Lake Atitlán Voyage Tips and guide

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Lago de Atitlán (English: Lake Atitlán) is a beautiful volcanic lake in the Western Highlands of Guatemala, renowned as one of the most beautiful lakes in the world, and is one of Guatemala's most important national and international tourist attractions. It is ringed by small towns, many of which are favourites among backpackers. The region encompasses the lake and the towns around them. Panajachel is the most accessible, but a further afield are backpacker hangout San Pedro La Laguna or the "less party, more meditation" village of San Marcos. Because of the region's popularity, tourism is growing in other towns along the lake, such as Santa Cruz la Laguna and San Juan.

• 14.736051-91.155841 Panajachel — Lake Atitlan's most-visited town, and one of the best places to watch sunsets over the lake
• 14.691772-91.2732 San Pedro La Laguna — a more densely-packed town with a backpacker scene
• 14.724832-91.2588833 San Marcos La Laguna — "less party, more meditation" than San Pedro
• 14.638553-91.2299224 Santiago Atitlán — a major local town on an inlet at south side of Lake Atitlán, with less tourist infrastructure, famous for a shrine to Maximón,
• 14.744167-91.2072225 Santa Cruz la Laguna — a small village on north side of Lake Atitlán where you can get away from it all, but still be a short boat ride away from a night club
• 14.738-91.2196 Jaibalito — a very small village with its own lancha stop, which is just as well as the only other way of getting there is by footpath
• 14.7-91.2833337 San Juan La Laguna — an emerging destination next to San Pedro
• 14.7-91.1166678 San Antonio Palopo — a laid-back and simple Mayan village; it can service tourists nicely but only a couple dozen at a time
• 14.716667-91.1333339 Santa Catarina Palopo — an authentic Mayan village with an abundance of traditional Kaqchikel culture
• 14.636-91.14310 San Lucas Toliman — a small Mayan town with a well-known Catholic mission

Lake Atitlán and its villages are a winning combination of scenic beauty, a relaxed atmosphere, easily accessible Mayan culture, and a good tourist infrastructure, at 1562 m of altitude, and the Tolimán volcano at its extreme southern end (3158 m). The maximum depth registered on the charts is 340 m. It is shaped by deep surrounding escarpments and three volcanoes on its southern flank. In fact, the whole lake was formed by a prehistoric supervolcano eruption, leaving a giant hole in the ground (a "volcanic caldera") that later filled up with water. A layer of volcanic ash from that eruption can still be identified by geologists in places as far away as the US state of Florida.

German explorer and naturalist Alexander von Humboldt called it "the most beautiful lake in the world".

Most travelers arrive in Panajachel. Bus and other transportation instructions are in that town's article. Less-frequent buses may run to some other towns, and there are reportedly tourist shuttles direct to San Pedro from Antigua or other major tourist stops in Guatemala.

Many lanchas (small outboard powered boats), provide transport from village to village around and across the lake. Locals and individual travelers usually use the "public" (publica) boats, which might be more accurately called "colectivo" boats — they're run by private operators, but you pay only for your own seat, and share the boat with whoever else is going. Unless you hire the whole boat (privada), lanchas depart when the lanchero feels like it, which is usually as soon as he accumulates enough passengers. There are also larger boats that run tours around the lake.

On the most popular route, running along the west shore of the lake between Panajachel and San Pedro with stops at each lakeside town in between, there's usually a boat every 5-10 minutes until at least 5PM, even if there are only enough passengers to fill it halfway up or less. Several docks have signs indicating departures until 7:30PM, but be sure to ask someone if you're hoping to catch a late boat, especially if you have a return ticket for a certain company. Boat operators (lancheros) are members of different associations depending on which town they're based at, and may only take passengers going in one direction. Also be aware that lancheros are known to sometimes lie to tourists that theirs is the "last boat".

Some of the less frequent routes, like direct from Panajachel to San Pedro or Santiago, have scheduled departures every half hour or hour but will cancel them if there aren't enough passengers.

