El Petén is without a doubt the wildest part of Guatemala. Deep in the jungle lies the heart of what was once a thriving Maya civilization. Stumbling upon one of their old temples or stone structures, covered with vines and vegetation or neatly excavated, is the highlight of any trip through this land.
But Petén is more than just temples. Its rainforests teem with birds and wildlife. They are the perfect playgrounds for adventurers, water lovers and ornithologists. Even a couple of months are not enough to discover this vast region, to explore the ancient Maya world and to have endless meetings with some of Guatemala’s most pristine nature. Are you ready to take a walk on the wild side?
1/ Tikal is only the start of your exploration of the Maya world
El Petén is perfect for tourists who wish to travel back in time, hike in a jungle and encounter the traces of lost civilisations. In some cases, the discovery has been done long before your arrival and you’ll be greeted by wondrous excavated pyramids. Those of us who have an itch for adventure should not worry. El Petén offers a plentitude of unexcavated Mayan sites where you can be the only visitor and really get the feeling of the early discoverers of those temples.
The most well known ancient Maya temple complex is Tikal, where you can climb some of the structures and admire amazing views of pyramids poking through the jungle canopy. Walking from one temple to another, you can marvel at bird and animal life in the jungle.
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But that’s not it. The good news is that the whole region is dotted with awesome Mayan ruins. Closer to Finca Ixobel, just 24 kilometres from Poptún, lies a complex called Ixcun. You enter into a thick jungle. At least, that’s what it looks like at first sight. Small winding paths lead you to different temples and stelae. Many pyramids are not excavated so you have to use your imagination, which is not that difficult. The air is filled with cries of howler monkeys, which make you feel very far away from the world as you know it. Make sure to climb the natural hill topped with ancient structures and check out the cave inside the hill.
2/ It’s a birdwatcher’s paradise
El Petén is the stuff that dreams are made of for ornithologists and other lovers of birds. This region is on the trajectory of migrations between north and south. Together with the many non-migratory birds, that makes for a rich environment to spot all kinds of feathered friends. It’s simply a matter of keeping your eyes and ears open. Hawks and herons, toucans and turkeys, hummingbirds and parakeets, woodpeckers and vultures, all and more share the airspace above the northernmost of Guatemala’s departments.
In the Laguna del Tigre National Park, the biggest area of freshwater wetlands in Central America, one can see the magnificent scarlet macaw in its natural habitat. Tikal and its environs host hundreds of bird species. This includes the ocellated turkey, a fat, colourful and wild cousin of the bird that visits our dinner tables on Christmas.
On the property of Finca Ixobel, guests have spotted more than 100 different birds. The diversity is enormous, ranging from black vultures and cattle egrets over berylline hummingbirds and mottled owls to golden-fronted woodpeckers, barred antshrikes and many more. Staying in one of the Finca’s treehouses, it’s quite common to be awoken by the pretty singsongs of a choir of early birds.
3/ The caves are world class
Many visitors in Guatemala explore the caves near Lanquin and Semuc Champey. According to experienced tour guides, these caves are not as impressive as the River cave (Cueva del Rio) in the South of Petén. This cave offers spectacular rapids and waterfalls. You can book your cave adventure through Finca Ixobel.
Southern Petén is a wonderland for cave lovers. It doesn’t matter if you’re attracted by cave drawings or looking for a trip for the whole family. If you’re staying at Finca Ixobel, the best way to start your underground discoveries is to visit the cave on the property. Ixobel Cave is a spacious cave with beautiful limestone stalactites and stalagmites. There’s also a small pond inside. Best enjoyed in candlelight.
Art lovers should head 29km from Poptún where they are welcomed by a three-kilometre long cave system covered with sacred texts and ancient Maya drawings. The Naj Tunich caves are considered the finest example of Maya cave art. Sadly, vandals destroyed some of the paintings in 1989. The caves are now closed, but you can still see the entrance of the cave and admire replicas of the cave paintings in a nearby cave.
4/ The nature is spectacular
For many visitors, El Petén is synonymous with the jungle. And it’s true that this region boasts some of the vastest and most untouched rainforests anywhere in Central America. Rich, lush forests that are hot, humid and high in diversity. But Petén is more than that, so much more. There are pine forests in the environs of Poptún, every once in a while punctured by a pyramid-shaped karst mountain. Not many regions have six species of cedar and four species of palm trees. Swamps, bogs and floodable forests, wetlands, tall evergreen forests, savannah and pastureland, caves, waterfalls and gorgeous turquoise lagunas, this landscape is as diverse as it is beautiful.
Don’t even get us started on the wildlife. 54 mammal species, 350 species of birds, nine families of amphibians, six families of turtles and 37 species of snakes make El Petén a brooding hotspot of biodiversity. This is the home of howler monkeys, spider monkeys, jaguars, tapirs, ocelots, brown and white-nosed coatis, white-tailed deer, macaws, crocodiles and many more iconic species. You prefer your encounters to happen in a safe environment? Head to Petencito zoo, a boat ride away from Flores, to see animals native to Petén. All the animals are recovering after illness or injury or incapable of surviving independently in the wild.
5/ Water lovers will have the time of their lives
It can get hot and humid in Petén, so at one point you may start to yearn for water. When staying at Finca Ixobel, all you have to do is to take a short walk to the nearby pond and dive into the refreshing water. If you wish to discover the nearby swimming holes, Balneario Las Pozas will likely be your first stop, just six kilometres north from Poptún. This mini Semuc Champey is taken care of by a local family who makes sure that the drinks in the fridges are cold and the snacks on the shelves plentiful. Pack a picnic and have a lunch on one of many picnic tables after soaking in beautiful pools. Pozas is a great place to bring children as well.
If you fancy getting your adrenaline levels up, you should visit Mopan waterfalls, which offer spectacular jumps into a pool. Jump from rock, tree or just swing yourself in the water. If you feel like even more action than inner-tubing on the Machaquila river is definitely for you. Have lots of fun floating down untamed waters and discovering thrilling rapids.
6/ It’s an adventure waiting to happen
We’ve mentioned it before: this is Guatemala’s last wilderness. Once, El Petén was practically impenetrable unless you had a four-wheel-drive and lots of time. Development has made the region accessible for less hardened travellers, but a new adventure remains around every corner.
Exploring the remote archaeological sites is often a challenge in itself, involving bumpy chicken bus rides and hikes through wildland. Get off the beaten track with a trip to El Mirador. To reach this lost Maya city, you have to tramp through a humid jungle. The heat feels like a roasting oven turned up to its highest setting, the mosquitoes are bloodthirsty. But after days and days of sinking into the mud, it’s all of a sudden there, in all its century-old glory: La Danta, the new world’s tallest pre-Columbian pyramid. It’s not for those who already scream for their mommies when they have to climb all those stairs in Tikal, but it’s definitely the adventure of a lifetime.
But one doesn’t have to be Indiana Jones to enjoy El Petén. Finca Ixobel organizes adventure tours of more human size. Mount one of the reliable horses for a two-hour guided trek on the property, through picturesque pine forest. For those preferring two over four legs, hiking on the Finca is equally enjoyable. Two self-guided tours take nature lovers all around the most beautiful spots of the Finca. The Pyramid hike leads to the top of a cone-shaped hill and offers the ideal gym session. Cerro Witz, on the other hand, has splendid views over the farm’s property and the surrounding countryside. Bring a bottle of wine and a blanket and it also becomes the most romantic picnic spot of El Petén. Afterwards, head to the laguna for the cooldown (from the workout as well as the romance).