CHAPINADAS

A natural jewel located 16 kilometers from the Island of Flores, Petencito is a zoo that maintains a natural wealth that awes national and international turists.  The complete name of this place is The Centre for Environmental Education and Wild Life.  It is surrounded by the lagoons of La Monifata and Equexejil and also by the waters of Lake Peten Itza.  It is a zoo made even richer because of its natural reserve.  During the school year, this place is visited by students to learn about the flora and fauna.  Petencito counts with exhibitions of pelts, bones, animals, mayan artifacts that attract researchers and scholars of nature, history and archeology.  One of the objectives of Petencito is to teach its visitors about the importance of protecting the animals and plants in their natural environment.  Petencito is located in the Tayasal Peninsula.  It has a territorial extension of 284 hectareas and it is 284 meter above sea level.  It also has an archeologicla area that has not been studied or explored.

The administration of this place was transfered the the University of San Carlos of Guatemala in 1992.  This natural reserve is visited by 70,000 turists every year.  Turists visiting this place can observe 16 species of animals like crocodiles, white-tail deer, spider monkeys, wild pigs and phaisans.  There are also racoons, jaguars, grey foxes, parrots and pumas.  Another attractive of this place are the giant tobogans that end in the Guitarra lagoon and the other in Lake Peten Itza.

Panajachel, Tikal and Antigua Guatemala continue to be the prefered destinations for turists in Guatemala.  Of all the international turists visiting Guatemala during the year, 45 percent visit Panajachel, 60 percent Antigua Guatemala and 30 percent Tikal.  During the holidays of november, december and the first days of january, turism operators, hotels, vendors, local autorities and artisans of these three places try to influence turists to visit their places by offering discounts, travel packages and traditional/cultural activities.

Holy week together with the month of august and the end of the year are the high seasons for turism in Guatemala.  In november and december of 2004, there were 95,245 turists in november and 96,761 turists in december.  In 2005, there was an increase of turists in november and december to 102,269 and 113,473.

The door to Lake Atitlan is the town of San Francisco Panajachel, Solola.  San Francisco wants to recover the turism lost last year because of Stan.  The strategy they are using is giving discounts and travel packages to turists that include trip across Lake Atitlan to get more turists.  Panajachel has 145 hotels and other small rentals with prices ranging from Q30 to $125.  It has hotels classified as four stars.

One of the prefered places to visit by national and international turists is Antigua Guatemala, a city that receives hundreds of visits during this time.  Antigua Guatemala is also a favorite place for Guatemalans to celebrate weddings during the months of november and december.  In Antigua there are aproximately 155 hotels and small hotels.  The strategy Antigua Guatemala is following is the same as the one used years before.  This strategy is based in tours covering the colonial temples and museums and also climbing the Cerro de la Cruz to observe the colonial city of Antigua Guatemala.  The prices for this tours vary from $15 to $20 a person.  Cultural activities are combined with the offer of clubs, crafts, restaurants, religious traditions and other festivities.  From Antigua it is possible to buy tours to visit other sites like Panajachel, Chichicastenangto and Tikal.

The the north, Tikal is the favorite place for turists that look forward to adventure and the lovers of archeology and nature.  According to statistics from the INGUAT, 10,800 turists visit Tikal in november and 11,500 turists in december of 2005.  The national turists were 3,750 in november and 9,100 in december.  The strategy being used by Peten is to try for the turist to stay longer in the department and that they visit other areas nearby Tikal like Yaxha, Flores and Topoxte.