25 colourful reasons to visit Antigua, Guatemala 

 Certain cities fill me up with smiles the moment I arrive. That feeling of wanting to jump up and down and squeal with excitement like a little girl, or clap like you’ve just seen an incredible performance.

This is how I felt when we arrived into Antigua, Guatemala. As soon as we landed into Guatemala after 17 hours of travelling I knew I was going to love this country. The hot blast of air as we exited the airport, the constant beeping from the busy queues at the arrivals pick up and the warm smiles and fresh cold juice as we entered our first hotel in Guatemala City.

After a couple of days around Lake Atitlan (more on this later) we headed to spent the day in Antigua. A popular stop on the tourist trail, but you can see why. New pops of colour on every corner, every building a new fresh fruity shade. Burnt orange, fresh yellow, strawberry pink. I was in wall photo heaven, I was fast creating my Instagram of dreams!

Here are 25 colourful reasons why Antigua needs to be a prime stop on any travels to Guatemala.

1 – For pops of reds and yellow like on this wall

Jen Lowthrop in Antigua Guatemala

2 – or the slightly faded red and yellow wall with our fab guide Mel from Martsam Travel

Mel from Martsam Travel, Antigua, Guatemala

3 – To watch artists on the street drawing the colourful walls (and maybe purchase a painting of your own)

artist in Antigua, Guatemala

4 – to walk through the brightly coloured markets, to take some colour home with you

craft market in Antigua Guatemala

5 – or purchase some juicy fresh fruit and vegetables

fruit in the market in Antigua

6 – to jump for joy at the views over Antigua from El Cerro de la Cruz

 El Cerro de la Cruz

7 – to pose next to a wall painted the colour of the sea (the best parts of the sea)

Jen Lowthrop in Antigua Guatemala

8 – or to buy yet *another* pair of handmade earrings from these smiling ladies

street vendors in Antigua Guatemala

9 – to get the perfect shot of The Travelista getting the perfect shot.

Travelista Jess in Antigua Guatemala

10 – or a great shot of a local walking by

colourful walls of Antigua Guatemala

11 – to admire the views across roof tops from the largest convent in Antigua

roof top viewsover Antigua Guatemala

12 – or pose by the waterfall in the Capuchins Convent

 

in Capuchins convent in Antigua Guatemala

13 – or try travelling on one of the local chicken buses. (named because of people travelling with their chickens… obviously!)

chicken bus stop in Antigua, Guatemala

14 – to freshen up with some large tasty strawberries. Yum!

street fruit in Antigua, Guatemala

15 – or just play around pretending to be Rambo in the market

rambo in the market in Antigua, Guatemala

16 – the walls, the walls… did I mention the colourful walls??

yellow wall in Antigua, Guatemala

17 – the people too… so friendly and most love having their photos taken! How cute are these guys?

friendly locals in Antigua, Guatemala

18 – colour, on colour, on colour!

craft sales on the street in antigua, Guatemala

19 – to buy yourself a hacky sack… in more bright colours.

Guatemala balls in market Antigua

20 – or just take photos of more bright walls

orange wall, antigua Guatemala

21 – to see cars parked next to a matching coloured wall

yellow wall and car, Antigua, Guatemala

22 – to pose again in Capuchins Convent – this time with all the cool bloggers!

Capuchins convent Antigua GuatemalaCapuchins convent Antigua Guatemala

23 – or just take more photos of walls and shops and all the COLOURS!

 

local shop in Antigua, Guatemala

24 – or do some more market shopping to take some brightly coloured masks home with you

masks in the market, Antigua Guatemala

25 – and finally if walls aren’t your thing you can hang out with all the cute lazy dogs

Lazy dog at El Cerro de la Cruz

Who wants to visit Antigua in Guatemala now? It took us forever to get anywhere because of all the photos we had to take, but oh was it worth it.

I have a tonne more wall photos from Isle de Flores near Tikal… there may be another colourful blog post coming soon!

I visited Guatemala on a press trip for CATA, The Central American Tourist Association. As always any opinions are completely my own and I get to choose what I write about. 

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19 Comments

  1. Wow! Love these colours, Guatemala wasn’t on my list, but this makes me want to visit. I only live in Texas so may add it to this year’s travels. Thanks.

    1. Thanks Jane. The colours are amazing. I wish our buildings had more colour over here in the UK

  2. Nice! I was in Guatemala for seven weeks last summer, and I miss all the colourful walls so much. I’ve actually got one of those masks looking at me now!

    I ABSOLUTELY loved Guatemala, it’s my favourite place to write about. If you go back, you should visit Xela (Quetzaltenango) which is off the beaten track and not very touristy, making it a very authentic Guatemalan city. I was there for four weeks and it was amazing.

    I’m following your Central American adventure and it looks like you’re having a great time. Hope your ankle is getting better and you’re enjoying Belize!

    1. 7 weeks in Guatemala must have been amazing. I would definitely love to go back and spend more time there. Gorgeous country.

      Ankle fully recovered now! Phew! 🙂

    1. I did I did! We will have to compare photos and see how much it has changed… if at all!

  3. Looks amazing! The colors are incredible and I love how they move from textiles to fruits to houses. But the gold car next to the gold wall really takes the cake 🙂 I wonder what came first…

  4. Love the photos and the colors! I almost visited Guatemala a few years ago but found a cheap fare somewhere else. I keep hearing good things about Antigua so I need to think about a trip there again.

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