Lanquin Itinerary (2 Days) including Beautiful Semuc Champey

Lanquin Itinerary (2 Days) including Beautiful Semuc Champey

San Agustin Lanquin, otherwise known as Lanquin, is a small mountain town in the Central Highlands of Guatemala. Located within the province of Alta Verapaz, it is surrounded by some of the most gorgeous scenery in the whole country, with karst rock formations, lush jungles, huge cave systems, flowing rivers and, most famously, Semuc Champey.

Despite these natural attractions, Lanquin town has remained largely quiet and undeveloped, so what is there to do here? This Lanquin itinerary will cover everything you need to know for your upcoming trip, including a detailed plan of activities, prices, budgets and other tips.

Lanquin Itinerary in Short

• Day 1: River Tubing and Explore Lanquin Town
• Day 2: Semuc Champey and K’An Ba Caves
• Day 3 (Optional): Rafting the Cahabon River

Lanquin Itinerary in Full

How many days do you need in Lanquin?

Many travellers miss Lanquin altogether due to the long distances spent travelling from the north or south of Guatemala. Lanquin is a solid 10-hour bus ride from both Flores and Antigua, making it both uncomfortable and time-consuming! Some guides say 8-10 hours, but it’s definitely on the upper end of that scale and sometimes even longer…

Despite this, a stop in Lanquin is a great way to break up the journey across the country. Particularly since I try to avoid flying wherever possible. With this in mind, how long would I recommend staying in Lanquin?

The main draw of the area is Semuc Champey which is truly spectacular but only needs one day to explore. However, the travel time for just one day of exploring is ridiculous, and in my opinion not worth it. Therefore, I think a fair trip length for Lanquin is 2 days, which excludes the travel days on either side. If, like me, you don’t like packing up your bags and getting on a bus and want to extend, you can find alternative things to do, hence why I’ve included an optional third day for this Lanquin itinerary.

2-Day Lanquin Itinerary

Day 1: River Tubing

Tubing

After a long journey the day before, a chilled day of activities is a great way to ease you into life in Lanquin.

There are several places you can go tubing in the area. I chose to book a tour through my hostel (Zephyr Lodge) which went down the Lanquin River (Rio Lanquin). Starting at Grutas de Lanquin, we floated down the river avoiding trees, sipping drinks and enjoying the scenery. There were a couple of stops along the way where we could buy food or drinks. We stopped at El Retiro Lodge to play volleyball which was fun. We were picked up at the end and transported back to our accommodation.

Times: Every Day, 11:30am-15:00pm
Duration: 3.5 hours (though time on the water was less than this)
Price: 100 GTQ

There is also a tubing launch spot near Semuc Champey onto Rio Cahabon.

Explore Lanquin

Once back, you can wander into the small town of Lanquin. There isn’t loads to do here but it’s nice to get a feel for a new place. The streets are quiet, there’s little sign of tourism and best of all, it’s a great place to find cheap food!

Day 2: Semuc Champey Tour

Day 2 of this Lanquin itinerary is the day you’ve been waiting for! It’s time to visit Semuc Champey National Park! From Lanquin, it’s approximately an hour’s drive over extremely bumpy roads!

The essentials you will need for a day at Semuc Champey are wet shoes, a bottle of water, a swimsuit, suncream, a padlock, and money for any snacks or drinks during the day. You can rent wet shoes from your hostel or from locals near the bridge.

There is a debate over whether to visit Semuc Champey as part of a tour group or to do it independently. It’s certainly cheaper to visit independently, however, I opted for a tour as you need a guide for the K’an Ba Caves and it made transportation one less thing to worry about. Throughout the day, our guides pointed out different animals and plants, plus they picked out natural plants to test out as food or paint.

Different tours seem to do the activities in a different order, though they all cover the K’an Ba caves, El Mirador (the viewpoint) and the Semuc Champey pools.

K’an Ba Cave

Located around 500 feet from the entrance to Semuc Champey are the K’an Ba Caves.

You will head uphill away from the river for about 5-10 minutes until you reach the dark entrance to the cave. At this point, you will be given a candle – your only light source for the adventure. As you head into the caves, you will wade through water and follow ropes to lead the path. Your guides will lead the route through the cave up and down ladders, squeezing through gaps, sliding down crevices and even scaling a little waterfall. It’s an adventure that almost certainly wouldn’t be deemed ‘safe’ in Europe, but it’s a great adventure and a lot of fun.

The K’an Ba cave tour should last around an hour depending on the size of your group.

If lunch isn’t included in your tour, there is a local all-you-can-eat BBQ place for 60Q. Some tour companies and hostels offer a packed lunch (usually for an additional 40Q).

Semuc Champey Viewpoint

Head up to the viewpoint of Semuc Champey – El Mirador. This is the only spot where you can see the pools of Semuc Champey from above to see their true colours! The ethereal turquoise waters are unreal and the photos honestly don’t do it justice!

