El Mirador
El Mirador which is an arqueological site in Peten is about to be opened officialy for adventure turism by the ministry of Culture and Sports. National and international turists could travel to the site using horses to view and experience the jungle and the farthest arqueological sites of the Mayan world. This visit starts in the community of Carmelita and goes through the arqueological sites of La Florida and El Tintal and finishes in El Mirador.
One of the main objectives is to benefit the communities close to the sites. This communities will be trained to provide the basic services of hosting, guiding, feeding and taking care of the horses to be used by the turists. At the same time, these communities will provide protection to these sites.
El Mirador is an archeological adventure because it is an archeological site of 2,066 square kilometers close to the border with Mexico. Within this area, there are 29 major archeological sites and also 50 minor sites. The first Mayan were established there 1,000 years before Christ which corresponds to the Preclassic Middle (1200 B.C to 250 A.C). The construction of the big cities en the area occured in the Late Preclassic period (300B.C to 200A.C). At the end of this period there was a colapse in their civilization.
To reach this place, the turist can arrive by plane to Flores, Peten from the capital city. Carmelita can be reached in a 4Wd car from Flores in about 3 to 4 hours. El Mirador can be reached from Carmelita in about two days travelling by horse. There is about a 65 kilometers distance between Carmelita and El Mirador. During this adventure, the turist will be able to visit archeological sites such as Florida and La Tinta. The first night, the turist will be sleeping in La Tinta, which is about 40 kilometers away from el Mirador. From La Tinta, it is possible to observe the biggest pyramid of El Mirador.
