Casa Palopó

Avenida Luciano Pavarotti 1-84, San Lucas Tolimán, Guatemala

No trip to Guatemala is complete without at least a couple days of R&R at one of the best hidden lakeside hotels in the world, Casa Palopo. By the numbers: 7 -- the number of villas the hotel has. 5 -- the amount of stars I’d give this place. 3 -- the amount of volcanoes you can see from your own personal patio. 1 -- incredible lake. And also the room number you should request as not included in the picture was the sunken bathtub that has the same view of the lake and volcanoes. So besides the beautiful view, complete privacy, impeccable service and delicious Guatemalan food, there’s also very cool indigenous shopping five minutes down the road in Panajachel. So if you’re in Antigua, charter a car to the Lake (about 2 hrs, roughly $50) and take in the understated luxury and overwhelmingly romantic scene that Casa Palopo has to offer.

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Forget Lake Como, Go to Palopo!

No trip to Guatemala is complete without at least a couple days of R&R at one of the best hidden lakeside hotels in the world, Casa Palopo. By the numbers: 7 -- the number of villas the hotel has. 5 -- the amount of stars I’d give this place. 3 -- the amount of volcanoes you can see from your own personal patio. 1 -- incredible lake. And also the room number you should request as not included in the picture was the sunken bathtub that has the same view of the lake and volcanoes. So besides the beautiful view, complete privacy, impeccable service and delicious Guatemalan food, there’s also very cool indigenous shopping five minutes down the road in Panajachel. So if you’re in Antigua, charter a car to the Lake (about 2 hrs, roughly $50) and take in the understated luxury and overwhelmingly romantic scene that Casa Palopo has to offer.

Waking up to the volcanoes

After traveling to many places all these years, I come to conclude that Lake Atitlán in Guatemala is one of the most amazing places in the planet. This pool at Casa Palopó, is by far, the most beautiful place to see the sun rise every morning. Can’t wait to come back!

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