Coban, the Green Heart of Guatemala

Coban. The capital of Alta Verapaz situated at 1320 Mts. high in the green heart of Guatemala. Coban is slowly becoming more and more popular with backpackers who are looking to get of the beaten path. Coban itself has good tourist facilities for all budgets. The town is quite peaceful and can be quite picturesque with its clear mountain air and rural residents. Surrounding Coban in my opinion are some of the countries most beautiful natural wonders. Places as the Biotopo de Quetzal, Semuc Champney, Grutas de Lanquin, Laguna Lachua, Cuevas de Ray Marcos and the Cloudforest of Chicacnab are only a few of the many natural wonders that are worth visiting from Coban.

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The best hotel in town for people on a budget is La Paz. The hotel is friendly and clean. The rooms are basic but good for the price a single is $4 a double $7, for share bathrooms. For private bathrooms the price is a little more. The hotel also has a small restaurant with good, basic food at a value price. Breakfast $1.50, lunch/ dinner $2.

There are many other good budget places to stay in Coban, Pension Monja Blanca a few blocks west of Central Park on the main road out of town. Hotel Central at 1a calle 1-79 or Hostel de Acuna 4a calle 3-11, which has dorm beds for $4.

Restaurants El Refugio has good quality food at reasonable prices. Main meals start at $2. This is a great place to eat and mix with the middle class locals. The building is comfortable and service is good. They also have a big screen TV which is always on. The TV helps if you are missing the comforts of home.

Hostel de Acuna and Hostal de Dona Victoria both offer good meals in comfortable settings. The price is a little high but if you have been hanging out for some good food, these are the places to lash out. Most mains cost between $4 and $8

Many small cafeterias are found around Central Park and the 2 markets in town. Prices don’t vary that much but quality and cleanliness do. My best advice is just look for one with plenty of locals in it. If they are eating there you can be guaranteed the food is ok. Meals usually cost around $1 up to $1.50.

A great spot for a meal in Coban is in Central Park at night, small food trucks set up and sell a range of food. The food is good and cheap and it is a great spot to do some people watching.

The road from Guatemala City to Coban is in good condition. It is only 219 kms and the journey is quite breathtaking. You will leave Guatemala City and then descend until reaching the dry and dusty town of El Rancho. From El Rancho the land changes very quickly as you rise into the highlands. Within 1 hour of leaving the dust of El Rancho you find yourself in rolling hills, green fields and patches of cloudforest. The change in the landscape is so dramatic. The trip takes 4 hours. Buses leave every hour from the capital to Coban from Monja Blanca Transports at 8a Av. 15-16, Zona 1. The company’s office in Coban is situated at 2a calle 3-77 Zona 4. You can arrive or leave Coban from many other places than Guatemala City. There are 3 other main routes that tourists take. Each one offers a great journey. 1- Coban to El Estor then Rio Dulce. A journey through the Polochic Valley to Lago de Izabal. 2- Coban to Flores via Sebol then Sayaxche or Fray Bratolome de las Casas then Poptun. Either trip will take at least 2 days. You will need to have an overnight stop, but this trip allows you to see the really remote Peten and its people. 3- Coban to Huehuetenango or Santa Cruz del Quiche via Uspantan. This trip will also take two days. An overnight stop is needed. But it also passes through a remote area that is quiet spectacular. Also it gives you a chance to see highland life at its best. For all of these trips check around locally for bus times, things change constantly.

In the north of Alta Verapaz only 20 km from the Mexican border you will find Parque Nacional Laguna Lachua. The park is roughly 10000 hectares and contains a beautiful near perfect circular lake. The water's clarity is amazing. On seeing the lake's edge and water you would swear that you where on the Caribbean Coast somewhere, the water is cystral clear. I didn’t believe this either until I saw it for myself. Strangely enough also the closest town is called Playa Grande which in English is the Big Beach. Is this some strange conspiracy a beach, Caribbean clear water? No, actually the town’s name comes from a stretch of sand on a nearby river. But the lakes water, is amazing. The lakes surface area is about 5km square and its depth is nearly 220 meters. The formation of the lake remains a mystery even to today.

The national park is lowland tropical forest and is home to a large diversity of flora and fauna. During the walk from the entrance of the park, to the lakes edge. You will pass through untouched forest where you will be able to see numerous birds and insects. At the waters edge you will literally be able to swim with fish, not just small fish but fish up to 30cms long. The fish seem more curious than scared. Some of the fish strangely look tropical too. Canoes can be rented in the park. The canoes give you a chance to observe the wildlife around the lakes edge while moving silently. Due to the remoteness of the lake and national park, it has remained untouched and in pristine condition. It truly is one of Guatemala’s best kept secrets. If you do visit the park, do the right thing so that the park may remain it its current condition.

