Lago de Atitlán has become a very popular travel destination where visitors can experience the area’s incredible natural beauty, vibrant Guatemalan culture, and abundant fun activities. Guatemala had long been on our list of places we really wanted to travel to, and this iconic lake was a place we definitely weren’t going to miss during our time in the country. Upon landing in Guatemala City, we headed straight there for our first few days. Here’s our four-day Lake Atitlán itinerary.
Day 0 – Arriving in Guatemala
We’re not counting this as a day in our Lake Atitlán itinerary, because we arrived at the lake after dark. We were originally supposed to arrive in the late afternoon, but our ride from the airport in Guatemala City showed up a couple hours late and we arrived in Panajachel much later than expected. So, we didn’t get to do much that first night.
We had booked a shuttle with Transport Guatemala to get us from the airport to Panajachel. The driver claimed that he was so late because there was a strike near the airport. We’re not sure if this was the case or not, because another driver had no idea about that. And the five of us waiting for this shuttle were the only group of tourists left standing outside the airport after we watched multiple other shuttles come and go. A super kind security guard called the driver multiple times to keep us updated. Luckily, the shuttle we took didn’t make a stop in Antigua first (some companies do), so we were able to head straight to Panajachel when the driver arrived.
Honestly, delays aren’t uncommon if you look at the reviews across various shuttle companies. So come in with a little patience and flexibility.
Upon arriving at our hostel in Panajachel, we put our stuff down, grabbed dinner, and went to bed since we were exhausted after a long couple days of travel without much sleep.
Day 1 – Exploring Panajachel
After some breakfast at our hostel, we headed out to explore Panajachel. We made our way towards the northern end of town to start. It was our first day in Guatemala, so we stopped by an ATM to take out enough quetzales to last us until Antigua.
Iglesia Católica de Panajachel
Iglesia Católica de Panajachel, or the Church of San Francisco de Asís, is a pretty mid-1500s cathedral that sits on Panajachel’s principal park. The cathedral is one of the few remaining examples of colonial architecture in the area. Visitors can enter for free – just make sure to wear church-appropriate clothing.
We always love visiting the main park/square in any city we visit because it’s a great spot to people watch and get a glimpse of local life. We hung out here shortly before moving on.
Mercado Municipal
The Mercado Municipal is the main market where many of the locals in the area come to do their shopping. You’ll find anything from vegetables, fruits, spices, and raw meat to flowers, clothing, some kitchenware, and more. There are also some booths selling prepared food, so you can get an affordable meal here as well. Just use caution if you have a sensitive stomach.
Markets are another place we love to visit when traveling to get a glimpse of local life and try local dishes and fruits. We wandered through the maze of stalls for a while, then headed back out to the street.
Explore the Town on Foot
We spent a good chunk of the afternoon just exploring Panajachel on foot. We walked down Rancho Grande, Calle Santander, and some of the streets in between. There are many little shops, some colorful murals, street vendors, and more to see as you stroll about. We snacked and shopped around – we found a pretty handwoven wool rug. We grabbed lunch at some random little local spot we came across, too.
Playa Jucanya
After a quick stop back at our hostel to put stuff down, we headed to Playa Jucanya. Our original plan was to swim at the dock there, but it was cloudy and very windy at this point, so we weren’t really feeling it. We crossed the dry riverbed of Rio Panajachel and wandered the quiet Calle de los Salpores. There weren’t many people over here at all until we made it to the beach. Even the beach was pretty quiet.
The long rocky shoreline was quite peaceful, and we imagine this would be a great place to lay out and chill on the shoreline on a sunny, warm day.
Next, we headed towards the main beach in town – Playa Publica.
Playa Publica
Playa Publica is the main rocky stretch of shore near Panajachel where families and travelers hang out, lanchas come and go, and vendors set up their stalls. You can find street food, cocktails, and souvenirs being sold along the beach.
During most of our time in the Lake Atitlán area, it was incredibly smoky. We didn’t really get clear blue skies or those iconic Atitlán views with the volcanoes visible across the lake. This honestly did bum us out a bit, but we still enjoyed our time here so much and thought the lake was gorgeous. That said, we had planned to go up to a mirador above Panajachel around this time for sunset, but the smoke was so bad, so we just watched it from the public beach. There’s a nice path and some bench areas to hang out on here.
Dinner & Nightlife
After sunset at the beach, we headed back inland to grab dinner. At this point in the evening, more vendors had opened up their food booths. We found one called Churrasquitos el Buen Gusto serving up grilled meats, beans, and tortillas.
We then headed out to some bars. Panajachel is one of the better places around the lake to experience nightlife because it is the largest city on the lake and there are many other travelers to meet while out, too.
