Why is location so important to Hotels in Antigua Guatemala?

With the rise of the internet it’s well documented that the idea of location location location is losing its significance in everyday life. As you will quickly discover this is simply not true for hotels in Antigua Guatemala. There are many reasons for this. Within the last few years there have been a number of resort type places that are located out of town. Although these luxury hotels are worth a visit and are very beautiful, many visitors have been put off by their location.

There are a couple of reasons why being centrally located is important to making the most out of your visit in Antigua Guatemala. Travel in Guatemala can be a daunting prospect so it’s important to have a good orientation at all times. Antigua is a town that can be difficult to navigate at times.

Navigation can be tricky especially after you have been on a long walk. There are few big land marks and the grid system makes it easy to lose yourself. This is made doubly as hard in the dark as things have a tendency to look differently. Add on top of this that if you are wearing high heels you will most probably be stumbling over all over the place.
Our advice is stay in a centrally located hotel, carry the hotels details with you at all times and jump into a taxi at the first sign of getting lost!

Are there too many luxury hotels in Antigua Guatemala?

It is no secret that there has been a huge influx of luxury hotels in Antigua Guatemala over the past 10 years. Dating back from the colonial era when conquerors and Spanish noblemen populated the city, Antigua has had an air of elegance about it. Although there are many different places to stay to suit every budget, boutique hotels and resorts have increased in popularity in a big way.

There have been an increasing amount of luxury 5 star hotels and resorts such as Soleil located on the outskirts of Antigua. All these type are generally bigger, more spacious with parking and business facilities and meeting rooms. However, what they make up for in modern amenities they usually lack in colonial charm and uniqueness.

The best hotels in Antigua Guatemala are those that offer an experience that can’t be found anywhere else. Palacio de Dona Leonor is relatively new on the Hotel scene in Antigua but oozes charm and sophistication. It is the former mansion of Pedro de Alvarado, and each room is named after a famous Spanish nobleman. People say that this accommodation is like having a history lesson as it brings the colonial splendor to life.

One of the most famous is Santo Domingo, which is famous for its idyllic setting for weddings with a church on site and it even a helipad for helicopter tours. It is situated on the site of some ancient Spanish ruins and is renowned for being very romantic.

It’s true that there are many different luxury hotels in Antigua Guatemala and that to stand out from the crowd they are constantly innovating and coming up with new ideas. This can only benefit the consumer that comes to Antigua offering them more choice and selection.

Hotels in Antigua with a view

Nestled in the middle of three towering volcanoes, Antigua has some stunning views especially during sunset. If you are looking for a hotel room with a view then it is probably a good idea to stay away from cheap hotels and opt for a luxury hotel. There are many hotels in Antigua Guatemala as well as guest houses, bed and breakfasts and hostels with terraces where you can enjoy the view and relax with a nice glass of red wine enjoying the lovely scenery.

Being a colonial town full of rich houses that descended from the Spanish conquerors, most houses within the center of Antigua have extravagant terraces. This means that unless you are very unlucky you are likely to end up with a terrace of some description to watch the sun go down.

Although there are some 5 star resorts on the outskirts of town you will probably want to stay in a central place that offers both comfort and style.

Why are Antigua’s sunsets so glorious? Well, geographically Antigua is located in the middle of a kind of valley/bowl is surrounded by lush green countryside and dramatic 4000m meter high volcanoes. The sun always sets over Volcan Fuego and Acatenango coloring the sky with all sorts of crazy rainbow colors making for an amazing spectacle – almost like a laser show!

This laser show can be amplified by the weird patterns of cloud that congregated in the sky and the puffs of smoke that are periodically released by the affectionately known Fuego.

Choosing a Hotel in Antigua Guatemala

While Antigua certainly qualifies as a destination for the luxury traveller (with its colonial masterpieces built by Spanish Conquistadors) there is a wide variety of hotel properties to suit any budget and any mood from the lavish and rather expensive Santo Domingo to the simple and not so luxurious little Posadas on Santa Lucia.

Location. Although a key factor for any tourist, Antigua, which is only 8 by 8 blocks, is notoriously difficult to navigate. It is advisable to book a centrally located hotel and take note of any distinguishing landmarks, as Antigua’s colonial streets have a tendency to all look the same. Be aware at night as it becomes twice as tricky especially if you are wearing high heels and walking across the cobble stones in the dark.

