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Lake Atitlan: what to see, where to stay and how to get around

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Lake Atitlán fills a volcanic caldera formed by a vast eruption some eighty-four thousand years ago, over three hundred metres deep, with three volcanoes on its southern shore and Maya villages of the Kaqchikel and Tz’utujil around it. Aldous Huxley wrote that it was like Lake Como with several volcanoes added — too much of a good thing. Public boats link the villages; go in the morning, as the afternoon wind, the xocomil, makes the water rough. A day.

Lake Atitlan

A short history of Lake Atitlan

Lake Atitlán formed in a huge caldera left by a volcanic eruption about 84,000 years ago, and three volcanoes rise on its shore. Maya of the Kaqchikel and Tz'utujil peoples still live on its banks, and each village keeps its own dress and language. In 1524 the Spanish conquistador Pedro de Alvarado conquered the area with the help of local allies. In the 1960s and 1970s travellers began to come to the lake, and backpacker tourism grew up in villages such as Panajachel and San Pedro.

The ten best sights in Lake Atitlan

  1. Reserva Natural Atitlán
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    Reserva Natural Atitlán

    Hanging bridges, coatis and ziplines

  2. Santa Catarina Palopó
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    Santa Catarina Palopó

    A village painted in blue patterns

  3. Santiago Atitlán
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    Santiago Atitlán

    The Tz’utujil town of Maximón

  4. Cerro de Oro
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    Cerro de Oro

    A small hill village on the shore

  5. San Pedro La Laguna
    5
    San Pedro La Laguna

    The backpackers’ village

  6. Indian Nose
    6
    Indian Nose

    The sunrise hike over the lake

  7. San Marcos La Laguna
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    San Marcos La Laguna

    Yoga, meditation and a cliff jump

  8. Tzununá
    8
    Tzununá

    A quiet village of eco-lodges

  9. Jaibalito
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    Jaibalito

    A hamlet reached only by boat or trail

  10. Santa Cruz La Laguna
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    Santa Cruz La Laguna

    Diving in the crater lake

sleepntripRoad and rail routesEvery night on the road, our hotel

Whole routes, with a room up to $80 at every stop.

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What is an audio walk?

Tours in Lake Atitlan →

A guide in your headphones: open the walk on our site, walk from stop to stop, and at each one your phone tells its story. No guide, no group, and free. This is the first walk in Lake Atitlan:

Across the lake

Free walking tours in Lake Atitlan

Across the lake

Lake Atitlán fills a volcanic caldera formed by a vast eruption some eighty-four thousand years ago, over three hundred metres deep, with three volcanoes on its southern shore and Maya villages of the Kaqchikel and Tz’utujil around it. Aldous Huxley wrote that it was like Lake Como with several volcanoes added — too much of a good thing. Public boats link the villages; go in the morning, as the afternoon wind, the xocomil, makes the water rough. A day.

  1. Calle Santander · The main street of Panajachel, the lake’s gateway, lined with stalls of textiles and bags running down to the shore, where the boats leave.
  2. Santiago Atitlán · The largest Tz’utujil town, home of Maximón, a cigar-smoking wooden saint dressed in scarves who receives offerings of rum and moves to a new house each year. In 1990, after soldiers killed thirteen residents, the town became the first in Guatemala to force the army to leave.
  3. Santiago church · In its colonial church a memorial honours Father Stanley Rother, an American priest from Oklahoma who served the town and was murdered in 1981 during the civil war; in 2017 he became the first US-born martyr beatified by the Church.
  4. San Pedro La Laguna · The village at the foot of the San Pedro volcano that became the lake’s backpacker centre, with cheap hostels, Spanish schools and cafés; it is a classic stop for Israeli travellers after the army, and some signs are in Hebrew.
  5. San Juan La Laguna · A Tz’utujil village of women’s weaving cooperatives that dye cotton with plants — indigo, achiote, coffee — and of streets painted with murals of village life.
  6. San Marcos La Laguna · A village of yoga retreats and meditation centres among the coffee and avocado trees, with a nature reserve where people jump into the lake from a wooden platform on the cliff.

Villages of the eastern shore

East of Panajachel a road runs along the steep shore to villages of potters and painters. Half a day by tuk-tuk or boat.

