A country · 95 places · 16 regions

Guatemala, all of it.

95 curated places across 16 regions — photographed, mapped, and noted with the season each is best in.

El Mirador, Guatemala
El Mirador · via Wikimedia Commons

The 4 biggest regions — Guatemala Department, Petén Department, Sololá Department and Sacatepéquez Department — read below as chapters, with 12 more waiting past them.

Chapter I · Guatemala Department · 16 places

Guatemala Department

A Postclassic hilltop citadel of the Chajoma Maya, dramatically sited on ridges above deep river canyons about an hour and a half from Guatemala City. Restored ball courts and temple platforms are usually shared with only a handful of other visitors.

El Mirador, Guatemalavia Wikimedia Commons

Chapter II · Petén Department · 16 places

Petén Department

A vast Preclassic Maya city buried deep in the Petén jungle, reachable only by a multi-day trek or helicopter. Its La Danta pyramid ranks among the largest structures ever raised in the ancient Americas, and the surrounding forest teems with howler monkeys and toucans.

✦ December to April, during the dry season when jungle trails are passable · $

Chapter III · Sololá Department · 8 places

Sololá Department

A Tz'utujil town on Lake Atitlán that has become the lake's backpacker hub, packed with Spanish schools, cheap hostels and lakefront cafes. Despite the traveler scene, the steep upper town keeps its market-day rhythms and traditional dress.

Volcán de Agua, Guatemalavia Wikimedia Commons

Chapter IV · Sacatepéquez Department · 7 places

Sacatepéquez Department

A symmetrical cone volcano that towers over the colonial city of Antigua. Its forested slopes are a strenuous day climb rewarded by highland views from the summit.

✦ November to March · $

Every place in Guatemala

95 places, one country.