It’s been quite some time since we’ve had a visitor, so I was absolutely elated when one of my best friends, Sarah, whom I’ve known for more than 20 years agreed to come down from North Carolina to Antigua for a visit. And I knew just the place I wanted to take her for a girls’s getaway…the famous Lago de Atitlan superbly ringed by mountains and volcanoes.
It seems Lake Atitlan has a little something for everyone…the backpacker, the party people, the hiker, the aqua adventurer, the yogi, the spiritual seeker, the hiker…so it would have been unfortunate to not get a small taste of its vibe during my premier visit to Guatemala. I knew I wanted to take my friend for a true glamping experience so after a lot of searching, I settled on Fuego Atitlan Eco-Hotel wedged between San Pablo and San Marcos.
As we soaked in the view from our balcony, we, along with the volcanoes, sighed in relief as the early morning sunrise beginning to kiss their edges. It was a chilly night in our yurt.
To get there, we took a (late) shuttle (always late) about 3.5 hours from Antigua to San Pablo La Laguna for $22/each, which we booked through Adonis Travel & Tour. Taking four chicken buses for ~$6 total is also an option, but that was a little more of an adventure than we were looking for this short overnight excursion. San Pablo is a traditional and authentic town on the lake that hasn’t been blown apart by tourism like so many of the others.
Because of this, it didn’t have a lot of restaurant options, but since I was nearing Hangryville, we had to eat something before I turned mean. We could have settled for fast food at Pollo Super Rapidito, or a more traditional place called Comedor Vida, which had 4.9 stars on Google. Naturally we chose the slower option, which left a lot to be desired despite the rating.
Or, perhaps, I should just learn NOT to order tacos from a Guatemalan… because I’m still not sure they know what they’re doing with the delicate cuisine of their superstar northern neighbor. Tacos from this particular Guatemalan included four tortillas loaded with grilled onions, a few pieces of very dry chicken (we think?), some slices of avocado (the winner of the dish) and a side of watery tomato sauce, which is far from salsa picante.
With her typical smile, Sarah seems alright with it (before she digs in.) Needless to say, this would be our last attempt at cheap Mexican while in Guatemala. That also said, it wasn’t cheap….costing just over a whopping $5/dish. Welcome to Lake Atitlan.
With full, but unsatisfied bellies, we commenced our 20-minute walk down the road to our hotel, bypassing the lines of tuk tuks eager to rip off two female 40-somethings. Because of this, we encountered some dazzling views along the way.
Sarah flitting out of her comfort zone, and metamorphosing into a butterfly.
Of course, she only wished she could fly. When we arrived to our hotel, neither of us realized we’d have to climb about 200 steps to get to the reception. Fortunately, the pile of kittens at the top eased any anxieties.
After checking in with the hotel manager, Alice, interestingly from France, she escorted us to our yurt, which was a big splurge at $113 for the night. Inside was unfathomably jumbo sleeping surface, two bed side lamps, filtered water, and a small sink.
After giving us a tutorial on how to operate the curtains, the manager left us with the view which was truly hard not to admire.
The camp’s bathroom was the cleanest compost toilet I’ve ever seen, complete with detailed instructions for doing numero uno and dos.
After a break, we had scheduled a yoga class at the “nearby” world class eco resort called “Eagle’s Nest.” According to Alice, we could just continue to walk up the stairs we had entered on and then walk a relatively flat trail along the mountain to arrive there in about 30 minutes. Unfortunately, it wasn’t that straightforward, and we missed the class, but at least we scored some terrific views of the shimmering sapphire hovering below. Of course, our view wasn’t really that different. Haha
But it was enhanced tremendously the next morning with our included breakfast…a delicious pot of French-pressed local coffee, a papaya and banana smoothie, eggs, beans, plantains, avocado, tomatoes, cheese and tortillas. It was so wonderful to have some girl time…a luxury that is few and far between in nomad life.
The layers of mountains meld together like a watercolor, and a view of Fuego still puffing in the distance from this vantage point.
Later that morning, our short trip, was cut even shorter by the news that a semi accident was blocking the road we needed to get out of San Pablo. Therefore, our tour agency informed us we’d need to head to San Marcos to take the boat to Panjachel instead, before getting on a shuttle from there. So, this time, we hopped in a tuk tuk (Sarah’s first!) after I negotiated with the driver who started at a ridiculous 15 quetzales/$2 (per person!) for the less than five uphill minute ride.
This was actually nice because it gave us the opportunity check out the hippie haven of San Marcos, which based on the wall of workshops and classes, I undoubtedly confirmed I could spend a lot more time…and cash. I later looked at the cost of Yoga Teacher Training in San Marcos and they are charging nearly $3k, including food and lodging. This is compared to around $700 in India (circa 2020). Yikes.
This town is the spiritual and wellness hub of the lake. Here you’ll find multiple yoga and meditation options, at around $20/pop, traditional Mayan healing and cacao ceremonies…
…plenty of local crafts and markets, and loads of vegan, vegetarian and wholesome food options as well as we walked towards the dock, from where we’d catch a ~30-minute boat to Panajachel, the main hub of Lake Atitlan for about $2.50.
In Panajachel, we still had a couple of hours to kill…
So we deemed it margarita time, before getting shoved onto a 3-hour shuttle bus back to Antigua with leg room so horrendous it made Ryan Air look good! Oh yes, Sarah got to experience some “real” travel. “Lucky” her….she’s got short legs, unlike me….
