Hotel y Restaurante Q´ana Itz´am — Hotel in Lívingston

My husband & I were looking for a very different type of adventure this year and ran across some info on Q'ana Itz'am in Lagunita Salvador. We were very happy we chose this as our first of two destinations in Guatemala. We spent the night in Guatemala City on a Wednesday and caught the Litegua (like a Greyhound if you are from the States) to Rio Dulce. We were told it was a 5 hour trip but it ended up being 7+ hours due to major construction. We were fine with the travel as it was all new scenery to us. The bus does stop once at a big cafeteria with many food choices. We ate the tamales and taquitos both times. They take credit cards as does the bus. Once we were dropped off at the city Rio Dulce on the river Rio Dulce, we walked around a bit and Luis was already there waiting to pick us up! Such service! We had pre-arranged with him via email to his daughter in GC as she speaks English (we don't speech Spanish or Q'eqhi for that matter!). They do all have cell phones there that I assume run off of satellite. ||||We were the only tourists there June 2-6, 2016. We had a bungalow. It had a double bed and a single bed and a private bathroom. The have solar electricity. The water is only cold and is mountain run off. It was so hot that hot water would not have been used anyways! We slept with the screened windows open. We had two small fans by our heads and we were very comfortable. It was nice listening to all the sounds in the evening. The roosters woke us up every morning. The chickens have full run of the hotel/restaurant area. They are not a nuisance in any way. There were turkeys too but they weren't close to our area. We used the same towel every day (we didn't ask for another one but I bet they would have accommodated). You will need your own soap and shampoo. The food was awesome! We walked to the restaurant and Filimino would ask, "comida?" so we new it was time to eat! We had eggs, black beans, homemade tortillas or pancakes and fruit every morning. And then we just ate one other time, a late lunch which was either chicken or fish with rice and tortillas and an interesting unleavened corn bread and we had the famous Topado (Google this!) one day. Oh my-sooo delicious! There wasn't a bad meal. Fresh fruit, plenty of bottled water and Gallo beer.||||It hadn't rained so our plan to hike to the waterfall was canceled as they said there was no waterfall. We did kayak to Aqua Caliente which was probably 3 hours total with a non-English speaking "tour guide". He was sweet and we tipped him 55Q which is equivalent to about $7 US. Make sure you are wearing a hat and have plenty of water! Such a beautiful trip seeing different birds I haven't seen, fisherman throwing their nets in, very calm waters. At Aqua Calientes is a bar/restaurant and for $1.50 you can get a cave tour. It was scary if you are claustrophobic like me! You can sit in a hot sauna cave too but opted not to do that--I was hot enough!||||The village itself is very small. They'll take you on their community tour through the rain forest-wear shoes, not flip flops (we had Keens). We walked on logs through pineapple fields, their shanties, the school and church and you'll see older boys play soccer every night. The children are adorable. They come daily to the restaurant to buy ice cream cones out of Filomina's (host mom's) deep freeze. (Sadly we were never offered any). The dock and its hammock were awesome. If you are a reader, that will be your spot-cool breeze comes through it. We kayaked around the "cul-de-sac"..they are in a lagoon and we found little side rivers full of mangroves, very eerily quiet and peaceful at the same time. Surprisingly there were NO mosquitoes or bugs. We were very prepared for the worse and to get malaria (even though we were on anti-Malaria meds). After a big rain little black crabs came up to the board walk to dry off I suppose. Never saw any snakes or monkeys. Did see a huge blue butterfly but couldn't get a picture of it. It was as big as a bird! What a site! We did see two wild boars as well but they seemed harmless. ||||The people are very happy and helpful. For our four days there we paid around $400 for the two of us and that included our boat ride from Rio Dulce and to Livingston and our kayak trip, renting the kayaks daily, all meals and drinks and the community tour. We thought it was money well spent on something most people have never done. How many people can say they've been on vacation with no cell service or TV or vehicles of any kind?! If you want a change of pace and to...

