Tikal National Park

Wish we had 2 days to explore these ruins. They are our favorite Mayan ruins right after Palenque ruins. Make sure you put on bug spray and have it on you to top up, especially early morning. Climb all the other view points too, the tallest ruin is more impressive from the other viewpoints 👉

We took the sunrise tour of Tikal which starts with a very early morning that saw us getting out of bed around 3am. We hiked in with flashlights or torches if you prefer. It was a very clear night so the view of the stars was amazing. We reached the 4th temple around 5am and found a spot on the stairs to wait for the sun to rise and the jungle to start waking up. We enjoyed views of the stars as we began to hear howler monkeys birds and other creachers waking up. The sunrise was beautiful. Eventually we made our way down the staircase again and our guide walked us through the rest of the ruins and explained a little bit about the Mayan civilization. Well worth making the trip. As we drove out around 8am and saw all the tour busses pouring in it was nice to know we beat the crowds and the heat. Definitely a lot walking so be ready for that, and lots of roots and rough terrain. For those of you worried about the safety of walking through the jungle in the dark, we felt very safe the entire time.

Great place to visit!!! Really neat seeing all the ancient ruins and teaching the kids about ancient civilizations. If you are coming from Belize it’s a little bit of a drive but well worth it. Be ready for lots of climbing and walking.

A must visit!!! The energy you feel in this incredible place is truly magical. What an amazing grasp of the history and culture of the Mayan people. We had an amazing guide so his knowledge of the Mayan peoples was appreciated. Plenty of walking so make sure you wear comfortable shoes! And keep cool water.

Always breathtaking seeing these ancient Mayan temples and how high they go.
Went there for Christmas, lots of people but still a fun experience

I had a blast walking through the national park. I joined a tour for 150 Q that included transportation; park entry was an additional 150 Q. Highly recommend the tour guide; he spoke English and a second guide spoke spanish. Most of the ruins are still buried under the jungle and will remain so to minimize environmental disturbance.

Tikal National Park in Guatemala is a UNESCO World Heritage Site famed for its ancient Mayan ruins. Spanning 576 square kilometers of lush rainforest, it showcases towering pyramids, temples, and wildlife, offering an immersive journey into Mayan history amidst breathtaking natural beauty.

I can't believe I hadn't heard more about Tikal before coming. It's absolutely breathtaking and incredibly grand. The centre of the Mayan world and it shows, an absolute must visit!

Centuries of Mayan history are layered into the mind-boggling temples, observatories, and palaces of Tikal. The ruins are truly impressive, and a guided tour is definitely recommended if you want to understand what you are seeing among the ruins. Interesting features like an underground storage basement may go unnoticed as a pothole, unless a guide points it out.

This archeological site is also teeming with wildlife. We saw Toucans, vultures, parrots, hawks, agoutis, coatis, spider monkeys, and howler monkeys, along with a plethora of insects and spiders. The jungle is rich in flora, too.

Seeing a fair bit, if not all, of the ruins, I walked 23 kilometers in a day. If you are in the reserve at dawn and dusk, don't be shy with the insect repellent. The mosquitoes can get relentless if you stand still for a second.

We came here with a tour group that picked us up and dropped us off from our hotel in San Ignacio. The drivers switch at the border. The immigration process was pretty seamless.
The park itself is amazing. You can either walk 30-40 minutes to the grand plaza with templo I and II or you can take a shuttle. The shuttle is free and you can tip the driver. There are several temples to climb. Some of the smaller intricacies can be found but better with a guide.

Phenomenal place! I went to this place over the New Year's holiday, and what a way to end 2023! The ruins are absolutely breathtaking, and my tour guide was a very fun and knowledgeable person who made the whole tour even more fun.

Do not underestimate the size of this place. We were here for about 6 hours; we saw most of the cool ancient buildings, but not everything.

One of the lost mystical places on Earth. Guatemala preserved a magnificent Mayan site with dozens of pyramids. Many pyramids were left under a protective layer of soil, grass, and trees, naturally covered the walls of those historic buildings.

