tajumulco volcano

I was in Quetzaltenango (Xela). I heard from others it was possible to do the hike with no guide.Myself and 4 other random travellers decided to climb it on our own, and also travel to the site via public transport. Instead of paying 350-600Q for the trek, we paid... about 60-80Q perhaps. I also heard that even if you pay lots of money, you still go with uncomfortable public transport.Travel to the volcano - 2.5 - 3 hours with public transport.We woke up at 03:50. Met up at 4:20 in Xela. Took a taxi to the bus terminal in Xela at 4:40. Took a bus at 05:00 to San Marcos, to arrive at about 07:00. At San Marcos we took another bus to Tajumulco, to arrive at about 08:00.Some 12 year old kid driving a pick-up track came over to try to charge us 20Q each for entrance. I told him I don't know who he was, and we dully began ascending.The climb - 3 hours up at good pace. We were 5 men in our 20s, none of us overweight. Guided trips take 4-5 hours.Views are amazing constantly. You start following a road, then you are treking/hiking uphill across woodland. Then at the end you scramble some rocks.Hard hike, but totally worth it. The hike down the volcano took us 1 hour and 40 minutes.Then we travelled back for 3 hours, to arrive back in Xela at... 6-7pm.Cheap, tough, beautiful views - worth it.

First, I'll say that it's a terrific place to go, and if you like natural beauty and heights, you'll love this. I went on Jan 10/11 with a group led by QuetzalTrekkers (great organization). On Saturday we hiked to the camp site that is about 200 meters below the peak. We camped, then rose at 4:00am in order to reach the top for sunrise. It was a beautiful clear morning. To the east we viewed several volcanoes that would occasionally burp, producing vertical clouds that were illuminated to morning glows by the rising sun behind them. It was cold! Below freezing with a strong, strong wind. Be prepared!The unfortunate part was the campsite. By nightfall there were about 20 tents and probably 100+ people. Although this is posted as a protected area, many people chopped limbs from live trees in order to build campfires. People sang and shouted to each other all night long. They were having fun, and that's fine, but in the U.S. we are accustomed to hushed voices at a campsite after 9 or 10. Our neighbors continued chopping on a tree that was about 5 feet from our tent, all night long. They were still at it at 3:30am when we got up. Soon, there were be no trees remaining there. There's a lot of trash on the entire trail up. At the campsite, it's awful. It's a garbage dump - bottles, plastic bags, food wrappers, unused food simply discarded on the ground. I rate the attraction as "poor" mainly to get attention. Maybe by raising awareness of this problem, somebody will do something. But, given the remoteness of the location, and the other priorities of the government, I am pessimistic.

Had a great hike up Tajumulco with Adrenalina Tours. Its not a tough route, but the altitude can be a challange. Amazing views from the top in the morning.

We did the overnight hike to Tajumulco with Quetzal tours and we're very happy with our choice. Josë, the owner of Quetzal Tours was quick to respond and he gave us a very good price: for just the two of us we had to pay Q450 each, while other tour operators charged Q600 or 650 if we wanted to do the trip with two. We were happy we did it this way, as it gave us much more flexbility and we didn't feel pressurised whenever we wanted to take a break. Besides this, when we came back down the next day, we passed a group of one of the bigger organisations that were just starting their trip and they were with 27 people. So we were once more happy with our decision to take a private guide. The first day we hiked to the campsite, which sits at an altitude of approximately 4000 meter. It is really basic and there are no facilities. Please remember that it gets really cold there during the night, so make sure you have enough warm layers on you. We weren't cold because we made sure that we wore enough clothes. The hike itself was fantastic: the walk to the top was hard because of the altitude, but once you get to the summit you forget the effort it took you to get there. The view is spectacular and the sunrice is magnificent. This was definitely one of the highlights of our trip to Central-America.

This is a great hike and can be done solo in one day, round trip from Xela. Before we did this hike we looked on line for all the info we could get. It was easy enough to come by. We both felt that we could do it no problem on our own from the info we gathered. I noticed that tour companies camp out with their customers overnight to get everyone used to the elevation. These groups come from Xela, which is at quite an elevation to begin with. Also the trail head to the hike is at 10.000 feet. However take breaks and listen to your body should you go it alone. The trail is easy enough to follow. You can get up real early to catch a 5.00 am chicken bus to San Marcos. In San Marcos get bus for heading for the turnoff for the town of Tajumulco. The trail head is signed, and it is directly at the turnoff. That puts you on the trail head at no later than 8.30. If you are an avid hiker you can get to the top in under 3 hours. An hour of amazing views. With clear skies you can see Volcan Santa Maria. Also Tapachula, Mexico and Volcan Tacana are visible. Get to the top as soon as possible before clouds form. Descending will be 2 or 2.5 hours. The trail ends where the bus picks you up and you are back in San Marcos by 4 and on a bus to Xela. Get back to Xela by 6. By all means, do a tour if that is your thing. We just feel we need to let others know how easy the logistics are. Dress warm. This is a great hike from top to bottom. Views are just great the whole way.