You can camp at the national park, which is a good option there is a small fee and you will need to bring food and water. The closet town Playa Grande is only 10 kms away and there is accommodation and restaurants in Playa, but it is all very basic. The hardest thing about visiting Lachua is getting there. A great but expensive, way to get there is by flying, small planes can be hired in Coban for the trip to Playa for approx. $200 US one way. It is pricey but don’t fear, buses run from Coban to Playa a few times a day the ride is only approx. 70 kms but will take 4 hours, as the roads are extremely bad. If you are going to be staying at the park ask the bus driver to be dropped off at the turn off for the national park. You will have to walk the rest of the way roughly 4km. It is worth trying to hitch with any passing vehicles most vehicles will stop, but beware few cars use these roads, it may take time.

Another option is to stay in Playa, Its best to start early in the morning. Ask around at the Bus terminal/stop in Playa. The locals or bus drivers will be able to point you in the right direction for a ride the only problem is the way back you will have to hitch, don’t fear though just give yourself plenty of time to get there and back. It isn’t that hard. If you are with a group or money isn’t a huge problem, talk to a local taxi driver they will take you to the national park. You can organize a time for him to pick you up again for the return trip to Playa or he may even wait a few hours for you, if the money is right. As for what to pay for the taxi, anything between $20US and $35US for the return trip would be fair.

Coban is very quiet at night. Movies are shown nightly at the cinema just up from Central Park. Entrance is about $1, a bargain. The movies are a great place to practice Spanish. Most of the movies shown will be in English with Spanish sub titles.

For a drink the best place to head is to Kikoes Tasca. Sometimes it can be empty other nights full. A good place to met ex-pats, development workers or the wealthy locals.

Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights there is a Disco which is at Carnes al Carbon 3a calle 3-38 zona 3. The disco is called Le Bon. Here the locals come to dance or drink up a sweat. This is a great place to go dancing or if you aren’t a big dancer just watch as the locals will put on quite a show. A must if you are in town on the weekends. There is a small entrance few of $2 and drinks will cost $2 also.

Lanquin is situated 60 kms east of Coban, or 3 hours on a bumpy road in a local bus. Many tourists complain about this road and trip, but I have found it to be quite ok. Just settle in, relax and enjoy the scenery. There are 2 or 3 basic hotels in Lanquin, all are cheap and friendly. The same goes for the restaurants they are basic but ok. The town is nice and quiet but there is little for a tourist to do in the town except maybe sit in the main square with a drink and relax in the shade.

Grutas de Lanquin.

The caves are situated a few kilometers before entering Lanquin. To get there from Lanquin, you can either take a bus that is heading back towards Coban, the only problem being that there is only a few each day. The easiest way is to head towards the caves and try to hitchhike. Most locals will pick people up if they have room, most locals hitch also, you will be asked to pay a small fee, but that is normal. Hitchhiking is a great way to get around in remote areas.

The caves extend several kilometers into the ground. There are lights in the cave that light the first few hundred meters also a path has been built. The caves are very impressive inside. Be careful about going too far into the cave as you can get lost very easily. Dusk is a favorite time to visit the cave as hundreds of bats leave the caves as the sun sets. The river near by the caves is a good spot also for a swim if it is a little hot. You can camp at the caves but you will need to bring food and water.

Semuc Champney

Situated 10 km south of Lanquin is the natural wonder Semuc Champney. Semuc can be hard to reach the easiest way again, is to hitch. Find the road that heads for Semuc and just try to thumb a ride. Your other choice is to talk to the owners of the local hotels they can usually organize transport but be prepared to pay for it. Semuc is a limestone bridge with many pools of flowing river water on top of it. Most of the rivers water passes underneath the bridge underground. It is a very hard place to describe; the water is crystal clear, perfect for swimming. Semuc Champney is becoming one of the must see spots in Guatemala. A lot of people class it as Guatemala’s most beautiful spot mainly I think to its remoteness and untouched beauty, hopefully as more tourists arrive this will not change. You can camp at Semuc but be careful though, if you take valuables, things may disappear.

Getting there-

Public buses run from Coban to Lanquin a few times day. One night in Lanquin is enough if you are short of time, but two nights is perfect. Putting aside a day for Semuc and a day for the Caves. Or if you have the time and gear camp, both of these places are perfect for relaxing and taking it easy so remember don't rush it.

2 or 3 tour operators out of Coban take day tours to Semuc and Lanquin. These tours will cost around $30 per person. Which is quite expensive, also with a day tour you do not get much time to relax and explore both the caves and Semuc. But if you are short on time it is the easiest way to see them both in a day.

Most travel agents in Antigua run 2 night tours to Semuc and the caves. Until recently these where very over priced $125 per person. This includes transport from Antigua to Lanquin and back, accommodation 1 night in Coban, 1 night in Lanquin, and a guide. On one of my last visits to Antigua though a few new companies have started a price war on Lanquin trips. The cheapest was down to $45 per person for similar to the above trip the only difference being you camp, at the caves in Lanquin instead of staying in a hotel. These cheaper tours are really good valley if you are in Antigua they mainly run on weekends, due to the fact that they are aiming at the Spanish students studying in Antigua. One company offering the cheap tours from Antigua is Quetzaladventures.