Skip to navigation

Mark Moxon's Travel Writing

Guatemala: Lago de Atitlán

The view east from San Pedro towards Panajachel
The view east from San Pedro towards Panajachel

There are three main aspects to the personality of Lago de Atitlán, the large volcanic lake that's about three hours' drive west of Antigua. First there's the astounding landscape, which is truly world class; then there's the Mayan culture, which is all around you in the colourful clothes and smiling faces of the locals; and finally there's the tourism, which is relatively unsophisticated but which is growing all the time. These three personalities rub shoulders in what seems to me to be a slightly irritated tolerance of each other, and although I absolutely fell in love with the landscape, I'm not sure I entirely fell for the charms of the other two.

Hotel Mikaso
Hotel Mikaso
Hotel Mikaso is right on the edge of the lake
Hotel Mikaso is right on the edge of the lake

San Pedro La Laguna

Peta enjoying the lakeside hot tub at Hotel Mikaso
Peta enjoying the lakeside hot tub at Hotel Mikaso

It's no surprise to find that one of the major appeals of Lago de Atitlán is to sit there gawping at the scenery, so we chose a hotel that let us do exactly that. There are quite a few villages dotted around the lake shore, each of them with a different atmosphere, and we followed the traveller herd and chose to stay in San Pedro La Laguna on the western shore. Peta – who is now in charge of finding our accommodation after I realised it was stressing me out too much – picked the Hotel Mikaso because it sounded like one of the better hotels in town, and she chose well, for the Mikaso has what must be one of the best views of the lake in the whole of San Pedro. Stuck out on a little peninsula at the eastern edge of town, its terrace has a 270-degree view of the lake looking east, with the three volcano cones to the south and the huge expanse of the lake just laid out in front of you. It enjoys a stunning sunset vista, and we spent many a long hour on the terrace, soaking up the views in the rather luxurious hot tub that sits right on the edge of the action.

Volcán San Pedro towers over the town of the same name
Volcán San Pedro towers over the town of the same name
Actenango and Volcán Agua as seen from San Pedro
Actenango and Volcán Agua as seen from San Pedro
The sunsets over Lago de Atitlán are wonderful
The sunsets over Lago de Atitlán are wonderful
Lettuce growing in the lush soil near the lake edge
Lettuce growing in the lush soil near the lake edge

Man and Lake

Flooded buildings near the eastern dock in San Pedro
Flooded buildings near the eastern dock in San Pedro

The landscape is, therefore, one of the biggest draw cards around here, and it's easy to see why. Luckily the winds calmed down after a couple of days and the sky turned a pure blue, and we took this opportunity to rush up to the top of the crater rim for sunrise, a trip that completely blew us away. But another big attraction of the lake is the collection of different towns and villages dotted around the shoreline, all of which are connected by boat, and this is perhaps where I fell out of love with Atitlán a little.

The buildings right next to the Hotel Mikaso are flooded
The buildings right next to the Hotel Mikaso are flooded
A shop in Santiago Atitlán
A shop in Santiago Atitlán
One of San Pedro's tuk-tuks
One of San Pedro's tuk-tuks
The lake view from the harbour at Panajachel
The lake view from the harbour at Panajachel
A typically packed and noisy tour boat off Panajachel
A typically packed and noisy tour boat off Panajachel

Around the Lake

The view from Panajachel west towards San Pedro
The view from Panajachel west towards San Pedro

Knowing that San Pedro isn't the be all and end all of lake culture, we spent a couple of days exploring the various towns and villages round the lake, and they're an interesting bunch. San Pedro, where we stayed, is apparently the party town around the lake, but all we could find were a couple of small bars where people tended to hang out without a great deal of enthusiasm, and two music venues in the main drag that made us glad we hadn't stayed at that end of town. The eastern end of town is laid out along lots of small, winding pathways that are just wide enough to fit a tuk-tuk down, and off these pathways are some cute restaurants, some with pretty gardens but most with slightly drab and weatherbeaten courtyards with plastic tables and dubious music. It's fun and laid back, but it's easy to wear out the best venues within a couple of days.

The harbour at Panajachel
The harbour at Panajachel
A street food stall in Panajachel
A street food stall in Panajachel
The harbour at Panajachel
The harbour at Panajachel
The church in Santiago Atitlán
The church in Santiago Atitlán
On the launch to Santiago Atitlán, where there's room for everyone, including an old man, his dogs and his bicycle
On the launch to Santiago Atitlán, where there's room for everyone, including an old man, his dogs and his bicycle