Antigua Guatemala Things to Do Tips by Pieter11

The Parque Central is the heart of the city. Like in almost every Central American city it is exactly the size of one block, and like always the Central Cathedral has a prominent place at this square. The Central Park is a green space with tall trees, that provide a lot of shade, many benches that are often accupied, especially when you're here in the weekend, and many local people who hang around here with their children or with the goods they try to sell.

Around the large central fountain, that was built in 1738, it is very nice to relax on a sunny day. When your shoes are dirty you can have them cleaned by the many young boys that offer their services, when you feel like a chariot you can find them here, and when you just want to drink a cold drink you can find them on every corner of the square in one of the little stalls or in the many shops in one of the arcades surrounding the Parque Central.

And besides this huge dose of local culture, you can also enjoy the many beautiful building that surround the park. On every side you will see another great construction, of which the Cathedral at the eastside and the Palacio de los Capitanes at the southside are the most gorgeous ones.

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Address: Parque Central, Antigua

The classy, white building at the southside of the Parque Central is the most important political remaining of the days that Antigua still was the capital of Spanish Central America. Until 1773 this building was the base for the government that ruled everything from the south of Mexico until Costa Rica. After this year, the seat of the government was transferred to Guatemala-City. Today the building is used for several purposes. It is the office of National Police, the seat of the Governor of the Province Sacatepéquez and you can find the tourist office here.

The Palacio de los Capitanes has an impressive facade with two stores of white arches along the complete width of the square. The columns on the ground and the first floor are heavy and solid and the big wooden doors behind the arches are just as massive-looking. Like a lot of buildings in Antigua this palace could use some restaurationwork, but on the other hand this is part of the charme of the building.

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Address: Parque Central, Antigua

At the head of the Parque Central, at its eastside, you cannot miss the big Catedral de San José. This is the most important church in the city and its foundations are very, very old. At this spot the very first Catholic church was built in 1542, the same year as the foundation of Antigua.

Like so many other buildings in Antigua, the original church was destroyed during several earthquakes and almost completely destroyed in 1773. In the decades after, it was rebuilt, but until today it has never completely been finished. At the back of the church you can still see some ruins of the older parts of the building.

After rebuilding the church is officially became a Cathedral. The interior never became as impressive as it used to be before the devastating earthquake, but still you can see some fine artworks inside as well as some crypths of important people.

The church has more entrances then only the front entrance. From the back and from the rightside you can also enter.

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Address: Parque Central, Antigua

One of the biggest churches in Antigua is the Iglesia de San Francisco. This church is located in the eastern part of the city. Like almost all churches in the city, this one too, is not the original building. The original church was already destroyed in the end of the 16th century, when the church was only finished for 23 years.

Later the church was partly rebuilt, but some of the ruins remained around the original building. You can still see them clearly although they have been reinforced by a lot of concrete. At the leftside of the building a pretty skeleton of the old church remains.

Also at the leftside is the attraction the church is most famous for: the statue of Hermano Pedro de San José Betancourt. This missionary, who lived from 1623 - 1667 is buried inside the church and was declared "holy" by the pope in 2002. Eversince, and before, this is an important place for pilgrims.

In front of the church you will find a nice craftmarket and a quiet square with a lot of shade.

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Address: Calle de los Pasos, Antigua
Directions: Two blocks south and four blocks east of the central park.

Probably the most famous structure in the city: the Arco de Santa Catalina. It is situated in the mainstreet from the Parque Central towards the church Nuestra Señora de la Merced.

This Arch is one of the only buildings in the city that survived the big earthquake of 1773. It was built in 1694 as a part of the neighbouring cloister. This was the best way to make it possible for the nuns to cross the street without being seen.

The arch has the same bright yellow colour as many other buildings in the city. It has a white clock on the tower in the middle of it and great view to all ways: towards the north you have a look of the Nuestra Señora, and to the south you see the Volcano Agua above the Parque Central.

Luckily the street of the Arco is closed for traffic most of the times, so the pictures you take have no disturbing cars on it.

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Address: Calle del Arco
Directions: From the Parque Central north towards the Nuestra Señora de la Merced

When you go north from the Parque Central, and you go underneath the Arco de Santa Catalina, you will automatically end up at the most beautiful church (if not the most beautiful building overall) in Antigua: the Nuestra Señora de la Merced.

This church has its origin in 1548, when the first construction began. Again this construction doesn't excist anymore: in 1717 another earthquake destroyed the church. The reconstructions began soon after this disaster and were completed in 1767, but only a few years afterwards, another earthquake occured and heavily damaged the newly finished church.

Again the reconstruction started, but this time it took a long time before they started: between 1850 and 1855 the building was made into the one we can see at this moment.

The most striking part of the church is its fantastic, yellow front facade. Very detailed sculptures and statues cover the complete wall which dominates the nice cobblestoned square in front of it.

Inside the church is less impressive then on the outside: besides some statues, the most interesting thing to see to my opinion are the fantastically dressed up Maya-people inside.

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Address: 1 Calle Poniente and 6 Av. Norte
Directions: From the Parque Central, follow the 5 Av. Norte to the end. Here you will see the church from its rightside.

A nice daytrip you can make from Antigua is a trip to the Volcano Pacaya. This volcano is situated north from the city and it takes about 75 minutes to get there by bus. Pacaya is a nice volcano to visit: it is pretty easy to reach it and the chance you see red-hot lava here is reasonable.

In Antigua you'll see lots of little touragencies who organise trips to the volcano. Normally two options are offered: one trip departing in the morning and one in the late afternoon. Tours will take about 6 hours in total: 2,5 hours for the returntrip by bus, about the same time climbing up and down the last part of the volcano (a pretty tough climb) and the remaining hour can be spent on top of and around the lava in the crater.

The tour is easy, not expensive and pretty exciting. For more information, check out my Pacaya-page...

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Address: Pacaya, Guatemala