Tourist sites
Guatemala Ciudad: one of the biggest built-up areas of Central America. It extends along an eroded and deeply gullied mountains range. The city, which is split into 15 "zonas", is not very nice and people are mainly driven there for professional reasons or for its communication platform role, than for its tourist interest. In the Zona 1, the Plaza Mayor is a classic example of the Spanish colonial plan, and is lined up in the North by the Government Palace and in the East, by the Catedral Metropolitana, which is massive and austere. Behind the cathedral, the Mercado Central mainly sells artcraft for tourists. The Zona 10 holds several museums, of which the Museo Popol Vuh ( Maya art and colonial Spanish) and the Museo Ixchel (beautiful costumes and pieces of art from the high plateaux). In Zona 13, the Museo Nacional de Arqueologia y Etnologia (Maya art) and the Museo Nacional de Arte Moderno (contemporary Guatemalan art) can be visited. It is in Zona Viva that elegant restaurants and nightclubs are gathered.
Antigua: capital of Guatemala from 1543 to 1773, until a terrible earthquake destroyed it. Appearing among the oldest and the most beautiful cities of America, it underwent no less than 16 earthquakes. However, some colonial buildings, such as La Merced, the Iglesia of San Francisco and the Convento de las Capucinas, resisted.
Pacaya Volcano : if the safety rules enable it, do not miss the ascent of the Pacaya volcano (2,552 m), in the surroundings of Antigua. The walking is definitely long and tiring but there are no difficult ways. Once at the summit, the view is fabulous: about every 15 minutes, a rumbling fills the air and makes the ground shake, then a column of stones and smoke bursts out of the volcano, followed by a jet of lava.
Panajachel: situated at the edge of Atitlan's lago, this village has somehow a "French Riviera" atmosphere and it will offer you everything you might have missed while on the high plateaux: comfortable hotels, nice restaurants, friendly cafes with terraces where you'll be able to lazy in the sun, observing the animation of the street.
Chichicastenango: it is a big coulourful market. All the farmers of the surroundings gather there and, on Sundays, the cofradias (religious brotherhoods) march in procession at the end of the market, accompanied with firecrackers and music.
Tikal: jewel of Peten, Tikal raises its huge pyramids over the canopee where the howler monkeys rock and the parrots and toucans nest. The rich given off flavors of the jungle, the peaceful atmosphere and perception of the animal life confer to this place an unspeakable atmosphere and a definite harmony. This former Maya town is located in the middle of Tikal's vast national park, 575 m² protected zone where thousand of vestiges are scattered.
Livingston: located on the Caribbean Coast, in the North of Puerto Barrios, Livingston is only accessible by sea or river route. On your arrival, you will be surprised to find these black Guatemalans who speak as good Spanish as Garifuna, and often English. Music, nonchalance and heat are the main assets of this place.
For more information about tourism
in Guatemala
, check out the following web site(s) :
Tourism Board of Guatemala
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