Adventure World

Guatemala & Belize

Guatemala is a land of colour and a blend of Spanish colonial heritage and ancient ruins of a vanished Mayan civilisation. A journey in Guatemala takes the traveller from the lush vegetation of the warm lowlands to the cooler pine forests of the highlands. The central area is a region of lakes and volcanoes for which Guatemala is known throughout the world.

Guatemala City is the starting point for exploration and is a vibrant cosmopolitan city - a blend of contemporary buildings and magnificent colonial architecture.

Tikal, located in the dense jungle of Peten, is the largest known Mayan site. It is a magnificent reminder of the great Mayan civilisation that flourished here over 2000 years ago.

Every Sunday and Thursday Chichicastenango is home to one of the most vibrant markets in Central America. Another major attraction in Chichicastenango is the 400 year old church of Santo Tomás.

On the Caribbean coast, nestled between Mexico and Guatemala, Belize offers an intriguing mix of tropical forests rich with wildlife, majestic mountains, mysterious Mayan temples, diving and fishing experiences beyond compare.

In a single day you can go from tropical forest to the longest barrier reef in the Western Hemisphere. The Blue Hole, one of the world’s most unique dive spots, lies approximately 100km off the mainland out of Belize City. An almost perfect circular hole this is a must when in Ambergris, for both divers and snorkelers.

Top Highlights – Guatemala

Live and feel Guatemala’s heartbeat: an explosion in magic, colour and adventure Guatemala is the heart of the Mayan world, a beautiful, fertile land with a tragic history.

It borders to the North and West with Mexico; to the East with Belize, Honduras, El Salvador and the Caribbean Sea and to the South with the Pacific Ocean.

The Maya who live in the highlands amid breathtaking scenery guard jealously their ancient customs and way of life. Holidays and ceremonies are filled with ancient pageantry and the weekly markets are ablaze with the vivid colours of traditional handmade costumes but in the raucous bustling cities there remain strongly felt distinctions between the indigenous and European-descended population. These differences divide Guatemalan society in two and have often led to oppression and bloody conflict.

Guatemala City: Guatemala’s capital city, the largest urban agglomeration in Central America sprawls across a range of flattened mountains, scored by deep ravines. Compared to Mexico City, its great Latin sister to the north, the superficial resemblances soon give way to purely Guatemalan impressions. There’s the huge and chaotic market, typically colourful and disorganised. Ramshackle city buses trundle citizens about with surprising efficiency, if not comfort.

Antigua: Antigua Guatemala, a World Heritage Site, is among the oldest and most beautiful cities in the Americas. Its setting is superb, amidst three magnificent volcanoes named Agua, Fuego and Acatenango. Fuego (Fire) is easily recognizable by its plume of smoke and at night by the red glow it projects against the sky. Most of Antigua’s buildings were constructed during the 17th and 18th centuries, when the city was a rich Spanish colonial capital, and it seems no expense was spared in the city’s magnificent architecture.

The great Mayan sites and other tourist sights are outside these cities with excellent shuttle services between Chichi, Lake Atitlan, Copan, Rio Dulce and Quetzaltenango and from Flores to Tikal, Yaxha and Ceibal.

Fact Sheet – Guatemala

• Country Dialling Code: + 502
• When to Go: Guatemala enjoys moderate climate throughout the year in most of its territory, with an average temperature of 20°C.
• Clothing: In summer, light cotton clothes and a sweater for the evening are sufficient. From November through January, when the weather becomes somewhat cooler, light woollen clothes are suggested.
• Food & Water: A variety of restaurants and cafes serve a wide selection of cooking styles including American, Argentinean, Chinese, French, Italian, Japanese, Mexican and Spanish. There are many fast-food chains and continental-style cafes. The visitor should note that food usually varies in price rather than quality and some of the cheap eateries are amongst the best.
• National specialities:
  • Kac lc (soup made from turkey and seasoned with samat (a herb from Alta Verapaz).
  • Guacamole.
  • Flan de naranja (orange-flavoured flan).
• Currency: The national currency is the Quetzal (Q) named after the country’s national bird. US dollars are widely accepted usually at the bank exchange rate or even better. Even so, you’ll need quetzals because small operators may not want to take on dollars, which they must then take to the bank.
• Tipping: In hotels, restaurants, and bars etc, a 15% tip is customary wherever a service charge is not included in the bill.
• Language: Spanish is the official national language, but in practice, 23 languages are spoken in Guatemala including Spanish, Garifuna and 21 Maya languages.
• Email: Internet access is widely available in Guatemala - hotels tend to charge more than internet cafes.
• Where sightseeing arrangements are booked through Adventure World, park fees and entrance fees are included in the tour cost.
• Electricity: Guatemala uses 110 volts, both in the capital and the provinces. A universal adaptor is recommended.
• Shopping Hints: Guatemalan handicrafts, especially the brilliantly colourful weavings and textiles, are world famous. Wall hangings, clothing, especially the beautiful embroidered huipiles (blouses) and the cortes (skirts), purses, belts, sashes, friendship bracelets and table cloths, bedspreads and many other woven items are almost irresistible. Other notable handicrafts include the blankets made in Momostenango, the wood carvings of El Remate and the ceramics of Antigua.
• The largest handicraft markets are the Thursday and Sunday markets in Chichicastenango and the permanent market in Panajachel and are worth a trip. Many fine examples are also available in Antigua, but the prices are higher. Each village also has market days, which may or may not include handicrafts; often the village market for locals are full of more mundane items like vegetables and household goods, but sometimes you can find worthwhile things. Bargaining is accepted practice.