The most important ancient city of Maya. Magical, mystical and beautiful. Must see in Guatemala

Amazing. It’s HUGE. Wear good walking shoes, bring bug juice and water. Lots of parking. The restaurant is excellent.

Beautiful place and totally worth a visit. It's a very big site and there is a lot to see. Bought tickets online to avoid a line but there is still a bit of a wait to enter. There's quite a lot of walking needed to see everything but it's mostly in shade and the paths are pretty good. Definitely worth seeing as much as possible as every area is interesting.

Amazing Mayan ruins national park! Though the entrance fee is a bit confused and they didn’t accept any card at the entrance, we were able to book online on the spot using the Wifi signal shared by one of the guards there. For foreign visitors the entrance ticket is equivalent to US$20/person! (As of the end of Jan. 2924)…

The cost is worthwhile considering the fact that the roads going into the national park is well paved and maintained…

Amazing Mayan ruins spread around inside the national park, the grand plaza is definitely a must visit, and in my opinion you must climb up the stairs at Temple IV and see the top of the forest overlooking 1/2 of the national park landscape!

Year 2010- Was here many years back is a great place to visit this outside museum . I highly recommended this location , it rains or at time is really Hot . Be prepared for walking.
Don’t let’s your children , teenagers run alone many has gotten lost .
Cultures Mayas

Official name
Tikal National Museum.
Latin America and the Caribbean
Tikal was the capital of a conquest state that became one of the most powerful kingdoms of the ancient Maya.[5] Though monumental architecture at the site dates back as far as the 4th century BC, Tikal reached its apogee during the Classic Period, c. 200 to 900. During this time, the city dominated much of the Maya region politically, economically, and militarily, while interacting with areas throughout Mesoamerica such as the great metropolis of Teotihuacan in the distant Valley of Mexico. There is evidence that Tikal was conquered by Teotihuacan in the 4th century AD.[6] Following the end of the Late Classic Period, no new major monuments were built at Tikal and there is evidence that elite palaces were burned. These events were coupled with a gradual population decline, culminating with the site's abandonment by the end of the 10th century.

Great archeological site to dive into the history of the ancient mayas. To see some animals and do t be in the middle of crowds, the sunrise tour is highly recommended.

We spent two days visiting Tikal National park. Note you have to buy a day pass each day you visit (150Q) and that only includes daytime hours. If you want to visit for sunrise or sunset, you must pay extra to get in before 8am or after 5pm. To see all of Tikal, you need 3 days, but we felt 2 days was sufficient. Best to hire a guide to take you through. We used a guide from the Jungle Lodge ($15 per person for the archeological tour @9am to 1pm). He was okay, but there are better guides available - met a guide named Samuel the day we left and wish we had gotten him instead. After our guided tour, we went back to our room and watched a 60 minute documentary of Tikal on YouTube which was much more informative. Both days it rained so there was not a sunrise - I’d highly recommend checking weather forecast before booking a sunrise tour, if seeing the colorful sunrise is your main point of going. One of the highlights of our visit to Tikal was paying for a guided tour to watch the stars - it was 300Q for 2 people for 2 hours. We climbed the stairs of the temple that the Myans used to star gaze all those years ago - great star gazing!! It was a full moon the night we went, so once the moon rose, it lessened view of the stars. Overall, I do highly recommend visiting Tikal. Bring a lot of bug spray. Wear comfortable shoes as you will be doing a lot of walking and climbing stairs. They have stands that sell cold water and drinks. When you enter the park, the first stand you pass has the best priced drinks and souvenirs - a bit more expensive once you get into the main area of the park. There was also a guy selling chocolate coveted banana for 5Q that were phenomenal!

Very nicely kept park and Mayan site. Our guided tour from flores was 125q each for 4 in an a/c mini bus. Plus the entry fee which you can buy online in advance. It was too hot for trekking gear but the paths are such that you don't need it. The structures were impressive but some climbing for views needed. Reasonably priced drinks available and a few commodores. We saw a few animals too some more welcome than others!

The most incredible place to visit a must on every adventurers list, we stayed at the hotel in the park, it was so easy to visit the site plus to experience waking up with the jungle on one of the pyramids was an experience of a life time, the Howler monkeys far out!