanish speaker on the shared shuttle to San Pedro.. and everyone was muttering about how this driver would not stop to cool off the brakes. I finally laid into him to stop because the brakes were burning but he responded that "no pasa nada.. hago este viaje todos los dias dos veces" ( don't worry, I do this trip twice a day).
yea.. until the brakes fail.
Yes, the free shuttle was from Santo Domingo.
Mar 17th, 2015, 01:59 PM
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As the driver was tediously trying to tie up the luggage in a safe way, my friend and I proceeded to find two seats inside the van where all the passengers seemed to have spread out very comfortably. A French couple in the first row would not move their knapsack that sat between them.. two other older ladies did not budge over an INCH and I couldn't even SEE if there was room on the crowded back bench.
So I asked the French couple again if "a person was sitting there, or a knapsack". Begrudgingly he put his knapsack on his lap complaining to his wife the whole time in French. This complaining continued for a good part of the hour trip. The wife kept telling him to "say something to me.". that I "spoke English". I was really enjoying this since they had no idea I understood every word they said.
Anyway, instead of sliding over next to her husband they decided to let my friend crawl in over them as they bantered back and forth, leaning across my friend's face.. as she sat in the middle without uttering a word, wondering what was going on.
As I stood trying to make eye contact in the dark with SOMEONE who would facilitate my sitting down somewhere, a husky, rough voice screamed " Just sit the F down and let's get going for God's sake" to which I responded for him not to worry, couldn't he hear the driver on the roof? The van wasn't going anywhere and "if someone would LET me sit down I'd be happy to!"
I was able to halfway sit on a seat and once the driver had secured the luggage we were on our way. I engaged in some pleasant conversation with the passengers who realized they were NOT going to miss their bus ( they still had 3 hours until departure) so the fellow who was so rude behind me actually apologized later and was a lot of fun to talk to.
I have to admit I was still hoping the French passenger would say something to me so i could retort. He spent most of the 45 minute trip rehashing the whole incident not understanding why my friend just didn´t look elsewhere to sit.
After making a stop at the bus station we were taken to our hotel "Villa Toscana" near GUA where we spent a pleasant evening. This hotel is in a gated industrial type area with no restaurants so be sure to have snacks with you if you are getting in late. I understand food can be delivered until a certain time. But there are steps everywhere. The receptionist did help us with our bags, up and down.
Unless I remember something amazing, this is the end of our fun, 5-night jaunt to Guatemala, all because of an insanely inexpensive stopover fare. I will be repeating the stopover this summer again for the same reason, but only for 3 nights in Antigua, with my husband who has never been.
I hope to have time some other year to visit some of the lovely places recommended here. It is such a colorful country and so reasonable for accommodations and getting around.
Thanks for reading. Hope this report helps someone. One thing I didn't mention, if this is your first time in Central or South America, you may be surprised that toilet paper is not to be thrown down the toilet due to the faulty old, earthquake affected ceramic pipes. So, just a forewarning that we have found at many places on our short journeys in Brazil, Guatemala, Colombia and in Asia.
US dollars were readily accepted by everyone, everywhere, as long as they were newish and unblemished. Some places charge up to 7% to use a credit card. The local currency, coins and bills, Quetzales, are quite pretty.
So I asked the French couple again if "a person was sitting there, or a knapsack". Begrudgingly he put his knapsack on his lap complaining to his wife the whole time in French. This complaining continued for a good part of the hour trip. The wife kept telling him to "say something to me.". that I "spoke English". I was really enjoying this since they had no idea I understood every word they said.
Anyway, instead of sliding over next to her husband they decided to let my friend crawl in over them as they bantered back and forth, leaning across my friend's face.. as she sat in the middle without uttering a word, wondering what was going on.
As I stood trying to make eye contact in the dark with SOMEONE who would facilitate my sitting down somewhere, a husky, rough voice screamed " Just sit the F down and let's get going for God's sake" to which I responded for him not to worry, couldn't he hear the driver on the roof? The van wasn't going anywhere and "if someone would LET me sit down I'd be happy to!"
I was able to halfway sit on a seat and once the driver had secured the luggage we were on our way. I engaged in some pleasant conversation with the passengers who realized they were NOT going to miss their bus ( they still had 3 hours until departure) so the fellow who was so rude behind me actually apologized later and was a lot of fun to talk to.
I have to admit I was still hoping the French passenger would say something to me so i could retort. He spent most of the 45 minute trip rehashing the whole incident not understanding why my friend just didn´t look elsewhere to sit.
After making a stop at the bus station we were taken to our hotel "Villa Toscana" near GUA where we spent a pleasant evening. This hotel is in a gated industrial type area with no restaurants so be sure to have snacks with you if you are getting in late. I understand food can be delivered until a certain time. But there are steps everywhere. The receptionist did help us with our bags, up and down.
Unless I remember something amazing, this is the end of our fun, 5-night jaunt to Guatemala, all because of an insanely inexpensive stopover fare. I will be repeating the stopover this summer again for the same reason, but only for 3 nights in Antigua, with my husband who has never been.
I hope to have time some other year to visit some of the lovely places recommended here. It is such a colorful country and so reasonable for accommodations and getting around.
Thanks for reading. Hope this report helps someone. One thing I didn't mention, if this is your first time in Central or South America, you may be surprised that toilet paper is not to be thrown down the toilet due to the faulty old, earthquake affected ceramic pipes. So, just a forewarning that we have found at many places on our short journeys in Brazil, Guatemala, Colombia and in Asia.
US dollars were readily accepted by everyone, everywhere, as long as they were newish and unblemished. Some places charge up to 7% to use a credit card. The local currency, coins and bills, Quetzales, are quite pretty.
Mar 17th, 2015, 02:26 PM
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I want to thank HOPEFULIST because yours is the blog I used most to decide where I wanted to go at the lake, I now realize. Thank you for all your photos and suggestions! You are a wealth of information and I am sure have helped dozens of people on this forum..
Mar 18th, 2015, 03:30 AM
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Also check your restaurant bills as many already include a service fee.
We also had been tempted in San Pedro to go on a 3 hr. horseback ride up towards the volcano and bordering coffee fields but decided too late. I believe it was only $15 or less.
We also went to Zoola in S.P.. a cute chill out place along the waterfront.
As I remember more details I will post them!
We also had been tempted in San Pedro to go on a 3 hr. horseback ride up towards the volcano and bordering coffee fields but decided too late. I believe it was only $15 or less.
We also went to Zoola in S.P.. a cute chill out place along the waterfront.
As I remember more details I will post them!
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