Guatemala City Courtyard
Hotel or lodge, twin sharing
8 days, planned by Pumice & Pine
Eight days east — limestone pools, a river gorge and the Caribbean coast, none of which the Acatenango trip goes near.
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| Zona 1 |
| Museo Popol Vuh |
The quetzal is the national bird and gives the currency its name. Seeing one takes luck and a dawn start.
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| Cobán |
| Biotopo del Quetzal |
| Cloud forest |
The Cahabón disappears under a three-hundred-metre limestone bridge and the pools sit on top of it. The viewpoint climb is steep and worth it.
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| Semuc Champey |
| El Mirador |
| Cahabón river |
| Limestone bridge |
The cave is entered swimming with a candle in one hand, and there are sections where you climb a rope ladder in the dark. It is not for everyone and nobody is pushed.
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| K'an Ba cave |
| Cahabón river |
| Lanquín bat cave |
San Felipe was built in 1652 to stop Caribbean pirates coming up the river to raid the lake, and they came anyway.
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| Río Dulce |
| Castillo de San Felipe |
| Lago de Izabal |
Livingston is Garífuna — Afro-Indigenous, Caribbean-facing, and reachable only by boat. It does not feel like the rest of Guatemala and it is not meant to.
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| Río Dulce gorge |
| Livingston |
| Garífuna |
| Siete Altares |
The Garífuna descend from shipwrecked West Africans and Carib islanders, and their language, music and food are all UNESCO-listed as intangible heritage.
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| Siete Altares |
| Playa Blanca |
| Garífuna drumming |
A long last day. An overnight in the city before an early flight is the safer plan.
Day 1 · Fri, 18 Sept, 2026
Most of these can be added to your booking later — the operator confirms within a day.
Published by the operator. Nights on the ground can move with weather and permissions.
Hotel or lodge, twin sharing
Hotel or lodge, twin sharing
Hotel or lodge, twin sharing
Hotel or lodge, twin sharing
Hotel or lodge, twin sharing
7 breakfasts and 7 dinners across 8 days, at camp. It opens with dinner on day 1 and closes with breakfast on day 8.
14 meal services named in the itinerary. Vegetarian and vegan covered; Jain, gluten-free and allergies on notice at booking
“Andes and Central America, altitude planned properly”
Every itinerary is built around where you sleep rather than where you go, because in the Andes that is the only decision that matters.
Well organised from the pickup onwards. The daily distances were honest about what they'd be. Accommodation was a notch better than the price suggested. Plenty to eat and they were happy to work around a gluten allergy. Good value for what's included.
Did this over 8 days and it was the best walking I've done in years. Solid operator.
Thank you for travelling with us — glad the route worked out.
Pace was set for the fastest people in the group and it made the middle days hard. Guides answered every question, including the daft ones.
Thanks for writing this up. We've passed your note to the team.
Well organised from the pickup onwards. The daily distances were honest about what they'd be. Good value for what's included.
Second trek with this operator and they've kept the standard up. The lead was calm and knew when to slow the group down. Recommended.
Alta Verapaz and Izabal in the right season is something else, and the team knew exactly where to camp. Solid operator.
Thank you. We've taken the point about the transfer and are reviewing it.
Did this over 8 days and it was the best walking I've done in years. No complaints about any of the hotels — all of them well placed. Food was plentiful and hot, which counts for a lot at altitude. Recommended.
Did this over 8 days and it was the best walking I've done in years. Rooms were comfortable and the locations meant we could walk most evenings. The team read the group well and adjusted without making a thing of it. Good value for what's included.
Glad you enjoyed it. Hope to see you on another trip.
Genuinely rough — the last stretch is unpaved, steep and slow, and it is done in a 4x4 or the back of a pickup. Two and a half hours to cover not very much. Everyone arrives shaken and it is part of why Semuc is not overrun.
One other operator runs this trail. See all 2 side by side →