Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Candelaria Muq'b'il Ha'
Another alternative for visiting the Candelaria caves is via one of the local community
tourism organizations at Candelaria Muq'b'il Ha', which you'll find farther west along
the Raxrujá-Chisec road (RN-5) at Km. 315. You'll find a marked entrance indicating the
turnoffforatwo-kilometerdirtroadtotheparkinglot.A30-minutewalkdownatrailleads
to the visitors center. From here you can take a guided tour of the Venado Seco cave (1.5
hours, $5.50), take a guided cave-tubing tour (1.5 hours, $7), or do both for $10. Food is
available and you can stay at the rustic ecolodge
Peña del Tigre
for $7 per person or camp
for $3.50 p/p. Overnight parking costs $5, $1.50 for the day.
Candelaria Camposanto
Yet another option is found at Km. 309 along the same road, where there are two dry caves
andoneriver-tubingsectionavailableforexploration.Thevisitorscenterisrightbesidethe
highway. The caves are a 20-minute walk away. You can tour the “Ventana de Seguridad”
and “Cúpula de los Murciélagos” caves for $5.50, go cave tubing for $7, or combine all
three for $10. Camping costs $3 and there is meal service with prior arrangement ($3-5).
Parking is $1.50.
Chisec lies along the highway (RN-5) connecting Petén and Cobán about 26 kilometers
southwest of Raxrujá. The town has grown in the past few years thanks to a ubiquitous
infusion of land-hungry peasants eking out a living on parcels of land in the surrounding
wilderness areas. Seeking to provide locals with more ecofriendly economic alternatives,
development agencies have masterminded a fairly successful sustainable tourism project
to ensure locals benefit from the exploitation of the area's substantial natural and cultural
attractions. The community ecotourism projects were developed with financial support
from USAID and the help of Guatemala's Ministry of Culture and Sports, the Guatemala
TouristCommission(INGUAT),CONAP,theNationalGeographicSociety,andVanderbilt
University, among others. Local guides can take you to several area attractions, including
the Lagunas de Sepalau and Cuevas de B'omb'il Pek. You can find more information on-
line at
www.puertamundomaya.com
.
Sights
About two kilometers north of town are the “painted caves” of
B'omb'il Pek
($5.50-8, in-
cluding equipment rental and guided tour). A community-run guide service (8 A.M.- 3:30
P.M. daily) can be found right beside the highway. You can pay your entrance fee here and
