2 days in Antigua

Day by day

1. Day 1: Parque Central and Antigua Cathedral

   Parque Central, Antigua Cathedral, Casa Santo Domingo and Casa del Tejido Antiguo, then Santa Catalina Arch in the evening.

   1. Morning

      Parque Central

      Shoe-shiners, textile sellers and families fill the benches, and it is the natural starting point for any walk.

   2. Late morning

      Antigua Cathedral

      Arches, broken domes and a crypt remain, giving a sense of the scale the colonial capital once had.

   3. Lunch

      Lunch: Pepián

      Traditional restaurants and comedores across the centre; set-lunch comedores near the market serve it at the lowest prices.

   4. Afternoon

      Casa Santo Domingo

      Restored ruins, candlelit corridors and macaws in the gardens make it worth a visit even if you are not staying.

   5. Late afternoon

      Casa del Tejido Antiguo

      It also has a shop of woven pieces, useful for learning to tell hand-loomed textiles from machine-made copies.

   6. Evening

      Santa Catalina Arch

      Stand a block north and shoot south towards the volcano just after sunrise, before cars and crowds fill the street.

2. Day 2: Iglesia de La Merced and Cerro de la Cruz

   Iglesia de La Merced, Cerro de la Cruz, Convento de las Capuchinas and Iglesia de San Francisco, then 5a Avenida and around Parque Central in the evening.

   1. Morning

      Iglesia de La Merced

      Beside the church, the ruined cloister holds a large stone fountain, and the plaza in front fills with food stalls on weekend evenings.

   2. Late morning

      Cerro de la Cruz

      The trail starts at the end of 1a Avenida Norte and climbs steps and a forest path for about 20 minutes.

   3. Lunch

      Lunch: Jocón

      Guatemalan restaurants and some comedor set lunches; it appears on menus alongside pepián.

   4. Afternoon

      Convento de las Capuchinas

      Small exhibits show convent life and colonial religious art.

   5. Late afternoon

      Iglesia de San Francisco

      Pilgrims leave plaques and letters at the shrine, and the ruined monastery next to the church can be explored on a small ticket.

   6. Evening

      5a Avenida and around Parque Central

      Rooftop bars, mezcal bars and pubs within a couple of blocks of the square, popular with travellers and language students.

If it rains

• Swap in ChocoMuseo (Centro around Parque Central): Book the hands-on workshop rather than just the free exhibit; children enjoy taking home the bars they made.

Where to stay for this itinerary

Pace and daylight

The sights in this plan add up to roughly 8–9 hours of visiting over 2 days, before meals and getting between them. Daylight runs from about 11.3 hours in December to 13 hours in June.

Getting between stops: Walking. Most sights are within 10–15 minutes of Parque Central.

More or fewer days

• One day in Antigua
• 3 days in Antigua
• 5 days in Antigua

Questions travellers ask