  1. Sololá market · Above the lake, the Kaqchikel market town where men of the town still wear their traditional dress — striped trousers and jackets embroidered with bats, the symbol of the Kaqchikel royal house.
  2. Reserva Natural Atitlán · A small reserve on an old coffee farm with hanging bridges over a ravine, a butterfly garden and coatis that wander the trails.
  3. Santa Catarina Palopó · A village whose houses have been painted since 2016 in blue and turquoise patterns taken from the local women’s huipiles, in a project to bring visitors and income.
  4. San Antonio Palopó · A village climbing up terraces of onions above the water, known for its hand-painted pottery and for the blue-striped dress of its people.
  5. Cerro de Oro · A small village on a hill of gold — in name only — between the volcanoes, where few visitors stop, with a view across the bay of Santiago.
  6. Santa Cruz La Laguna · A village on the north shore with a dive school offering high-altitude diving in the crater lake. In 1958 black bass were introduced to the lake for sport fishing; they wiped out native fish and helped drive the Atitlán grebe, a bird found nowhere else, to extinction.

Volcanoes and Chichicastenango

Around the lake rise volcanoes and viewpoints, and to the north lies the greatest market of the highlands. Climb only with local guides and in a group.

  1. Indian Nose · A ridge whose profile looks like a face lying back, climbed before dawn from San Juan to watch the sun rise behind the three volcanoes across the lake.
  2. Volcán San Pedro · About three thousand metres high, climbed in four or five hours through coffee and cloud forest from the village; the reward is a view over the whole lake.
  3. Volcán Tolimán · A double-peaked volcano joined to its neighbour Atitlán, rising straight from the shore behind Santiago.
  4. Volcán Atitlán · The highest of the three, over three thousand five hundred metres, and the only one still considered active; on clear days the Pacific can be seen from its summit.
  5. Santo Tomás, Chichicastenango · A church built on a Maya platform, whose eighteen steps — one for each month of the Maya calendar — are clouded with copal incense burned by prayer leaders. Around 1701 the friar Francisco Ximénez copied here the Popol Vuh, the sacred book of the K’iche’ Maya.
  6. Pascual Abaj · On a wooded hill above Chichicastenango, a blackened stone idol where Maya priests still make offerings of candles, flowers and sometimes chickens, asking for health and good harvests. Visitors may watch respectfully.
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Getting to Lake Atitlan and getting around

  • Panajachel · Shuttles from Antigua, about three hours; boats across the lake

Cheap eats in Lake Atitlan

Around the lake people eat tortillas pressed by hand at every corner; caldo de gallina, hen soup; fried fish from the lake; and in the backpacker villages, everything from falafel and shakshuka to banana pancakes. A plate at a comedor costs about three dollars.

  • San Pedro La Laguna · Israeli cafés and tortilla women
  • Calle Santander · Comedores and street food
  • Santo Tomás, Chichicastenango · Market-day food stalls

Nature and day trips near Lake Atitlan

A crater lake ringed by volcanoes, cloud forest and coffee terraces.

  • Indian Nose · The sunrise
  • Volcán San Pedro · The climb
  • Reserva Natural Atitlán · Bridges and coatis

Things to do in Lake Atitlan with kids

With children: boat rides, hanging bridges, a cliff jump and painted villages.

  • Reserva Natural Atitlán · Ziplines
  • San Marcos La Laguna · The jumping platform
  • Santa Catarina Palopó · The blue village

Holy places in Lake Atitlan

Maya rites alive beside the churches: incense, offerings and the cult of Maximón.

  • Santiago Atitlán · Maximón
  • Santo Tomás, Chichicastenango · Incense on the steps
  • Pascual Abaj · The hill shrine

Nightlife in Lake Atitlan

The lake’s nights are in San Pedro’s backpacker bars and Panajachel’s main street; elsewhere villages are quiet by nine.

  • San Pedro La Laguna · Backpacker bars
  • Calle Santander · Bars of Panajachel
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Frequently asked questions about Lake Atitlan

What is there to see in Lake Atitlan?

The top sights in Lake Atitlan are Reserva Natural Atitlán, Santa Catarina Palopó and Santiago Atitlán. The full list on this page has 10 sights, each with a photo and a short note.

How many days do you need in Lake Atitlan?

Three to four days are enough to see the best of Lake Atitlan without rushing, including at least one walking tour.

Is there a free walking tour in Lake Atitlan?

Yes. sleepntrip has 3 free audio walks in Lake Atitlan, with no guide and no group: your phone tells the story at every stop. The first one: Across the lake.

How do you get to Lake Atitlan and get around?

The main ways are Panajachel. Full details are in the transport section on this page.

Where to stay in Lake Atitlan, and for how much?

sleepntrip shows only rooms in Lake Atitlan that meet nine conditions: a good location, high guest scores, cleanliness, and a price of up to $80 a night for two. Pick your dates and see what is free.

Looking for a hotel in Lake Atitlan for your dates?

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