Hotel Facilities. Be careful when looking at the travel brochure, that the hotel that you see in the glossy photo is one that you’re going to be staying in. It’s a good idea to check online reviews, ask friends who have already been and also check the hotel’s websites (although many Guatemalan websites never won any medals for design – don’t necessarily hold this against the quality of their hotel!)

Electric Showers. Generally not a problem for any one staying in any of the midrange to luxury hotels in Antigua, but beware of what is meant by "hot showers". Hot in Guatemala sometimes means luke warm and in other places an electric shower may have live wires hanging out the side! I don't know about you but I would prefer to pay a little extra

Terrace. If your hotel has a terrace – make full use of it! Sunsets in Antigua are spectacular with the sun usually going down at 6.30 behind the stunning volcanoes. If you’re staying at budget hotel and don’t have a terrace, never fear, the sunset doesn’t get much better than at Sky Cafe.

La Antigua Guatemala 2

On July 29, 1773, the day of Santa Marta, earthquakes wrought such destruction that officials petitioned the King of Spain to allow them to move the capital to safer ground. The Spanish Crown ordered (1776) the removal of the capital to a safer location, to the Valley of the Shrine, where Guatemala City, the modern capital of Guatemala, now stands.

This new city did not retain its old name and was christened Nueva Guatemala de la Asunción (New Guatemala of the Ascension) and its patron saint is Our Lady of Ascension. The badly damaged city of Santiago de los Caballeros was ordered abandoned, although not everyone left, and was referred to as la Antigua Guatemala, or Old Guatemala.

Antigua was left to rusticate, largely but never completely abandoned. Today its monumental bougainvillea-draped ruins, and it’s preserved and carefully restored Spanish colonial public buildings and private mansions give form to a city of charm andromance unequaled in the Americas. In 1979 UNESCO recognized Antigua, Guatemala as a Cultural Heritage of Mankind site.

Upon entering the valley, you first notice the large volcanoes that dominate the horizon around Antigua.To the south of the city, is the Volcán de Agua or "Volcano of Water.” When the Spanish arrived, the local inhabitants, Cakchiquel Mayas, called it Hunapú. However, it became popularly known as Volcán de Agua after the earthquakeinduced mudslide from the volcano buried the second site of the capital.

To the west of the city is Acatenango and the Volcán de Fuego or "Volcano of Fire.” Fuego is famous for being almost constantly active at a low level. Acatenango has two peaks, Pico Mayor ( Highest Peak ) and Yepocapa, which is also known as Tres Hermanas (Three Sisters). Acatenango is joined with Fuego and collectively the volcano complex is known as La Horqueta.

The Fuego-Acatenango massif comprises a string of five or more volcanic vents along a north-south trend that is perpendicular to that of the Central American arc in Guatemala. From north to south known centers of volcanism are Ancient Acatenango, Yepocapa, Pico Mayor de Acatenango, Meseta, and Fuego.

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La Antigua Guatemala 1

The colonial history of Antigua Guatemala was to change forever...

In 1523, Captain General Don Pedro de Alvarado began the conquest of the highlands of Guatemala and eventually captured territory all the way to Peru.

In 1524, Alvarado established the first capital in Iximche, and named it “Ciudad de Santiago de los Caballeros de Goathemala” (City of the Knights of Saint James of Guatemala).

On November 22, 1527, after several Cakchiquel indian uprisings, the capital was moved to a more suitable site in the Valley of Almolonga – to the present-day city of Ciudad Vieja.

When this city was destroyed on September 11, 1541 by a devastating mudflow emanating from the Volcán de Agua, the colonial authorities decided to move once more, this time to the Valley of Panchoy.

On March 10, 1543 the Spanish conquistadors founded present-day Antigua, and again, it was named Santiago de los Caballeros. For more than 200 years it served as the seat of the military governor of the Spanish colony of Guatemala, a large region that included almost all of present-day Central America and the southernmost State of Mexico: Chiapas.

In 1566 King Felipe II of Spain gave it the full title of “Muy Leal y Muy Noble Ciudad de Santiago de los Caballeros de Goathemala,” that is, the "Very Loyal and Very Noble City of Saint James of the Knights of Guatemala."

