Semana Santa Carpets of Flowers

Upon arrival in Guatemala City, you will be met by your bilingual driver for the one-hour drive to your lovely hotel in Antigua. Settle in for a four-day stay in the heart of the colonial town which is a UNESCO designated World Heritage site.

Witness the city coming to life as thousands arrive to participate in the largest celebration of Holy Week in the Western Hemisphere, the second largest in the world after Spain. Your guide will recommend a restaurant for dinner and then in the evening you can roam the colonial streets that are decorated with intricately detailed “ alfombras” which are carpets made of flower petals and dyed saw dust.

There are two type of carpets made during Semana Santa. In the churches, carpets made by the brotherhoods are placed in front of religious sculptures and surrounded by fruits, vegetables and candles brought as offerings on the preceding day. Outside, people who live along the procession route invite friends and relatives to join them in covering the streets in front of their homes with carpets that express both religious as well as contemporary themes. Preparations for the carpets begin weeks, or even months, ahead. Sand or sawdust is generally used to level the cobblestone roadway. Sawdust is then collected and dyed purple, green, blue, red, yellow and black. Pine needles and flowers such as bougainvillea, chrysanthemums, carnations and roses are readied to be incorporated into the designs. Carpets are laid the day before the procession and the construction is timed so that the carpets are finished just before the arrival of the first floats.

Lodging: Casa Encantada or similar

This morning depart from the hotel with your guide for a walking tour of Antigua, taking in the architectural and historical highlights including the Iglesia San Francisco, the Cathedral, Central Park, and La Merced Church. This is a flexible tour which will focus on your interests. You may choose to visit other monuments, museums, or attractions; to visit a large craft and textile cooperative; to search out the best photographic vantage points; to spend time with the locals in the towns' plazas. In the evening, watch the carpet making activity reach fever pitch in preparation for Good Friday.

Meals: Breakfast

Lodging: Casa Encantada or similar

An early morning start with your guide will allow you to observe the final touches being made to the alfombras in advance of the solemn processions which leave from each church and follow a route through Antigua lasting several hours. There are thousands of carriers for the processional floats. All male or all female contingents as large as 80 members, in all purple or all white or all black robes, carry floats weighing up to 7,000 pounds, bearing the most important religious sculptures. Because of the enormous weight of the floats, carriers will be matched in height and will carry for only about a block before a new contingent takes over. The choreography involved in transferring the weight from one group to another is impressive. The largest procession from La Merced Church carries sculptures of Jesús Nazareno and Santísima Virgen de Dolores. You are encouraged to dress modestly to show respect for these religious ceremonies and for the emotions they engender in their devotees.

Meals: Breakfast

Lodging: Casa Encantada or similar

This morning choose from a number of wonderful options. Your guide will be at your disposal. You can spend more time in Antigua and see the processions of the Virgin Mary from Felipe Church or Escuela de Cristo. You can visit the working coffee farm and museums of Mayan musical instruments and Mayan dress at Azotea. Or, you can hike up the Pacaya Volcano one hour drive from Antigua, beginning with a fairly strenuous climb though beautiful pine forests and continuing with a tricky walk through the volcanic ash section to the sulfur smoking cone. From the summit you can enjoy great views of the northern volcanoes and the Pacific lowlands, and all the way to El Salvador.

Meals: Breakfast

Lodging: Casa Encantada or similar in Antigua OR Maya Inn in Chichi

Today on Easter Sunday visit the most famous market town in the central highlands, Chichicastenango – known as Chichi. In the center, you'll find textiles, candles, wood carvings, pottery, gourds and masks from all over Guatemala. On the edges, you'll find trinkets, tee shirts, natural remedies and all kinds of baked goods.  But Chichi offers more than her market; she unabashedly showcases Guatemala's unique and fervent mixture of pre- and post-colonial traditions.  The extensive market area surrounds St. Tomas Church where Mayan rituals are freely expressed amidst grand Catholic imagery. On the broad staircase leading up to the church entrance, worshippers burn incense, families have picnics, itinerant merchants rest with their wares, and flower vendors display their sensuous bounty. Throughout the cobblestone streets, on Sundays and on festival days such as today's Easter, the religious brotherhoods (called cofradias) march in procession accompanied by music. Wander freely and fix your focus on the content that interests you most. In the afternoon continue the beautiful drive through the highlands to Lake Atitlan, often cited as the most beautiful lakes in Central America and perhaps one of the most breathtaking in the world. Enjoy the art and gardens of your lakeside hotel during your three-night stay.

Meals: Breakfast

Lodging: Hotel Atitlan

In the traditional town of Solola, high above Lake Atitlan, market day offers the best possible overview of Mayan highland culture. Dressed in the colorful traje (traditional woven clothing), which is distinctive for each village, and speaking an array of Mayan languages and dialects, traders come from great distances to buy and sell their goods and wares for the week ahead. While the market at Chichi offers a wealth of handicrafts, and may be described as the most important market for tourists, the market at Solola is for the locals. It is our privilege and treat to respectfully observe and learn.

Meals: Breakfast

Lodging: Hotel Atitlan

Cross Lake Atitlan in a comfortable motor boat to visit the villages of San Juan La Laguna, Santiago Atitlan and San Antonio Palopo, varying in size and textile traditions. San Juan La Laguna is quaint, quiet and immaculate, and distinguished by its white-washed walls adorned by murals painted in the local naif style. Visit artists' studios and women's textile cooperatives. After a full day of absorbing the rhythms of life on the lake, enjoy the sunset and choose a restaurant for a lovely dinner. Enjoy a final evening at Lake Atitlan.

Meals: Breakfast

Lodging: Hotel Atitlan

Today you will be transferred to Guatemala City where you can visit the Ethnology and Archaeology Museum. This tour is flexible and if you have specific sights that you wish to see, please notify your guide and check with them the opening days of the museums. You will pay entrance fees for these museums directly. Lunch at a local restaurant. Overnight in Guatemala City.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch

Lodging: Hotel Camino Real

This morning you will transfer to the airport for your international departure flight or for a domestic flight to Flores in the north of Guatemala in order to tour the famous Mayan site at Tikal.

Meals: Breakfast