Quetzal Tours (not trekkers) have local guides that knows these places really good and adds a lot of interesting knowledge to it. With a two day trip you get a really nice experience with beautiful nature and good wibes :)

Volcan Tajumulco is a stunningly beautiful hike that is doable for anyone in reasonably good hiking condition. The magnificent views start about 45 minutes into the hike and continue all the way to the summit. The trail itself starts out as a dirt road and slowly narrows to a single track trail after an hour or so and is also beautiful. Since others have written about the beauty of this trail I thought that instead I would provide some info that might be helpful in planning your climb.1. Guide Service. A guide service is not necessary to do this hike. You can see the peak from the trailhead and the trail is easy to follow, except for the fact that at times the trail splits, but they always seem to merge together within a short distance. You will not get lost as long as you are paying attention. This being said I would still recommend using a guide service for 3 reasons. 1. A guide service can provide transport directly to the trailhead, and directly back to your hotel afterwards. 2. A good guide, I will recommend one later, can provide a lot of information on what you are seeing and points of interest along the trail. It can add a whole new dimension to your adventure. 3. Once you reach the summit you can cross over the top and hike down the other side of the mountain. This trail is more exposed than the one you ascended and is gorgeous but it would be difficult to navigate without a guide. After 45 minutes this trail eventually converges with the trail you used to ascend the mountain. This little diversion will add less than 15 minutes to your descent and is well worth it.2. Arriving to Trailhead Options 1. Guide Service directly to trailhead 2. Public transportation. The trailhead is on the road. Buses or taxis etc. can leave you off and pick you up right at the trailhead. Driving time from Pana in a van or taxi is 4+ hrs, Xela 2+ hrs and San Marcos 45 +/- minutes.3. Hiking distance, elevation etc. The roundtrip hike is 8-10 miles (I could not get an exact measurement) with an elevation gain of 3720 ft. The trailhead elevation is 10,200 ft and the peak is 13,920 ft. There are no ups and downs on this trail. It is straight up to the top. There is one option to shorten the hike 1 mile each way and reduce the vertical ascent by 500 ft. The first mile or so of the trail is a dirt road and if your guide/ride has 4 wheel drive there is a small unmarked area to park.4. Safety- This trail is safer than most near the tourist areas. We saw about 20+ people on the trail the day we hiked and all were Guatemalans. I think the thieves concentrate their activities where the tourists and their cameras, cell phones, and money are.5. Camping. There is a campground about 2/3 of the way to the summit. It is a large flat area and good for pitching a tent but has no other facilities.6. Water. There is no water along the trail. Make sure you carry all that you will need. I brought 2 liters and it was more than sufficient.7. Altitude. This is the highest peak in all of Central America. Even the trailhead is high enough to cause altitude problems. Pace yourself accordingly.8. Hiking times. A strong hiker with a 15 lb. +/- pack can reach the peak in 2 1/2 hrs and descend in 2 hrs. Most will take 3-4 1/2 hrs to ascend and 2 1/2- 3 1/2 hrs to descend.9. Gear- It can be cold near the summit. Jacket, gloves, hat etc. will make for a much more pleasant lunch on the summit. At the same time the sun can be strong. I recommend a hat, cap, etc. with a brim and sunscreen.10. Recommended Guide Service and GuideI looked into two guide services that were recommended to me. The first was Quetzal Trackers. They have a good reputation and many of their clients were pleased with their service and with the price. What I personally did not like about their service was their lack of flexibility. They only do certain mountains on certain dates with a set itinerary etc. They cater to group hikes and you have to make your plans fit theirs. This is not a criticism of them, but it is not what I was looking for. I used Monteverde Tours and was extremely impressed. The owner, Josh, and I worked out an itinerary that would work best for me. Josh picked me up in Antigua at 2 AM (He left Xela to get me at midnight). He was in Antigua on time. The van was comfortable and clean and he drove responsibly and gave me a lot of info on the trail and Guatemala. We met my guide in Xela at 4 AM. Carlos, my guide, drove me to the trail. He spoke English and had a lot of experience hiking in Guatemala and was a wealth of info for future adventures. On the trail he was a strong hiker but never rushed. He was always stopping to point out things for me to see. Carlos was a man who loved his work and he was a pleasure to be with the entire day. If you are looking for a trip planned to your desires, I believe Monteverde Tours is the best choice. I plan to use them, and specifically Carlos, again when I return to Guatamala.In summary, this hike has the potential to be the highlight of your trip in Guatemala. I have hiked in many parts of the world and this experience ranked right up there with the best of them. Enjoy!

This was a stunning hike. I went with the Quetzaltrekkers group who are volunteer guides that put the trip cost to charity. They were really surprisingly professional and provided all necessary equipment. The hike is a bit strenuous at the top given the thin air but it can be done slowly. Sunrise from the top was an absolute highlight of my trip to Central America.

I recently hiked Tajumulco with a friend using MonteVerde tours. We opted for the full moon hike (departing at 11pm) but sadly had no views due to the cloud, rain and fog all night and morning. However, we still had an awesome time. Our local guide was soooo lovely! He spoke sufficient English for us to converse about the walk and gain information about the area. Additionally he was very patient and willing to let us all (Spanish students) practice our Spanish with him. He was a capable hiker and had clearly walked the track many times before. None of us had altitude problems but be prepared for the altitude difference as you do walk from 3000m to 4300m quite rapidly. Josh, the manager, was brilliant at promptly returning emails and providing sound and honest advice and recommendations. We met Josh in Xela the day before/of the trek and immediately it was obvious that he was a chilled yet organised and knowledgable guy. Cheers Josh!The private transport they provided was of a decent standard and Josh had some extra gear on hand for the very cold temperatures at the top. However, I would recommend taking some decent gear like jackets, thermals, gloves and beanie....especially if you really feel the cold.

We recently went with 10 people (3 families) to Guatemala for an 11 day holiday. It involved going from Guatemala City airport to Antigua to Lake Atitlan to Xela (Quetzaltanango) and back. We used Monte Verde Tours (Josh is the owner and driver we had for most of the legs) and everything went perfectly. We were met at the correct time, taken to the right place (and we certainly didn't know the directions) and enjoyed the travelling.We provided our itinerary and other details and they quoted us a price we believe was very fair.On top of that Josh was a wealth of fascinating information during the long drives.If you have a group of sufficient size Monte Verde is an excellent way to get around Guatemala!