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Guatemala holiday and honeymoons; An expert guide to Lake Atitlan

Click here for Lake Atitlan Hotel Reviews

Lake Atitlan is one of the most enchanting places of natural beauty in the Americas. It lies in an enormous caldera, dominated by three volcanoes and surrounded by numerous Mayan villages. Atitlan has long been a spiritual place for the locals, meaning ‘the place where the rainbow gets its colours’ in the Mayan language.

Renown for particularly impressive sunsets and sunrises, the lake’s altitude of 1600m offers a fine climate and perfect light conditions that change the atmosphere through the day. Measuring 10 miles across and reaching 350m in depth this is Central America’s deepest lake.

A minimum of two nights and ideally three to four at the lake is the recommended time to spend here. Chichicastenango and Sololá markets can be visited as a day trip.

THINGS TO SEE AND DO AT LAKE ATITLAN:

Boat trip on Lake Atitlan. Half day. Travel across the lake by boat and visit the traditional village of Santiago Atitlan with its curious shrine to Maximon; and Santa Catarina where the locals still wear beautifully intricate embroidered clothing. This can be combined with a visit to Sololá market to make it a full day trip.

Hiking. There are various footpaths that link the colourful and traditional villages dotted around the edge of the lake. A guided walk along these trails offers a great insight into the local way of life.

Volcano hike. A guided hike up one of the volcanoes gives you a bird’s eye view of this stunning landscape, especially for those who want a more active day out.

Water sports. For those who seek a little extra adrenaline rush waterskiing can be arranged. Kayaks are also available.

Horseriding. Can be arranged in the town of San Pedro Toliman and Santiago Atitlan and riding these trails on horseback gives yet more rewarding views of the lake.

Mayan markets. Visit the famous Mayan artisan market of Chichicastenango (full day), every Thursday and Sunday. Sololá Market is close to Atitlan and runs every Tuesday and Friday (half day).

Lake Atitlan Hotels

We have included all the lodges below ordered by our ranking, and by price. Clicking on any of the links will bring up more information; our detailed view of the lodge, video, photos, key facts etc. However, since we have been to all these lodges ourselves, we would recommend a phone call or an email to help you to decide where to go.

Ranking

- Outstanding

- Very good

- Good

- Average

- Poor

Casa Palopo

This is undoubtedly the best option around Lake Atitlan. With its pastel coloured walls and colonial décor it fits in beautifully with its surroundings. The 9 rooms, all of which overlook the lake are spacious, bright and tastefully decorated. Each has a private balcony lined with bougainvillea and a small sitting area ideal for watching the sun set between the two volcanoes that dominate the region. The hotel as a whole is littered with Mayan carvings, colourful textiles and some bizarre paintings.

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Villa Palopo

Located above Casa Palopo is their private villa. With only 2 rooms this is luxury personified. Their bathrooms have stand alone bath along with a shower. The four poster king size beds are located in a large spacious room each with their own private balcony that stretches across the bathroom as well. The lounge with its two comfortable setties and fireplace is surrounded with wooden Mayan carvings and artefacts from around the lake. It has a private kitchen where you can cook yourselves though we would recommend asking the local chef to come and cook for you.

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Posada Rodrigo

Located on the edge of Lake Atitlan at the end of the main street in Panajachel, this 41 room hotel is clean and comfortable. Their two types of rooms, new and old are simple and reasonably priced. Their new rooms overlook the lake and have all the mod cons you would expect of newer rooms; air conditioning, cable television and small balconies. The older rooms have more character, open fireplaces, old brick walls and smaller bathrooms. Their restaurant of is one of the best in Panajachel, with an inside eating area, an outside area and one higher up with superb views over the lake.

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Hotel Atitlan

Situated just outside of the town of Panajachel, this 60 room hotel has an excellent location on the edge of the lake. The rooms are spread out over three floors with the second and third floors offering the best views of the lake and volcanoes opposite. Rooms are tastefully decorated with wooden furniture, metal framed beds and large bathrooms. The junior suites and master suites have sitting areas along with an open fireplace, large verandas and are worth the additional cost.

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Hotel Bambu

On the far side of the lake, accessible by boat is the small town of Santiago. Opposite the town, a short 2 minute boat ride away is the tranquil hotel Bambu. The hotel has 10 rooms, 2 of which are individual bungalows. Although the rooms are fairly simple, their setting overlooking the lake and surrounded by pristine gardens more than makes up for this. Staff are helpful and friendly and the pool area is large enough to accommodate all the hotel and more.

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Posada Santiago

On the other side of town is posada Santiago. The hotel is split between the road, with the rooms and restaurant on one side and the pool and gardens on the other, the latter of which overlooks the lake. The bungalows, which are made of local stone have a lot of character, mostly due to the fact that each of them has an open fire place in.

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