For the first century or more of its existence the city did not live up to the pretentious official title, but it ultimately grew into the most important city in Central America, filled with monumental buildings of ornate Spanish colonial architecture.

According to many authors, Antigua Guatemala in its heyday, with a population of perhaps 60,000, was surpassed in the New World only by Mexico City and Lima.

Throughout its history the city now known as Antigua Guatemala, or La Antigua, was repeatedly damaged by earthquakes, and always the Antigueños rebuilt, bigger and better.

Doña Leonor

The history of the fasinating Dona Leonor is centered around the conquest that took part in the colonial era in Antigua Guatemala.

Since women of the time were relatively important by virtue of the families they were born into or were married into, much of Doña Leonor's history has to be interpreted through others, however, one should never underestimate the vital role that they played during a time of perpetual turmoil and conquest - not only keeping the families "together," but often-times helping make key decisions of state or in business.

Doña Leonor de Alvarado was born on March 22, 1524 at the newly founded city of Santiago de los Caballeros - Utatlan before the Spanish invasion (from Quiche "place of old reeds"). The site was originally founded around 1400 for its defensive position, as it was a time of warfare in the Guatemala highlands. She was baptized there by the priest Juan Godines.

Doña Leonor was the daughter of Don Pedro de Alvarado and the Tlaxcalan Indian princess “Tecuilhuatzin” (“Doña Luisa”) and was the first woman mestizo born in Guatemala . In 1519, her mother along with three other Tlaxcalan Princesses had been presented as gifts to Alvarado and Cortez and other lieutenants to seal the union of the Tlaxcalans as allies to the Spanish in the fight against their old enemy, the Aztec Empire and its ruler, the powerful Montezuma II

Doña Luisa and (daughter) Leonor de Alvarado were constant companions of Don Pedro in his conquest of Guatemala and Central America .

In 1527, on a return trip to Spain – to secure his conquest - Captain-General Don Pedro married Francisca de La Cueva , the daughter of a noble and powerful family of Castile . Doña Francisca did not last long in the Americas and Don Pedro later returned and married her sister, Doña Beatriz de La Cueva , who became Governor after his death in 1541.

To secure a familial relationship, Doña Leonor was first married to Pedro de Portocarrero, conquistador and companion to Don Pedro, whom he accompanied during the conquest of Mexico and Guatemala , participating in numerous battles against the Indians. In 1524, during the conquest of Guatemala , Portocarrero was appointed alderman of the Cabildo and served as mayor of the original Capitol. He led the 1526 war against the peoples of Sacatepéquez, and in 1527 he conquered the province of Chiapas and founded the town of Comitan . In 1539, Doña Leonor, scarcely fifteen years old, was widowed and heir to the fortune of Portocarrero, who had no other descendants

Don Francisco de La Cueva , arrived in Guatemala in 1539, at the age of 38, and in 1541, after the death of Don Pedro and Doña Beatriz, Bishop Marroquin sought the wedding of Don Francisco (cousin of the Duke of Albuquerque) and Doña Leonor, to consolidate the wealth of her late husband and father. They had six children.

One of the leading figures of the first generation was Doña Leonor de Alvarado (Xicoténcatl) de La Cueva. “El Placio de Doña Leonor” (and the adjoining structures) was originally the private home of Leonor de Alvarado (de la Cueva ), and also served as a center of commerce and government (on the first floor). Don Francisco alternately served as governor, mayor and businessman. Due to his relative inexperience and naiveté, much of the “business” was left to his more experienced wife.

Don Francisco died in late 1576 and Doña Leonor survived until 1583.

In her will, given on September 13, 1583 before the notary (Hidalgo), Doña Leonor expressed her desire to be buried next to her father and husband, in the chapel of the holy cathedral church (Central Cathedral).

As Don Pedro de Alvarado was known for his physical exploits and military leadership, his daughter, Doña Leonor (the first "Mestiza" born in Guatemala) was equally well-endowed with "inner" strength and resolve. The meticulously restored "Palacio" is now a fitting "testiment" to this extraordinary woman.

Continue to follow the fasinating history of Antigua on our website with regular updates and interesting posts. Click here to discover the colonial magic of Antigua!

The Conquest

The history of Antigua Guatemala took a very interesting and sudden twist.

