Guatemala’s Jungles, Jaguars & Peanut Butter – Precious Journeys®

Learn to make two all time favorite foods, chocolate and peanut butter from scratch. Discover the cloud forest on a hike up an active volcano, and savor a treat of s’mores using marshmallows roasted over hot vents in the rocks. Spend an adventure-packed day at Ixpanpajul that includes a jungle safari, ziplining, horseback riding and more. Visit ARCAS, a wildlife rescue and conservation association. Go on a jaguar footprint scavenger hunt. Explore the magnificent Tikal Mayan ruins and listen to the raucous sounds of howler monkeys in the surrounding jungles.


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Precious Journeys®

COUNTRIES VISITED

Guatemala

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Price starts at $550 Land per person, per day, double occupancy.

TOUR LENGTH

8

Tour Highlights/Full Description

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  • In private workshops, learn to make two all time favorite foods, chocolate and peanut butter from scratch
  • Discover the cloud forest as you hike up an active volcano, where you are in for a treat – s’mores using marshmallows roasted over hot vents in the rocks
  • Spend an adventure-packed day at Ixpanpajul that includes a jungle safari, ziplining, horseback riding and more
  • Visit, ARCAS, a wildlife rescue and conservation association  and go on a jaguar footprint scavenger hunt
  • Explore the magnificent Tikal Mayan Ruins and listen to the raucous sounds of howler monkeys in the surrounding jungle

Day 1: Guatemala City, Guatemala / Antigua
Welcome to Guatemala. Arrive in Guatemala City, where you are met and driven about 45 minutes to your hotel in Antigua, which is among the world’s best preserved colonial cities in the Americas. A UNESCO World Heritage Site, it is a captivating small town that makes you feel as if time might have stopped 300 years ago – or, at least, slowed down  considerably. It is small enough to discover many of the sights on a stroll along the cobblestone streets.  Enjoy the brightly colored colonial buildings, with the steaming volcanoes in the distance. Casa Santo Domingo

Day 2: Antigua
After breakfast, your guide shares stories and unlocks the secrets and hidden gems of the former colonial capital of the Spanish Empire.  This walking tour will take in the main highlights of this ancient city, including the hustle and bustle of the atmospheric Central Park. The kids will especially enjoy the secret passageways found in the many crumbling colonial convents and churches.  After lunch, everyone will enjoy a hands-on exploration of cocoa! Yes, a personalized workshop shows you how to work with the cocoa kernel, brew it, toast it and grind it into elaborate chocolates. Make your own chocolate creations and one hour later, you’ll be able to enjoy them.  Casa Santo Domingo (B)

Day 3. Antigua – Pacaya – Antigua 
Pacaya is one of the most active volcanoes among Guatemala’s 33 volcanoes. Sitting 2,500 meters/8,200 feet above the sea level, Pacaya is one of the youngest volcanoes. From here you get beautiful views toward the Pacific Coast and three other volcanoes nearby (Agua, Acatenango and Fuego). The adventure begins with an easy 1.5-to-2 hour hike along a wide trail through the humid cloud forest that takes you to a viewpoint overlooking the flowing lava fields! And the reward for the hiking effort – fresh-made s’mores with marshmallows roasted over hot vents in the rocks! Kids will love the adventure of making this treat! After the trek, you’ll be transferred back to Antigua with the rest of the day at leisure. Casa Santo Domingo (B,L)

Day 4. Antiqua / Peten
After breakfast, your guide will meet you at the lobby for your transfer to San Miguel Escobar town. On arrival, you will meet Lilian and Lidia, two local peanut farmers, who take you to will take you to a traditional Mayan home on the slope of Agua Volcano, where you will learn to make peanut butter from scratch using a firewood stove. You’ll also learn about the basics of peanut farming. Your own peanut butter will not have added sugars, salt, oil or preservatives that usually. Enjoy a delicious homemade tortilla with your own peanut butter. After the tour, you’ll be transferred to the Guatemala City airport for your local flight to Peten. Once in Peten, our representative will meet you and transfer you to your hotel. Las Lagunas Boutique Hotel  (B)

Day 5. Peten
This morning, you explore Ixpanpajul Park on a full-day of adventure at this 450-hectare/1112 acre-park that serves as a refuge for a diverse collection of endemic birds, mammals, trees and plants. Ixpanpajul is the perfect destination for adventure and adrenaline fanatics. Fly through the jungle and enjoy the adrenaline rush as you soar on one of five different zip line circuits.  Walk through the suspension bridges and admire the amazing view of the jungles and the Peten Itza lagoon.  Your driver will transfer you to a nearby venue for lunch. After lunch, you return to Ixpanpajul for horseback riding and a safari adventure, where you may encounter coati, raccoon, kinkajou, peccary, deer, agouti, spider monkey, howler monkey, armadillos, lowland paca, jjaguarondi and many varieties of birds. several of different birds species. The park supports and promotes different conservation and development projects for the community. Las Lagunas (B,L)

Day 6. Peten
After breakfast, your driver will transfer you to the Jungle Lodge of ARCAS, which means, in Spanish, Wildlife Rescue and Conservation Association. Learn how this organization helps rescue endangered species, including varieties of monkeys as well as birds such as macaws.  They work to rehabilitate these animals, many of which can be returned to the wild. After the tour, you’ll be transferred to lunch at a local venue before returning to your hotel for the afternoon. This large cat is a very important animal in Guatemala, also called balam in the indigenous language. For the Mayans, the jaguar was a god that protected the crops and fields. Jaguars are nocturnal hunters and are very hard to even spot. But at sundown, you’ll go on a thrilling scavenger hunt for jaguar footprints with your guide, and may spot some of the jungles other nocturnal residents. Jungle Lodge   (B,L)

Day 7. Peten / Guatemala City
Today your family will explore one of the most spectacular sights of the ancient Mayans. After breakfast, you meet your private archaeologist guide and set out for Tikal National Park, one of the grandest and most important cities in the Mayan civilization. This ancient metropolis with its massive temples, palaces and ceremonial complexes, some still hidden by jungle, was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1979. Your specialist guide will show you the layout of the complex and talk about how the Mayans lived and explain some of the theories about how and why the Mayans disappeared. As you explore, you may see or hear monkeys, parrots, macaws and toucans in the jungle nearby.  You will likely hear the remarkable vocalizations of howler monkeys in the treetops around you. Kids are sure to use up a lot of energy today as they climb pyramids and discover rootless dwellings. After the tour, enjoy lunch at a restaurant in the middle of the jungle. After lunch, you will be transferred to Mundo Maya Airport (FRS) for you flight to Guatemala City (GUA). Once in the city, your driver will transfer you to your hotel. Westin Camino Real (B,L)

Day 8. Guatemala City / Depart
After breakfast, your driver will transfer you to the airport for your departure flight. (B)

Land price, per person, double occupancy: From US$550 per adult; US$300 per child under 12 years of age.

 

 

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