Top Highlights – Belize

Belize is situated at the base of the Yucatán Peninsula in Central America and borders Mexico and Guatemala, with the Caribbean Sea to the east. The coastal strip is swampy with mangroves, salt and freshwater lagoons and sandy beaches crossed by a number of rivers. To the south and west rises the forested Maya mountain range.

Belmopan: This is the country’s capital city, carved out of the jungle in the centre of Belize, near the Maya Mountain foothills. The imposing National Assembly building on Independence Hill is patterned with an ancient Mayan motif. Near the town of San Antonio, located in the Toledo District, is the Mayan site of Lubaantum, where the famous crystal skull was discovered in a temple vault.

Belize City: Belize's colourful former capital is the country's only settlement of any size. The ramshackle town is at the mercy of tropical storms that have long damaged its aging wooden buildings. They also flush out the open drainage canals, redolent with pollution, which criss-cross the city. When there's no storm, Belize City bustles, steams and swelters. Few people come to Belize City for a holiday or to see the sights but it's the transportation and commercial hub of the country.

The Cayes: At 290km long, Belize's barrier reef is the longest in the western hemisphere. To the west of the reef are numerous cayes basking in warm water. The two most popular with travellers are Caye Caulker for the low-budget and Ambergris Caye for the more cashed-up resort-oriented. Caulker's reef is smaller but arguably nicer. Just a short boat ride from the eastern shore, it offers some of the world's most exciting diving, snorkelling and fishing. Underwater visibility can be an astonishing 60m and the coral and tropical fish are spectacular.

Community Baboon Sanctuary: The Community Baboon Sanctuary is spread over 32km of tropical rainforest, with the Belize River winding though its middle. The sanctuary is home to around 1200 rare Black Howler Monkeys, known locally as 'baboons', as well as an extraordinary variety of birds. You can hike through the park, or see the baboons and birds, lazily, from a canoe.

Lamanai: This impressive Mayan site is located in its own archaeological reserve. Its 60 significant structures include a grand 34m high late Preclassic building, a small temple and a ball court. Lamanai ('submerged crocodile', the original Mayan name of the place) was occupied from 1500 BC and became a major ceremonial centre long before most Mayan sites.

Xunantunich: Xunantunich (Stone Maiden), set on a levelled hilltop near the Belize River, is the archaeological pride of Belize. The site flourished as a ceremonial centre and is thought to have been abandoned after an earthquake damaged it around 900 AD. The site's tallest building - El Castillo - rises an impressive 40m above the jungle.

Fact Sheet – Belize

• Country Dialling Code: + 501
• When to Go: In the mountain regions of Belize the days are warm but the nights can be quite cool. The rest of the country has warm weather all year and two distinctive seasons - the wet season from April to September and the dry season which is the other 6 months of the year. On the cayes the tropical breezes keep the temperature at a pleasant level all year.
• Food & Water: A selection of restaurants which serve international, Chinese, Creole and Latin American food. Service and quality vary but the food is generally cheap. Bars are plentiful and local drinks include coconut rum mixed with pineapple juice. The local Belikin beer is worth sampling.
• Currency: The currency is the Belizean dollar but American dollars are also commonly accepted.
• Tipping: Tipping is a way of life in Latin America and if you are provided with a service satisfactorily you should leave a tip.
• Language: English is the official language and is spoken by all, with Spanish also spoken to some extent by half the population.
• Email: Internet access is widely available in Belize City but less so in other parts of the country.
• Electricity: The voltage is 110v - 50 cycles. Two top flat blades with a round grounding pin plugs are used and well as the rectangular blade plug. A travel adaptor is recommended.
• Shopping Hints: Souvenirs include Belizean art and jewellery, clothing, handcrafted wood and bamboo products, Belizean spices and sauces and local beauty treatments.