Guatemala Travel Agents

My husband and I just returned from a week in Guatemala, and it was the BEST trip! Alex was so patient throughout the planning process, making adjustments to our dates and to the itinerary to align with our budget. He was super responsive and every detail on the ground went off without a hitch. We didn’t realize the tours would be private, and being able to move at our own pace was such a treat. Our guide, Vinicio, was with us the entire week and catered to our every need. He is so joyful and was invested in making sure we had a great time; we were sad to say goodbye to our new friend! Highlights included the bike tour through the villages outside Antigua, watching Fuego erupt from our tent on the Acatenango overnight, and a morning of kayaking and hiking on Lake Atitlán. Alex’s hotel picks were awesome, especially waking up to sunrise over the lake at Casa del Mundo, and his restaurant recommendations were spot on. Thank you, Alex and Vinicio, for a week we’ll be talking about for years!

Hotel Reviews

Camelias Inn

Antigua

Beautiful courtyards, friendly staff, delicious breakfast, conveniently located.

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Acatenango Campsite

Guatemala

Tents were much nicer than we expected! Amazing view of Fuego.

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Casa del Mundo

Lake Atitlán

Unforgettable hotel, accessible only by boat. So charming and unique with amazing views, beautiful landscaping, and friendly staff.

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Hotel Barcelo

Guatemala City

Perfect for the night before an early flight. We were there very briefly, but the room was clean, spacious and well appointed.

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Activity Reviews

Valley Ride - Bicycle Tour of Antigua's Villages, Farms, and Ruins

Antigua

The Valley Ride was a perfect way to start our trip. Vinicio picked us up at our hotel, and since the tour was private, we rode at our own pace through the villages and farms outside Antigua. We loved the variety of stops: Chocolate Antigua, the King Brothers jade factory and the Valhalla macadamia nut farm, where we got to taste a few things along the way. It was a great mix of exercise, scenery and local culture.

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Hike Acatenango Volcano & Camp Overnight

Guatemala

This was the highlight of our trip. The hike up is steep and challenging, but having a private guide meant we could go at our own pace, and we reached base camp by early afternoon. The camp was much nicer than we expected, and Vinicio surprised us with a make-your-own taco spread when we arrived. Fuego rumbled all night, and around 11pm we unzipped our tent and watched it erupt, lava and all. It’s something we’ll never forget.

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Sunrise on Acatenango & Descent

Guatemala

We started hiking around 4am and were on the summit by 5:15am. It was cold, extremely windy and cloudy, and we only caught glimpses of the sunrise through the gaps. But it was still worth it for the challenge.

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Transfer to Lake Atitlán, Visit the Iximché Ruins

Guatemala

We had originally considered flying to Flores to see Tikal, but with only a week we didn’t have the time. Iximché turned out to be a great alternative. It’s an easy stop on the drive from Antigua to Lake Atitlán, and walking among the ancient Mayan ruins with Vinicio was a nice introduction to the country’s Mayan history without giving up a day or two to travel. Afterward we stopped for a wonderful lunch at Chichoy in Tecpán

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Kayaking & Hiking Lake Atitlán

Guatemala

This was the perfect last morning on the lake. Vinicio picked us up at our hotel for a short boat ride to Kayak Guatemala, and then we paddled about an hour and a half along the shore to San Marcos, past beautiful lakefront homes with volcano views the whole way. From there we hiked back along trails and roads through the villages of Tzununa and Jaibalito to our hotel, Casa del Mundo, where a lovely lunch was waiting. Seeing the lake from the water and then on foot gave us a real feel for the area, and the mix of paddling and hiking made it one of our favorite days.

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Boat Tour of Lake Atitlán Villages

Guatemala

We hopped on a boat in Panajachel with our local guide, Pablo, and Vinicio, and took a short, bumpy ride across the lake to Santiago Atitlán. We visited a Mayan shrine and the main church, and Pablo explained how Mayan traditions and Catholicism are woven together in daily life there. In San Juan La Laguna we sampled local honey, watched a weaver demonstrate the whole process from raw cotton to finished scarf, admired the murals around town, and ended with a chocolate tasting. The boat dropped us at our hotel just as the sun was setting over the lake.