Looking for more info on visiting Panajachel? Read our city guide!
Day 2 – Transfer to San Pedro La Laguna, Kayaking, Exploring San Pedro
We started our second day with breakfast at our hostel before packing up and checking out. We then walked down to the Public Beach in Pana and found a lancha to get us to San Pedro La Laguna. With our packs strapped to the top of the boat, the lancha made its way across the lake, stopping a couple times along the way. It was a cool, calm morning on the lake and we enjoyed the beautiful scenery.
Upon reaching San Pedro, we headed to our hotel, put our bags down, and headed back out to find a kayak for rent.
Kayaking to Playa La Finca
There are a few places to rent a kayak from – you’ll see kayaks along the shore and signs advertising rentals as you walk the main street parallel to the shore. We found a place with a double kayak available and headed out on the lake for a few hours.
We kayaked to Playa La Finca, a secluded black sand beach a little ways southeast of town. It was pretty windy, which is quite normal for the afternoons here. But it was warm and sunny, so we enjoyed relaxing on the beach for a while before kayaking back to San Pedro. If you’d like more details on this adventure, read our other post!
Exploring & Errands in San Pedro La Laguna
The following day, we wanted to make the hike up El Rostro Maya, a popular viewpoint in the area. So, we had a couple errands to run that afternoon.
First, we went in search of a tour company to take us up the peak the following day. Casa Verde Tours sits right above the main pier in the heart of town, so we just walked in there and asked for the price and if they had availability for the next morning. They said they did, so we confirmed and paid. You can also find tours online to book in advance if desired.
We played cards, enjoyed some beers, and hung out together on the balcony of our hotel for a bit before heading back out.
Since the sunrise tour up El Rostro Maya starts super early in the morning, we wanted to pick up some water and snacks to bring just in case we got hungry on the journey. The main grocery store in town, Mini Super Andy, sits up the hill a ways from the main touristy area. On the way up to the store, we encountered a street market. The street that leads to Mini Super Andy is lined with businesses and many stalls where vendors are selling fresh fruit and juice, vegetables, bread, some clothing, and more.
We wandered this area then stopped by Parque La Puerta Hermosa – San Pedro’s main square. There was a church here, a San Pedro sign, pretty paths, and lots of people hanging out.
Day 3 – El Rostro Maya, Exploring San Pedro, Exploring San Juan
El Rostro Maya Tour
The next morning came a little too quickly. Our alarm went off and we had to make our way to the tour office before 4am. Our driver took the van up to Santa Clara where we all hopped out to begin the hike in the dark. The hike was steep, but short. Once at the top, the guides handed out hot chocolate and a sweet bread to enjoy while waiting for the sun to rise.
It was still incredibly smoky, so we could barely see San Pedro and San Juan through the haze. But it was still pretty nonetheless. Want more info on this hike? Check out our other post.
Our tour ended back in San Pedro and it was still early, so we still had the whole day ahead of us! We enjoyed a smoothie bowl from a restaurant along the shore before catching a tuktuk over to San Juan La Laguna.
Exploring San Juan La Laguna
San Juan La Laguna is known for its artsy vibe, with bright murals, galleries, many artisan shops, and the famous Calle de las Sombrillas.
The tuktuk dropped us off near Parque de San Juan La Laguna, a pretty square with a church on it. Around the park, there are various shops, restaurants, and cafes. There are streets covered with colorful hats and textiles and lots of murals both on the walls lining the streets and on the streets themselves. It really is a vibrant little town!
On Calle de las Sombrillas you’ll find tons of shops selling coffee, textiles, artwork, and souvenirs like magnets and t-shirts. This area was pretty busy with visitors shopping and taking photos. We grabbed some lunch before taking a tuktuk back to San Pedro.
Exploring San Pedro
When back in San Pedro, we decided we wanted to explore more of the town and hit some of the viewpoints. We wandered some of the streets we hadn’t been on, admiring more murals and stopping in shops. The smoke had slightly cleared, so we headed up to some miradors – Arte Mirador Vista de Pájaro and Mirador Plaza Maravilla. It was a calm afternoon as we strolled the streets, taking in the views and chatting with locals along the way.
That afternoon, a rainstorm rolled in, so we played more cards at our hotel before heading out for dinner.
Day 4 – Cerro Tzankujil Nature Reserve, San Marcos, More San Pedro
Cerro Tzankujil Nature Reserve
This morning was definitely one of the highlights of our days on Lake Atitlán. After grabbing some breakfast along the main street in San Pedro, we headed to the pier to catch a lancha to San Marcos. It was early, so we had to wait a short while for more people to fill the boat. It was a quick ride over and we got off at the pier.
