Remote Eden

from £1455

'Remote Eden'

Itinerary

Day Overnight
1 Coban
2 Coban
3 Lanquin
4 Biotopo Quetzal
For the detail of each day click the ‘Day-by-day’ tab above.

Day-by-day itinerary for 'Remote Eden'

DAY 1

Las Verapaces - Coban

Today you will be transferred northwards to Guatemala's central highlands, through the Motagua valley (one of the driest regions in Central America) and up past lush green valleys, mountainous pine forests and cloudforests to the small highland town of Coban, the capital of Alta Verapaz state. Here you stay for 2 nights at a family-run hotel.

DAY 2

Explore Coban - orchids, coffee, local food

Today you will be taken to explore Coban and the surrounding area, including a visit to a local coffee plantation and family-run orchid garden. Stop to visit Templo El Calvario church set on a hilltop a few blocks from the centre of Coban with lovely views out over town. Lunch at a characterful small gift shop, café/restaurant located in a colonial house set around a small plant-filled courtyard where culture and cusine collide. The focus here is on local food – try specialities such as Kaq-Ik (a local stew/soup) and Kakawik (hot chocolate with chile, honey and vanilla). Or we can substitute a more conventional international style restaurant menu if you prefer.

DAY 3

Semuc Champey & Lanquin caves

Early this morning you will be transferred to Semuc Champey (last section down a bumpy, steep dirt road in a 4x4 truck). Semuc Champey, which means the ‘place where water hides’ in Qe’chi Maya, was a declared a 'Natural Monument' by the Guatemala government in 1999. It is a stunning 300m long by 100m wide limestone ‘bridge’ set within a verdant forest reserve where the powerful Cahabon river splits in two – most of it plunges under the bridge, the rest feeds the paradisiacal blue-green hued stepped pools that sit atop the bridge. There are six main pools in total, some are deep, others shallow, perfect for wallowing in. There is also a mirador viewpoint offering a spectacular lookout over Semuc Champey, however access is via a rather threacherous slippery 700m uphill climb. You will also visit Lanquin caves, a 10 minute drive outside of the town of Lanquin. There are 5 cave ‘rooms’, some 80m high, filled with stalagmites and stalegtites. Bats reside on the roof at the front of the cave and at dusk can be seen flying out of the cave en-masse. Stay for the night at a simple lodge just outside of Lanquin

DAY 4

to Biotopo Quetzal

This morning you will be transferred via Coban to the Biotopo Quetzal area, the largest cloudforest reserve in Central America covering an area of 1,022 hectares, established to protect the habitat of the resplendent quetzal. The forest here is filled with ferns, mosses, orchids, bromeliads, oak, pine and cypress trees. There are two trails within the reserve – “Los Helechos” (The Ferns) which is 2km long and “Los Musgos” (The Mosses) which is 4km long. The 80 hectare Ranchitos Quetzal private cloudforest reserve, just down the road from the entrance to Biotopo Quetzal, has three on-site trails of varying lengths. Stay for the night at a family-run cloudforest hotel set between the two reserves

DAY 5

Birding in search of quetzal, to Guatemala City

Early this morning search for the elusive quetzal or perhaps enjoy some hiking or horse-riding before you are transferred back to Guatemala City.

Route map for Guatemala 'Remote Eden' holiday

Guide prices for 'Remote Eden'

options	based on	all year	low season	mid season	high season	peak season	other season
Guide price	2 people sharing	£1,455

Prices are per person and include:

all travel in Guatemala
all accommodation
meals as indicated (B = breakfast, L = lunch, D = dinner)

Prices do not include:

international flights
travel insurance
airport and departure taxes if these are not included in the flight ticket
items of a personal nature such as drinks, tips, laundry, etc
any optional excursions you may buy locally

Customer reviews for 'Remote Eden'

Recent reviews are shown here from holidays based on this initial design. In each case the itinerary may have been modified (a little or a lot) to suit the individual traveller.