How to Get to and Get Around Lake Atitlan in Guatemala

Lake Atitlan is without a doubt the first place on most visitors Guatemala itineraries. If you’ve already been planning your travels, you’ve probably noticed that there’s more than one town to visit during your stay. Although they are quite spread out, it’s actually pretty easy to travel between these settlements.

We spent 2 weeks on Lake Atitlan and visited pretty much every town dotted around the lake using all available modes of transport. So, in this blog post we’ll discuss how to get to Lake Atitlan from popular places such as Guatemala City and Antigua first before delving into the different modes of transport and giving you some useful advice based on our experiences.

If you’d also like to see what we got up to around Lake Atitlan, then make sure to watch our dedicated Lake Atitlan video on our YouTube channel. For more Guatemala videos, you can also check out our Guatemala series.

About Lake Atitlan (Lago de Atitlán)

Lake Atitlan (Lago de Atitlán) is located in the highlands of Guatemala at 1,562 m / 5,125 ft above sea level. The lake is surrounded by three huge volcanoes: San Pedro, Toliman, and Atitlan.

Thousands of years ago, Lake Atitlan was actually a super volcano called Los Chocoyos. After its last eruption the volcano’s chamber collapsed and formed a caldera. The rivers then filled the caldera with water and turned it into the stunning lake people come from all over the world to see.

Each of the towns surrounding the lake have something unique to offer, from volcano hikes to cultural or spiritual experiences. Therefore, make sure to do a few day trips to visit as many as you can using any or all of the transportation options below.

How to Get to Lake Atitlan?

Before we dive into how to get around Lake Atitlan, let’s discuss how to get there from other parts of Guatemala. Most visitors arrive from either Guatemala City, Antigua, or Xela (Quetzaltenango) and will be dropped off in either Panajachel or San Pedro on Lake Atitlan.

Note. If you arrive in Panajachel then you’ll probably need to take a water taxi, tuk-tuk, or a colectivo to your destination, depending on where you’re staying on Lake Atitlan.

How to Get to Lake Atitlan from Guatemala City or Antigua?

Shared or Private Tourist Shuttles

An easy way to reach Lake Atitlan from Guatemala City or Antigua is by shared or private tourist shuttle.

You can book your shuttle straight from Guatemala Airport so you don’t even need to travel into the city centre. Most shuttles from Guatemala City normally go via Antigua, so the journey time will be a bit longer. Plus, you may have to wait around a bit depending on the arrival time of other passengers.

It’s also worth highlighting that these shuttles won’t be the most comfortable minivan rides of your life. However, they’ll definitely make your journey simple and stress free. If you have the means, you can always book a private shuttle.

You can book your shuttle online in advance, especially if you’re planning to travel from Guatemala Airport. From Antigua, you can book your shuttle from most local tour agency offices. Some of the companies that we used, and which had good reviews, were Monte Verde Tours and GuateGo.

Chicken Bus (Camioneta)

If you’re up for an adventure, are on a tighter budget or don’t have a huge amount of luggage with you, definitely consider taking the chicken bus, or camioneta. They are old American school buses that have been redecorated and repurposed, and are the main mode of transport for most locals.

From Guatemala City you would need to travel from the airport to the city centre first. Unfortunately, there won’t be a direct chicken bus to Panajachel, so you’ll need to change a few times. Always ask the driver or the assistant for advice but normally there are changes in Chimaltenango, Los Encuentros and Solola.

How to Get to Lake Atitlan from Xela (Quetzaltenango)?

Shared or Private Tourist Shuttles

We actually travelled to Lake Atitlan from Xela with a private tourist shuttle in the end. You can book your shuttle online or at most tour agencies within the city. They go to multiple locations, such as Pana or San Pedro, directly when possible. Although we booked our shuttle to San Pedro, our driver drove us to where we were staying in San Marcos, which was actually slightly closer for him.

Once again, depending on how many fellow travellers you share the ride with, it may not be the most comfortable minivan ride of your life. However, they definitely make your journey simple and stress free.

Some of the companies that we used, and which had good reviews, were Monte Verde Tours and GuateGo.

Chicken Bus (Camioneta)

For the adventurous, or very tight budget travellers, we recommend taking the chicken bus from Xela to Lake Atitlan. Again, there won’t be a direct chicken bus to Panajachel, so you’ll need to change a few times. To Panajachel there’s usually two changes, the first in Los Encuentros and the second in Solola.

How to Get Around Lake Atitlan?

Below we’ve highlighted the 3 main modes of transportation for getting around Lake Atitlan depending on where you’re staying and what towns you’re planning on visiting.

1. Water Taxis (Lanchas)

Using water taxis, or lanchas, is the easiest way to visit the towns dotted around Lake Atitlan. Below we’ve provided some useful information about how to use the water taxis, how much they cost and what to be aware of.

How to use the water taxis on Lake Atitlan

Once you know your destination just head to the dock in the town where you’re staying. In bigger towns such as Pana, San Pedro, San Marcos, and San Juan there will be assistants guiding you to the right boat, so make sure to tell them where you’re headed.

