Acatenango Packing List – What to Pack for the Overnight Hike

Are you planning to complete the overnight Acatenango Volcano hike during your visit to Guatemala, but are unsure what to pack? What size backpack will you need? Will you need warm clothes? Should you pack some extra snacks? Do you really need a headlamp? Would a small mirror come in handy? What about wet-wipes? You may still have a few of these questions, even if you’ve been on similar adventures before. So, in this Acatenango packing list we’ll share everything that we took with us and found useful on our overnight adventure.

We’ve completed many multi-day treks before, from spending 3 days in the Colca Canyon and completing the 5-day Salkantay Trek in Peru, to doing shorter overnight camping trips such as the Ausangate Trek to Rainbow Mountain in Peru and the Zunil Volcano hike in Guatemala. In addition, we’ve been living out of our backpacks for nearly 3 years now travelling full time. So we definitely know what we can live without and how to pack only the essential items.

If you’d like to see our hike up this volcano, then make sure to watch our dedicated Acatenango video on our YouTube channel. For more Guatemala videos, you can also check out our Guatemala series.

Quick Facts About Volcan Acatenango and Volcan de Fuego

Acatenango is one of 37 official volcanoes in Guatemala. This stratovolcano is located to the southwest of the city of Antigua. With a height of 3,976 m (13,044 ft), it’s one of the highest stratovolcanoes in Central America.

Acatenango has two peaks: the northern summit is called Yepocapa (3,800 m / 12,467 ft) and the southern summit is called Pico Central (3,976 m / 13,044 ft). Known historical eruptions of Acatenango occurred between 1924 and 1927.

Acatenango’s twin is Volcan de Fuego (Volcano of Fire) which is currently one of the 3 active volcanoes in Guatemala. Since 1524, Fuego has erupted seriously at least 60 times. Small eruptions occur very regularly, producing plumes of fine ash up to 10 km high, lava and hot pyroclastic flows.

The last major eruption of Fuego was in 2018. This was actually the deadliest eruption in Guatemala since Santa Maria Volcano erupted back in 1902.

Acatenango Packing List

Below is a list of items you should consider taking with you for your overnight Acatenango adventure. We’ve categorised them by clothing, accessories, hygiene products, food and drink, tech gear and some miscellaneous items. Further down, we’ll go into more detail on how to pack all these items, e.g. what to keep in your day-pack, what to put in your big bag and what to wear whilst hiking. We’ll also break down roughly how much cash you’ll need to take with you.

Can You Borrow Hiking Gear for the Acatenango Trek?

We appreciate that if you’re backpacking through Central America, you might not be doing a lot of hiking. (Although, there are some incredible volcano hikes in this part of the world, so we genuinely recommend doing a few during your trip).

If you’re wanting to pack light for such a trip, you probably won’t be taking bulky hiking boots, fleeces and down-jackets. Especially if you’re only planning to do this particular bucket-list hike.

Luckily, many tour companies provide essential hiking gear such as backpacks, fleeces, jackets, and other warm layers, as well as hiking poles, headlamps and sometimes even boots. However, depending on the company they’ll also charge you to hire these items. The quality of these items can vary and you might not get a say in what you’re given. Not to mention that hiking boots are quite hard to obtain and we generally don’t recommend hiking in borrowed shoes if you want to avoid blisters and other issues.

For this reason, we recommend bringing as much of your trusty hiking gear with you as possible, including a good day-pack and a pair of suitable hiking boots / shoes.

The Backpack: What Size Backpack Will You Hike Acatenango With

Okay, one of the most important items on your Acatenango packing list is going to be your backpack. Depending on the company you book your hike with, you might be provided with a larger backpack (between 45L-60L) that will be transported 80% of the way up the volcano for you in a truck. This means that you’ll only need to carry a day pack with some essentials the majority of the way. We borrowed a 48L backpack and packed everything we didn’t need during the day in it. Then we each carried a 25-30L day-pack up the volcano.