It was neither superior tactical ability nor weaponry that decided that battle and led to the eventual conquest of Guatemala's native population, but European diseases that traversed the Atlantic with the Spaniards and decimated Guatemala's native population four years before conquistadors arrived.

The terrible story of the plagues was recorded by Guatemala's Maya-Cakchiquel people. "After our fathers and grandfathers succumbed, half of the people ran away from the towns. Dogs and vultures devoured the bodies. The mortality was terrible...That is how we became orphans, oh, my children!"

The Spaniards almost certainly encountered an army of young, inexperienced fighters, fielded from a population that had not begun to recover from the devastating effects of the plagues. This native army was led by a gallant Maya-Quiché captain, Tecun Uman, attired in quetzal feathers and wearing crowns of precious metals and jewels.

A Quiché chronicle, written in the 1550s, tells how Captain Tecun "became an eagle covered with real feathers that sprouted from his body. He had wings that also sprouted from his body and three crowns--one of gold, another of diamonds, and a third of emeralds."

The authors describe how Tecun Uman rose in flight to attack Pedro de Alvarado, who pierced him in the breast with his spear. They tell how the conquistador "called all his soldiers come and see the beauty of this quetzal Indian.

He told them he had not seen another Indian so handsome and regal and so full of quetzal feathers and so beautiful, not in Mexico, nor in Tlascala, nor in any other town they had conquered. And so Alvarado said that the name of this place would be Quetzaltenango (the 'place of the quetzals')." Today a statue of Tecun Uman stands at the entrance to Quetzaltenango, fiercely guarding the road climbed by the Spaniards into the Guatemalan highlands, where their conquest of the Maya began. The last Maya city to be conquered belonged to the Itzá, on the island where the town of Flores is now found in Guatemala's Petén department, near the abandoned city of Tikal.

SURVIVING CONQUEST (The Maya of Guatemala in Historical Perspective - jstor.org)

"Little by little heavy shadows and black night enveloped our fathers and grandfathers and us also...All of us were born to die!"

The Maya of Guatemala are today, as they have been in the past, a dominated and beleaguered group...Commenting forty years ago (Oliver) La Farge observed that 'these people undoubtedly suffer...they are an introverted people, consumed by internal fires, which they cannot or dare not express, eternally chafing under the yoke of conquest, and never for a moment forgetting that they are a conquered people.'

La Farge's observation is important because, among other things, it views conquest not as a remote historical experience, but as a visible, present condition," serving as a prescient reminder to us all.

Palacio de Doña Leonor

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Pedro de Alvarado: Spanish Conquistador and Governer of Guatemala

Sent out by Hernán Cortés with 120 horsemen, 300 foot soldiers and several hundred Cholula and Tlascala auxiliaries, Pedro de Alvarado was engaged in the conquest of the highlands of Guatemala from 1523 to 1527. He left Tenochtitlán, with 120 Cavalry units, 160 crossbowers and riflemen, 4 heavy artillery pieces, 300 infantry men, and 20,000 tlaxcaltec, cholulas, and mexicas. He entered Guatemala from Soconusco on the Pacific lowlands and then headed for Xetulul Humbatz, Zapotitlan.

Alvarado at first allied himself with the Cakchiquel nation to fight against their traditional rivals the Quiché nation. He began his conquest in Xepau Olintepeque, defeating the K'iché's 72,000 men, led by Tecún Umán (now Guatemala's national hero). Alvarado then went to Gumarcaj, (Utatlan), the K'iché capital, and burned it on March 7, 1524

He proceeded to Iximche, and established near there in Tecpan on July 25, 1524, to launch several campaigns to other cities, as Chuitinamit, the capital of the Tzutuhils,(1524), Mixco Viejo, capital of the Poqomams, and Zaculeu, capital of the Mam, (1525). He was named Captain General in 1527. Feeling his position secure, Alvarado turned against his allies Cakchiquels, meeting them in several battles until they were subdued in 1530.

If you would like to learn more about the fascinating history of Antigua visit our website.

Palacio Doña Leonor is a boutique hotel in the colonial town of Antigua Guatemala, we encourage you visit us to continue the history lesson about the Spanish colonial era and experience for yourself the wonderful attractions, things to do and places to stay.