HIGHLANDS

Antigua

The best preserved of the Spanish colonial capitals in the hemisphere is set amongst three magnificent volcanoes named Agua, Fuego and Acatenango. Fuego (Fire) occasionally lets out long plumes of smoke by day and lights up the night with a fiery red glow. Wise travellers spend as little time in Guatemala City as possible, preferring to head for this lively colonial city. The height of the season is the world famous Semana Santa, booked up at least a year in advance it is one of the world’s great festivals. It is known for its incredibly colourful and intricate flower carpets that cover the streets. These mark out the routes of daylong religious processions that occur throughout the week.

Indian Markets

Chichicastenango, Quetzaltenango, Zuñil, and other highland market towns are are located in deep valleys surrounded by green mountains. Red roofs and narrow cobbled streets still prevail in Maya market centres, where villagers walk for miles to bring their wares to sell.

Lake Atitlan

Referred to as the world’s most beautiful lake, it is a huge ancient caldera surrounded by three volcanoes and a patchwork of Maya fields and farms. It’s a wonderful place for a morning swim or to simply sit for hours and watch the colours and shadows run across the water’s surface. Panajachel is a handy jump-off point for hiking, boating, horse riding, mountain biking and taking ferry rides to the much less visited indigenous villages on the far shores of the lake.

Coban

The natural side of Guatemala. High in the moist cloud forest, it is the home of the resplendent but illusive quetzal, Guatemala’s national bird. In this region there is fabulous white water rafting on the tropical Río Cahabón. You can also visit the Quetzal Reserve, historical coffee plantations and orchid farms, as well as the remarkable caves of Lanquín, where thousands of bats emerge at sunset. Semuc Champey is one of Guatemala’s crown jewels, a remote series of pristine limestone pools deep in the tropical rain forest. The raging Río Cahabón actually tunnels underneath, creating the only double-decked river we know of.