Guatemala '23
Looking for a unique adventure? Guatemala is an amazingly underrated country! Let’s get off-the-beaten path together in this less-explored but absolutely beautiful place! Rich culture, unforgettable landscapes and delicious food make this country a must-visit.
This is not your average cookie-cutter group tour! Ditch the big tour bus and Instagram hotspots and let’s go on a REAL adventure!
Travel education included! Throughout the trip, your trip leader will also be teaching essential travel skills to those of you that hope to backpack the world on your own some day! From water purification techniques to saving money and using public transportation, you’ll be ready to travel the world responsibly on a low-budget! From photography skills to fun Spanish mini-lessons, you’ll be ready to seek out authenticity and capture and seize the moment!
Read on for more info or fill out the form if you are ready or have any other questions!
Trip Profile
Duration
10 Days
price w/ flights
$2500 (estimate)
difficulty
medium
Max Altitude
13,045 ft
group size
6-10
Arrival
Guate City
Departure
GUATE CITY
accomodation
homestays
meals
B+d included
season
jun-aug
Interested?
Use the form below to get in touch and be added to the trip email list!
Interested?
Use the form below to get in touch and be added to the trip email list!
Trip Highlights
- Hiking to the top of the Acatenango Volcano at sunrise to watch nearby Volcano Fuego erupt.
- Kayaking, SUPing and cliff jumping in the volcanic crater lake Atitlán
- Exploring the ruins, food & cultural scene of Antigua
- Explore the artisan markets of Chichicastenango
- Meet local artists, coffee farmers and chocolatiers along the many villages on the shores of Lake Atitlán
- Free time to explore and let the authenticity come to you!
Overview
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What's Included
- All Flights included if flying from CVG! If not, mention so in the contact form and we will give you a custom price!
- Accommodations
- Basic Travel Insurance
- All breakfasts and dinners included. Lunches, alcoholic drinks, snacks and street foods are on you and can be very cheap if you want, or upscale if you want!
- All gear rentals like kayaks, SUPs, sleeping bags, etc.
Tentative Itinerary
- Once we land, we’ll drive to Antigua
- Check into our homestay
- Get some delicious food and get to know each other
- Learn some history through museums
- Wander the streets and visit a local market
- Hang out and acclimate for our volcano hike coming up
- More delicious coffee and foodie stops
- Walk to the town viewpoint to see our volcano from afar
- Meet with our volcano hike guide to discuss tomorrow
- Grocery/market shopping for snacks and any other supplies
- We’ll hike to our high camp on the volcano, taking our time, enjoying the views and eating lunch on the volcano.
- In the afternoon, we’ll start to catch our first views of the fuego volcano erupting into plumes of smoke.
- Set up camp and relax
- Drink some wine and local hot chocolate by the campfire
- Watch the natural fireworks show and feel the ground shake as Volcán Fuego erupts at night
- We will either be sleeping in tents or cots in a communal yurt tonight.
- We’ll wake up early to do our best to make the volcano summit by sunrise.
- Be blown away by 360 views of the sunrise and fuego eruptions.
- Choose to hike a lap around the summit crater or just catch your breath and relax.
- We’ll descend the whole volcano today, stopping again for lunch before driving back to Antigua.
- Big meal tonight and probably an early bedtime!
- Drive + water taxi to the mystical volcanic crater lake Atitlán
- Check in to our beautiful homestay and enjoy the fresh air, take a swim, lay in a hammock or go for a hike!
- Home-cooked dinner tonight as we enjoy our amazing homestay and watch the sunset over the lake
- Today will be spent taking the public ‘lancha’ boats to different villages along the lakes
- We’ll visit a weaver’s community, a painter’s co-op, a coffee farm and a local chocolatier!
- Don’t forget your camera as the street photography opportunities are endless!
- After a delicious breakfast, we’ll grab kayaks or SUPs and play around on the lake, jumping in whenever we want
- Next we’ll take a lancha boat to a popular cliff jumping area where there are different heights for everyone! If you don’t want to cliff jump, it is also a beautiful place to relax and swim.
- Quick hike to an amazing viewpoint
- Lunch in the ‘hippy village.’
- Up to you whether you’d like to relax back at the homestay or go on another village visit with the group
- Today we visit one of the largest markets in all of Latin America.
- This is THE place for souvenirs and street food.
- We’ll wander the markets for the morning and grab some lunch in town
- Depending on flights, we may transport back to Guatemala City this evening or that may happen tomorrow morning.
- Depending on flight schedules, we’ll either stay in Guatemala City on Day 9 or drive here early in the morning today and fly right away.
Essential Information
Packlist
Vaccinations
Accommodation
Transportation
Meals
Travel insurance
Extra Gear
Packlist
*Check out the ‘Extra Gear’ tab for specific product suggestions.
- Clothes
- 3-4 t-shirts
- 2 pair pants- hiking pants are great if you have them! Leggings or yoga pants a good option too.
