The port town of Puerto Quetzal is the gateway to some of Guatemala's top tourist destinations, with the nearby UNESCO World Heritage City of Antigua being a perfect place to start your exploration of this amazing country. Indeed, Antigua epitomises the nation's colonial roots, containing a huge number of beautiful buildings erected by the Spanish during their occupation of the New World. At this time, Antigua was one of the richest cities in the entire continent, and was a major seat of administration and finance. From here, visitors may want to continue on to Lake Atitlan, a volcanic lake which sits inside the crater of an ancient volcano that blew its top thousands of years ago. Overlooked by the amazing Atitlan, Toliman and San Pedro Volcanoes, the shore of the lake is sprinkled with a number of intriguing towns, each of which boasts its own unique character. San Marcos, for example, has gained a reputation as a real hippy town, and is popular among yoga fanatics and other spiritual types. San Pedro, meanwhile, is something of a backpacker's paradise, and is known for its lively bars and interesting markets.
The port town of Puerto Quetzal is the gateway to some of Guatemala's top tourist destinations, with the nearby UNESCO World Heritage City of Antigua being a perfect place to start your exploration of this amazing country. Indeed, Antigua epitomises the nation's colonial roots, containing a huge number of beautiful buildings erected by the Spanish during their occupation of the New World. At this time, Antigua was one of the richest cities in the entire continent, and was a major seat of administration and finance. From here, visitors may want to continue on to Lake Atitlan, a volcanic lake which sits inside the crater of an ancient volcano that blew its top thousands of years ago. Overlooked by the amazing Atitlan, Toliman and San Pedro Volcanoes, the shore of the lake is sprinkled with a number of intriguing towns, each of which boasts its own unique character. San Marcos, for example, has gained a reputation as a real hippy town, and is popular among yoga fanatics and other spiritual types. San Pedro, meanwhile, is something of a backpacker's paradise, and is known for its lively bars and interesting markets.