Prices are often, but not always, posted at the docks, though locals (potentially including foreign residents of Guatemala) usually are given cheaper rates. As of July 2024, posted rates most frequent routes are Q25 per person each way, or sometimes Q30 for the longest ones. A few specific short jumps between neighboring towns may be posted at as low as Q10, but in general the lancheros along the main Panajachel — San Pedro route are now insisting on Q25 each way no matter how near or far you're going. Locals who don't work on the boats will often say you should insist on a lower rate closer to what they pay, but the boat operators are very insistent, so most visitors choose to just accept "foreigner" prices.

In most cases you just pay when you get off the boat, but at some docks there are also ticket desks where you can pay first. Paying at the desk could be useful if you're having issues with the boat operators trying to charge you even more than the usual foreigner price. They usually don't give you an actual ticket if you're paying for a round-trip, which can seem a bit alarming, but seems to usually work out fine. You may also be able to get a round trip ticket for less than the price of two one-ways, but be aware that it may limit your choices of which boat you come back on, so inquire carefully about return times. For some of the less-frequent routes, like Panajachel to Santiago Atitlan, may require you to pay at the desk.

Most of the towns on the lake are accessible by road, but in most cases this involves taking a very long way around, up over the mountains rimming the lake and then back over them again in a different place. In some cases there may be walking trails that are more direct. However, be aware that walking trails and even some roads between towns are known for armed robberies (asaltos). Many routes are considered safe, but inquire carefully to make sure that the one you'll be using is one of those. The same precaution applies to hikes as well, especially the trail up the San Pedro Volcano.

There is often some form of public transit along the land routes, frequented only by locals. In some cases there may even be an infrequent "chicken bus" route, but more often it's a pickup truck where you stand in the back of the truck with a bunch of farmers on their way to and from work. Tuk-tuks may also be able to take you to the next town over if it's very close (such as between San Pedro and San Juan).

Lake Atitlan itself is probably the most beautiful place in Guatemala, especially since it acts as a giant mirror to the three volcanoes that surround it. The other attraction is seeing thriving Maya communities, where many people speak their own indigenous languages with each other instead of Spanish, families practice traditional farming methods and syncretic religions, and women (and occasionally men) mostly wear traditional outfits rather than "Western" clothing. This is best experienced by getting out of the main tourist/expat centers of Panajachel, San Pedro, and San Marcos.

The Indian's Nose/Rostro Maya is a popular hike to a viewpoint atop a mountain above the villages of San Juan and San Marcos. It is accessible through various tracks and there are also organised trips with horses to the top.

Around Lake Atitlan can have many activities such as hiking, volcano tour, bike tour, tour in the villages, coffee tour, birdwatching tour, trek around the lake, kayak adventure, cultural tour by village around the lake. Some visitors have reported being robbed by bandits on hikes both around the lake and up the volcanoes; inquire carefully about which areas are considered safe to go to.

There are activities you can do on the water, such as kayaking (rent from Casa del Mundo below, or San Pedro la Laguna) and jet skiing. Diving is also possible in Santa Cruz la Laguna through the hostel "La Iguana Perdida". Or, if you're not the watery type, there's horseback riding, and hiking galore.

There is a vague, and at times somewhat precarious, path that encircles pretty much the whole lake. New holiday homes and hotels have restricted some of the access to the lakeside path, but it's still possible to walk it. It's a very rewarding and enjoyable hike. Swim in the beautiful water anytime you need to cool off. Wave down a boat from any of the countless jetties if you get tired and want to return back home.

Another option is to rent out and tour via bike, spending a night in different village around the lake.

Climb the three volcanoes. San Pedro from San Pedro, guided for Q100. Atitlan and Toliman can be arranged from Pana. It is not recommended to book tours for climbing the volcanoes in Pana. Most of the prices for climbing the volcanoes will be very similar at most agencies (around US$40 for San Pedro) and they probably collude to keep the price there. However the Pana tour agencies will outsource the work to another tour agency in San Pedro. Agencies in Pana will act as middlemen and take a cut of Q100 to Q200. It is better to approach the agencies in San Pedro directly and cut out the middleman. It is also possible to do the hikes completely on your own for under Q200 (approx US$24, the bulk of which is the entrance fee to the park for foreigners and the boat fare). Most of the people you will meet on the mountains are indigenous people who will be very nice. It seems safe to hike the mountain by yourself (without a guide, but if you hire one you will be helping the local Quiche people), except for the risk of robbery on some trails — it's debatable whether having a guide protects you from this or not. Please bring a plastic bag with you on the hike and pick up any plastic bottles or plastic packaging on your way down. You will be a good citizen of the world. Climbing Atitlan can be done in one to two days.

