Guatemala Vegan Tour: An 8-Day Foodie Adventure & Community Experience – January 2027

Go Beyond the Plate: An 8-Day Vegan Foodie Adventure In Guatemala That Gives Back to Local Communities 🇬🇹 ✨ January 03 – 10, 2027 ✨

Guatemala’s food story runs deeper than trendy dishes and Instagrammable plates. This is a country where corn is sacred, chocolate has a rich history, and food is a way of life.

On this 8-day immersive vegan adventure, you won’t just eat incredible vegan meals; you’ll step into the heart of Guatemala’s food traditions, allowing you to experience food the way it was meant to be: slow, intentional, and deeply connected to the land.

Through regenerative tourism, you’ll be supporting ethical food producers and community-led sustainability projects, ensuring that the places we visit benefit as much as we do.

If you’re ready to go beyond the plate, meet the people behind the food, and experience Guatemala in the most delicious, meaningful way possible, this trip is for you. Join me and Emma (from Vegan Adventure Holidays) for an unforgettable taste of Guatemala, one that nourishes both you and the communities we visit. 🥰

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Note: While Kristin won’t be joining this departure, you’ll be in wonderful hands with Emma, the bilingual vegan tour leader who designed and led our previous Guatemala tour. With more than 20 years of experience leading groups, Emma creates unforgettable travel experiences. In fact, one couple from last year’s tour (who have traveled on dozens of vegan tours around the world) called it “the best vegan tour we’ve ever been on.” Expect the same delicious food, meaningful connections, and thoughtfully curated experiences that made the original tour so special.

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Full itinerary below ⬇️

Day 1: Arrive at GUA airport & Transfer to Antigua ✨✈️

You’ll be met at the International airport in Guatemala City for your transfer to Antigua. After you’ve settled into our gorgeous hotel in Guatemala’s former capital city, La Antigua, you’ll have time to explore.

Antigua is a UNESCO World Heritage site, and as you’re strolling around town, you’ll notice it sits in the Panchoy Valley, which is known as Guatemala’s cultural center. With an abundance of ancient churches, stunning parks, conveniently placed coffee shops, and flanked by volcanoes, your adventure starts now!

There will be an early evening ‘meet and greet’ with your tour leader, Emma, and other members of the group before heading out for our first dinner together.

Day 2: Coffee, Culture, & 10-Course Tasting ☕🌿

We’ll start the day with a visit to a community-run coffee farm where every bean tells a story of resilience, sustainability, and community. We’ll walk through a coffee plantation with a local farmer while they share their knowledge and personal stories of Guatemala coffee culture, how it’s planted, harvested, and roasted using traditional methods. You’ll get to taste the final product, brewed fresh at the source, and see how this local organisation reinvests in the community through this fascinating coffee cooperative.

After a morning immersed in the world of coffee, the afternoon is yours. Wander Antigua’s vibrant markets, relax in a hidden courtyard café, or take in the view of distant volcanoes from a rooftop terrace. Whether you spend the time strolling, exploring, or just sipping another perfectly brewed cup of coffee, today is about slowing down and soaking it all in.

Later this evening, you’ll experience an innovative ten-course vegan tasting menu showcasing the very best of Guatemala’s local produce with a modern, plant-based twist prepared in ways that honour tradition while embracing the future of food, so exciting!

Day 2: Get to Know Antigua’s Roots 🌱🍴

After breakfast, we’ll ease into our day with a relaxed, guided walking tour to explore Antigua’s unique architectural and hidden gems. Expect cobblestone streets, artisan crafts, local markets, and of course, incredible coffee!

Once we’ve worked up an appetite, we’ll visit one of the fully vegan restaurants this historic city has to offer. Followed by a visit to the city’s only ethical cat cafe. We’ll spend time learning about the rescue organization behind it and the work they’re doing to address the issue of stray cats in Antigua.

Enjoy some much-deserved downtime at the hotel, or go take another wander around the city, before we regroup for our first dinner together.

Day 4: Support Local Families & Humane Education 🌱✨

On this day, we’ll head to a local organic farm where breakfast is more than just a meal. It’s a chance to see firsthand how sustainable, organic agriculture is shaping Guatemala’s food future. Enjoy fresh tropical fruit, homemade bread, and freshly brewed, locally grown coffee as you chat with your new vegan travel buddies!

Next, we head up to El Hato, a small village close to Antigua, where we’ll get our hands dirty in a community garden project that provides fresh produce to local families in the area. Whether we’re planting, harvesting, or cooking, our time will leave a lasting positive impact on the community. We’ll learn about strengthening food security, supporting local families, and participating in their humane Education projects designed to inspire compassion for animals, people, and the environment.

