bkstdmom

Having to change up our trip a bit due to not being able to get a flight to Flores the day we had planned. Wondering if we arrive back in Guatemala City around 9 in the morning if we'll be able to make it to Chichicastenango in time to enjoy the market there on Thursday? Any suggstions what the best way to travel from the airport to Chichi? There will be 4 of us. Thanks!

hopefulist

With 4 of you and your time constraints I'd hire a private driver to pick you up at the airport, take you to Chichi, and deliver you where you want to go. It will be spendier than the set shuttles but they leave from Antigua mainly so you'd have to land, get there, and connect which would put you in Chichi too late. The market will still be going in the early afternoon when you'd get there. I've set up my summer group's ground transportation through Adrenalina tours (they've been great to work with) and I've had good luck with Rainbow Travel in the past, too. Here's the links:
http://adrenalinatours.com/
http://rainbowtravelcenter.com/

If you want to share what you know about your schedule we might be able to brainstorm with you. Happy trails!

bkstdmom

Thanks, that is helpful. Having never been to the country it's hard to know how much time it takes to get from point A to point B. We are on a pretty quick tour of the country. Had originally planned to spend a day each in Antigua, Panajachel, Chichi, then fly to Flores for 2 days/one night then do some vising with people in the capital and then home. It seems rushed after reading posts on here from people spending a lot of time in each place, but I guess we're going for the "overview" this time. We hit a snag when I went to book our flights to Peten yesterday and they are sold out for the day we wanted to go. That's the reason for the switch up. Now we're thinking of Peten first and then going to the other cities only in reverse order! But we have to somehow be in Chichi on Thursday for the market. So you think an afternoon at the market would be enough time? Would you recommend staying the night in Chichi or back to something near Atitlan? We've heard it's better not to travel at night. How much time does it take to get between Chichi and Atitlan? Thanks again!

hopefulist

What you're describing doesn't sound like fun to me - waaaay too many stops. What are your flight days and times? Just don't answer if that's too nosy but I'm curious and might be able to help more with that info.

I prefer to stay overnight in Chichi but staying Thursday night won't buy you anything; it's staying the night before the market when you get to watch the set-up and explore in the early morning before the day trippers arrive that makes that so wonderful. By noon the market will be on a downswing and it will only take you an hour or 2 on a Thursday (no church activities) to stroll around. The shopping is better in Panajachel which is an hour or so away if I'm remembering correctly. I agree that you don't want to travel at night which means arriving to your destination before 6pm (it gets dark around then year-round that close to the equator). Keep us posted!

bkstdmom

I know it's a crazy schedule. My son (who we are picking up on a Tuesday) has been in Guat for the last two years as a missionary. He has spent lots of time in Peten and in the captial (mostly the bad parts of town, I gather) He wants to see Antugua, & Atitlan before he comes home plus take us to visit some people and see Tikal, which he has seen many times. We fly home the following Tuesday. So those are our time constraints. Maybe I should have asked this before, is there any other airline that flies from Guat City to Flores besides TACA? I've tried TAG and it seems their phone number is invalid and they don't reply to my e-mails. Another question, how doable would it be to spend just a morning in Chichi and get to the airport in Guat City for a 17:45 flight? That seems tight to me.

hopefulist

Interesting! I'm hoping to visit our son in Malawi before he comes home next year.

If you're spending the night in Chichi or arriving there from Panajachel you could visit for a few hours and leave by 11 or so for the trip to GC. If there's a road block or if road construction slows you down it could cause trouble and it's tough to predict that.

What I discourage people from doing is moving every single night. It takes 2 nights to = 1 day to explore. If you move every night you always have your stuff with you, too, meh.

If you fly in early enough to make it to Tikal the 1st night (even if you had to be on the road between Flores and Tikal as it's getting dark) you could stay 1 night in the park, explore till mid afternoon, then head to Flores for the night and fly out early Thursday morning. You could make it to Atitlán from the airport and stay there Thursday, Friday nights, then either stay Saturday night, too and get to Chichi early or spend Saturday night in Chichi, heading to Antigua before noon, arriving mid afternoon Sunday. You could spend 2 nights there, then spend Tuesday morning/early afternoon with your son's peeps in GC before you fly out. That way you have 2-3 nights on the lake and in Antigua. Good luck and have a wonderful time.

hopefulist

Also, be sure to travel REALLY LIGHT - just a loosely filled carry-on sized bag each. That's my best advice for all travelers but it's seems especially important for a whirlwind trip. If you want pack light links let me know.

Jeff_Costa_Rica

I'd allow a minimum of four hours to get from Chichi to GUA airport, and that doesn't account for any traffic you'd hit as you get closer to the city in the afternoon. There is also construction these days on the main highway at Los Encuentros, which is the turnoff that goes to Chichi. I just drove that section recently and it was slow going in places. I'd actually allow more than four hours just to be safe, but I'm overly cautious that way.

bkstdmom

Thanks for all these suggestions! We were able to get through to another airline that will allow us to fly out on Friday. That gives us a lot more breathing room than having to get back to the airport Thursday night. It's going to come together! Traveling light is not going to come easily to me, but I'm going to do it.

hopefulist

You can do it!!! My CA packing list is #14 in the FAQ thread of the Thorntree forum:
http://www.lonelyplanet.com/thorntre...28622&tstart=0

Also check out www.onebag.com and Rick Steves' advice:
http://www.ricksteves.com/plan/tips/packlight.htm (though keep in mind he's packing for Europe)

Good luck!

kmh7

Just got back last week from Guatemala, We had a private driver that I found through a local guide. He was much less expensive than the tour companies and a wonderful driver. I am going to have to dig in old receipts for his number, but I will do it first thing tomorrow for you. He took us to Chi Chi and The Lake as well as back and forth to the airport twice. I am planning to post our trip report tomorrow as well.

bkstdmom

kmh7,
Thanks, I would love to have that information!