Tikal National Park is located in Northern Guatemala’s Petén Province and dates back to the Preclassic Period (600 B.C.) to the decline and eventual collapse of the urban center around 900 AD.
Tikal is one of the most important archaeological complexes left by the Maya civilization which includes palaces, temples, ceremonial platforms, residences, ball-game courts, stone carvings, and mural paintings with hieroglyphic inscriptions.
Tikal National Park is teaming with wildlife. You can see more than 300 species of birds, several species of monkeys and anteaters, puma and jaguars, crocodiles, caiman, and alligators. Plus the jungle forest has over 200 tree species and over 2000 diverse plant life including vibrant fauna and flora.
My Route From Antigua to Tikal
I live in Antigua, Guatemala and this was my family’s first trip to Tikal. Here is the driving route we took including maps.
Google Maps Route Antigua to Tikal
The drive takes a bit longer than what it claims here, I’d say about 11 hours of driving time. On the way from Antigua to Tikal we opted to stop halfway in Rio Dulce and stay at the Ecohotel Hacienda Tijax. I highly recommend this as a great place to stop halfway between Antigua and Tikal. It is about 5 hours from Antigua to Tijax and about 5 hours and 45 minutes from Tijax to Tikal.
Ecohotel Hacienda Tijax, Rio Dulce
This place was so stunning it was definitely worth leaving Antigua early and stopping overnight here. It is also near Castillo de San Felipe de Lara. Which is the town where the hotel is located and also a historical castle monument which is worth a stop early in the morning before heading forward to Tikal.
The Tijax ecohotel is surrounded by nature and is a little slice of paradise off the Rio Dulce. Stay in quaint cabins overlooking the swamp area where you can see wild turtles and crocodiles. We paid about $65 US dollars a night for our family of 4 for 1 small cabin with a/c, 3 twin-size beds, and a private bathroom.
TIP: You do need to bring large water bottles to fill in the restaurant to have in your room. They do not sell plastic bottled water.
The a/c was older so it did take a while to cool off the room but no one will want to stay in the room anyways! The food was average, nothing special but the views were stunning. You can also pay extra to book kayak tours and horseback riding tours.
There are several bridge walkway trails around the waters for hiking and there is a nice pool in the center of the hotel that is surrounded by the most beautiful trees and flowers making our overall stay phenomenal. We were lucky enough to see a rather large crocodile swimming along the pathways during our visit which was really awesome! You can read more about this hotel on their website here, Ecohotel Hacienda Tijax.
Castillo de San Felipe de Lara
Castillo de San Felipe is a Spanish colonial fort with a moat and drawbridge at the entrance to Lake Izabel in Guatemala. A tower existed in 1604 and the fort was built in 1644 to protect the port of San Antonio de las Bodegas on the south shore of Lake Izabal from frequent English pirate attacks.
The Castillo de San Felipe was used by the Spanish for several centuries, during which time it was destroyed and looted several times by pirates.
TIP: Bring cash in Quetzales.
Today travelers can take a small boat referred to as a lancha to the castle and roam around the castle ruins. They also sell souvenirs, street food, and drinks. We paid about 250Q for 8 people to ride the lancha at the time of this post. You also need to pay to get in. The cost was 25Q for native Guatemalans. Foreigners will have to pay more.
My family enjoyed looking around in the prisons, climbing to the top of the castle, and looking at the cannons. We took 2 hours to look around with a group of 8 people. I would recommend it as a cool historic stop.
The Jungle Lodge Tikal
This hotel is nestled in the middle of the jungle inside Tikal National Park. Once you make your reservations the hotel also takes care of your park entry fee. The Jungle Lodge Tikal consists of a nice restaurant, a swimming pool, a bar, a game room with a pool table, a very nice common space where you can access wifi, private cabins, and a hostel with shared bathrooms.
We opted to save money and book the hostel. We paid about $45 US dollars a night for a family of 4 in one shared room with two twin-sized beds. The room was small so it was a tight fit for 2 adults and 2 children when the room is really just meant for 2 people.
It was the nicest hostel I have ever stayed in! The shared bathrooms and showers are beautiful and right next to the hostel rooms. I highly recommend booking the hostel instead of the hotel/cabins to save money.