However you could do it on your own: the best/easiest would be to bike/rent a motorcycle and go from Pana as far as you can. Look at summitpost for detailed description. If you want to commute there, the easiest would be boat to Santiago, and pickup to San Lucas, this will if you carry luggage though incur a lot of hassle (from people), so better get a cheap hotel room somewhere and leave as much as you can there before you go. Do it as early as possible in the morning.

Volunteering opportunities: many of the schools around Lake Atitlán offer built-in volunteering opportunities. For medical students wanting to offer service and gain experience, Hospitalito Atitlán in Santiago Atitlán (another pueblo on the lake) accepts medical students and clinicians.

Quetzal-watching: This is one of the best areas to see Guatemala's spectacular national bird in the wild, particularly during nesting season from January to May. A local guide is a necessity for finding them, without local knowledge of their nesting spots, it's difficult even for experienced birders. See the Santiago Atitlan article for more details.

Many of the towns around the lake have restaurants, at a variety of price points from luxury to budget. See the individual town articles for details.

There is also a fair bit of street food in the larger towns, though as in many parts of the world, locals tend to eat local food at home, and go out to eat only when they want a junk food fix. Here that largely means pizza, hamburgers, and questionable Mexican food. However, if it's also possible to find proper Central American junk food, like dobladas, garnachas, tostadas, empanadas, and pupusas, especially in the less touristy areas.

Prices for food items at casual convenience shops and bakeries seem to vary wildly, perhaps suggesting that some staff have caught on to the possibility of charging unwitting outsiders much higher prices. Something like a muffin can go for as low as Q2.5 in July 2024, but many vendors will ask for Q5.

Lake Atitlán is a better place to relax than to party. Some towns, like Panajachel and San Pedro la Laguna, have thriving bar scenes. Others go to sleep when the night falls.

Each of the towns and villages around the lake offer a wide range of hotels. See the individual town articles (under Cities above) for details. The following hotels or resorts are not in a specific town. In fact, there are now many hotels along the lakeside between towns, offering private docks. Most of them seem to be located along the northwest quadrant of the lake, which makes them accessible via the public boats following that shore between Panajachel and San Marcos.

• Lomas de Tzununá. A place perched on the hillside between Santa Cruz la Laguna and San Marcos. Facing the volcanos, with amazing views, friendly staff. Only accessible by boat. 
• La Riviera de Atitlan, ☏ +502 7762-0310. A high-end resort, a few kilometers to the west of Panajachel on the bay of San Buenaventura. US$150/night. 

Crime is not much of an issue within the towns or on the boats; just take normal precautions against theft. Outside the towns, however, it can be a different story. As of July 2024, word is that at least some parts of the ring trails and volcano hikes still carry a risk of armed robbery. Inquire carefully before walking such trails, especially if you'll be without a local guide. The applies to some of the more remote car roads; for example, there have been armed robberies of motorcyclists reported from the road between San Pedro and Santiago.

The following specific information may or may not be out of date:

On the road around the Lago de Atitlán, especially between the villages of San Juan and San Marcos, some daytime violent crime has been reported (2004). Tourists have been robbed (although not injured), and there were also rapes against women. The road from San Lucas Toliman to Cerro de Oro, once dangerous, is now considered safe.

Although the road from San Marcos La Laguna to the next northern village is now controlled by the Tourist Police, walking this way with backpacks or large amounts of money is not recommended.

Hiking in the mountainous areas around San Marcos La Laguna is not recommended: there are several known thieves in the area and police and community members, while helpful after an assault, have very little control of the situation. If you feel you must explore these regions definitely go in a group of three or more, or if you're alone take nothing of value with you.