The boat driver / assistant will also shout the current location when they dock, so you’ll know it’s time to disembark even if you’re stuck in the middle of the boat and can’t really see much.

Depending on when you arrive at the dock, you may have to wait a few minutes or longer before you leave. Sometimes the boat is arriving from another location so you can just hop on and be on your way. However, there were times when we had to wait around 5-10 minutes. It wasn’t always an issue, apart from one or two instances in the afternoon when the water was super choppy. Sitting on a boat and being bashed about by the swell was actually worse than the bumpy ride that followed.

Cost and Timetable

In bigger towns we saw price lists to certain destinations. It’s worth checking when you arrive so you know the current price. For the most part we paid Q25 per person for every ride we took in 2024. This can of course add up pretty quickly, so consider getting a tuk-tuk or colectivo when there’s road access between the towns. If you’re on a tight budget, then this could work out slightly cheaper in the end. For example, we took a tuk-tuk between San Pedro and San Juan and it was only Q10 per person one-way.

We recommend having some cash ready before you board. Sometimes we had to pay in advance and sometimes when we got off the boat. They were actually pretty good at giving change back for Q100 notes, whereas we needed smaller change for tuk-tuk’s and colectivos.

According to the timetables we saw in a few towns, boats run from about 7AM until about 7:30PM. However, there isn’t a dedicated departure time for the boats. They work like most colectivos in Latin America and usually only leave the dock if there’s enough people on the boat. You may also experience the whole ‘the more the merrier’ boat ride here and there, as they will try to fit as many people on them as possible.

Other things to know about using water taxis around Lake Atitlan

Usually the lake was pretty calm in the mornings which meant that our boat ride was smooth and somewhat relaxing. The volcanos are more likely to be visible in the morning too, so we definitely recommend getting an early morning ride whenever you can. Riding around Lake Atitlan actually reminded us of the boat ride we took across Lake Arenal to reach La Fortuna in Costa Rica, where we had great views of Arenal Volcano.

In the afternoons, the wind tends to pick up and the lake becomes pretty choppy. We definitely didn’t look forward to our afternoon boat rides back to San Marcos. The journey can be pretty bumpy (I’m talking about nearly breaking my tailbone a few times kinda bumpy)!

If it’s a windy day, then you’ll have a bumpy ride no matter what time of day you’re travelling.

Top Tip. If you get motion sick easily, definitely take something before you get onto the boat and try to avoid eating just before your ride too. Sitting towards the middle and back helps to avoid the crazy bumps, but you may not have the choice.

Note. If you’re travelling with luggage, they’ll store that on top of the boat.

2. Tuk-tuks

Immediately after setting foot in San Marcos, where we based ourselves for two weeks, we noticed that the best method for getting around the town was by tuk-tuk. Every town and village dotted around the shores of Lake Atitlan has many tuk-tuks. The roads are normally pretty narrow, so tuk-tuks are better suited for traversing them. The fare was around Q5-10 within the towns in 2024.

Now, you can also take tuk-tuks between the towns if they’re connected by road. They can be slightly cheaper than water-taxis too. As mentioned above, we only paid Q10 per person for a one way ride to San Juan from San Pedro. From Pana to Santa Catalina it was a bit more (Q20), but it’s a longer distance. Tuk-tuk rides between towns should cost you around Q10-20 (2024).

Note. Always ask the tuk-tuk driver the price and agree on it before you hop in. When we got off the boat in Pana and wanted to get a tuk-tuk to Santa Catalina the first driver wanted to charge us Q70! We said no, since there are colectivos between these two places that only charge Q5 per person! However, soon after another tuk-tuk driver offered us a fair price (Q20) and even stopped for us at a viewpoint along the way. Of course, we gave this driver a little extra for being nice to us.

3. Colectivos (Pickup Trucks)

Not as common as tuk-tuks, you can actually hop onto one of these pickup trucks between a few towns and villages. These colectivos are definitely the most affordable way to get between towns with road access if they’re available.

They can get really crowded and you might end up with a spot standing on the back of the truck, hanging on for dear life as the truck winds its way through the mountain roads. We actually travelled on one of these pick up trucks from Santa Catalina back to Pana and it was a ride we’ll never forget. It actually reminded us of riding on the back of a Willys Jeep from Salento to the Cocora Valley in Colombia.

Final Thoughts on How to Get to and Get Around Lake Atitlan

Getting to and getting around Lake Atitlan seemed a bit confusing to us at first, but thankfully we quickly got our heads around it. We hope this guide helped you to understand your available options as well as giving you an insight of what it’s like to travel by water taxis, tuk-tuks or colectivos. Visiting the different towns on the shores of the lake is why most people come to Lake Atitlan, so you definitely can’t get away from using these modes of transport.

As always, we would love to hear about your experience travelling around Lake Atitlan. Please also comment below if you have any updated information that would be useful for fellow travellers.