Maya Sites Travel Services - Tours to Tikal, Yaxha, Uaxactun, Topoxte

Day 1: Pick up at Flores airport (closest airport to Tikal) and transfer to the Camino Real Peten. Overnight at Camino Real Peten where luxury and the jungle meet on the glimmering blue waters of Lake Peten Itza, the second largest lake in Guatemala. The resort is part of the Cerro Cahui natural reserve, home to over 400 bird species. Each bungalow overlooks Lake Peten Itza and has magnificent views from the private balconies.

Day 2: This morning you visit the Maya ruins at Uaxactun. Uaxactun (which means “eight stones”) got its name from archeologist Sylvanus Morley who named it that because of an inscription he deciphered on one of the stelae there. Archeologists have determined that the four major structures there were probably used for astronomical studies as they are aligned to the sunrise on equinoxes and solstices. Uaxactun is located in the 1.65 million hectare Maya Biosphere Reserve, which is part of the largest body of intact tropical forest in Central America. You’ll have lunch at the chiclero camp there and time to enjoy the paradisal jungle environment. In the afternoon you go to Tikal to visit the archeological museum and at the end of the day you'll have time to relax and enjoy lovely Lake Peten. Overnight at Camino Real Peten.

Day 3: Today you visit the spectacular Mayan ruins at Tikal. One of the most famous and beautiful of Maya sites, Tikal’s massive and steep pyramids (one is over 200 feet high) loom above the lush jungle of the Petan where one can observe spider and howler monkeys and numerous bird species such as toucans, parrots and macaws. At its peak Tikal was home to an estimated 100,000 people and the site has over 3,000 structures within a six square mile area. Well preserved glyphic texts tell of a dynamic historical record spanning over 1,000 years, including a very old long-count inscription date of 292 AD. Overnight at Camino Real Peten.

Day 4: Today you visit the Maya ruins on Lake Yaxhá (where "Survivor Guatemala" was filmed). On the banks of its beautiful lagoon is the Maya ruin site of Yaxhá ("Green Water"). Yaxhá was the third largest Maya city in the Peten (after El Mirador & Tikal) and has an unusual layout for the region. Its twin pyramid complexes, 9 acropolis', plazas and more than 500 structures are connected by sacbés (ancient elevated roads) in a manner more similar to Maya sites in the Yucatan. The views of the jungle from the 30 meter high Structure 216 are breathtaking. Birds, butterflies, spider and howler monkeys abound at this remote jungle site. Then you'll also take a boat trip to the nearby island ruins at Topoxte ("Ramon Tree"). Topoxte also has unusual architectural features, including columns that are much like those found at the Yucatec site of Chichen Itza. At the end of the day you go to Flores. You'll have time in the evening to explore this interesting city. Overnight at Casona del Lago hotel in Flores.

Day 5: Transfer to Flores airport for departure.