Chimaltenango
Chimaltenango is a mid-size city of about 100,000 people in the Central Highlands region just west of Guatemala City.
Understand
The city has few attractions to draw the foreign traveler, but with several hotels, restaurants, and bus connections to towns and cities in the region, it can serve as an adequate stop for various adventures to nearby sites, such as volcanoes and Mayan archaeological sites.
History
The city was originally a Mayan settlement called B oko, but when the Spaniards arrived in 1526, they used the name Chimaltenango, which was what their Nahuatl-speaking slave-guides called it.
Get in
By bus
Chicken bus is the best and cheapest way to get to Chimaltenango. From Guatemala City, go to Trebol (around the intersection of CA 1 and CA 9). Several chicken bus routes from different areas begin and end in this area. In Zona 7 are the buses to Chimaltenango, which depart at least twice per day (ask locals for the exact spot where buses pick up and the inexact times they depart. The trip takes 1 hour by bus and costs about 15 quetzal.
Buses arrive in Chimaltenango near the Mercado (see Buy, below).
By car
A taxi from Guatemala City to Chimaltenango will take about 30 minutes and cost about 100 quetzal.
Get around
See
- Iximche - about 30 minutes by taxi from Chimaltenango is a small Mayan archaeological site that is well maintained and is popular (and easily accessed). The site is open 08:00 - 16:00 daily and costs 50 quetzals per adult. The site dates from the last post-classic period (roughly 1325 to 1525). It was a populated Mayan city at the time of the Spanish conquest and was the principal city in the region. Structures are in good condition and consist of 6 plazas and over 150 structures. The site sits at an elevation of 2,277 meters.
Do
- Guided Volcano tours are offered to the nearby Acatenango and Pacaya volcanoes.
Buy
- 1 Mercado Terminal de Chimaltenango. M-F 06:00 - 18:00, Sa-Su 09:00 - 18:00. The city's traditional marketplace is bustling with local vendors and customers. Cheap food and a variety of general houseware products can be found here. Many Chicken bus routes being or end within a block or so of the market.