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Travel and Tourism in Guatemala
Travel alerts, currency, climate, transit, health, and safety information for visitors to Guatemala.
Practical Information
Travel alert status, currency, climate, and transit details.
- Travel Alert Status
- Level 3: Reconsider Travel
- Time Difference
- UTC-6 (1 hour behind Washington, DC, during Standard Time)
- Currency
- quetzal (GTQ), US dollar (USD), others allowed
- Climate
- Guatemala City's rainy season is May through October, and its dry season November through April. Temperatures are generally moderate during both seasons, ranging from an average low of 53°F in January to 60°-85°F in April. Frost and snow are unknown, and flowers bloom year round. Rainfall is heaviest from June through October, and the annual average is about 52 inches. Wet months can cause mildew damage to clothing, shoes, luggage, and upholstered furniture. During the dry season, days are clear and the sun is hot at midday with chilly to cold mornings and evenings. During these months it is dusty, foliage turns brown, grass and shrubs wither, and gardens must be watered.
- Language(s) Spoken
- Spanish (official) 69.9%, Maya languages 29.7% (Q'eqchi' 8.3%, K'iche 7.8%, Mam 4.4%, Kaqchikel 3%, Q'anjob'al 1.2%, Poqomchi' 1%, other 4%), other 0.4% (includes Xinca and Garifuna); note - the 2003 Law of National Languages officially recognized 23 indigenous languages, including 21 Maya languages, Xinca, and Garifuna
- Ethnic Groups
- Mestizo (mixed Indigenous-Spanish - in local Spanish called Ladino) 56%, Maya 41.7%, Xinca (Indigenous, non-Maya) 1.8%, African descent 0.2%, Garifuna (mixed West and Central African, Island Carib, and Arawak) 0.1%, foreign 0.2%
- National Holiday
- Independence Day, 15 September (1821)
- Geographic Coordinates
- 15 30 N, 90 15 W
- Location
- Central America, bordering the North Pacific Ocean, between El Salvador and Mexico, and bordering the Gulf of Honduras (Caribbean Sea) between Honduras and Belize
- Airports
- 452
Destinations
Regions and cities, top sights, national parks, UNESCO sites, and festivals for visitors.
All UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Guatemala
Guatemala has four sites inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List, each representing a different aspect of the country's extraordinary natural and cultural heritage. These sites are recognized by the international community as being of outstanding universal value to humanity and deserve particular attention from any visitor to Guatemala.
Tikal National Park (1979) was one of the first sites in the world to be inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List under the combined cultural and natural criteria — a dual inscription that reflects the unique way in which the ancient Maya city and the surrounding jungle ecosystem have been preserved together as an integrated whole.
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Health and Safety
Medical facilities, vaccinations, disease risk, and sanitation conditions.
The full range of medical care is available in Guatemala City, but medical care outside the city is limited. Guatemala's public hospitals frequently experience serious shortages of basic medicines and equipment. Care in private hospitals is generally adequate for most common illnesses and injuries, and many of the medical specialists working in them are U.S.-trained and -certified.
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