We headed directly over to Cerro Tzankujil Nature Reserve, arriving right as it opened. Since it was early, there was hardly anyone around and the water was calm. We spent first half of the day along the shore, swimming, laying in the sun, and jumping off the high platform into the lake. This was also the clearest morning we had on the lake, so we were just enjoying the views. When it began to get more crowded along the shore, we hiked some of the trails within the reserve.
For more details on visiting Cerro Tzankujil Nature Reserve, click here.
Exploring San Marcos La Laguna
We spent a little while exploring San Marcos La Laguna between visiting the nature reserve and heading back to San Pedro. We’ll be honest and say that San Marcos wasn’t our favorite town we passed through on the lake. It’s known to be a ‘hippie’ town and is a popular place to stay if you’re looking for yoga retreats and other spiritual experiences, so if that’s what you’re looking for, you may consider staying here!
It was pretty and quite peaceful, but just walking around the main area of San Marcos, it almost felt like it had lost some of its vibrant Guatemalan charm. There were a lot of gringos and gringo-owned businesses. There are many foreigners seen when exploring other towns, but this stood out to us here as Mayan culture seemed less apparent. Some of the shops and restaurants around here also seemed considerably more expensive than the options you can find in neighboring towns.
Back to San Pedro
Back to San Pedro we went with plans to enjoy our last evening on Lago de Atitlán. We headed down towards the shore and walked along the water a bit. We then grabbed dinner and drinks at a restaurant near the shore to be able to enjoy the evening views. At night, the bars and restaurants along the water come to life and the city lights up.
Day 5 – Heading to Antigua
Our last morning, we got up and headed to iCafe for a last breakfast overlooking the lake. There were so many other activities we wanted to do in the area, so we were sad to be leaving. However, we had many exciting travel plans to look forward to.
Upon arriving in San Pedro, we talked to our hotel staff and they helped organize a shuttle to Antigua. So this morning, a woman came to grab us and walked us to a spot to wait for the shuttle. Everyone loaded in and we made the drive to Antigua.
Some Notes on Our Lake Atitlán Itinerary
Is Four Days Enough?
Four days on Lago de Atitlán is just enough to experience some of the main highlights around the lake. We found it to be a good balance of activities with time to chill out and enjoy the peaceful lake atmosphere. We would have loved to spend more time in the area, but there were other things we wanted to see in Guatemala and we had to make our way up to Cancún over the next couple weeks for my sister’s wedding.
If you’re here for a retreat, want to take Spanish lessons, want to explore more of the towns, and do more activities in the area, we’d definitely recommend putting more days aside to spend around the lake.
What Town Should You Stay In?
The town you choose to stay in totally depends on what you’re looking for. We’d recommend doing research on the town’s vibe, activities in and around the town, accessibility to your accommodation (some are only accessible by lancha), and other factors.
We chose to stay in Panajachel first because it was easy to reach from Guatemala city, it’s a main hub for both locals and travelers on the lake, and there were plenty of activities to do around there. We chose San Pedro next because we had read that it’s a bit less touristy than the neighboring San Juan, but it was a good base for exploring neighboring towns and trails. Both cities were great and we would stay in them again.
Responsible Tourism
Tourism has absolutely boomed around Lake Atitlán. This has brought a lot of opportunity to the communities around the lake, but has also resulted in many foreigners coming in to buy properties and businesses. With that, the money doesn’t always go back into the community and the wealth gap has grown. Furthermore, we talked to a woman who was telling us how tourism and foreigners buying up properties have forced some out of communities where their families have lived for generations due to the increase in the cost of living.
So, when visiting Lago de Atitlán, support local businesses when you can. That means eating at local spots, staying at accommodations owned by locals, buying goods made by artisans from the area, etc. Also take the time to talk to people from the area if you can and learn about the culture of the Mayan communities that make this area of Guatemala so vibrant and unique.
The Atitlán area lacks proper infrastructure to handle water treatment, resulting in lake pollution. And tourism has only compounded the pollution issue. There’s no way to avoid contributing to this when you visit the lake. But you can do your part by not using single-use utensils and water bottles, cleaning up your trash when you visit natural areas, etc.
Is There Anything We’d Change in our Lake Atitlán Itinerary?
For us as first-time visitors to Lago de Atitlán, we had no regrets on our itinerary. We were able to do some fun activities around the lake, explore and experience the towns we stayed in and visited, and also have time to enjoy it all without feeling rushed.
But, we get that all travelers have different preferences! There are sooo many other activities to do around the lake, from ziplining, horseback riding, and hiking other trails to cooking classes and yoga retreats. So if you aren’t feeling like you’d enjoy some of the activities in this itinerary; want to focus more on hiking, wellness, or other activity; or you want to stay in another town, rest assured you can find other things to fill your days here!
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