Useful Information for Backpacking Central America: Expedition

All 27 nights are included. Most are comfortable, traditional-style 3-star hotels, usually twin-share, and solo travellers are paired with someone of the same gender.

Two nights are deliberately different: an overnight homestay with a Mayan family in San Juan on Lake Atitlán, and a night at basecamp on Acatenango watching Fuego erupt. Travelling with a friend or partner? Tell us when you book and we will keep you together.

32 meals across the 28 days: 24 breakfasts, 6 lunches and 2 dinners.

The included lunches fall on the days you would not want to be hunting for food: Chichén Itzá, the beach club on Cozumel, the Hol Chan snorkelling trip, the Mayan cooking class, Semuc Champey and the descent from Acatenango. The two dinners are the ones cooked for you, at the Mayan homestay on Lake Atitlán and at Acatenango basecamp. Every other meal is your own choice, which keeps the price down and lets you eat where you like.

Vegetarians eat very well across Mexico, Belize and Guatemala. Beans, rice, cheese, eggs, plantain and a great deal of fresh fruit and veg are everywhere, and every included meal has an option.

Strict vegan, gluten-free and allergy diets are harder in the smaller places, particularly the homestay night on Lake Atitlán and Acatenango basecamp, where the food is cooked by one family or a mountain crew. Tell us when you book so it can be passed on in advance, and remind your group leader on day 1.

Awesome! Once you’ve booked, just let us know who you’re travelling with and we’ll make sure you’re roomed together. Easy as that!

Fly into Mexico City International Airport (MEX), also known as Benito Juárez, for day 1. Your arrival transfer is included from there.

The trip ends in Antigua, which has no airport of its own, so book your flight home from Guatemala City's La Aurora International Airport (GUA), roughly an hour away by road. Book flights only once your place is confirmed, and send us the details so we can arrange your pickup.

One arrival transfer is included, from Mexico City International Airport (MEX) only. Send us your flight details once they are booked and a driver will be waiting to take you to the tour hotel. If you arrive a day or two early and stay at that hotel, the transfer still stands.

There is no transfer at the end of the trip. From Antigua your group leader can organise a taxi to Guatemala City airport, which costs in the region of £20 or $40 USD.

Requirements depend on your nationality, and this trip crosses three countries, so check all three before you travel. Most UK, EU, US, Canadian, Australian and New Zealand passport holders can enter each one as a tourist without a visa for a stay of this length.

Whatever your passport, you will need at least six months of validity, two blank pages and proof of onward travel from Guatemala. There is also a land border exit fee of around $20 USD, payable in cash, when you leave Belize. Our guide to visas in Central America goes into more detail, and because rules change, confirm with the official embassy or consulate site close to departure.

Once you’ve booked your flights, log in to the Manage My Booking area of our website and enter your flight arrival details. That is how your group leader knows when you are landing.

Arriving before the tour starts, or staying on at the end? Let us know as early as you can so we can check availability and pricing on extra nights.

Please let us know as soon as possible. If you are already en route and a connecting flight changes, contact your group leader or email us so we can still meet you at the airport.

For group tours, your place is confirmed once enough travellers have booked, and always at least four weeks (28 days) before your tour starts. Most group tours are confirmed around six months before departure.

For volunteer or private bookings, please allow 2-3 working days.

If a tour does not run, you get a full refund.

One main bag under 20kg plus a daypack is the rule of thumb, and whether that bag is a backpack or a suitcase is entirely up to you.

You handle your own luggage across 15 stops, three countries and an internal flight to Cancun with its own checked baggage limit, so packing light genuinely pays here. There are laundry stops along the route, which means you need far less than you think. Bring a small daypack for the Acatenango trek and the day trips.

Backpack or suitcase? Totally up to you. But here’s the golden rule: pack light! We recommend keeping it under 20kg.

A few quick tips:

• A backpack that zips open on the side = super handy
• Don’t overpack, you can do laundry on tour
• You definitely don’t need 16 pairs of shorts

Keep it simple. You’ll thank yourself later!

Backpacking Central America: Expedition starts in Mexico City, Mexico and finishes 28 days later in Antigua, Guatemala.

Day 1 is an arrival day in Mexico City, with the group heading out into the historic centre that evening. Day 28 in Antigua is a check-out day, so you can leave whenever your onward plans need you to, though most people stay for a last breakfast with everyone first.

Arrive on day 1, the official start date. Nothing is scheduled during the day, and the group comes together in the evening to head into the historic centre for tacos and a first look at the city.

Landing in the morning gives you time to check in, sleep off the flight and find your feet. Mexico City sits at 2,240 metres, so taking the first day slowly is not a bad idea.

Yes to both, and plenty of people do. Mexico City deserves more than a day at the start, and Antigua is a good place to stop moving for a while at the end.

Let us know and we will arrange extra nights at the tour hotel. If you arrive early and stay there, your included airport pickup still applies. For nights after day 28, tell your group leader at the start of the trip and they will sort it out for you.

It is the hardest thing on the itinerary and, for most people, the best. The climb to basecamp takes up to seven hours on steep, loose ground at altitude, and there is a short pre-dawn push to the 3,976 metre summit the next morning for sunrise over the erupting Fuego.

You need a reasonable level of fitness, and mild altitude symptoms such as a headache are common. Bring warm layers, a waterproof jacket and proper walking shoes. The trek is included, and if you would rather skip it we will arrange a traditional chocolate-making experience in Antigua and accommodation for that night at no extra cost. If you set off and cannot finish, any extra accommodation is at your own expense.

Moderate, with a handful of big days. Twenty-eight days across three countries means some long drives, particularly between Oaxaca, Chiapas and the Guatemalan highlands, on roads that wind. There are early starts for the Mayan Face sunrise hike above Lake Atitlán and for Acatenango.

Everything else suits anyone happy to be on their feet for a few hours. Chichén Itzá and Tikal are flat walking, Semuc Champey is a jungle path and a swim, and we travel by private transport with rest stops built in.

Most of the hotels have free Wi-Fi, generally good enough for messaging, email and uploading photos even if not always for streaming.

It is patchier on Isla Holbox and Caye Caulker, and there is none at all overnight at Acatenango basecamp. A local eSIM is worth having for the gaps: mobile coverage is good across Mexico and reasonable in Guatemala.

Most things are covered, including activities, transport, accommodation, and some meals. You’ll just need money for extra meals, drinks, shopping, and any onward travel after the tour