Area: 42,042 sq mi
Population: 12,300,000
FLIGHT DURATION:
17 hrs, Guatemala City being 5,457 mi from London. There are no direct flights from the United Kingdom so you will need to travel via Miami, with British Airways, or via Germany.
AIRPORT INFORMATION:
La Aurora international airport is located in the city of Guatemala Ciudad. It takes about 10 minutes to get to the centre of the capital and you have the choice between taking the bus (very inexpensive), with tickets that cost less than one euro, or taking a taxi costing around 40 to 60Q. The city of Flores in the Peten region also has an airport located at the nearby Tikal site.
ALL OF THE EDITORIAL TEAM'S ADVICE:
During your visit to the Tikal district, do not stray from marked pedestrian trails, plan to bring a good pair of shoes with you and some binoculars to observe the fauna and arrive early to see the beautiful sunrise on the pyramids.
In Honduras, the archaeological site of Copan, 'The Athens of the New World', is only 9 miles from the Guatemalese border and you need at least a day to visit it.
Do not miss the markets which, although touristic, remain authentic and are a good opportunity to see Indian women wearing huipiles and other traditional dresses.
TELEPHONE:
From September 18, 2004, the system of making telephone calls is different. There are now 8 numbers (compared to 7 previously). To contact someone in the country, you must instead add a number according to the place you want to call: dial 2 to reach the capital city Ciudad Guatemala, 6 for the towns in Guatemala's administrative region, and 7 for the rest of the country.
The country code remains the same.
To call Guatemala from the UK, dial: 00 + 502 (country code) + the phone number with 8 digits.
To call the UK from Guatemala, dial: 00 + 44 + personal number without the initial 0.
Rate and comment
