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Heroes and Heroines Antigua
Astonishingly beautiful and remarkably traditional, wander around Antigua’s cobbled streets, its colourful market and peek through colonial doorways.
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Our Team Steppes Travel is made by the people who work here. Incredible holidays are made possible because of their vast travel experience and the great enthusiasm they bring to their work.
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Our Tour Experts We carefully select our experts based on their knowledge, companionship and influence, ensuring that you can travel with the most knowledgeable leaders in the field.
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Heroes and Heroines The people who lead the way when it comes to those things which matter to us: exploration, the environment, women’s empowerment and education.
Guatemala Holidays
A small country with a booming ecosystem. Among the breadth of animals in its forests, the calls of howler monkeys and blaring parrots will be something from your trip that ring loud in your memories.
For the traveller who is inspired by the indigenous culture of a country, then a Guatemala holiday is hard to beat. Up in the hills, the daily markets are a gorgeous riot of colourful clothing while the landscape is dotted with lakes and a backdrop of perfect volcanic cones.
The Spanish colonial architecture of the towns and the impressive Mayan ruins surrounded by jungle are further reasons for you to enjoy a Guatemala holiday.
Birding
Epic Maya Journey: Mexico, Guatemala & Honduras
An exploration of the ancient Maya sites of Mexico, Guatemala and Honduras, this route strikes the perfect balance between ancient temples, dense jungles and dazzling lakes. Unveil some of the most visually stunning landscapes in the Americas and a series of world-renowned archaeological sites, with the added bonus of having a chance to attend a private Shaman ceremony.
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Highlights of Guatemala
Unveiling some of the most visually stunning landscapes in vibrant Guatemala, this trip journeys from dazzling high altitude lakes to ancient Mayan ruins.
Encompassing Shaman ceremonies, traditional textile weaving workshops and an expertly guided tour of Tikal, this customisable itinerary is designed to give a comprehensive introduction to one of the most vivid countries in Central America.
Guatemala: What to Expect
Geographically small, a holiday in Guatemala does not involve travelling great distances. Rather, the focus of your trip to Guatemala will be the striking variety of topographic features, ranging from the Cuchumatanes Mountains and the beautiful Lake Atitlan to the volcanoes of Antigua and the black beaches of the Pacific. Guatemala’s ecosystems host a huge range of plants and animals, notably orchids and birdlife. A quarter of Guatemala is covered in forests where the noise of spider and howler monkeys and screeching parrots fills the air.
Meet the Locals
The colourful Mayan people add an additional dimension to your Guatemala holiday. The extensive ruins of their ancestors lie scattered across the Peten region while their heritage lives on today, evident in the bustling markets of Solola, the traditional reed collecting on the shores of Lake Atitlan and the unique weaving methods of the K’iche, Kaqchiquel and Achi communities. Now throw in the cobbled streets, beautiful churches, hidden convents and colonial plazas and you begin to understand the charm of a Guatemala holiday.
Explore Guatemala
- Antigua
- Lake Atitlan
- Tikal
Experiences
Tell us what you love doing and we’ll curate a journey that’s perfect for you.
Guatemala Accommodation
Hotels and lodges tend to be small and privately owned with a great atmosphere and a winning smile.
Meet our experts
A passion for travel runs right through every one of our experts - meaning they're always ready with first-hand insight about their specialist countries.
James Armitage
When visiting the Maya ruins of Yaxha, with trees and roots growing out of the stone work, monkeys hanging from trees and macaws flying overhead, James felt like Indiana Jones. Talk with our experts
- 01285 601 784
John Faithfull
John’s most recent trip to Guatemala was for Semana Santa (Holy Week), a heady mix of colourful processions where huge swaying floats are carried on the shoulders of purple-clad brotherhoods in high pointed head gear who shufflle through billowing clouds of incense. Talk with our experts
- 01285 601 784
Can I use my mobile phone in Guatemala?
Roaming agreements exist with most international mobile phone companies and coverage is good. We suggest checking with your network provider before travel. Please consider other guests when using your mobile phone and when in poorer areas. Phones are available at all hotels and at most, if not all, restaurants.
What is the international dialling code for Guatemala?
#ERROR!
What is the time zone in Guatemala?
Guatemala is six hours behind GMT and does not observe daylight-saving time.
How long are the flights to Guatemala from the UK?
Anyone wishing to visit Guatemala has a choice of flying via Madrid, or Miami dependent upon the airline. We suggest flying via Madrid as this offers the most reasonably priced airfares and good connections. If you would prefer to travel via the US with Virgin/British Airways and American Airlines, do note that you will need to pre-purchase your ESTA visa waiver.
The flight to Guatemala City departs from London Heathrow and takes approximately 15.5 hours, via Madrid with the longest sector of the journey being Madrid to Guatemala City just over 11 hours. Via the US, the journey time is slightly longer, as you need to allow sufficient time to clear immigration.
Are there any festivals I can see during my trip?
We should have discussed this with you and if this is of particular interest, then do ask and your travel consultant can arrange this for you. In short, fiestas revolve around religion. Semana santa ‘Easter Week’ in Antigua offers an incredible procession with carpets of flowers paying homage to Jesus – it is a real spectacle and as a result you will need to book up early to avoid disappointment. In addition to this, the country offers various fiestas with Ladino towns offering fairgrounds, processions and beauty contests, whereas in the Mayan highlands traditional dances with musicians fill the festival.
What is the typical food and drink in Guatemala?
Guatemala’s staples are black beans, guacamole and rice with tacos. A typical breakfast consists of frijoles negros (stewed black beans), banana, eggs, guacamole, rice and tortillas — a Central American fry up. Guatemalans eat tortillas some three times a day and you will often see and hear women clapping their hands baking these.
What about the altitude in Guatemala?
Guatemala has many volcanoes and you can expect areas at altitude. For travel to Lake Atitlán and to nearby markets, altitudes reach around 1,500-2,400 metres. Some people experience symptoms, whilst others have none at all and we advise contacting your GP before travel if you have any concerns.
What clothing should I take to Guatemala?
It is always best to pack light and while casual dress has become more acceptable in recent years, Latin Americans tend to devote great care to their clothes and appearance. We find that a good fleece, waterproof jacket, layers and zip-off trousers work well for the chilly mornings followed by warm afternoons in the highlands.
When is the rainy season in Guatemala?
Generally, temperature varies little throughout the year but the rainy season is from May to October which does not affect all areas and often means sunny mornings are followed by rainy afternoons from around 4p.m.
What is a chicken bus, and will I be travelling on one?
Chicken buses are multi-coloured camionetas, which are converted school buses from the U.S. They are quite an experience should you wish to travel on one and you may need to sign a disclaimer before you do so. We can arrange a tour visiting a chicken bus factory with a ride out to a nearby school in Antigua if you would like to experience these. The name derives from being packed on like livestock but this is not a form of transportation for farm animals.
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Our team is waiting to help you tailor a trip that will leave you with stories for a lifetime. Call us on
01285 601 784Why Choose Steppes?
Our knowledge and expertise sets us apart. So too our curiosity. A curiosity of the world and of you, and your passions. It is this that drives us to create a journey that is really bespoke to you, all the while ensuring we travel and operate sustainably.
Are you ready to discover extraordinary?
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