Nice to have a change of scenery - Nice to get out of the main bit of Antigua and see some different things. Estephan our guide was friendly and knowledgable. The driver (sorry I forgot his name) was... read more super friendly and knowledgable too! A lot of the tour was focussed around visiting family run places that sell things more than seeing what Guatemalan village life is like. The macadamia farm was good and they gave a lovely face massage. Overall it was enjoyable.

  Excellent tour, lovely villages, friendly people and history. Amazingly supporting local people. Felix made our tour extremely interesting, we really enjoyed it.

  My experience with Esteban was exceptional. He's very knowledgeable, passionate about what he does, and very personable. It was a day well spent and I can't thank him enough. He... read more went above and beyond (provide names of some great restaurants, and tailor the tour so I can see a few places I wanted to visit) to make sure my experience was a good one. I would recommend this tour to everyone, but especially for solo travelers like myself!! Don't hesitate to book and request Esteban!!!!

PS- He's a great photographer!!!

  Just came back from a perfect day with a perfect guide , J.J. ! J.J. took us to a variety of attractions as listed above, adding a lot of... read more history and knowledge making this tour very special with his good humor friendly spirit and European manners.

  I really enjoyed the walking tour with JJ. He was very knowledgeable and gave lots of small details to make it entertaining. I would not have discovered many of the... read more places and stories if I was by myself. Highly recommended.

  This was the most breathtaking experience of my life. Yimer was an excellent guide & the horses were lifesavers (Champion and Pancho we miss you!) My friend and I had... read more a picnic in the craters of an active volcano and we shared with our guides and learned about cheese leaves and rode the horses up and down (I am from the American south so the altitude killed me during the hike.) The pictures our guide took of us are going to be framed in my home. I am so happy. They were THAT good.

  Guatemala Experience - I had the pleasure to work with Columbus - Guatemala on my entire 2 week trip. Everything went as smooth as possible and Katherine was always available to help... read more and adjust anything I needed. My Antigua walk (along with rides around Guatemala) was provided by Esteban. That guys sure knows Guatemala - what a wealth of information along with being an all around good person. He showed me around Antigua, took me to a great place for a local lunch, drove me to a few small towns (which were amazing), and helped me practice my Spanish. I would highly recommend using Katherine and her crew to set up a vacation. Mine also included Semuc Champay, Tikal, Lake Atitlan and an overnight hike to the Volcano Acatenango. All were done through Katherine and Columbus, Guatemala - and all were a major success. I look forward to working with them again. Such a beautiful country with kind and generous people.

  One of their drivers, J.J. was the best. Very positive, yet very knowledgeable of this entire area and its history. Highly recommend this tour if you are interested in more... read more than the city of Antique. This tour takes you to places very unlike the city.

  Wow what a wonderful way to spend the day exploring Antigua’s surrounding villages/towns!! My partner and I decided to book this tour instead of climbing the volcano and we were... read more worried we would regret it, but we honestly could not be happier! Our tour guide JJ was absolutely incredible - so warm, friendly and easy to talk to (also spoke perfect English which was bonus). He shared openly so much wonderful knowledge and history about his local area, the people and surrounding villages, culture and their way of life. JJ’s passion and love for his country and community truly shone and he was also so kind, patient and giving with his time and knowledge. If you are looking for an authentic experience in which you want to learn more about the locals and their everyday life whilst visiting some amazing family run businesses (with great wine and chocolate) then do not hesitate to book this tour! Thank you so much JJ and Columbus Guatemala Travel for the amazing experience!!!

  Our guide Joel was very knowledgable about the city and showed us a lot of interesting places. He gave a very good overview of the architecture, history and culture... read more of the city.

  Ask for JJ. He is super knowledgeable and has so many fun facts about the city. It's a long tour, but doesn't feel like it when you're on it. 10/10... read more experience; I highly recommend this walking like a local tour with JJ.

  Great sights, and energetic and funny tour guide. Unfortunately, the tour took 8 hours when it was supposed to take 4 hours

  The Chicken Bus tour is my all time favorite tour in Antigua! From the moment we were picked up by the chicken bus to the last stop having an amazing... read more lunch of pepian with an indigenous family, each stop was filled with discovery, culture, locals, and amazing views of the volcanoes. We were treated to a cacao demonstration and sampled the chocolates, then the nispero honey and onto Fredy’s café for some fabulous dark roasted coffee grown locally by his family and served in his home. Onto the macadamia farm, the only one in Central America, where we experienced a relaxing macadamia facial! We were all smiles for our lunch with a local indigenous family who spent most of the morning preparing the Papillion. We are also treated to a weaving demonstration by the ladies of the house. All in all it was a fun filled day with smiles all around. Our guide Estephen. was knowledgeable and personable, we learned so much from him. Our driver Antonio and his son Fernando managed to get us in and out of some of the small villages on the chicken bus. A skilled driver indeed! I live part time in Antigua and this is the third time I have taken my visitors on the chicken bus tour and I highly recommend it for everyone of all ages!