I found it really hard to get info about visiting Lagunita Salvador, so here is some info!!||||You may come across the name EcoAldea Maya (on Trip Advisor etc). This is what it used to be called- they are the same place. So basically the name of the hotel and restaurant is Q'ana Itz'am and the community itself which it is in is called Lagunita Salvador. it is more or less half way between Rio Dulce and Livingston.||||I was the first New Zealander ever to visit there, so it was quite an honour! It also goes to show that it is quite off the tourist route, though you wouldn't know it as the accomodation is very nice. Everything is run on solar and the showers are great! Also the water is clean as it is redirected from the mountains.||||Q'ana Itzam is run by Filomena and Luis, a lovely couple. You can ring them to come pick you up, or catch the local boat to Aguas Caliente and then call them from there to arrange them to get you (discuss the price with them first).||||Here is Luis number: 502 5992 1853||You can also email here: caterifaviola@gmail.com||It is a good idea to ring ahead of time so that they know you are coming and they can prepare for you with supplies. When you email the above address you are actually emailing Luis and Filomena's daughter in Guatemala City, and she then corresponds with you and then rings them to let them know that you are coming.||||I was excited to visit after reading some good reviews about it, and I couldn't wait to review it myself.||The accomodation was a lot more comfortable then I expected jungle accomodation, for 70 quetzales (approx $9 US dollars) I had a whole room to myself, with a gorgeous and exceptionally clean bathroom. The room didn't smell musty or feel claustrophobic (which is what I felt at Finca Tatin- although I do love Finca Tatin too!) and the bed was comfortable, though the pillow was very uncomfortable!||||Filomena the hostess was very hospitable and friendly. She cooked me huge meals (cooked with fresh fish that I saw her and her husband catch just a few hours earlier) and sat with me while I ate, telling me the history of Q'ana Itz'am. Her breakfasts were great, all her cooking was very good.||||They have their own little fish farm where they catch the fish fresh for your dinner. A hilarious family of turkeys (about 20) who gobbled around common ground of the community.||||I did a tour there, 3.5 hours, in the local canoe, paddled through over grown waterways then hike through jungle (wear shoes that you don't mind getting wet as you'll be walking through some shallow rivers. At the end of the hike Luis showed me where some of the water was collected for the village and I could swim in the pools there- so refreshing after the hike, I swam in my clothes which kept me cool for the hike back. Then on the kayak back Luis pointed out a boa constrictor in the trees and we saw lizards, blue butterflies as big as birds and some sort of flying flish. We heard monkeys but couldn't see them. ||||Here is some more info too:||http://discoverizabal.com/places-to-stay/by-sustainability/community-businesses/item/community-businesses/comunidad-lagunita-el-salvador.html||||I'm really glad I went. it really does feel like an isolated paradise. So tranquil and relaxing. Sitting on the little wharf as the sun set was absolute bliss. Ps Trip advisor if you are able to combine both of these places into one please do, but if it means having to delete reviews or photos then please don't, as it is hard enough for these guys to get the word out/ let people know about this...

Me and a couple of friends visited this awesome place for "Semana Santa" (very high season) and we were surprised with the hotel's simplicity and the natural beauty of the surroundings. It's a quiet place where you can really escape from all the hustle and bustle form the city and get a really good fresh rest.||||To get there you will arrive to Rio Dulce and then take a 45 min to 1 hour boat ride to the hotel docks which will cost you about Q85 per person if you arranged with the hotel.||||Our experience was awesome but there were some drawbacks though so let me break it down for you:||||The Good Stuff:||- The rooms are cheap and BASIC with a decent bed and a mosquito net, if you are lucky you'll have an electric plug and a small stand (the rooms are surprisingly nice though).||- If you manage to get a bungalow for some extra coin you will enjoy much more your stay as they are away from the main house!||- The hotel's staff is always ready and thoughtful to make you feel at home as the place is managed by the owner, Filomena and her daughters.||- The surroundings are very interesting and beautiful, the hotel is pretty close to "Lagunita El Salvador" where you can chill by the dock and swim on it's very calm waters.||- The staff will arrange some very nice tours for a very decent price (Siete Altares, Playa Blanca and Livingston, all for a Q150 fare per person) (Q25 for a beautiful boat ride and hiking trough the jungle to get to a very peaceful waterfall)||- There are kayaks for rent at a Q25 fare that you can use to get to "Chocón Machacas" a natural reserve for wildlife by the river (a 15 min paddle).||||The not so good stuff:||- Food is expensive and the menu is very limited in the hotel (Q85 for chicken and fries) and there is only a small basic store close by where you might find some instant soups... the food is pretty decent though.||- There are about 12 rooms and they all share 2 restrooms and 2 showers, when in high season they get crowded and it's very annoying.||- The rooms are too tight together and the restaurant is below them so, when the hotel is full they get VERY noisy.||- There is no AC so you will have to cope with the hot weather||- If you ever need to go somewhere to get supplies you will have to pay about Q80 for a boat ride to Livingston.|| - The hotel don't have it's own parking lot in Rio Dulce but the staff will make arrangements for you to park somewhere "safe" hahaha||||All in all, the experience and coziness of the place will give you a time to...