Following a week of Spanish school, I headed to Antigua with the main goal of hiking Acatenango. Some treat this trek with 5,200 feet of elevation gain as a casual excursion, and some finish this hike saying that it was truly the most challenging thing they have ever done. I personally landed somewhere in the middle. With the right gear, not too heavy of a backpack, and hiking poles I believe that this is a truly a magnificent hike with some of the most breathtaking and unique views I have ever seen.
Preparing to Hike Acatenango
I decided to give myself some time to explore Antigua before taking on Acatenango. I stayed at Flore Hostel for the two days leading up to the hike. During this time, I took a free walking tour of the city, which is an UNESCO heritage site, did some shopping, and hiked the Pacaya Volcano where we were able to roast marshmallows over the lava rocks! This was a great warm-up hike as it was only about a four-mile round trip hike. While roasting marshmallows over hot lava rocks was a fun and unique experience, if you only have the time for one volcano, I would recommend Acatenango. While challenging, completely worth it!
Booking the Tour
When booking tours, you can book from private companies, or you can book a tour on GetYourGuide. Everyone is hiking to the same point and sees the same view, so the price difference is reflected in where you are staying. We passed some of the nicer accommodations which were beautiful A-frame cabins with bunk beds. I booked my tour through Volcano Expeditions on GetYourGuide, and had an amazing time! However, instead of a luxury cabin experience, we were packed into canvas tents like little sardines. Luckily, I was there to see a volcano erupt and not get a good night's sleep.
Overall, I had a wonderful experience with Volcano Expeditions and for an overnight hike which included lunch, dinner, and breakfast the next day it came out to 52 US dollars. The guides were in contact with me the two days leading up to the hike. They sent out packing lists and confirmed my pickup location and time since they picked me up straight from the hostel. Flore hostel was also amazing, since I was being picked up early in the morning, they had a delicious, bagged breakfast ready for me.
The Hike Itself
The first stop after being picked up was to collect additional gear and our lunches which we were responsible for carrying. The guides passed out warm clothes to anyone who was worried they would not have enough. Once everyone had their gear and food we continued onto the trailhead along with what felt like every other tourist in Guatemala. No matter which tour group you choose, all hikers started from the same location, so it was chaos at the beginning.
Before starting the hike, we met up with our group and guides so we knew who to walk with and take breaks with. Luckily, different tour companies had different designated resting points, so the people spread out the more we hiked.
In the National Park
One of my favorite aspects of the hike was how the scenery kept changing. At the beginning we were walking through corn and bean fields. The trail started off SUPER steep, but the crazy part was that what was the beginning of a challenging hike for us, was the daily commute for many agricultural workers in this region of Guatemala. After making it through the agricultural area, we officially entered the national park. Most national parks have an entrance fee, but this was included with the price of our tour. We hiked (and climbed) up through a beautiful forest for about 2 hours before stopping for lunch. While the tour group provided the lunch, we were responsible for carrying it up ourselves. Our lunch was chicken and rice burritos. They were delicious, but I do think anything would have tasted amazing at that point. After lunch the elevation gain became more gradual, this is also where many of the various tour groups split off in different directions based on where their basecamps were situated.
The guides do a great job of making sure their group sticks together, but this does mean you have to wait for everyone in your group. Our group had a range of speeds, so we had some antsy people in the front ready to get moving and some in the back who took their time getting up the volcano. Luckily, we were in no rush, and since this hike was a once and a lifetime experience, I didn’t mind taking my time.
At Basecamp
Unfortunately, when we made it to the top, the views were quite underwhelming since the clouds were covering Fuego, which is the active volcano everyone was excited to see up close. On a tour with ideal weather, anyone who wants to add an optional addition to their hike and get closer to Fuego’s active eruption would go at sunset before dinner. Unfortunately, due to weather conditions, our group was unable to do that, so we all hung around until dinner which was a MASSIVE pot of spaghetti and marinara cooked over a bonfire that kept us warm. If you do plan on embarking on this hike, I would highly recommend bringing your own snacks because those who did and were willing to share were the heroes of the night. One bowl of pasta is just not enough when gaining up to 5,200 feet in elevation.
The Additional Fuego Hike
As we were sitting around the fire, eating our pasta, the clouds began to dissipate. Slowly we were able to see the lava from Fuego glowing in the distance. Our guides told us that if the conditions got better, they would lead a group up to Fuego at 11PM. This additional climb can take anywhere from 3-5 hours. So, they made it clear that if you chose to go get closer to Fuego there was a chance that you may not make it back in time to summit Acatenango for sunrise.
I chose not to do the additional Fuego hike because I was more excited about summiting Acatenango and seeing the sunrise over Guatemala from the top of a volcano. Even though some in our group were able to do both, I was very happy with my decision because those who went said that the Fuego hike was barely worth it. Being closer to the lava from Fuego was very cool, but since the hike was in the dark there was not much else to see.
Summiting Acatenango
Meanwhile, summiting Acatenango at 3:30 am was easily the best and hardest part of the whole excursion. Our guides woke us up exactly at 3:30 and we rolled out of our tents and began the climb. It took us just about two hours to summit the volcano. It was such a challenging experience because we were walking straight up on fine lava ash and rocks and could only see as far as your headlight beam stretched. The whole time I was nervous that if I mis stepped, I would tumble down the side of the volcano. Luckily, that didn’t happen and we all safely made it to the top to watch the most magical sunrise of my life. We even saw the smoke and lava from Fuego’s eruptions in the distance. We all spent a while sitting and enjoying the sunrise before heading back down to basecamp. Getting down took us half the time because we were just skidding down lava rocks the whole time.
When making it back to basecamp we met up with the rest of our group and began our descent down. This also took us less time than going up. My unpopular opinion is that going down was a lot harder than up because of how steep and dusty it was. This was the part that my knees felt the most the next few days. By the time we made it all the way to the bottom I was absolutely covered in dust and volcanic ash. I truly had the best time doing this hike and would 100% recommend doing it!
My Top Tips for Hiking Acatenango
1. Find a tour provider that meets your needs. I wanted a budget friendly option, but other tour providers may offer more assistance during the hike, have more luxurious sleeping situations, smaller groups, etc. some of the popular companies are:l
2. If you are wanting to go with one of these popular tour companies, definitely book in advance. I booked my tour only a few days before going, and these were all sold out.
3. Spend a day or two in Antigua to acclimatize or consider taking altitude meds. It is such a beautiful hike, you don’t want to miss out because you are dealing with altitude sickness.
4. Pack lightly but bring layers. You are responsible for carrying up all your own things including food, but it does get cold at night so be prepared for that.
5. Rent trekking poles! I believe I enjoyed the hike so much more because I had the assistance of these poles for getting up and down the volcano.
6. Bring a headlamp! This was extremely helpful for summiting Acatenango at 3am
7. Bring extra cash! At the beginning of the hike there are some spots to purchase snacks and use the restroom. It is also nice to tip your guides since they do so much to ensure your safety and enjoyment.
8. Hike responsibly! Carry out all your trash and respect the flora and fauna to keep the national park a place for people to enjoy and admire.
9. Be flexible! You are hiking to witness nature and there is no way to control the clouds, lava flow, or the weather
10. Enjoy the scenery! There is no reason to rush this once in a lifetime beautiful hike
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