Itinerario

Día 0: Vuelo y transporte privado a Antigua

Antigua es una pequeña ciudad colonial rodeada de volcanes en la parte sur de Guatemala. Es un destino turístico popular dentro del país y se considera seguro para los viajeros.

EL VUELO ✈️ Nuestro vuelo salió a las 7 p. m. EST desde el aeropuerto JFK de Nueva York y estaba programado para llegar a la ciudad de Guatemala alrededor de las 10 p. m. (hora de Guatemala: diferencia de 2 horas). La duración del vuelo directo fue de aproximadamente 5 horas.

EL TRANSPORTE PRIVADO 🚌

Reservamos transporte privado a través de Road Runner Guatemala. El costo es de aproximadamente $40 y $50 USD por transporte privado desde el aeropuerto de la ciudad de Guatemala a la ciudad de Antigua. También puedes intentar buscar mejores precios a través de Uber o de los taxis locales justo afuera del aeropuerto. (No olvide preguntar si el hotel u Hostal ofrece servicio de transporte).

Dependiendo del tráfico, puede esperar que su viaje en automóvil a Antigua demore entre 45 y 90 minutos.

Nos registramos en nuestro hostal, Maya Papaya,, alrededor de la medianoche y decidimos salir a caminar por las hermosas calles adoquinadas de Antigua.

Rápidamente descubrimos que la vida nocturna termina muy temprano en esta ciudad.

Día 1: Calles de Antigua, celebraciones del Día de la Independencia y celebración de cumpleaños.

Guatemala celebra su Día de la Independencia cada 15 de septiembre organizando coloridos desfiles, sirviendo comida tradicional, mostrando el orgullo nacional a través de decoraciones y el famoso relevo de la antorcha.

Aprovechamos este día para explorar la hermosa ciudad a nuestro propio ritmo. Teníamos algunos restaurantes en mente y entre visitarlos pudimos disfrutar de los desfiles por las principales calles y plazas.

Nuestra primera parada fue Starbucks. ☕.

La arquitectura y el arte reflejados en esta instalación son magníficos. 💯 Recomendado.

La segunda parada fue la plaza principal o “Plaza Central”. Como es típico en las plazas principales de América del Sur y Central, este es el lugar para encontrar vendedores,, tomar un refrigerio rápido, alimentar a los pájaros y ver a los lugareños en su vida cotidiana.

Aquí mi amiga Melissa y yo conocimos a la niña más preciosa que rápidamente llamó nuestra atención y derritió nuestros corazones. Conoce a Génesis ❤️

Después de llenar nuestros corazones con la alegría y el amor del Génesis, llegó el momento de llenar nuestros estómagos.

Decidimos visitar un nuevo restaurante rooftop cercano, La Tasca para el almuerzo.

¡La comida era deliciosa! Aunque hay muchas opciones, es evidente que este restaurante stá dedicado mayoritariamente a los amantes de los mariscos. 🦀🦐

Poco después del almuerzo, mi amiga y yo estábamos listas para el postre. ¡Seguro que somos amantes de la comida! Tuvimos crepes deliciosos en La Luna De Miel .

Decidimos caminar un poco y descansar un poco antes de salir a cenar a un steak house de alta calificación. Casa Escobar. Mi querida amiga Melissa había hecho reservas con antelación para celebrar mi cumpleaños aquí. 😊. Thanks Mel 🤍

Birthday Photo Dump 🎂

The food was excellent! We truly enjoyed every bite. We wrapped up our night around 10PM. Although, we wanted to check out the night life in Antigua, we decided not to because the next day we were off to our next adventure, Volcan Acatenango!

Days 2 &3 : Acatenango Volcano Overnight Hike

Finally! The day we anxiously waited for arrived.

Our day started around 8AM at our pick up spot at the in the main plaza in Antigua. We opted to go with the tour company, Acatenango Local Adventure.

A little over a 45-min ride, we arrived at Aldea La Soledad. This is the starting point of the hike to the volcano and also the hometown of the owner of our tour company. We were served breakfast and given a quick orientation at the house of the tour guide.

Here, we were served breakfast and given the opportunity to buy snacks, borrow warm clothes, and rent gear such as walking poles, headlamps, hiking shoes, etc.

