The breathtaking Lake Atitlan in Guatemala is the deepest lake in Central America. It is 18km long and surrounded by beautiful, scenic mountains. Eleven villages are situated along the shores of the lake. These communities host numerous tourists throughout the year. The five villages most visited by tourists are Panajachel, San Pedro, San Marcos, Santa Cruz, and San Juan La Laguna. The variety offered across these villages truly offers something for everyone.
I spent five days on the Lake, staying in San Pedro and San Marcos and visiting nearby towns. Here are my takeaways.
- PANAJACHEL:
- TRANSPORT:
- SAN PEDRO:
- SAN MARCOS:
- SAN JUAN
- INDIAN NOSE HIKE
PANAJACHEL:
Most transportation to and from the lake communities passes through Panajachel. This was the easiest destination to use when organising transport to Lake Atitlan from other areas of Guatemala, as most transport businesses operated out of this town. It is a large, bustling town with lots of construction. On arrival, you can stay in a variety of hostels or hotels and explore the local markets. We continued travelling to San Pedro for our first couple of nights.
TRANSPORT:
Transport around the lake is super quick and easy. The communities use private and public boats to cross the lake and travel between towns. Every town has a lakeside dock where the water taxis come in and out, which is always only a short walk from town centres. When approaching the dock, many water taxi vendors will offer their services. You can take either private or public boats.
The private boats are usually double the price of what the public water taxi would be however is a direct route from town A to B.
But I’d recommend taking public transport! Not only is it half the cost or less, but it also allows you to enjoy more of the lake by briefly seeing each stop between boarding and your destination. They also offer return fares using the same boat operators, making day trips to other town sites even easier. Sitting between locals on the boats provides more authentic experiences. You might even get the chance to practise your Spanish and strike up a chat with the person next to you!
Once in a town, there are many tuk-tuks available to travel within. However, most places are reasonably close together and within walking distance.
SAN PEDRO:
Our first couple of nights in Lake Atitlan were spent in San Pedro. This town is known for its party life and is popular with backpackers seeking nightlife. It is one of the larger communities around the lake.
We spent the afternoons playing billiards in a local bar with a spectacular view overlooking the lake. In the evening join the infamous Mr Mullets pub crawl, depending on the day of the week you are there they also host a boat party on the lake.
Being a larger docking site it was a great place to use as a base for taking day trips across to San Juan, Santa Cruz or other nearby towns.
SAN MARCOS:
Looking for a more relaxing and comfortable time we shifted to San Marcos for an additional 3 nights on the lake. San Marcos hosts a more alternative hippy community. Walking down the centre of town you’ll notice many yoga lessons and healers (offering all sorts of alternative therapies) advertised. I found there were many more cafes and places open during the day in this town.
The San Marcos National Park is accessible by walking or tuk-tuk from town or many people kayak and paddle board in. For 15 Guatemalan Quetzal (less than $5 AUD), entry to the park allows you to walk through the forest, soak up the sun from the best spot on the lake, or cliff jump the 12m platform that is situated in the park. Paddling across on kayaks and jumping off the cliff made for my favourite day on the Lake.
SAN JUAN
The beautiful streets of San Juan are worth the day trip over to see—beautiful artwork on the street and the walls around the town. There are also plenty of art galleries to view local artists’ work and purchase a piece to take home with you. Plenty of other market-style shopping can be done here, the main street lined with lots of smaller shop fronts filled with treasures.
We also hiked the trailhead to Mirador Kaqasiiwaan. It was a very steep hike and best to do in the morning due to humidity. It takes approximately 30-40 minutes and was a paved path with stairs to the top of the hike. Small vendors were along the path selling a range of cold drinks and ice creams. The entry fee to the hike was 30q per person.
INDIAN NOSE HIKE
While we did not do the Indian Nose hike, due to weather, this is a super popular activity to do when at Lake Atitlan. The hike requires you to be guided by a local tour company. On arrival to any of the communities, you will find multiple businesses advertising guided hikes to the Indian Nose. This boasts a spectacular view across the lake after a 45-minute hike to the peak, you are transported most of the way by company car/van and most operators provide hot chocolate or coffee at the peak as you watch the sunrise. Cloud cover was thick most mornings while we were at the lake so we opted out of the early morning rise but many people we met said that it was just magical.