Important: None of the rooms come with a/c or wifi because the National Park has tight regulations and does not allow a/c units within the park so all Hotels inside the park do not have a/c. The power often will go out at night to reserve power which is also a part of the regulations of being inside the National Park. They do have wifi access in the common area only.
I’m not going to lie, you are in the jungle and it is hot. All night long it is hot and when the fan turns off for a few hours in the middle of the night when the area loses power I booked it to my car at 3 am to run the a/c so no one got much sleep because of the heat. However, it was totally worth the experience!
The restaurant was very nice. The food was good and reasonably priced. I liked the calamari and the fish sandwich. The pool was great surrounded by the most amazing beauty from the jungle. You can see and hear monkeys on the property. I would highly recommend staying here. The staff was very friendly, English-speaking, and accommodating.
Tikal National Park
Once staying at a hotel within the National Park the hotel will direct you on how to purchase your tickets to the Mayan Ruins online but I have also included the website here, Tikal Tickets/Boletos Tikal
When purchasing your tickets to enter the park (Entrada al parque) be sure to buy the right ticket considering if you have a DPI and are from Guatemala (Nacionales ticket cost 25Q) or are a foreign tourist (Extranjeros ticket cost 150Q)
I recommend going to the park first thing in the morning before it gets too hot and to avoid crowds. The park opens at 6am. We arrived at 7am and it felt like we mostly had the park to ourselves. It was awesome.
Once you have your tickets emailed to you, just show that screenshot of your ticket at the entrance where you can also buy a map. You can take a shuttle from the entrance to the Mayan ruins or if you prefer to hike it takes about 45 minutes to walk from the entrance and through the majority of the ruins.
I would recommend taking the shuttle to the ruins to conserve your energy so you can hike and walk around the ruins when you get there and climb to the top of the temples. The shuttle runs on tips. Before we took the shuttle we walked around a bit and saw a crocodile. It was on the land near a pond. It was really cool to see the wild animals in their natural habitat.
The Grand Plaza | Temple I
The shuttle will drop you off behind the Temple of the Grand Jaguar (Temple I) where you can hike up a hill passing through the ruins to the front of the Grand Jaguar and into the Grand Plaza.
This was by far my favorite part of the park. It is just amazing to see the vast enormity of the temples and the Grand Jaguar. Right away we saw a wild Pizote which look similar to an anteater. There is a lot of space to run around and sightsee.
The Grand Jaguar was built for Jasaw Chan K’awiil I (AD 682–734) Tikal’s ruler and he was buried inside. The temple was excavated between 1955 and 1964.
Temple II
Also known as the Temple of Masks was built by the same Jasaw Chan K’awiil I in honor of his wife, Lady Kalajuun Une’ Mo’. It is said to represent her shape. We had fun climbing to the top of this temple and viewing the ruins from above.
This temple is just across from Temple I and is inside the Grand Plaza.
Temple IV
No journey to Tikal is complete without a daring ascent to the top of Temple IV which is the tallest temple ever built by the ancient Maya.
From the Grand Plaza, you can make your way toward Temple IV, and along the way, you will also see Temple III. Temple III was not as cool as the others but it is along the route, also as we walked over to Temple IV we got to see two different species of monkeys and we even got to see a mama monkey with a baby trailing behind her.
Once you reach the top of Temple IV you are rewarded with an epic view of the other Temples around the Grand Plaza all above the tree tops. It is the epic picture moment that you do not want to miss!
What You Should Take To Tikal
They do sell snacks and drinks sometimes but it is a good idea to bring water! The jungle is hot and humid. Wear good hiking shoes and lightweight clothing. Take a camera or phone for pictures. They do not have trash cans you need to pack out what you pack in.
Packing List
Pack light! You have to walk a bit to the cabins in Tijax and I’m always for packing light. Here are some essentials that you will need to pack. I packed 2 small carry-ons for 2 adults and 2 kids. I did not pack any pants just 2 pairs of shorts and a few tank tops.
- Swimsuits
- Large reusable water bottles
- Drinking water
- Bug spray
- Sunscreen
- walking shoes
- lightweight comfortable clothing
You can book a walking tour at Tikal but we preferred to use the map and explore on our own and we don’t regret it. Especially with kids, it was a good idea to go at our own pace.
We had such a fantastic time and we highly recommend this trip for families, couples, or solo travelers.
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I Chug My Wine 