Our tour guide, Armando, estimated the hike to take us 5 hours. Little did he know, we were not capable of keeping up with his pace 😂. We ended up at the base camp around 7 hours later, and none of us had the energy to do the additional hike to Volcan El Fuego.

The hike was uphill approximately 90% of the time and I must admit, it was very difficult, specially carrying 4 liters of water, food, gear and other items in your backpack.

We were very lucky to have clear skies for the majority of the time and to see the volcano erupt a couple of times along with thunder! We were not lucky enough to see lava explosions, but that was not a big deal for us.

Being there felt surreal. Being there was a blessing.

We spent the most beautiful sunset here as we shared hot food, hot chocolate, marshmallows and stories about life. We also observed from our base camp, the brave hikers completing what is considered the most difficult hike, Volcan Fuego. I truly wish my body was capable of doing this additional 3-4 hour hike. I could only imagine what it must be like to be standing on the ridge of an active volcano. This is definitely something I’ll attempt again in the future.

Around 10PM, I got into my sleeping bag and tried to get some sleep while there was non-stop thunderstorms outside. It was scary, but it also felt like a free show from Mother Earth showing off her beauty.

At 4AM, we woke up to summit Acatenango and have 360 views of the city, Volcan Fuego, Lake Atitlan, all accompanied by the most surreal sunrise you’ll get to experience.

Two people from our group, including my friend, Melissa decided to sleep in and skip this part of the tour.

We spent about an hour watching the sunrise here and then proceeded to complete the descent to base camp, to pack, and go back to Aldea Soledad. The descent took approximately 3 hours in total. Our bags were lighter, it was much easier to complete. We did it!

Days 3 & 4: Luxury Hotel, ATV Tour & Theme Parks

On day 3, we arrived back to Antigua approximately around 2PM. We were extremely exhausted, dirty, and tired. We grabbed a bite and quickly went to check into our luxury hotel, El Convento.

We booked a double bed Premium Queen Room with jacuzzi and breakfast included. The price was for this room was the same as our roundtrip flight 😂 ($300 USD). Oh boy! I only book luxury hotels as a reward after an exhausting activity and typically 1-2 nights tops.

As soon as we arrived to the room, we started up the jacuzzi and spent hours there relaxing our sore bodies from the hike along with a bottle of wine. We did some exploring, checked out a popular spot for nightlife called El Barrio, but quickly returned to get some much needed rest.

The following day, we decided to have some fun riding ATV’s throughout the City. We booked a guided tour through Direct Adventure. The ATV tour we chose included a visit to El Cerro De La Cruz viewpoint, Altamira Theme Park, Hobbitenango Theme Park, and lunch!

Expenses

All prices below are based on two travelers. Currency conversion are as of 11/17/23

*I opted for a private room for this trip. However, you can choose a shared dorm and cut your costs by up to 70%.

Total Approximate Expenses per person including flights : $924

✍🏻 Take Note:

• This trip can easily be more affordable if you opt to stay in hostels or cheaper hotels. However, I do recommend you book a nice comfortable hotel for the night after hiking the volcano. Definitely needed!
• The City of Antigua has many excellent restaurants packed with tourists which in turn drive up prices. You can opt for local traditional restaurants, equally good, and with much better prices.
• If you do decide to hike Acatenango, I suggest you prepare by going on walks for a couple of days at least two weeks prior to this adventure. If you have access to a treadmill, walk for 20-40 mins on incline. This will definitely assist.
• If you are looking to party in the City of Antigua, keep in mind that it is better to start around 9-10PM. Many bars and clubs close early (around midnight - 1 am).
• If you are thinking to travel solo, do it! This trip is by far one of the easiest trips to accomplish for solo travelers.

Explore these blogs by other travelers:

Volcan Acatenango Hike with Volcan Fuego: BEST NEW TOUR

A new local based tour company offering the Volcan Acatenango hike is shaking things up!

travelmademedoit.com

Hands-Down Best Things to Do in Antigua, Guatemala (2023)

Plan extra time when you visit Antigua, Guatemala—it's surprisingly safe, completely charming, and offers travelers unique cultural lessons.

alittleadrift.com

Thank You for reading my first blog :)