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ACTIVITIES

NATURE´S OFFERINGS

Explore the rich nature of the Usumacinta River & enjoy bird watching from the comfort of your room. 

ANIMAL SIGHTINGS
 

Chimino´s Island is one of the last standing natural reserves of the area making it an important refuge for wild animals like the ocelot, crocodile, howler monkey, deer & ant eater. All animals that have resided in the island and can be spotted if you are lucky. While bird watching is the main attraction animal sightseeing is becoming more frequent due to deforestation of the neighboring jungle. 

 

BIRD WATCHING
 

Petexbatún is the winter refuge for many North American birds, so a small boat ride to the lagoon and nearby rivers will enable you to see Canadian ducks, herons, storks. You will have the opportunity to spot one of the 200 reported species of the area on every boat ride. You can spot bird species like:

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  • Bat Falcon

  • Plain Chachalaca

  • Red-capped Manakin

  • Golden-cheeked Warbler

  • Gray-headed Tanager

  • Montezuma Oropendola

  • King Fishers

explore nature
 

Enjoy feeling amazed by the serpent-like rivers, the personality of each tree, some over 300 years old, by the diverse microscopic insect world or the limestone rock walls. Hike around the hotel´s pathways, take a canoe and explore the island from the lagoon, enjoy the sunrises and sunsets or take an excursion by boat to the different natural destinations.

Archeological sightseing

Visits to important Mayan sites is one of our major attractions. Depending on the length of your stay, you can visit them by boat, walking and on horseback.

AGUATECA
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Aguateca is the nearest site by boat. It sits on top of a 90 meters (300 ft) tall limestone bluff, creating a highly defensible position. This steep escarpment overlooks Petexbatún Lagoon in the Southwestern Guatemalan lowlands and is accessible by boat. There is an extensive system of defensive walls that surrounds the city and in its center you will find the Palace Group, which was probably a royal residential compound, and the Main Plaza. The city was completely abandoned around 830 AD

ceibal
 

A large site, the most widely reconstructed and visited of the sites in the region, is a perfect trip on your way in or out to our Lodge. It was the largest city in the Pasión River. The early history of the site is lost due to the catastrophic defeat of the polity in AD 735 by the nearby Petexbatún kingdom with its capital at Dos Pilas resulting in the destruction of its earlier sculpted monuments. Many of Seibal's late monuments show artistic influence from central Mexico. The ruins of Ceibal were probably discovered around 1890 by loggers. In 1892, Federico Artes wrote the first report revealing the existence of the ruins, after the Guatemalan government had sent him to Petén to look for materials for the representation of Guatemala in the Universal Exposition of Chicago in 1893. Ceibal is today a site that It is characterized by huge ceibas (Guatemala´s national tree), two reconstructed monuments and a variety of stelae that date from the classical period to its end.

DOS PILAS
 

Dos Pilas is a pre-Columbian site of the Mayan civilization located in what is now the department of Petén, Guatemala. It dates back to the Late Classic period, being founded by a branch of the dynasty of the great city of Tikal in 629 AD. C. in order to control the commercial routes of the Petexbatún region, particularly the La Pasión river. In the year 648, Dos Pilas separated from Tikal and became a vassal state of Calakmul, although the first two kings of Dos Pilas continued to use the same emblem glyph as Tikal. From the beginning it was a predatory state, conquering Itzán, Arroyo de Piedra and Tamarindito. Over time, Dos Pilas and Aguateca, a nearby city, became the individual capitals of a single ruling dynasty. The kingdom as a whole is known as the Kingdom of Petexbatún, in reference to the Petexbatún lagoon, The story of Dos Pilas gives an impression of the great rivalries and political conflicts that characterized the Late Classic. At present, it is possible to reconstruct a large part of the history of Dos Pilas, with a level of detail that is almost unprecedented in the Mayan region.

and many more
 

If you want to wander further into the unbeaten path of archaeological sites you are at the right location. From Sayaxché and Rio La Pasión there are countless of journeys you can plan and even go to Mexico´s side of the river and explore Yaxchilán or go south and visit neighboring Cancúen. 

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