Northern Lowlands (Guatemala)

The Northern Lowlands of Guatemala stretch from the foothills of the Cuchumatanes, Chama, and Santa Cruz mountain ranges northwards, including the northern part of the Alta Verapaz department, the extreme north of El Quiché department, and all of Guatemala's extensive Petén department.

Besides providing its visitors with a multi-faceted nature, it compels through its diversity of Maya sites in a distinctive regional style ("El Estilo Petén").

Understand

More than a thousand years ago, what is now the Petén was the hub of Classic Maya civilization, with a high population and many large splendid cities. For reasons still not fully understood by scholars, the civilization collapsed around the year 900. The Maya people did not "disappear" (more than 40% of Guatemala's population are ethnically Maya today), but no new temples and palaces were built, the population of the Petén region declined, and after a time the old cities were allowed to be reclaimed by jungle.

From Spanish Colonial times into the mid-20th century, the Petén was Guatemala's wild frontier, with only a few towns like Flores in the vast jungle, and hardly any roads. That has changed in recent decades. New paved highways were built, people moved into the area and cleared large sections of the jungle for farming -- though other large sections of jungle have been preserved as National parks. Eco-tourism and the fantastic ruins of the ancient Maya cities now draw many visitors. Still, the Petén remains less developed than other parts of Guatemala.

Climate

El Petén is a mix of tropical rain forest, particularly in the north, and areas of open savannah, so the days will be hot. In many parts of the department the forest has been cleared for ranching, and there is little shade, so carry plenty of water, and a suitable hat. It is most mild November thru February, when the nights can get a bit cool (but not cold like in the Highlands). The rainy season starts in late May or early June and continues to October, with frequent rain and more numerous mosquitoes.

Cities

Map of Northern Lowlands (Guatemala)

Carmelita
16.933333-89.8833331 Flores – the hub of the region, with an airport nearby and connections to the rest of the area
16.514167-89.4158332 Dolores , a small town in southern Petén, with a nice new archaeological museum and a colonial church - the oldest in Petén.
17.278784-91.0809933 El Ceibo
El Naranjo
17-89.74 El Remate – a sleepy village on the east side of Lake Peten Itza
15.575833-89.9811115 Lanquín
16.322222-89.4222226 Poptun
15.866551-90.0424227 Raxruja
17.066667-89.158 Melchor de Mencos – small town and the only land border crossing to Belize
16.9675-89.9102789 San Andrés
16.516667-90.18333310 Sayaxché

Other destinations

Classic Maya ruins at Tikal — the most famous attraction in the Petén.
16.411944-90.1883331 Aguateca , Maya ruins
16.511667-90.0611112 Ceibal (often Seibal in English)— Maya ruins
16.445833-90.2958333 Dos Pilas — Maya ruins
16.633333-89.654 El Chal — unrestored Maya ruins with some badly eroded monuments
17.75505-89.9204315 El Mirador — huge ancient Maya ruin dating to the preclassic, much less visited.
17.278341-90.3805876 El Peru (Waká) — Maya ruins
17.57444-89.995837 El Tintal — remote Maya ruins between Carmelita and El Mirador
16.973611-89.4255568 Holtún — unrestored Maya ruins beside the road from Flores to Melchor de Mencos.
16.573611-89.4111119 Ixkún — unrestored Maya ruins with a small collection of sheltered monuments, including the largest stela in Petén
16.971944-89.68583310 Ixlú — unrestored Maya ruins
16.903611-89.44222211 La Blanca — Maya ruins, under restoration
17.0264-89.901412 Motul de San José — Maya ruins
17.6775-89.86855613 Nakbé — Maya ruins
17.18-89.3614 Nakum — Nakum, a former ceremonial center and city of the pre-Columbian Maya civilization, can be visited by guided tour from Flores or Melchor de Mencos
17.166667-91.262515 Piedras Negras — Maya ruins
15.533333-89.96111116 Semuc Champey — waterfall in the south
17.065975-89.41961717 Topoxté — Maya ruins on an island near Yaxhá
17.393561-89.63453318 Uaxactún - Maya ruins and historic modern village beyond Tikal to the north.
17.072222-89.419 Yaxhá — Maya ruins between Flores and Melchor de Mencos, easily visited day tour from Flores. Site of Survivor TV episodes.

Talk

Spanish. Guides who speak English and other major international languages can be hired at Tikal.

Get in

Don't skimp on long distance bus rides. Budget "chicken buses" can be fun for a short ride, but for most the more comfortable first class buses are worth the price for long trips.

The route from Guatemala City via Poptun is served by three first class bus companies, Linea Dorada, Autobuses del Norte, and Fuente del Norte. The latter runs cheaper buses between Flores and Guate, and it also runs day and night buses that include first class and deluxe seating. Downstairs "camitas" are plush, but especially from Guate at night, you had better have a light sweater to wear.

The route via Coban takes about 12 hours on buses, as opposed to the 8-10 or so via the other route, but it is more scenic. Plus, though you have to change buses in Coban, that is a destination in its own right. You would start out from Guate on Monja Blanca and switch to a minivan in Coban.

Get around

See

Petèn is dotted with hundreds of Maya archaeological sites, most of which are worth visiting. Unfortunately the majority of tourists only see "Tikal", which is certainly a highlight, but neglect the other Maya jewels in the jungle. For curious adventurers untouched archaeological sites in the old-growth forests are waiting to be explored. Hidden ruins being especially worth visiting include Holmul, La Honradez, Chochkitan, Kinal, Xultun, Dos Aguadas and Rio Azul. Even though their magnitude is comparable to Tikal, the yearly visitor number at these sites only reaches an average of 20 persons. The quality of the roads to the more remote sites leaves a lot to be desired. Therefore it is advisable to undertake these kind of trips only during dry season (February until June). Travelers wishing to go off the most crowded tourist paths but still find well explored sites with amenities are advised to visit San Clemente, La Blanca and Nakum (providing for the greatest Palace Acropolis of the Maya World).

Do

Eat

Sleep

Stay at the Jaguar Inn Hotel, Flores Petén. The hotel is located inside the National Park, so you don't have to travel to and from Flores city center. The hotel has nice typical Guatemalan breakfast (beans and tortillas). At night, the lights and electricity is unavailable at around 6pm. The only thing is that, hot water is unavailable. You can listen to the sounds of the animals at night.

Drink

Two good beers in Guatemala are Gallo, which is probably all you will find in smaller towns and Moza (which is a flavorful bock beer). Both have 5% alcohol.

In most of the restaurants there are also fruit, smoothy type drinks called licuados, that come in a variety of fruits, and are made from fresh fruits.

Stay safe

Always stay on the beaten path, and stay with a group. Don't wander off, stay alert. In out of the way places, it can be too easy to get lost on unknown jungle paths. In towns and touristy areas try your best to blend in and not draw too much attention to yourself.

Go next

Belize
Chiapas, Mexico via Frontera Corozal
Río Dulce and the Caribbean Coast
Cobán and the Central Highlands

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Petén Department