Bear in mind that companies can only take your large backpack 80% of the way up. From there, you’ll either have to carry it to base camp or pay an extra Q100 for a local porter to take it for you. The last 20% of the trail mainly hugs around the side of the volcano and isn’t as steep as the path up until then. Most guides refer to this section as being ‘Guatemalan flat’. However, you may be pretty tired by this point, so it’s good to have the option.

Of course, not all companies include this as standard in the price of the tour. Many charge extra for the porter service the whole way up. If you didn’t want to pay the extra fee, you’d have to carry all your belongings the entire way up. In this case, you’d only really need a large backpack.

We personally recommend having a decent day-pack to hike with. Our company provided a free day-pack in the tour price. However, it was a tad too small and also didn’t have sufficient waist support. This meant that some people had to carry all the weight on their shoulders.

We were literally the only ones in our group not wearing tiny and uncomfortable looking day-packs.

What to Put in Your Day-Pack

If you’re carrying a day-pack with your essentials in whilst a porter or truck takes your larger backpack up Acatenango, then the following items should stay with you during the day.

Enough drinking water. Our guides suggested 1L per person, but be mindful that you’re generally going to drink more on the way up. We recommend carrying about 1.5 to 2L with you on the first day. You’ll sweat a lot, and you don’t want to be dehydrated and increase your chances of getting altitude sickness.

A fleece or thermal top. It’ll likely be warm on the way up but we recommend having a long-sleeve top with you in case you get chilly as you climb higher. Having a windbreaker or rain jacket is also recommended, especially in the rainy or shoulder season.

Hiking poles. They can aid you on the way up and down Acatenango, especially if you have knee problems.

Valuables. Things like cash, ID’s, phones and camera gear should all be in your day-pack. Have them in a waterproof case or a zip-lock bag in case it rains. Take a waterproof cover for your backpack.

Hygiene and other items. Sun cream, toilet paper, tissues, hand sanitiser, a few wet wipes, a small first-aid kit that has plasters, paracetamol / ibuprofen and eye drops in, as well as a small mirror if you wear contact lenses.

Your lunch and snacks. You’ll need to make enough room in your day-pack for your lunch, as you’ll eat that half-way up to basecamp. Have some extra snacks with you too.

A bin bag. We also recommend carrying a small plastic bag with you that you can use for your waste. Make sure not to throw away anything on the trail or at basecamp!

Dog treats. Okay this one’s a bit random but the company we booked with packed some dog food bags, so that you can feed the loyal dogs that go on the hike with you.

What to Keep in Your Big Backpack

Below are the items that should go in your main backpack that either a porter or a truck will carry up Acatenango. Now, if you have to (or decide to) carry everything, then we still recommend putting these items at the bottom of the bag and putting the day-pack essentials in a more accessible part of your backpack.

Remaining water (3-3.5L). It’s recommended to take around 4-5L of water, as there’s no running water on Acatenango. This will be for drinking but also for sharing with the guides for cooking and hot drinks! If you carry between 1.5-2L in the day-bag, then store the rest in your big backpack.

Extra food and snacks. You’ll also have to put your breakfast tub for the second day in this backpack, as well as any extra snacks.

Additional warm layers. You probably won’t need your down jacket, thick fleece, long trousers, hats or gloves during the hike. Unless of course the weather forecast shows cold temperatures.

Change of clothing / pyjamas. Pack a change of underwear, socks, an extra t-shirt and your long-pyjamas in your big backpack.

Slides / slippers / sandals. It may feel good to take your hiking shoes off at the end of the day and walk around the campsite in your slides.

Hygiene products and other essentials. Your toothbrush, toothpaste and any other personal hygiene items such as deodorant, wet wipes, face cream and optional make-up should go in this bag. If you’re a woman and on your period, don’t forget to pack some feminine hygiene products too. If you wear contact lenses, a small mirror will be necessary too.

Tech accessories. Things like a headlamp and power bank. Although, keep the power bank in the daypack if you think you’ll need it during the day.

