What to see in Guatemala: 9 must-sees

Visit Lake Atitlán, in Sololá, a mirror of turquoise water ringed by three imposing volcanoes that dominate the horizon. Take a boat to indigenous villages such as San Juan La Laguna or Santiago Atitlán, where Maya culture lives on in its markets, textiles, and brotherhoods. Follow trails through coffee plantations to viewpoints, watch birds at dawn, and soak your feet on shores of volcanic origin. Each village around the lake keeps its own language, traditional dress, and customs, so it's worth setting aside several days to explore them at a leisurely pace.

Climb Pacaya Volcano, active and 2,552 meters tall, where you'll walk across solidified lava flows and feel the heat still rising from the cracks. From the top you'll see the Pacific and the Agua, Fuego, and Acatenango volcanoes on the horizon. Local guides take you along ash trails to spots where you can roast marshmallows over the volcanic heat. Amid black rock and steam, watch the vegetation slowly colonizing the slopes and the geological force that defines Guatemala.

Hop on a city bus and cross the capital's districts to reach the Historic Center, where the National Palace of Culture and the Metropolitan Cathedral frame Constitution Plaza. Visit the National Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology to see Maya artifacts, haggle at the Central Market among textiles and handicrafts, and stroll down Paseo de la Sexta, the pedestrian street linking the city's colonial history with its present-day cafés and bookstores.

Walk among the plazas of Tikal, the largest Maya city in Central America, and pick out some of its 3,000 structures wrapped in the Petén jungle. Climb the Great Pyramid, some 70 meters high, and watch the temple tops rise above the green canopy. Listen to howler monkeys as you walk the ancient causeways, read the carved stelae beside the altars, and get a sense of the life of this civilization that flourished millennia ago, with local guides explaining each acropolis and ball court.

Peer into the cobblestone streets of the former colonial capital, declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and explore the Cathedral, the Capuchinas Convent, and the arches that frame its ruins. Discover convents and baroque buildings that bear witness to a vanished cultural tradition, while the Agua, Fuego, and Acatenango volcanoes bound the horizon of this Central American city.

Descend into the streets of Chichicastenango, in Quiché, and wander the largest indigenous market in Central America, where on Thursdays and Sundays the stalls display handwoven textiles, pottery, and wooden masks. Facing the plaza, the Church of Santo Tomás, built on an ancient Maya temple, preserves 18 steps still used in rituals with incense and candles. Chat with the women selling huipils, try a chuchito with coffee, and watch the brotherhoods that keep customs passed down from generation to generation. It's about a 3-hour drive from Guatemala City.

Stroll along Panajachel's waterfront promenade, Sololá's gateway to Lake Atitlán, where the volcanic-sand shore looks straight out at the Atitlán, Tolimán, and San Pedro volcanoes. Rent a kayak at dawn, when the water is calm, and paddle to the neighboring beaches. In the afternoon, walk Calle Santander past craft stalls and eateries, and end the day with a swim at the shore as the sun sinks behind the volcanoes.