Pro
A friendly little village , very close to Tikal
Con
Not much to do
In a nutshell
Quiet, peaceful alternative to Flores
There are several small shops on the west side of the only road through town. They sell local crafts. Of course in Gautemal there are all kinds of local crafts sold. But I really liked the quaility and uniqueness of these crafts.
What to buy: wooden items: turtles, birds etc.
What to pay: Not much.
Written Dec 13, 2003
Luggage and bags: Travel light...no formal wear here!
Clothing/Shoes/Weather Gear: Long sleaves and long pants
Toiletries and Medical Supplies: Take care to wear Mosquito Repellent . There is still dungue fever here !
Written Apr 2, 2007
Biotopo Cerro Cahui is new preserve created right off of Lago Peten Itza 3 kms away from El Remate. Much of the rain forest is secondary growth as it used to be apart of a farm but there are quite a lot of large mahongany trees and sapadilla hard wood. Many species of fern and orcids are here as well other kinds of many other species. Howler and spider monkeys can be herd if not seen, especially near sunset. White-tail deer, raccoon, armadillos are also here and maybe even the jaguar. There is quite a lot of birds here as well including herons, toucans, parrots, kingfishers and a Peten turkey.
The rangers are very welcoming. They let me hold a boa. There are several nice and well marked trails that go up through the 650 hectacre park. Some of the trails lead up to some really nice panaramic views of the lake.
On the lake near the gates of the park is a great spot to hang your hammock and read a book and enjoy a brown bag lunch.
Entrance cost is about $3 US and comes with a really nice map and information about the park and its floral and fauna.
Open from 6 am to 5 pm.
When I was there it looked like they were building a visitors center.
Written Dec 13, 2003
Favorite thing: At Don David's you can change money, make travel arrangements to Tikal, make bus reservations, and just about anything else you need to do. The staff is friendly, helpful, and as David says, they "speak perfect broken English".
Written May 29, 2003
Comments