- 1-2 swimsuits for the lake
- 2 pairs athletic or hiking shorts
- 3 pair hiking socks
- Hiking or running shoes/boots- this is personal preference, just make sure to wear them in and be ready to put some miles on them!
- Light casual shoes or sandals- up to you if you want to carry an extra pair of shoes or just wear your hiking shoes the whole time.
- Warm hat and light gloves- it gets cold at night on the volcano!
- 1 light or medium-weight sweater or long sleeve shirt- a base layer or under armor is a good alternative.
- Lightweight jacket- light down is great.
- Rain jacket or poncho just in case
- Hat and/or sunglasses- if you don’t like the sun in your eyes.
- Gear
- Water bottles or hydration pack/reservoir- minimalists may choose just to buy and reuse water bottles, but you should be able to carry at least 2 liters at a time.
- Camera- our phones have great cameras too and I will take lots of photos with my professional camera, so no need to buy a camera if you don’t have one!
- Chargers- whatever tech you bring, keep it alive or else it’s dead weight!
- Carry-on size backpack- there are great options in the ‘extra gear tab, or feel free to ask your guide before buying something.
- Daypack- any lightweight backpack that you can fit your camera, water and some extra clothes in will do. Suggestions in the extra gear tab.
- Eating utensil- a simple camping spork is always great to have!
- Toiletries
- Whatever you need! Remember it must be TSA-approved sizes, keep it compact!
- Towel- travel towel highly recommended. Suggestions in extra gear tab.
- Insect repellent- this link is the best I’ve used!
- Extras
- Snacks! We have lots of travel and hiking time, so energy-dense snacks like granola bars and trail mix are a great idea!
- Any extras you’re thinking about bringing, just remember that you will not regret packing LIGHT! There will be short periods when you have to carry everything that you bring on your back. Leave some space for souvenirs too!
Vaccinations
Please visit https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/destinations/traveler/none/guatemala
NST recommends Passport Health for travel vaccines.
Accommodation
We will be staying at various homestays throughout the trip and also a camping setting on the volcano in either a communal tent or shared 2 person tents. If you want your own tent, you’ll have to carry it instead of splitting half the weight with someone else. You are not promised your own private room. We will quickly become one big family and you will love it!
Transportation
We will be flying, taking group vans, taxis and public boats at different points throughout the trip.
Meals
We’ll be eating local food while we are in Guatemala! If you are a vegetarian, gluten-free or any other dietary restriction, we can most likely accommodate you! Guatemala is really easy for most diets! Just make sure to let us know ahead of time!
Travel insurance
Small group travel insurance is included in your trip price. There is no extra cost to you. Exact details vary from trip to trip and you should contact your trip leader if you want to learn more!
Extra Gear
Pro travel gear to consider:
(disclaimer: these are affiliate links. They do not cost you more, but No Strings Travel may receive a tiny portion of the sale from Amazon. Regardless, we swear by these items and regularly travel with them!)
- Steripen– Wanna know a major hidden cost in travel? Water. All those cheap water bottles that you buy really add up for your wallet and the environment! It does not take long for this nifty UV water filter to pay for itself, and it will do so over and over and over again!
- Travel/camping Pillow: An inflatable pillow that packs down to pocket-size.
- Travel towel– probably the biggest space saver on this list! Definitely a great investment.
- Carry-on bag- We may not always be checking bags on the trip, only a carry-on is always included. You’ll find that this is a much better way to travel anyways! Here are some nice pack options:
- Osprey farpoint (men) and fairview (women)– Review video here.
- Not looking to spend a ton of money on a travel backpack? It is a worthwhile investment if you are hoping to travel more in the future, but you may find a good cheap Amazon option by searching for ‘carry-on size travel backpacks.’
- Daypack (my go-to or the cheaper Amazon brand)- to carry the day’s essentials.
- Nalgenes water bottles: You’re going to need to be able to carry a minimum of two liters of water for our longer hiking days. These are great because they are lightweight and have a wide mouth for water filters.
- Buff– great and versatile! Keeps you warm. I also use mine as an eye-mask to help me sleep on flights and long drives!
- Merino socks- merino wool! Experience it’s smell-resistant magic!
- Merino shirts (men and women)- Not necessary and may seem silly to spend so much on a t-shirt, but they are great at resisting odor and easy to hand wash and dry! One of these plus an athletic-material shirt is all you need for the whole trip!
- Merino base layers– Really looking to treat yourself? Woolpower is ridiculously nice! This stuff keeps you warm in the cold and cool in the heat. What can I say? Magic!
- Packing cubes– lots of great options on Amazon.
- Travel lock– great for keeping gear safe and secure!
Reviews
★★★★★ Rated 5 out of 5
★★★★★ Rated 5 out of 5
Interested?
Use the form below to get in touch and be added to the trip email list!
Interested?
Use the form below to get in touch and be added to the trip email list!