Panajachel

Panajachel (or Pana, as it is widely known by the locals) is located in the Western Highlands of Guatemala. It is a small town on the North shore of Lake Atitlán, with a booming tourist industry. With the exception of possibly Antigua, Panajachel is one of the major tourism areas in Guatemala, as well as it is the doorway to visit all the villages around Lake Atitlan. At the lakeside you can enjoy breathtaking views of the three volcanoes that surround it: Tolimán, Atitlan and San Pedro.

Most of the restaurants, shops and hotels are located near Calle Santander or Calle Principal, and you can walk to practically anywhere within 10-15 minutes.  Another option is taking a small three-wheel taxi, called TucTuc, which would cost approximately 5Q for any destination in Pana.

Chicken buses from Guatemala City leave approximately every hour, from 6AM to 4PM, and cost only a few US $. However, the ride is long, and it can be quite uncomfortable if the bus gets crowded (which it almost certainly will).  Alternatively, you can take a bus to Los Encuentros, and change there. A bus from Los Encuentros to Sololá costs 3Q and from there you can take another to Panajachel, for 3Q. The trip takes approximately two and a half hours.

Many tourist agencies will arrange tourist buses transport to Panajachel. A minibus from Antigua to Panajachel costs US$12 per person each way, and from Guatemala City to Panajachel it costs US$22 per person each way.  Shuttles usually run at 6am, 11am and 14pm.

Private shuttle boats (“lanchas”) to other cities around the lake, such as Jaibalito, San Marcos La Laguna, San Pedro La Laguna, etc, leave regularly from the “embarcadero” at the foot of the main street, Calle Santander. The cost is about 15-30Q one way (5-15Q for Central Americans). The larger public ferries are cheaper (25Q for foreigners) but they only go to Santiago Atitlan (from foot of Calle Rancho Grande, east of Santander) and San Pedro (from foot of Calle del Embarcadero, west of Santander).