After you’ve settled into the joining hotel in Guatemala’s former capital city La Antigua, you’ll have time to explore.

Antigua is a UNESCO world heritage site and as you’re strolling around town, you’ll notice it sits in a valley, the Panchoy valley which is known as being the cultural center of Guatemala. With no end of ancient churches, appealing parks conveniently placed coffee shops and flanked by volcanoes, your adventure starts now.

There will be an early evening ‘meet and greet’ with your Vegan Adventure Holidays trip leader and other members of the group before heading out for dinner—think delicious tofu tacos with avocado, greens and a dash of lime!

After sipping on a freshly roasted Guatemalan coffee, saying ‘buenos dias’ to your new friends, loading up on some healthy carbs, grab your vegan hiking boots, we’re off an adventure!

You’ll enjoy a full morning of moderate hiking, a climb of 1.5 hours through forest and farmland will bring you to Pacaya volcano’s fertile shelf where you’ll explore the old lava fields, while you watch the smoking crater that looms above and walk across thousands of years old dried lava flows, your local guide will be on the lookout for suitable marshmallow roasting opportunities before starting the descent back down.

Post marshmallow roasting we’ll head back towards Antigua in time for a well-deserved late lunch and some free time in the afternoon.

You’re in for a treat – today you’ll enjoy spectacular views of Volcanoes San Pedro, Tolimán, and Atitlán whilst kayaking and hiking you’re way around Lake Atitlan!

This full-day trip to Lake Atitlán gives you a great mix of activities – kayaking and hiking in, around and through the Lake Atitlán area, whether you’re hiking on the crest of the caldera ridge or paddling the azure-blue waters of Atitlán, you’ll definitely enjoy the fantastic views.

After 2 hours of driving up through the highlands, we drop over the bowl of the lake’s ridge into the town of Panajachel. After we jump into our boat taxi at the lakeshore, we enjoy breath-taking views of the lake from water level during a 15-minute cruise to the outskirts of the village of Jaibalito. Here we will have time to organize our paddling and hiking supplies, change into swimsuits and apply sunscreen.

Our paddle takes us westward along the north shore of Atitlán for 1½-2 hours, passing by tiny villages perched on the sides of the sheer ridges that rise up from the azure waters of the lake. Depending on the weather – and speed of the kayak group – there are opportunities to stop for a dip and/or cliff jump. After passing the village of Tzununá, we cruise into the bay of San Marcos La Laguna and trade our kayaks for our daypacks and hiking shoes.

Climbing out of town on the lake trail, which connects village to village, we’re treated to spectacular vistas of volcanoes San Pedro, Tolimán and Atitlán. We’ll pass through the centers of San Marcos and Tzununá as we follow the shoreline for 1½-hours, eventually returning back to Jaibalito. After a hearty and well-earned vegan lunch at hotel Casa Del Mundo, we head back to Panajachel in a boat taxi. There we are met by our private transport, arriving back to Antigua just before sunset.

This morning you’ll ride through the Antigua valley trails within a local coffee plantation, their practice of shade-grown coffee means the farm will be alive with native bird species as well so keep a look out for hummingbirds and the famous Quetzal!

The farm has a maze of great trails weaving their way through the plantation between the coffee plants and shade trees.  After biking among the plants we’ll head inside to sample the different varieties and blends of coffee and see the whole coffee “deal” from start to finish, picking to packaging.

We’ll return to Antigua for a relaxed lunch and an optional afternoon swim at the local fresh water pools.

It’s time to grab your vegan hiking boots and pack your bags, we’re off on an adventure!

Below is the general volcano summit hike outline, please remember that times can vary due to the pace of the group, weather conditions, and the frequency of stops to stroke cute volcano dogs. 😉

8:00am: Breakfast & transfer from Antigua to La Soledad village 

10:00am: Begin the hike for approximately 5hrs with lunch on the way.

3:00-4:00 pm: Arrival time at the base camp

4.30pm Approx: Optional extra hike to Fuego volcano (more info on this will be given after booking)

5:00-6pm: Sundown, campfires, chats. hot chocolate – all the good stuff!

7:00: Dinner

4:00am: Wake up time for a 4:30am departure time to see the sunrise from the summit, 1 hr hiking approx

7:00am: Return to base camp for breakfast

8:30am: Descend to the village 11:30am arrival time approx

11-12:00pm: Arrive in Antigua for a well-deserved lunch and free afternoon

Time to leave and head home after an amazing week but this is not the end of your journey, there’s so much more to see in Guatemala that you might be back again or maybe you’ll join a group adventure in Mexico or Belize!