Tikal temple trail

Tikal is the greatest Mayan ruin complex in Latin America, and it lies in the north of Guatemala in the heart of the Peten rainforest where howler monkeys, toucans and coatis reign. The spectacular wildlife, the dense jungle and the awe-inspring ancient ruins make a Tikal tour the absolute highlight of the Mayan route.

You'll stayin Flores, a peaceful village on Lake Peten, in a small hotel with a lakeside terrace for great sunset views. From Flores, you'll set out early in the morning to take the Tikal tour. As you enter this lost world, you'll see the ruins slowly emerging from the rising mist. Wandering among the overgrown temples with the jungle wildlife rustling, chirping and growling in the trees you'll feel like a real-life Indiana Jones...

You can reach Flores and Tikal temple overland from Antigua, Rio Dulce, Palenque in Mexico or Belize. You can also fly there Cancun or Guatemala City if you need to save time.

Duration	3 days / 2 nights Departs daily from Flores	Accommodation	Double room with ensuite facilities and a/c on a room only basis. Comfort level 3 (see accommodation).
Price	Please see our Contact Us page for more details	Includes	Transport and accommodation
Transport	Air conditioned minibus Flores - Tikal - Flores	Excludes	Admission Tikal (approx. US$ 15 per person per day) and all meals.

Day 1: Arrival Flores

You can reach Flores by several routes. The most popular is from Antigua, a one-day bus ride (7.30am - 5.30pm change at Guatemala City). Rio Dulce is a nice place to stop off if you have the time, about halfway.

As the base from which to tour Tikal temple, Flores is a popular tourist haunt, even though it's little more than a small village in the middle of Lake Peten linked to Santa Elena on the mainland by a bridge. Arriving in Santa Elena, walk across the bridge to your hotel directly on the lake where you'll be staying for the next couple of nights. There's not much going on in Flores and the travellers are surprisingly sedate but that's probably because everyone's up at the crack of dawn to leave for Tikal temple, or Antigua, Belize or Palenque. The sunset across the lake is probably the highlight of your stay in Flores.

Tikal tour - Amazing sunrise over the lake

Day 2: Flores and Tikal temple

When we said everyone's up at the crack of dawn we weren't joking; you'll receive your wake-up call at 3.45am (!), too early for breakfast so make do with coffee. Bring water and food, but if you forget you can pick up morsels at the small stores at the ruins.

We've arranged the earliest possible transfer to Tikal so you'll be able to explore the Mayan ruins before the stifling jungle heat knocks you out. You can pay the admission fee at the gates marking the entrance to the national park of Tikal temple. From there it's a 20min walk to the complex entrance. The scale model at the entrance gives you a good impression of the sheer size of the complex. Prepare yourself for a day of walking in the jungle...

As the morning mist shrouding the ruins slowly lifts you enter the park and your Tikal tour will begin. You'll probably spot a coati which, thoroughly spoiled by tourists, has come out to see if you've got a little snack to offer. Heading on further into the park you follow several wide well-maintained paths with smaller paths branching off deeper in the jungle. The main paths lead to the ruins, but we did turn off onto a little jungle path a couple of times and saw a lot of wildlife including families of spider monkeys and toucans.

Built around 300 BC, Tikal temple was the centre of the Mayan civilization. It was discovered in 1848 by a team of Guatemalan explorers and was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1979. Beneath the temples and buildings lie the Pyramid of the Great Jaguar and the Palace of Ah Cacao. If you climb the second highest temple (number 5, 57 m high and pretty tricky up the steep wooden steps at the side of the temple) you can look out over the tree tops to the surrounding ruins.

You could walk round the Tikal ruins all day and still not have seen everything, but that's what makes Tikal so exciting; the complex is hidden so deep in the jungle and is so spread out that you often feel like you're the only one there, far away from the outside world. You'll cover a lot of ground today to get from one temple to the next. At around 2pm after 6 hours walking, climbing and wandering and the temperature still rising, you'll be pretty wiped out. We've booked a shuttle back to Flores which leaves at the barrier gates at 2.30pm so you'll be back in Flores at 5pm, just in times for drinks at sunset.

Day 3: Departure Flores

If you're planning on heading home after the Tikal tour, then fly from Flores back to Cancun or Guatemala City to catch a connecting flight back to the UK. An even better way to end your trip is by spending a few lazy days in a hammock on the island Caye Caulker, just off the coast of Belize. Get up early one last time for the shuttle transfer to Belize City and from there catch one of the many boats to the island.

If you have a little more time, then take our Mountains and Rivers module, from Tikal via San Ignacio and on to Caye Caulker in Belize.

Tikal tour - Jungle birdlife

Are you wondering what Belize is like? Well, what makes Belize different from its neighbouring countries is the mix of Latin American influences with a laid-back Caribbean way of life.

Belizean people have afro hair, they speak Creole instead of Spanish, they play reggae instead of salsa and they dance the 'punta'.

Beliken Beer is the national pride of Belize, together with the barrier reef just off the coast.

Tikal tour accommodation (Click to enlarge)

Click here for more Mayan Route tours