Puerto Quetzal -- Recommend Excursions (Especially Guatemala City versus Antigua)

[ajtraveler66]

We will be on a Panama Cruise in January on the NCL Bliss.  We are looking for recommendations for our time at Puerto Quetzal, Guatemala.  Any excursions that you can recommend?  From my perspective...a tour that gives a genuine feel for the country would be nice.  But great scenery is something that is always appealing.  Guatemala City looks interesting, as does Antigua.  ...  But we are open to other ideas as well.

 

Thanks.

[dankchau]

@ajtraveler66 Are you on the Jan 27th NCL Bliss sailing? Following this as I couldn't find any NCL excursions available for this port and aren't too sure what kinds of tours/excursions are available. 

[ajtraveler66]

2 hours ago, dankchau said:

@ajtraveler66 Are you on the Jan 27th NCL Bliss sailing? Following this as I couldn't find any NCL excursions available for this port and aren't too sure what kinds of tours/excursions are available. 

Actually we sail out of LA on January 12th.  ....   

 

They will be posting more excursions as the cruise gets closer.  If you google "ncl shore excursions puerto quetzal guatemala" you'll see several listed.  More than likely most of these will be available to us by cruise time. 

[mcmarya]

I would recommend Antigua over Guatemala City.  The route is quite scenic passing volcanos and little towns.  Antigua is a fascinating place with interesting buildings and ruins.  Many cruise lines have an "Antigua on Your Own" tour which provides transportation and you can explore on your own.

[lynncarol]

My husband and I spent a week in Antigua back in 2010.  We loved the city...lots to see and lots of attractions nearby. We even flew into Tikal for the day. The second week in Guatemala, we hired a local guide/driver to take us around the country and also into Honduras to overnight near the Copan ruins. Towards the end of the week, I told our guide I wanted to see the attractions of Guatemala city. He, a native citizen, tried to discourage me, saying it was 'too dangerous'.  Eventually he gave in but remained very nervous throughout our time there.  Now I admit this was a long time ago, but if a local man is nervous in Guatemala city, I would not recommend it to others. 

[cfkm1]

We were on Norwegian Jewel Panama cruise in Dec. We picked Antigua shore excursion with NCL and it was pleasantly a very nice city to walk on your own..