A Hidden Corner Of Guatemala

By Stanley C. Diamond, Author of “What's an American Doing Here? Reflections on Travel in the Third World”

Shhh! Don’t tell anyone else about this. I am not sure Guatemala wants foreigners to know this place exists. We did not encounter a single other Americans when we were there. It took a third trip to Guatemala and the accompaniment of five young kids for us to discover an unadvertised, virtually perfect family retreat in this otherwise alluring country. Although some Americans avoid Guatemala because of crime and occasional hysterical travel warnings from our State Department, we have found the country to be a land of immense fascination, variety, beauty and friendliness on each of our trips. At any rate, going there does have to be within a visitor’s tolerance for the advertised risks. Mind you, we don’t hang out on back streets in Guatemala City at night, nor do we travel on lonely highways after dark. But we are not alone in the hotels either; many European and Mexican visitors and quite a few other Americans brave the journey to delight in the many colorful sites.

This time we ventured forth with our family and had to plan accordingly. We had only eight days to ensure our kids and grandkids sampled the many pleasures we enjoyed on our own previous trips and to build in kid fun as well. Our first big decision was to skip Tikal. That dramatic Mayan jungle ruin was one of the most impressive sites of all on our earlier trips but its distance from other tourist destinations would have required another plane ride- more sitting, more wasted time, and lots more money. So instead, we found what turned out to be a spectacular substitute to replace our Tikal days, namely, a complex of lovely hotels alongside both an amusement park and a water park located in the town of Retalhuleu, a three hour drive west of Guatemala City. The complex belongs to an organization called IRTRA.

We read that the legislature in Guatemala passed an ordinance in 1962 to help businesses offer recreation to employees. This law, named the Creation of the Instituto de Recreación de los Trabajadores de la Empresa Privada, IRTRA (the Recreational Institute for the Laborers of Private Enterprise) establishes that all managers must contribute 0.3 percent of all the wages and ordinary salaries paid to its employees. These parks were a product of that initiative. Now, there is a place where Guatemalan workers can enjoy a Disneyworld-like vacation with their family for an affordable rate in this generally poor country. I hope Americans don’t ever crowd out the pleasant, vacationing workers we met there by taking too much advantage of this nearby bargain holiday site. For members of IRTRA, a double room in a brand new building (we had five people in one of our lovely, spacious and spotless rooms) costs about $30.00 a night. Outsiders pay about three times that amount. Less expensive but very adequate hotel rooms in other parts of the complex can be had for less than $50.00 a night even for foreigners. The official name of this resort is Los Hostales del IRTRA. We stayed in a section of the complex called Hostal Panajunoj which consists of five separate, attractive hotels built in styles that range from African to Polynesian to Mayan, each distinctive and sparkling new. On the site of Los Hostales are also three restaurants (the food is only fair), four hotel complexes, beautiful flowers and trees, three pools, a jacuzzi, a mini-golf course and more.

As if this alone were not enough for a family getaway, a little train takes you from the complex to the equally inexpensive amusement park and the exciting water park just outside the hotel area. It was Disney-like indeed, except for the absence of long lines, the manageable dimensions of the area and the affordable prices. With their entrance ticket for either of the recreational parks, the kids could go on whatever rides they wanted just about as often as they liked. Lots of local visitors come to Xetulul, the amusement park, or to Xocomil, the water park, on day trips so the best time to visit is on a weekday when there are fewer Guatemalans and no lines at all.

While Xocomil features river-like rides and splashing , giant slides with screaming kids spilling down pretty man-made scenery, the amusement park built only five years ago is also easily worth an entire day with its roller coasters, wild rides and mild rides, ambitious reproductions of European cities, lots to do and plenty to eat. An all inclusive entrance ticket (enough rides for anyone) costs $6.00 for IRTRA members, about twice as much as for visiting kids and $22.00 for other adults for the day. A full day at each of the two parks and two or three nights at the hotels makes for a relaxing and very enjoyable time for all family members.

The IRTRA complex may not be enough of a reason in itself to travel to Guatemala but, combined with everything else that the country offers, it is a surprising bonus for families with kids. The nearby city of Antigua is one of the most beautiful colonial towns in our hemisphere, not far away Lake Atitlan with its volcanoes and little Mayan villages around the shore takes your breath away, Chichicastenango is one of the world’s most colorful markets, there is beautiful mountain scenery for endless miles and, of course, if you have a few additional days, the great temples at Tikal surrounded by a jungle full of towering trees, chattering monkeys and macaws perching silently on low branches is a very special tourist experience. Add in friendly people, good traveler facilities, reasonable prices, and an opportunity to brush up on your Spanish and you get a chance to have a really wonderful travel adventure without even crossing an ocean.

For your information: Any travel agency in Guatemala can make arrangements for you at one of the hotels at Los Hostales. If you like, you can access the hotels yourself at http://www.irtra.org.gt/ but that site is in Spanish. The hotels can be reached by rental car or bus from Antigua in two to three hours or Quetzaltenango in much less time . There is an airport nearby. If this is your primary destination, you can even go directly from the airport in Guatemala City when you arrive.


For more information about the travels of Stanley C. Diamond, Author of “What's an American Doing Here? Reflections on Travel in the Third World” (ISBN: 978-1-60911-659-0, ISBN / SKU: 1-60911-659-3), go to www.travellectures.com or contact him directly at travelshow@aol.com