The most breathtaking and spectacular view after the most strenuous hike of my life. That, in a nutshell, is my memory of Volcán San Pedro 😀 😊

For the ascent you usually hire a guide who will lead you up the volcano with – in the best case – a few other fellow hikers. With that I’m not saying that you can’t theoretically make it up on your own, but I personally would have definitely gotten lost on my own- especially at the beginning. On top of that the guide was very nice and charged a fair price. The meeting point was at the foot or ‘entrance’ of the path up the volcano relatively early in the morning.

The path up is… steep as hell. Honestly. And that for the whole way. Like you really walk non-stop up a really steep and sometimes winding path through a variety of vegetation. Meaning you need plenty of water, good footwear that won’t slip on dry or muddy ground, some energy snacks for in between and breath. Because the climb and the different environments are not easy. You – among other things – walk past cornfields, coniferous trees and trees covered with moss. Beautiful, no question, and very interesting and incredibly diverse. But also really exhausting 😀
And yes of course you take breaks along the way – but neither too many, because the way up is simply long and you usually get into a rhythm at some point. One of the breaks though is taken at a super cool ‘swing’, where a tyre hangs from a rope on a tree and you can swing towards the view while sitting or standing on it. Very, very cool 😊

When we reached the top, I personally was completely exhausted because we had been walking steep uphill for over three hours, which is really tiring. 😀 However, before we got rewarded with the incredible view from Volcán San Pedro, we had to walk through a very enchanted-looking piece of forest with lots of moss-covered trees and climb a small, short staircase. Then I finally saw the view from Volcán San Pedro of Lago Atitlán and I was frankly instantly speechless. I don’t think I’ve ever stared at a view for so long without taking a single photo. Simply because it is absolutely fantastic and incredibly beautiful.
To the left and right are mountains/volcanoes, some with small villages directly on the waterfront, and straight ahead is the huge lake, shimmering in all kinds of different shades of blue. And above it all is a bright sun that illuminates the entire scene. It’s just unbelievably beautiful. It’s a view I’ll never forget and where I immediately knew “Yes, it was worth it climbing up this steep volcano for 3 and a half fucking hours.” 😀 😊

Up or not? For smokers or people a little less athletic it’s definitely gonna be a challenge. But… Honestly? It’s simply worth it. The view is truly spectacular. And Volcán San Pedro is my personal number one of all the things you can do at Lago Atitlán.