Following a Covid enforced international travel pause in 2020, we were ready to make up for lost ground in 2021 after getting fully vaccinated. It was also time to find more viable options after Covid restrictions quashed our original plans of spending a few weeks wine tasting in French vineyards for our 10 year anniversary. The challenge was to find a destination that was open to American tourists and also had low recent Covid case counts. After some detailed research about potential destinations we decided to first head to Guatemala to explore the Mayan ruins of Tikal, then onward to the beaches of Belize.

With N95 masks and plentiful hand sanitizers in tow, we decided to take advantage of the Grandparents’ offer to babysit the kiddos for a few days while we headed out for a short vacay. Although we were apprehensive about our first time being away from the kids for such an extended period of time – the thrill of re-discovering the joys of travel without baby car seats, strollers and diaper bags proved too hard to resist.

Guatemala City to Flores

Getting to our final destination of Flores in Guatemala turned into quite the ordeal though, taking up almost the whole day with multiple layovers and flight delays. Fortunately we took advantage of the long stop in Guatemala City to head into town and stretch our legs exploring the Metropolitan Cathedral, and to sample some strong Guatemalan coffee in a local cafe. The availability of Uber in Guatemala was a pleasant surprise, and we had a seamless experience heading out into Guatemala City and making it back to the airport without issues. However the rest of the evening proved to be frustrating due to continued delays of our fligh tout to Flores. It was close to 10pm before we finally made it into our hotel tucked deep into the jungle close to Flores.

Tikal Mayan Ruins

Our wake up call early the next morning were the loud chanting growls of howler monkeys from deep within the jungle. Next to call on us was our slightly more soft spoken guide Miguel, who would be accompanying us for the main purpose of our visit – to explore the ruins of Tikal.

Tikal National Park is located within a tropical rainforest north of the Peten Itza lake, and is a UNESCO World Heritage site both for its biodiversity of flora and fauna, as well as the cultural and historical significance of its Mayan era structures. Spider and Howler Monkeys, Jaguars, raccoon like Coatimundis, and numerous species of brightly plumed birds share this rich jungle habitat with the ancient remnants of the Maya civilization.

Tikal archaeological complex is one of the largest surviving Mayan ruins, and has only barely been fully excavated, with only 25-30% of its estimated 3000+ structures seeing daylight so far. It is a collection of limestone structures such as pyramids topped by temples, palaces, residences, carved pillars and altars – all waiting to be discovered under the lush jungle canopies of the Mayan rainforest. Tikal was once one of the main Mayan civilization sites, remaining inhabited from roughly 600 BC to 900 AD before mysteriously disappearing without any other trace than the ruins they left behind. Most of the monuments that have been excavated here date from the 6th century.

First we drove for about an hour from Flores before we crossed into the park area and arrived at the starting point. We slathered on liberal amounts of sunscreen and bug repellent, ready to follow Miguel’s lead for the next few hours of hiking through the Peten jungle to the ruins. The President of Guatemala was apparently visiting later in the day, and Miguel was quick to point out the “gardeners and landscapers” that were obviously undercover troops doing their reconnaissance. We trekked through the dense jungle trails for about 20 minutes, when suddenly the vegetation cleared up and we came upon the majestic Great Plaza. Temple-pyramids I & II flank the plaza on its eastern and western edges.

Temple I is also known as the Temple of the Grand Jaguar and stands at 47 meters tall. This temple is the symbol of Tikal and Guatemala itself, and its facade makes appearances on everything from the country’s banknotes to beer bottles. The rectangular temple topping pyramid I housed the burial tomb for Mayan ruler Jasaw Chan K’awiil, with earthly riches such as jade, fine clothing and painted decorations. The Maya believed that such items aided the dead in their journey through the 9 levels of the underworld.

Directly opposite is Temple II aka the Temple of the Masks, built as a tomb for ruler Jasaw Chan K’awiil’s wife. This pyramid can be accessed via a short yet steep staircase along its side, offering the best views of Temple I and the surrounding Great Plaza.

One of the stone masks that give the temple its monicker

Panoramic view of the great Plaza from the viewing platform atop Temple II

We hiked close to Temple III en route to our next stop – Temple IV or the Temple of the Two-Headed Serpent. At 65 meters tall, this is the tallest of the structures in Tikal, and was once the tallest building in all of MesoAmerica for centuries. The temple at its summit was also accessed by a steep wooden staircase, which turned into an even more slippery climb when we were suddenly drenched by a torrential rainstorm which arrived unnanounced. Thankfully the skies cleared for a few minutes once we reached the top – allowing us to take in the serene view of temple tops jutting out majestically across the green jungle treetops. Fun fact – this was the scene for the filming of a scene in Star Wars: A New Hope.

Las Lagunas Boutique Hotel

Las Lagunas Hotel is one of the more unique properties we’ve stayed at on our travels – an interesting cross between an exotic lake house and a safari resort. Las Lagunas Boutique Hotel consists of standalone over water bungalows tucked deep into the jungle and situated on the banks of a lake in the Peten area, with a stated goal to blend in and coexist with the surrounding habitat and wildlife. We were so deep in the jungle that there was virtually no light pollution when we arrived in the pitch dark of the previous night – with outlines of the jungle and the calm lake waters framing the amazing tapestry of stars and celestial bodies of the night sky.

After the earlier tedious hike of the Tikal ruins and a filling local lunch along the banks of Lake Peten, we were ready for some relaxing pool time back at the Las Lagunas Hotel. Due to Covid the usually busy property was virtually empty, and for most of our stay we felt like it was our very own private resort. No complaints there!