After yesterday’s days of ruins, today we’re looking forward to spend some time in a city. Thanks to a kind driver, we manage to leave Tikal with the same colectivo that just two days ago brought us here. The drive its shorter and smoother than expected and in less than two hours we find ourselves in the backpacker hub of Flores.
The first thing on the list is to find a place for tonight and in all honesty it ends up being pretty easy given the great variety of B&B, hostels and hotels scattered all around the island; what seems to be more difficult is finding a budget place to sleep in. We try to hit all the hostels around and even some hotels but the cheapest rate we can get is 75QZL (12USD) each for a bed in a dorm. Very expensive! At last, in Los Amigos Hostal, we manage to find the best rate in town settling at 60QTLZ (8.5USD) per bed in an open-air dorm. Although the price for the accommodation is still a bit too high for such a dorm, the atmosphere of the hostal is great! Huge common areas with several tables and couches that together with the place’s small restaurant create a nice meeting-zone for all the travelers passing by (and the wi-fi is super fast!).
Time to put everything down and we’re already on our way to explore the little island town. Immediately, the atmosphere of the place feels great; chill water facing cafes, nice traditional tiendas, a plaza overlooking the city and cobblestones roads. All this tied together with a beautiful colonial architecture makes a walking-tour of the town a must. Feels like being in Trinidad again!!!
Unexpectedly the walk doesn’t last long as in less than 30min we realize we’ve walked around all the seaside road of the island! On that road, in front of the boats that bring you to another small island in front of Flores, there is a small market that sells great local food (cakes, tamales, tortillas, tacos, chicken with rice etc…) for 5-10QZL each piece (around a dollar/euro per plate). That’s the spot to get the tastiest & cheapest local food of the island! Make sure to check it out!!!
Once back at our starting point, we decide to venture up the hilly streets and reach the main plaza of the town. What a beautiful place! A gorgeous church, huge xmas tree, kids playing football and how not to mention the breathtaking views to enjoy by simply sitting on a bench. We take a few pics, enjoy the place with a drink in our hands, take a breath and then head back to the market for food. Tomorrow we’ll have to wake up early to reach the city of Coban in Baja Verapaz and the ride is going to last no less than 5hrs!
The short but lovely time we had in Flores was good enough to understand that the little island is fascinating but… was too touristy for our taste. It can be used as a great base to visit Tikal, take a few boat trips around and also do canopy/zip-line tours but all in all don’t expect those to be for budget travelers. Want to discover the real Guatemala, start heading down south!!!
PLANNING A TRIP TO GUATEMALA? CHECK MORE POSTS BELOW!
[pt_view id=”c2a28d0qmu”]