The day ends with time to relax, reflect, and take in the volcano views, rest up because tomorrow, we continue our journey through Guatemala’s rugged highlands as we head to Lake Atitlan, the deepest and maybe most beautiful lake in Central America!

Day 5: To the Shores of Lake Atitlán 🌋🌊

After breakfast, we say goodbye to Antigua and begin our scenic journey to Lake Atitlán. A place that feels more like a dream than a destination! As we descend through winding mountain roads (you may want to pack your Dramamine), you’ll catch your first glimpses of the lake: a massive, ancient crater filled with deep blue water and ringed by three striking volcanoes—San Pedro, Atitlán, and Tolimán.

Lake Atitlán isn’t just beautiful, it’s powerful, sacred, and steeped in history. Considered by the Maya to be the “bellybutton of the world,” its shores are home to a patchwork of Indigenous villages, each with its own language, textiles, traditions, and rhythm of life. You’ll feel the shift as soon as we arrive; everything slows down here.

We’ll check into our lakefront hotel, nestled right on the water’s edge. It’s the kind of place where you can sip on your tropical juice while watching clouds drift across volcanic peaks. The afternoon is yours to settle in, explore the lakeside paths, take a dip in the pool, or simply soak up the natural beauty.

Tomorrow, we cross the lake for a hands-on vegan cooking class in a traditional Mayan village and dive deeper into the traditions of the lake’s communities.

Day 6: Cooking, Culture & Crossing the Lake 🌊🌽

The day begins with a boat ride across Lake Atitlán’s deep blue waters, passing steep hillsides where farms and villages cling to the slopes. Our destination: a small Mayan village where food is a connection to history, land, and community.

Here, we’ll meet a very special lady, Anita, a local chef whose kitchen is filled with the aroma of roasted corn and simmering spices. She’ll guide us through a hands-on vegan cooking class, sharing the techniques and traditions behind handmade tortillas, rich pepián sauce, and fresh cacao drinks. This isn’t just about cooking—it’s about understanding the roots of Guatemalan food from someone who has spent a lifetime honouring them.

After sharing a meal with Anita, we’ll take time to explore the village at our own pace, visiting local cooperatives, meeting artisans, or simply soaking in the slower rhythms of life here. By late afternoon, we’ll return across the lake, letting the hum of the boat and the shifting light on the water mark the end of another day shaped by food, culture, connection, and regenerative tourism.

Day 7: Lake Atitlán & Panajachel Nature Preserve 🛶🦋

Wake up to the soft sounds of waves lapping against the shore and volcanoes glowing in the morning light. Today is all about tuning in to what you need. Whether you’re in the mood for movement, nature, or simply soaking up the magic of the lake, we’ve got options.

For those craving adventure, join an optional kayaking session across the sparkling waters of Lake Atitlán. Paddle past lakeside villages, spot herons along the shoreline, and take in the sweeping views of the volcanic caldera from a whole new angle.

Later, opt to explore a nearby nature reserve, where lush trails wind through forest and suspension bridges lead to cascading waterfalls. Keep an eye out for coatis, butterflies, and tropical birds as you walk beneath a canopy of native trees.

Prefer to slow it down? Stay close to the hotel and relax in a hammock, swim in the pool, or journal with a fresh juice in hand. This is your space to rest, reset, and reconnect.

Day 8: Farewells & Full Circles ✨🌿✈️

This morning, we leave the peaceful shores of Lake Atitlán and begin our journey back to Guatemala City for international departures. As we wind through the highlands one last time, there’s space to reflect. Not just on the places we’ve visited, but the connections made and the impact left behind.

Over the past eight days, you’ve done more than taste incredible vegan food- you’ve helped strengthen local communities, you didn’t just pass through; you became part of a larger story of regenerative tourism, community, and compassionate action.

As we arrive at the airport and say our goodbyes, know that this isn’t the end of the journey; it’s just the beginning of a new way to travel, connect, and give back.

Guaranteed availability for this tour ends August 31, 2026.

Note: While Kristin won’t be joining this departure, you’ll be in wonderful hands with Emma, the bilingual vegan tour leader who designed and led our previous Guatemala tour. With more than 20 years of experience leading groups, Emma creates unforgettable travel experiences. In fact, one couple from last year’s tour (who have traveled on dozens of vegan tours around the world) called it “the best vegan tour we’ve ever been on.” Expect the same delicious food, meaningful connections, and thoughtfully curated experiences that made the original tour so special.

More photos from our 2025 Guatemala vegan food tour! ⬇️