Porta Hotel Del Lago

Overview

Description

Beautiful Lake Atitlán is located in the picturesque department of Sololá, 91 miles (147 km) from Guatemala City. Porta Hotel Del Lago is in the municipality of Panajachel, perfectly framed by the three majestic volcanoes of Atitlán, Tolimán, and San Pedro, along with the pretty towns around the lake that can be reached by boat or land.

Panajachel is the center of one of the country’s four best tourist attractions. Its importance lies in the magnificent landscape consisting of Lake Atitlán and the three volcanoes, where sunrises and sunsets offer globally incomparable natural scenery.

Life here is very picturesque and active. The streets house hundreds of small businesses where artisans, weavers, and merchants offer their numerous products. Its docks are a meeting point for commercial and tourist boat transport, serving the villages along the lakeshore.

Panajachel has a public beach with recreational areas and many restaurants, hotels, and attractions such as the "San Buenaventura" butterfly garden, whose trail takes visitors into nature to see an impressive waterfall and the colonial church of San Francisco de Asís with its belfry.

Rooms

100 rooms consisting of 10 suites, 36 deluxe rooms, and 54 standard rooms.

Making a Difference

Number of employees: 110

Percentage of local employees: 90%

Porta Hotel Del Lago is doing important work in environmental, socio-cultural, and entrepreneurial areas. In October 2010, we achieved certification in sustainable tourism from the GREAT Green Deal program at the Gold level, because our hotel:

• Respects and values the habits, rights, and traditions of the people in the areas where it operates, as well as ethnic and gender equality.
• Encourages the manufacture and purchase of handicrafts and other local products and services.
• Promotes the hiring, training, and development of local staff at all levels of the business.
• Urges the use of products and services from micro, small, or medium-size enterprises in the local area, especially those that are sustainable.
• Supports and disseminates cultural, sport, and recreational activities and those that benefit neighboring and/or destination communities, in prior consultation with the groups or businesses that offer and/or coordinate activities when possible.
• Supports and promotes the understanding of and respect for indigenous cultures and customs.
• Provides information and encourages visits to local tourism sites and communities.
• Participates and supports tourism development initiatives and other activities in the adjacent communities, with the prior consent of the interested parties.
• Porta Hotels actively supports the Let’s Plant 1,000 Trees movement, whose objective is to compensate environmental damage through the reforestation of our country to support the recovery of its ecosystems.

Rates

$101 – $150

For more information about rates, please visit:

• www.portahotels.com/es/content/paquetes-especiales (available in Spanish).
• www.portahotels.com/content/special-packages (available in English).

Getting There

Nearest international airport: Guatemala (GUA)

Travel time to nearest airport: 3 hours

Distance by land to the nearest airport: 91 miles (147 km).

Access to Panajachel is by land as there is no commercial airport nearby.

From the international airport in Guatemala City, take private transport (direct) to Panajachel. All drivers use the Panamerican Highway, which is paved and in excellent condition.

If you travel by car, take the route to Sololá on the Panamerican Highway. Head toward Sololá (8 km/5 miles) to reach Panajachel (6.5 km/4 miles).

Additional Information

Awards or Recognitions

Porta Hotel Del Lago’s dedication, effort, responsibility, and commitment to sustainable tourism led to its receiving the 2011 "Tourism Without Borders" Central American Prize for Excellence at the Gold level. The prize was awarded at the inaugural ceremony of the Central American Travel Market (CATM) 2011, in Panama. Some images of the award ceremony are available here.

Date This Information Was Provided

July 2013.

Photos courtesy of Porta Hotel Del Lago, Guatemala, for SustainableTrip.org.