The hike to the viewpoint is pretty much straight uphill and takes around 30 minutes to reach the top. If you are a fast hiker, you can do it in 20 minutes. There are steps and a handrail for most of the route, making it doable for most travellers.

Local vendors sell coconut water and other drinks en route, should you need to refresh during the sweaty hike. And believe me when I say you can get very sweaty in just 20 minutes!

By the time you’re back at the bottom, you’re more than ready to cool down and relax in Semuc Champey’s magical pools!

Semuc Champey Pools

As the Cahabon River flows down the valley between the karst mountains, it eventually reaches a natural limestone formation shaped much like a bridge.

Most of the water floods down below and disappears. Whilst some water flows over the rocks, creating these incredibly clear pools, perfect for relaxing in! And that’s Semuc Champey, which literally translates as ‘where the river hides’!

These tranquil pools vary in size and depth and flow slowly from one to the next. Take a dip at each of the levels by jumping and sliding your way down. If you are lucky, whilst you are in the pools, you may be able to hear howler monkeys in the trees.

NOTE: The rocks are extremely slippery so wet shoes are helpful.

Times: Every Day, 9:00am-17:00pm
Duration: 8 hours
Price: 200 GTQ

Day 3: Rafting or Exploring Semuc Champey Independently

Exploring Semuc Champey Independently

If you have decided to spend a third day in Lanquin, you may wish to explore Semuc Champey solo. This option is great for photographers, explorers and travellers that want to get away from the crowds. By exploring away from any tour groups, you will get the chance to go at your own pace and see any parts that you didn’t see before.

I suggest going early in the day and booking your own transport the night before so that you get the place to yourself.

With the extra freedom and time to explore the area, make sure to check out the very top of Semuc Champey, where the fast-flowing river disappears under the pools. There is also a rope swing further down, as well as some great places to jump into the green river. Some brave (or crazy) travellers also jumped off the bridge!

NOTE: Be careful of shallow water and rocks just beneath the surface as sometimes the water level can drop.

White Water Rafting on the Cahabon River

If you fancy some adrenaline, head to Cahabon River to go white water rafting. It’s meant to be one of the best places in Guatemala to raft!

The Cahabon River has Class III and Class IV rapids to tackle and is surrounded by a beautiful lush jungle making it both an exhilarating and scenic adventure.

Most tours will offer pickup from your accommodation, lunch and snacks.

Lanquin Itinerary Mapped Out

Lanquin Budget

You’re probably wondering how much should you expect to spend during this 2-day Lanquin itinerary.

As a backpacker, I spent 940Q (120 USD) during my two days in Lanquin. The breakdown is approximately as follows:

If you add a third day to this itinerary, rafting tours cost around 50-75 USD depending on the rafting company and which river you raft down. The Cahabon River is more expensive than the Lanquin River.

What to do if you have more time in Lanquin?

Honestly, if I had time to kill, I would head to the next destination and spend more time there. That is unless you absolutely love the jungle, or really hate buses! If you are heading to northern Guatemala, spend your extra time in Flores. If you are heading further south, head to Antigua or Lake Atitlan where an extra day will really come in handy!

But as always, here are some more suggestions for things to do in Lanquin.

Hiking

The mountainous region of Lanquin is an adventurer’s playground so head out into nature and enjoy a beautiful walk.

There aren’t many marked hiking trails around Lanquin so it is recommended that you go with a local guide that knows the area well. They will be able to guide you through the jungle and up to one of the amazing viewpoints. Ask your accommodation if they can sort something out or direct you towards a reputable guide.

Kayaking

As well as white water rafting, you can also hire a kayak and head down the Cahabon or Lanquin River. If you have experience already, that’s great. Beginners are also able to join with inflatable double kayaks available with a guide to help steer at the back.

Lanquin Caves (Grutas de Lanquin)

If you decided against doing the K’An Ba caves as part of a tour, then you can explore these impressive caves as an alternative without the need for a guide. It costs 30Q to enter and there are some lights and rails to help you explore this huge cave system. The cave system goes as far as 10km deep, so you can spend as long as you want exploring the chambers. Just make sure to bring a good headtorch and some grippy shoes as it can get slippery!

If you linger around until sunset you can also see hundreds of bats exiting the cave.

Other caves of interest include Yaxlik caves and Candelaria caves.

Visit Coban

Around 65km west of Lanquin is Coban, the nearest major city to Lanquin and a somewhat nearby hub for outdoor activities. From here you can visit the surrounding areas for adventure or embrace city life. It even has a shopping mall and a McDonald’s!

Before you go

Thank you for reading my 2-day Lanquin itinerary. If guides, itineraries and travel content like this interest you, head over to my blog page to find out more.

If you are new to Matt’s Next Steps, check out the About Me page to find out a bit more about who I am, my travel adventures, and why I wanted to become a travel writer.

Please comment below and let me know your thoughts and experiences, or if there is anything else you want information on.

Happy travelling!