  Chicken bus the best - Amazing half day tour! Esteban was very kind, knowledgeable and with a good vibe. We loved every place we visit and we were entertained with the fun facts, interesting things... read more and culture tips Esteban told us.

  Please do yourself a favor and do this ! - This was definitely a highlight of my vacay. What a great way to start off the trip! I mean c’mon how often do you get to hike up an active... read more volcano, eat pizza cooked by its heat & warm up marshmallows up there too? Everything about this experience was just awesome! We wanted to do it for sunset and there were no issues; they were very accommodating!
We were picked up by JJ from our bnb at the exact time we were told; extremely punctual. The entire ride there was very educational; JJ was really good at sharing his knowledge of certain areas/ towns we drove by which we really appreciated. Once there, we were met by our LOCAL guide, Yimer, which in my opinion is absolutely awesome! Not only are we getting a locals insight but also contributing to the local families there. It’s a win win! The trail itself isn’t too bad; I’d say it’s more of an elevation issue that makes it hard. Yimer was super funny and friendly which made the hike harder because it was nonstop talking and laughter. Additionally , he is a great photographer! He will take however many pictures you’d like and some of his own, which turn out to be better than yours. Lol
We were up at the top in no time and had tons of time to enjoy our pizza, marshmallows & beverages . The views from up there are just stunning! We made it back down safely and met up JJ to drive us back to town. There were 0 issues/ hiccups during the tour everything from booking all the way to ending was so seamless. I also got the chance to chat with Caty and Milind regarding my travels in Guatemala and they were both very nice and had great recommendations. It really does not matter who you interact with , the entire team is great ! Thank you all! Definitely 11/10

  katy gave us to feel welcome.
and gave us a nice tips .
the best thing was a dinner with mayan family.

the most important was that... read more our guide over there was jj .
jj made our trip from good to amazing
he was so polite and sensitive too small details.

he drives safely and have a lot of knowledge.

thank you so much guys 🙂

  Esteban and rest of crew were phenomenal in helping us plan our trip. They drove us to our destinations. I can't recommend them enough. Great people!

  Best Tour Guides Ever - Columbus Guatemala Tours is hands down the best travel tour operator I have ever worked with. I’ve booked through tour groups in countries like Brazil, India, Italy, Germany, and the... read more UK, but have never worked with such an organized group of individuals who truly care about crafting an all around experience for you.

Catherina was responsive, thoughtful, and dedicated to crafting a full trip itinerary that met our travel needs, and did so in a short timeline. She made sure we felt like our needs and ideas were incorporated into the plan, but ultimately, we learned to trust her expert local opinion on what to do and where to eat, and it worked out better than we could have imagined. Not only did she handle the itinerary, she also took care of all of our bookings, making trip planning simple.

JJ, our tour guide for the entirety of the trip, is one of the most friendly guides I’ve ever met. He was extremely thorough about making sure we knew what the plan was, where we were going, and translating all things shared by local guides or merchants - he never made us feel like the language barrier was a limiting factor in our experience. JJ was generous with his time and energy, allowing us to make adjustments to schedule and make detours as needed - he was always on time and never missed a beat. He even came on all of our hikes to make sure we felt safe and taken care of, and brought us a lot of laughs on the way. One thing that also stood out was how generous he was to all of their suppliers and local guides, the folks that drove the tuk tuks, the boats, and even showed us around the volcano. He treated everyone with the utmost respect, and made them feel included and welcome to experience the journey with us.

Overall Guatemala is a wonderful country, full of rich cultural experiences and tremendous nature. We hiked to watch the sunrise at Tikal, the volcano of San Pedro, and Acatenango to see Volcan de Fuego erupt. Each of these activities were magnificent in their own way, and were awe inspiring views to say the least. We also had the luxury to stay at Casa Palopo in Lake Atitlan, which was the perfect hotel to soak in the majesty of Lake Atitlan. In Antigua, we were lucky enough to spend time with the extended Columbus Guatemala tour team, and they made the city feel like home. They hosted a surprise birthday party for my dad and I during a cooking class, and we got to celebrate as if we had been family forever. I will forever cherish the experiences and memories I created in Guatemala, and I’m grateful for the Columbus Guatemala team for making it happen!

  Amazing guide - JJ was an incredible guide. So friendly, personable, knowledgeable, and kind. He really made this tour amazing and unique for us both :D. The fresh chicharron & tacos was a... read more real highlight! Highly recommend!

  This was one of our favourite tours, we had so much fun, JJ and our driver Alex were top notch, very knowledgeable and personable. We saw many beautiful smaller... read more communities around Antigua giving us a glimpse of Guatemala outside of Antigua. We visited a local wine producer, a local chocolate producer and an organic macadamia farm and tasted all the yummy goodies. We also learned about Guatemalan jade and saw all the beautiful pieces they created. Such a great day, don’t miss this tour!