Questions about visiting Guatemala in 14 days (page 2 of 2)

Hi Lomaphi, We spent two weeks in Guatemala in May. I think 3 nights in Antigua is a bit short, especially since your first day might be cut short by travel and jet lag. And the last day too, because the trip to the lake is quite long. Personally, I loved Antigua, but the lake... not so much.

A few thoughts on Antigua and Atitlan on the blog: https://frenchiesinamerica.travel.blog/

I’ll throw in some personal notes here, a bit scattered, following up on Dede75010:

I agree that 3 days in Antigua is a minimum, especially if those 3 days include the travel time to get there (at least 2 hours from GUA airport, I think), and if you want to do the little Pacaya hike, which takes several hours by bus and on foot. The city has several sites worth visiting, lots of nice restaurants and cafés, it’s very walkable, and big enough that you won’t get tired of it after 2 days. We really liked the restaurant San Martin, on a street corner one block from the cathedral—spacious, visually appealing, good food with plenty of choices, and reasonable prices.

Lake Atitlan is a bit tricky to describe in a few sentences, but I’ll try based on what I know. Panajachel is nice but doesn’t have much beauty in itself. It’s very touristy, but it’s bearable (it could be worse!). For those who like hunting for typical souvenirs, there are tons of little shops—it’s a real Aladdin’s cave! We found a well-located hotel, very pleasant with nice rooms and a lovely garden where it’s great to sit in the shade of the trees, at a reasonable price (we’re not into luxury!). But I think many people would get tired of it after 2 days. The real appeal of the lake is only fully enjoyed if you visit one of the small villages outside Panajachel. We only went to San Juan La Laguna—small, nice, but we were tired of it after 2 days. Very touristy too. There are several other spots around the lake, but you’d need someone else’s opinion on those. Getting around the lake by *lancha* is cheap and quick...

It takes a good 3 hours to get from Panajachel to the airport. You can’t avoid the capital and its surrounding area, where traffic is heavy...

I’ll add a comment on Tikal and Flores. The little town of Flores isn’t interesting at all in my opinion, whether it’s the island or anything else. Okay, you see the lake, which is nice, but there are so many prettier ones in the world! A restaurant we enjoyed: Capitan Tortuga. And Tikal? I might shock some people, but we were a bit disappointed. We’ve visited Palenque, among others, which in my/our opinion is much prettier and has a better overall harmony that Tikal lacks. Sure, there’s all the magic and folklore around Tikal being lost in the jungle and only recently discovered. But the few ruins you can visit are in poor condition and sometimes suffer from unfortunate repairs.

With all that, I’d say for those planning a 2-week trip, it might be better to focus on Antigua and Atitlan, and maybe Chichicastenango. But I know, we always want to do it all...

Good evening, just a heads-up—don’t get it wrong. If the temples at Tikal are intentionally left in their rough state (i.e., not "whitewashed"), it’s because—just in case you hadn’t noticed—there’s a sort of blackish moss that helps preserve the stone. Without this moss, the stones would suffer erosion from the fairly heavy rains in the area. A guide told me that.

Good evening, just a heads-up—don’t get it wrong. If the temples at Tikal are intentionally left in their current state—meaning they’re not "whitewashed"—it’s because, in case you hadn’t noticed, there’s a sort of blackish moss that helps preserve the stone. Without this moss, the stones would suffer erosion from the fairly heavy rains in the area. A guide told me that.

Hello,

Yes, I understand. Actually, I might not have been very clear—it’s not that moss I find unattractive, but the rather massive cement reinforcements on some of the most important ruins you can visit. I get the need for reinforcement or consolidation, but in my opinion, the result isn’t very pleasing.

Of course, everyone will form their own opinion. For my part, having paid a pretty expensive round-trip flight from GUA to FRS (with TAG) for two people, just to spend 2 days/3 nights in Flores and visit Tikal, and considering what I’d seen at Palenque, Uxmal, and another site in the Yucatán (just to mention the Mayan sites), I can’t help thinking it was a lot of effort in both time and money—and that those efforts could’ve been better spent elsewhere.