Tours begin on the first and third Saturdays of each month. Arrive to Guatemala City, Guatemala. Depart from Guatemala City 8 days later on a Saturday.
Your Itinerary:
Day 1: Arrival to Guatemala city, Guatemala (Saturday). Meet at Guatemala City International Airport. Transfer to hotel in Guatemala City finest district. Overnight in Guatemala City. Welcome dinner. Includes: (D).
Day 2: Guatemala city, Guatemala and Copan, Honduras (Sunday). Morning visit to one of the best archaeological museums in the Maya World: Guatemala National Museum of Archeology and Ethnology. Afternoon transfer to Copan Town in Honduras. Overnight in Copan Town. Includes: (B), (L).
Day 3: Copan, Honduras and Quirigua, Guatemala (Monday). Morning visit to Copan Archaeological Site. An UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1980, Copan was the southernmost major center of lowland Maya civilization and is famed for its artistic sculpture. The great Hieroglyphic Stairway was dedicated in 755 and it bears a continuous text of more than 1250 glyph blocks listing dates and names of the city's Classic Period rulers. Because of its beautiful artwork, unsurpassed in any other Maya city, Copan occupies a special place in the study of the ancient Maya. Visit Copan’s Museum of Maya Sculpture which contains some of the finest examples of Maya sculpture ever found. Dominating the center of the museum is a full-scale brightly colored replica of the Rosalila Temple which was completed in 571. The ball courts are the playing grounds of an extremely serious sport to the Mayans.
These games are believed to have had religious significance: the captain of one team was sacrificed to the gods. Afternoon transfer to Guatemala’s Caribbean coastal plains, visiting Quirigua en route. Also an UNESCO World Heritage Archaeological Site since 1981. This strategically located river city of the Classic Period controlled the important Motagua Valley trade route linking the Caribbean coast with interior settlements. Remarkably preserved portraits and texts on sandstone stelae chronicle a ruling dynasty in competition with nearby Copan. In 738 the ruler Kak Tiliw captured and beheaded Copan's 13th lord, 18 Rabbit. Quirigua is home to the largest stelae in the Maya World at 26 feet and 6 inches in height and weighting about 65 tons. Overnight in Rio Dulce Area. Includes: (B), (L).
Day 4: Yaxha, Guatemala and Xunantunich, Belize (Tuesday). Transfer to Central Peten area for the next visit, it is to Yaxha Archaeological Site, the only Maya Classic Site whose actual name is the same as it reads in its emblem glyph. Known for having a large concentration of massive buildings with well defined avenues and causeways. It was always an allied of Tikal. Its location, on the shore of a lake and within the Maya Biosphere Reserve, makes it unique. After crossing the border into Belize, and very close to it, Xunantunich is an interesting small site with a tall pyramid with an spectacular view of the San Ignacio valley. Transfer to San Ignacio for overnight. Overnight in San Ignacio Area. Includes: (B), (L).
Day 5: Caracol, Belize (Wednesday). One of the largest political, religious and economic centers of the Maya Classic Time. Magnificent and well restored pyramids, the tallest one is named Caana. Caracol is connected through a network of Sakbeob with several small sites. In the 7th Century, in alliance with Calakmul, Caracol defeated mighty Tikal. Crossing the border back to Guatemala, Overnight in Lake Peten Itza Area. Includes: (B), (L).
Day 6: Tikal, Guatemala (Thursday). The third UNESCO’s World Heritage Site of the itinerary and the first one in the Maya World, since 1979. Intensive construction took place at Tikal from the late Pre-classic Period until the waning of Classic Maya civilization around AD 900. At its peak the city covered about 48 square miles and had a population estimated at 55,000. Tikal's Stelae 29 bears the earliest Long Count date known in the Maya lowlands. In 292 AD Temple IV, one of the many pyramids erected to memorialize the dead rulers of Tikal's royal dynasty, and one of the tallest of Maya structures at 212 feet, was erected. Overnight in Lake Peten Itza Area. Includes: (B), (L).
Day 7: Ceibal, Guatemala (Friday). Depart early to the Pasion River, the most important tributary of the Usumacinta River. After a boat ride, reach the strategic cliff where Ceibal Archaeological Site is located. Ceibal provides the opportunity to see extraordinary stelaes that shows foreign influences in the Maya World during the Terminal Classic time. Afternoon ride to Flores Airport for a 1-hour flight to Guatemala City for overnight. Overnight in Guatemala City. Includes: (B), (L).
Day 8: Departure from Guatemala city, Guatemala (Saturday). Transfer to Guatemala City International Airport. Includes: (B).
Notes:
Airfare is not included in the tour price.
Price per person:
- Double: USD 1800
- Single: USD 2175.
Also see tour packages in:
Central America and Caribbean
Honduras
Guatemala
Belize
History Whiz
Archeology/History
Cultural Journey
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