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Esteban was an exceptional guide! He was flexible, a wealth of knowledge and fun to be around. Esteban was professional and provided us a great experience in Guatemala!

Karen at Old Town Outfitters was so helpful, communicative and flexible with modifying our one-week itinerary. We enjoyed kayaking and hiking around Lake Atitlan with guide Pablo, hiking (active) Volcan Pacaya with guides Rudy and Otto, and biking around Antigua with guide Josias. The drivers between locations were cautious and reliable (although the drives will often take longer than planned due to traffic or potholes or narrow roads or weather :). Overall we had a colorful and adventurous trip that we really enjoyed. We would definitely recommend to other active, outdoor travelers!

Hotel Reviews

Dos Mundos Panajachel

Panajachel

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Mango Miel

El Paredon

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Porta Hotel Antigua

Antigua Guatemala

Favorite hotel of the entire trip! Beautiful, well appointed, warm pool, nice gym, great location, friendly staff. Laundry is a bit expensive but worth it - and they returned clean clothes just a few hours after picking them up.

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Activity Reviews

Kayaking & Hiking Lake Atitlán

Guatemala

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Rostro Maya / Indian nose Hike

Guatemala

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Valley Ride - Bicycle Tour of Antigua's Villages, Farms, and Ruins

Antigua

Quality of Experience

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Overall, an excellent experience. Alex was a pleasure to work with in terms of planning the trip and Esmeralda was a fabulous local guide and tour leader. We thoroughly enjoyed the services provided and had a fantastic time in beautiful Guatemala.

We first visited Roatan for a daughters wedding, than planned an 8 day Quatamala and Belize trip thru Company Kimkim. They used Columbus Quatmala Travel and all was amazing. We had special tour guides and drivers that were extemely knowledgeable and prompt. For most of Quatmala, we had Roberto (Lake Atitlian..visited villages around the lake, etc.) & Antiqua) , who had so much energy, personality knowledge, passion, flexiable, intuitive and just fun! He was definitely our favorite. Then we had Carlos who took us on a 5 hours tour of Tikal National Park Mayan Ruins. Another fantastic tour... but he was a little more serious, still very knowlegble & focused. Johnathan was a driver who drove us to the Belize border, but shared a lot of knowledge on the way. We met Renee at border, who toured us thru Xunantunich Mayan ruins... A very happy, knowlegeable, flexible guy. Also shared much knowledge while driving. We enjoyed him as well. Carmeron picked us up at Hopkins hotel and drove us to Belize airport. Again he shared a lot of knowledge as he drove us for two hours.
I cannot say enough good things to describe both companies, Kimkim and Columbus Quatmala Travel. Both were unbelievably responsive and flexible! We gave them an idea of our preferences. They asked questions to ensure we were happy with their suggestions all along the way. Very communitive. They planned the trip from the moment we stepped off the plane in Quatamala til when getting on the plane home in Belize. Every hotel was amazing! Every tour was over the top! Every guide was truly fantastic. We can't thank this group enough! We will definitely being using them again to plan our next year's trip. They are a real find!!!!! sidenote: there were many highlights on this trip, but one that is a favorite is the snorkeling trip we took with Med and Richie D at the Jaquar Reef Hotel in Hopkins (Almond beach). Real local guys...they were a total BLAST! While snorkeling the Barrier Reef, they caught 4 lobster & 3 fish. They cleaned them and gave us 2 lobsters and a mango they just picked off the tree. Brought them back to our hotel chef and he mades us the most amazing meal with a mango sauce and rice. TO DIE FOR. The whole snorkeling experience was a once-in-a-life-time experence from the time picked up and dropped off. Almost 5 hours (supposed to be 4). An amazing trip to be sure! Wouldn't have changed any of these experiences. Thanks to all of you, for your patience, sharing of knowledge and of yourselves. Words aren't enough... God Bless!