Guatemala City (Spanish Ciudad de Guatemala, also La Capital) is a major city and capital of Guatemala.
 Catedral Metropolitana | ||
| Guatemala City | ||
| Department | Guatemala Department | |
|---|---|---|
| Residents | 7.156.000 | |
other value for residents on Wikidata: 2450212   | ||
| no tourist info on Wikidata: | ||
| location | ||
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Districts
The residents of the greater Guatemala City area (called Guate for short by the locals) also include the neighboring administrative districts, such as Mixco. With these, the administrative area of Guatemala City has long since grown together into a metropolitan area. As a stranger to the area, you usually don't notice the transition between the districts. The actual urban area of Guatemala City is divided into zones of different sizes. The arrangement has grown historically and does not follow any recognizable scheme. The center is Zona 1 with the original (colonial) city center. For guidance, a short list of the characteristics of some of the 25 zonas:
- Zona 1: Colonial center with Parque Central, city administration, pedestrian zone (6ta Avenida), churches, Cerrito del Carmen (chapel with viewpoint) and military museum (viewpoint).
- Zona 2: Relief map (mapa de reliefe) of Guatemala, small park-like facility.
- Zona 3: Small, sometimes dangerous zone, with a central cemetery (worth seeing) and the gigantic rubbish dump of Guatemala City in a deep ravine.
- Zona 5: Stadium Mateo Flores (football matches of the first division capital clubs Cremas and Rojas)
- Zona 4: Tourist information (INGUAT), several shopping centers and the former bus station (terminal)
- Zona 7: Kaminal Juyu (ruins)
- Zona 9: Torre del Reformador (copy of the Eiffel Tower)
- Zona 10: Zona Viva. Lots of restaurants, clubs, discos, shopping malls, the botanical garden and upscale hotels.
- Zona 13: airport, zoo and museums.
- Zona 18: Large zone in the northeast of Guatemala City, consists largely of slums. Notorious for extreme crime (street gangs and organized crime). Anyone who gets to know the zone, e.g. through participation in a social project, learns a lot about the reality in Guatemala.
background
After the destruction of the old capital Antigua Guatemala on July 26, 1773 by an earthquake, Guatemala City was declared the capital in 1775.
getting there
By plane
By train
All passenger traffic by train was discontinued years ago. Preserved splendor of old times can be seen in the small railway museum. The museo de ferrocarriles is located at 9a Avenida 18-03 in Zona 1.
By bus
There is a bus connection to San Salvador in El Salvador once a day. Furthermore, buses from the northeast and other areas of the country run to the capital several times a day. The trip from Rio Dulce, for example, costs 100 quetzals and takes 6-7 hours, depending on traffic and weather. When you reach the outskirts, you are distributed to smaller buses that take passengers to the center. You should not have any valuables in the luggage you check in, as it can happen that the backpack was opened when you returned it. When getting in, everyone is searched relatively thoroughly for weapons.
In the street
By boat
mobility
Tourist Attractions
Museums
- Museo Nacional de Arte Moderno "Carlos Mérida", 7 Avenida, Zona 13. Modern Art Museum.
- Museo Carlos F. Novella, 15 Avenida 18-01, Zona 6.
Buildings
- Historic city center
- National Palace of Culture, Zone 1.
- Central Park, Zone 1.
- Catedral Metropolitana, Zone 1.
- Mercado Central. Central market.
- Biblioteca Nacional
- Centro Cultural Miguel Ángel Asturias. National Theater.
- Avenida Reforma. Main boulevard of the city.
- Pre-Columbian Mayan ruin Kaminaljuyú, Zone 7.
- Miraflores Museum, 7 Calle 21-55, Zona 11.
- Torre del Reformador tower
Gardens
- La Aurora Zoo, Zone 13.
activities
shop
- Mercado Central. Central market.
kitchen
Fruit and other local dishes such as tacos, beans and rice dishes, grilled corn on the cob, etc. are sold at stalls on many street corners. The prices are extremely low, they are usually well under one euro per meal.
nightlife
accommodation
Guatemala City offers the traveler accommodation options in all categories from luxury hotels to shabby guesthouses. If you want to stay in a hotel of an international chain or a luxury hotel, you should book from home. For the day of arrival and departure, it is often helpful to book a room near the airport (zone 13). You meet other travelers to exchange ideas, and the hotel staff is usually friendly and attuned to foreign tourists. Even these small hotels or hostels can easily be booked online, or you can reserve a room. Prices are around $ 25-60 per night, which is a pretty bad value for money in Guatemala considering the quality of the rooms. Most tourists travel to Antigua on the day of arrival or on the second day at the latest, avoiding the capital. If you still want to stay a few days, you have two main options:
- Zone 9 and 10
There are a number of middle-class hotels that can be compared with German 2- to 3-star hotels. The prices are now around $ 50-90 per night.
- Zone 1
In the Avenidas east of 6ta Avenida there are a multitude of small, simple recommendable hotels. If you feel comfortable in hotels with a colonial style and like to exchange ideas with other travelers, you will find a number of nice offers, e.g. Hotel Colonial (a lot of mahogany in the interior) or the Hotel Spring. However, the rooms with the high ceilings are often quite cold at night (there are no heaters). Those who prefer to have contact with simple Guatemalans should not hesitate to choose one of the newer hotels (prefabricated building style). However, increased background noise and noisy children shouldn't disturb you. Prices in this part of Zona 1 range from $ 15-35 per night.
If you only have to spend one night on your way to other destinations in Guatemala City, you can also fall back on one of the countless motels. Almost all of them are hourly hotels (!), But are rented out from 8/9 p.m. in a row until 7 a.m. the next day, because there are only a few “guests” left late in the evening due to the security situation. The night then costs around 100-150 Quetzales ($ 12-18). It is usually very safe, the rooms are very clean and have their own bathroom. If you oversleep, the maid will wake you up at 7.15 am at the latest and ask you to leave.
Learn
Work
security
health
Due to the heavy pollution of the air with exhaust gases, main roads can be a nuisance for people with respiratory problems.