Hiking Outfit: What to Wear whilst Hiking Acatenango

Below we’ll discuss our recommended Acatenango hiking outfit.

Hiking boots or shoes. The most important item to think about is your footwear. We highly recommend hiking boots for the added ankle support, which is especially useful on the slippery and rocky terrain. You can also wear hiking shoes or trainers with good grip. Please avoid wearing sandals or fashion shoes.

Hiking or sports socks. Make sure that your socks are thick and fit well to help fend off blisters, come up high enough above your footwear to prevent rubbing and are made of a good material. Perhaps avoid white unless you’re looking to change their color to grey.

Bottom layer. Depending on the season, you can either wear long trousers / leggings or shorts. You’ll start hiking between 10-10:30AM, which means that the temperatures will already be warmer. We personally like to start our hikes in shorts because going uphill always makes us feel warm. It’ll be much colder at basecamp though, so you’ll want to change into something warmer. If you go on the extra Fuego hike, or the sunrise summit hike, definitely wear a long bottom layer.

Top layer. Again, it’ll be warm hiking up so a t-shirt or sleeveless top will be sufficient. However, we recommend carrying a warmer top layer with you in case you get chilly as you get higher. Again, you’ll need extra layers for hiking Fuego and summiting Acatenango in the morning.

Accessories. Wear a cap or bandana on your head to protect you against the sun. Trust us, scalp burn is pretty horrible. I got that after hiking Santa Maria Volcano and my scalp was itchy and flaky for two weeks. Wear sunglasses if it’s sunny, although you’ll be walking in the forest for quite some time. They can protect your eyes against dust too. A buff is a good little addition that you may want to wear to avoid inhaling a ton of dust or getting a dirty face. We used them on and off, although we must say it’s quite hard to breath in them whilst you’re hiking uphill. However, they did come in handy again at night and in the morning when it was cold and windy.

Hiking / trekking poles. These are optional and we didn’t hire them for our hike (our knees probably won’t thank us for this later in life). However, we do recommend having them, especially during the descent. The terrain is slippery and even people with poles fell in front of us many times.

How Much Money to Take When Hiking Acatenango

Even though you’ve already paid for your tour, there are some additional costs you may want to be prepared for.

• Park entrance fee. Some companies include the Q50 entry fee in their tour cost, but you may need to pay it in cash when you arrive.
• Volcan Fuego hike. This is an additional hike that, in most cases, needs to be paid directly to your guide in cash. The cost ranges between Q200-250 per person.
• Sunset hike. Our guides offered a short sunset hike for those who didn’t want to do Fuego. This was Q100 per person.
• Toilet. Have some small change for the toilet at the trailhead. We paid Q5 per person.
• Snacks and drinks on the trail. You can actually buy some drinks and snacks at the lunch spot. For reference, a bottle of Gatorade was about Q25.
• Tips for your guides. Bring some extra cash for tips. Normally 10-15% is sufficient, but it also depends on your experience.
• Paying for your borrowed items. You may be able to borrow everything you need for free, but things like big backpacks and hiking poles normally cost extra. We had to pay for these upon our return to the office, which is to make sure you haven’t damaged any of the gear you borrowed. If you did, then you’ll need to pay extra for that too.

In summary, carry what you need but don’t carry too much cash on you either.

Final Thoughts on our Acatenango Packing List

We hope that you’ve found our Acatenango packing list useful. As mentioned at the start, we’ve done many multi-day treks in different climates over the years. Whilst we pack very similarly for each, the final list of items we decide to take always varies slightly.

One thing that we’d like to emphasize when packing for Acatenango is that you definitely don’t need to take a ton of things. After all, you’ll only be spending one night on the volcano, so you don’t need to take everything but the kitchen sink. As long as you pack the absolute essentials you’ll survive up there. Plus, don’t forget you may have to carry everything up yourself, so best not to overpack.

Have you ever done the Acatenango overnight hike before? Did we miss something important off our list? Let us know in the comments below.