Lake Atitlán in Guatemala is luring British travellers with its mountain hikes, tradition and low-key, affordable accommodation
Standing next to a basketball court in the main village square of Santa Cruz la Laguna, my guide points to a colourful mural of about a dozen women wearing traditional dress of embroidered red and white striped huipiles (blouses) and long black cortes (skirts) as they bend over to scrub clothes in a community pila – public laundry washbasins – which some women still use today.
“One of the objectives of the murals here, mostly created by local people in the last few years, is to attract more tourists and show our culture,” explains Miguel Alvarez, a community outreach worker at Amigos de Santa Cruz, a charity that seeks to empower indigenous people in the area.
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Red tuk-tuks whizz past as Alvarez points to other cultural murals: one of a man playing the marimba, a percussion instrument, another of a couple making tortillas over a heated stove. Santa Cruz la Laguna is one of the traditional Mayan villages dotted along the shore of Lake Atitlán in Guatemala.
Located in the south-western highlands, it’s hard not to be seduced by the region’s deepest lake. Around 12 miles long and 7.5 miles at its widest point, the lake was formed in a volcanic caldera and is surrounded by three volcanoes (Atitlán, San Pedro, and Tolimán) and about a dozen of villages. Each village has a different character and indigenous culture and traditions remain strong. It’s common to see women wearing traditional dress and carrying shopping on their heads.
Previously an enclave of western hippies, Panajechel has developed into the busiest and most built-up lakeside town and is the hub for shuttles arriving from across the country. Santa Cruz la Laguna, meanwhile, is a haven for backpackers, but still retains a village feel, as do Santiago Atitlan and Santa Catarina Palopó, with its brightly painted houses – they were decorated as such to draw in tourists.
Wander the streets of westerner hippy haven San Marcos and you may think you’ve hit Bali. There are posters for ayahuasca ceremonies (where participants drink a tea made from plants that have psychoactive effects) every few metres.
In San Juan la Laguna I saw a marimba ensemble greet visitors arriving by boat. The attractions here include learning about bees (such as the native, stingless melipona bee) at the Mundo de Abejas Mayas conservation centre, tasting chocolate on a cacao tour at Licor Marrón Chocolate, visiting one of the village’s women’s weaving co-operatives and hiking up Mirador Kaqasiiwaan – the peak is around 30 minutes’ walk from the village dock – for a view of the lake.
San Pedro attracts younger backpackers and is known as a party destination, mostly thanks to Mr Mullet’s hostel, which runs boat parties from 10am once a week.
Lake Atitlán is becoming more popular with British holidaymakers. UK-based searches for the lake were up 50 per cent in 2024 compared to 2022, according to data sourced by software firmSemrush. Tour operator Intrepid, which offers a six-day guided holiday in Guatemala that includes Lake Atitlán, reported a 24 per cent increase in tour bookings for its Guatemala itineraries in 2024 compared with 2023.
Greg Clough, the British founder of Eagle’s Nest, a lake-view resort in San Marcos that opened in 2017, says: “Guatemala and the lake have become trendy. Eagle’s Nest has doubled its revenue over the last two years.”
Accommodation at La Iguana Perdida in Santa Cruz, a lively lakeside hostel set up 29 years ago by Deedle Ratcliffe, has sprawled over the years. It started with four beds, and now sleeps more than 50 in a mixture of dorms and private rooms.
“Since Covid we’ve been crazy busy,” says Ratcliffe. “We’ve been almost fully booked from November to April. There were always Americans visiting the lake, but now we have a lot of Europeans.”
Kayaking and boat trips are popular pastimes on the lake. Given its rugged mountains, the three big volcanoes – and the smaller Cerro de Oro – there are challenging hikes to try, including the popular, 45-minute sunrise trek to the top of Nariz del Indio.
I put my fitness to the test on ATI Adventure’s (atiadventures.com) weekly, four-mile hike through the Santiago Atitlán cloud forest to the Quetzalio waterfall.
After working up an appetite, there are plenty of places to eat on the lake’s shores, but there’s a curfew of 6.30pm for public boats (about £2.50 per journey; many villages are only accessible by boat) that can limit the options. Accommodation typically offers in-house dining, however.
Café Sabor, the open-air café run by Amigos de Santa Cruz, is worth a visit for its lake view and simple breakfasts and lunches, such as tortillas topped with vegetables.
Kula Maya, a spa hotel, has tables overlooking its pool and the lake and serves dishes such as black beans and plantain.
After my 10-day visit, I’m transfixed – it’s no wonder that it’s enjoying a boom in tourists. I only hope it continues to retain its traditions.
Getting there
Return flights from the UK to Guatemala City start from around £600 with one stop en route. Public shuttles to Lake Atitlan from around £30pp.
Staying there
La Iguana Perdida in Santa Cruz has dorm rooms from around £12.50 per night and private rooms from around £18 per night, laiguanaperdida.com/es/
Eagle’s Nest, above San Marcos la Laguna, has a sauna and cold plunge pool. Dorm rooms start from $99 (£76) per night; private rooms from $149, eaglesnestatitlan.com.
Saasil Retreat in Tzununá has private rooms from $140, saasilretreat.com
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