Feb
Travel
Independent Tikal Tour Guide Review
It is sometimes a misconception that bloggers only have nice things to say about business, especially ones who are trading them a service or meal in exchange for promotion. Over the years I have mentioned various minor imperfections such as leaf piles in the way to my jungle resort room, not so tasty steak at a downtown San Pedro restaurant, (meanwhile my friends beef fajitas were tasty) and lack of hot water in the master bathroom of my suite North Ambergris Caye Resort. In spite of being able to give polite honest feedback, I like posting other peoples reviews as they are truly unbiased.
Today’s useful input comes from Nada Seidon. She used the option she found in a previous
Independent Tikal Tour Guide Review – Nada Seidon
We had the pleasure of using an independent tour operator. Yes, we took a chance on this one man show. His name is Genny Reyes, a Guatemalan, young yet impressively knowledgeable and of course, licensed. We were staying in Belize, so we drove to the border, parked, then walked through customs and met up with Genny on the other side. There he was with my name on his sign and a big beautiful smile welcoming us to his country. From that point on Genny handled all the details with the border agents and park officials with professionalism.
When I first made the reservation with Genny, before leaving for our trip, he recommended meeting him early because January is high season and the line to get into the park would be long. A side note, he has excellent relations with the park officials as we never had to get out of the car (and stand in that long line) until we arrived inside Tikal park. We met Genny that morning at around 7:20 am and about half way into the journey to Tikal he stopped at a restaurant for breakfast. After an excellent meal we proceeded to Tikal. For the hour drive it takes from the border, we had lively conversations with Genny about the history, culture, and politics of Guatemala.
Once inside the park Genny educated us on the history of the Mayan people, Tikal in particular and what the many excavations have revealed as to what day to day life was like. And, sadly the decline of Tikal.
Once the tour concluded and we were driving back to the border, we stopped for a late lunch. Genny’s choices in restaurants are very good. The food was well prepared, delicious and representing the local fare at both restaruants we experienced.
While Genny does not have a website don’t let that ward you off. I can attest from personal experience he is reputable and at a price of $90 USD, Genny is about $40.00 per person less than the others I looked into. Here is his email: gennyreyes9@gmail.com
Extra Belize Guatemala Travel Info
After I loaded Nadas review, I was still back and forth with the woman on Tripadvisor helping with her travel plans. Since she was not renting a car, she was looking for other options to reach the border. I gave her a great low-cost option Belize Bus website.
If you are looking to drive, Crystal Auto is a popular car company to cross the border with as they insure cars. Here is another useful link to Three Cayo car rental options. For those planning Belize Guatemala travel to see Tikal ruins, here are a few very useful Belize forum details – Driving from Belize city to Tikal in rental car and Trip Review: Self-Drive to Tikal from San Ignacio, Belize.
Belize Bus Travel
This morning, I was also asked by Latisha Nicholson on tacogirl Belize Blog youtube channel about the bus travel. It was in a comment on my Riding the chicken bus from Dangriga to Belize City video. For information, I gave her my fav Belize City Map option to print or download on her phone and of course, Mister B’s bus site listed above. I also gave her Belize Bus Schedules, from Belmopan City online. They did a great job of mapping out each bus route before you click to get that schedule and they also cover Mexico Belize bus route for those who are traveling by land. The picture below is from the return part of my crack of a dawn road trip to Dangriga Belize – Dangriga’s Vital Role in Belize’s Health Care System.
When we toured Tikal, we drove our Chrystal rental car right to the gate and were met by a guide (they take turns meeting the cars) and I don’t know if we lucked out but he was the best tour guide I’ve ever had. He works for the tourism department and the park itself (I believe) and they don’t take this lightly. He was so knowledgable and he told me that everyone has the same education program so chances are you will not be disappointed. I wish I remembered his name (4 years ago) but my husband and I had him all to ourselves-no big group, and no timetable.
I did this trip last week from Belize city to Tikal and back. I rented from Crystal .very professional.One thing to note. They are the only hire company that allow travel into Guatemala,they provide the tikal pass that lets their car pass over the border.IMPORTANT ..there is NO insurance on the car after you exit Belize. This was explained to me in the office before i left. The crossing of the border was easy and the drive to Tikal straight forward through rural Guatemala . Hope this helps and clarifies a few details.