Things to Do in Sololá, Guatemala: City Guides
5 cities in Sololá, Guatemala.
Things to do in Sololá, Guatemala
Sololá is a mountainous department in western Guatemala, shaped by Lake Atitlán, fertile farmland and the communities that surround the lake. A visit reveals a region where Kaqchikel and K’iche’ Maya traditions, agriculture and wool production remain central to everyday life. Neywo offers free audio guides for five cities in Sololá, with five narrated places in total, available in 11 languages.
What to see and do in Sololá
The best towns to visit in Sololá are found around Lake Atitlán, where each municipality offers a different perspective on the department’s landscapes and communities. Neywo’s coverage includes five places to explore.
Panajachel
Panajachel is one of the towns on Lake Atitlán covered by Neywo. Its audio guide includes one narrated place, making it a starting point for discovering the department and the municipalities around the lake.
San Juan La Laguna
San Juan La Laguna is another lakeside town in Sololá with a narrated place on Neywo. It is part of the region’s predominantly Maya cultural landscape, where different communities contribute to the identity of the department.
San Lucas Tolimán
San Lucas Tolimán has two narrated places on Neywo: Cerro Tamalaj and Islas Pachitulul. Together, they offer two points from which to explore the natural and cultural setting of the town and the wider Lake Atitlán region.
Santa Catarina Palopó
Santa Catarina Palopó is included among Neywo’s Sololá destinations, with one narrated place. It is also associated with nearby San Antonio Palopó in the guide’s coverage, adding another lakeside reference to this part of the department.
Santa Cruz la Laguna
Santa Cruz la Laguna is one of the municipalities around Lake Atitlán included in Neywo’s Sololá coverage. The city currently has no narrated places in the app, but it belongs to the same lakeside network of towns that makes the department worth exploring.
Landscape, farming and Maya communities
Sololá’s mountainous terrain and Lake Atitlán are among its defining features. Several municipalities surround the lake, while the department’s fertile soil supports maize, wheat, barley, vegetables and fruit. Apples, cherimoya, peaches and pears are among the crops grown in the region.
Agriculture is accompanied by livestock farming, including sheep. Sololá has had a large wool industry since 1850, making wool production another important part of its economic and cultural history.
The department’s population is almost entirely made up of different Mayan ethnic groups. In 2018, Sololá had more than 421,000 residents, with the Kaqchikel and K’iche’ as its two largest groups. These communities, the farmland and the wool industry are all central to understanding life in this mountainous part of western Guatemala.
Explore Sololá with Neywo
Download Neywo to explore Sololá with a free audio guide covering five cities and five narrated places in total. There are currently no walking tours in the region. Narration is available in 11 languages: the app tells the story of each place as you reach it, at your own pace, with no group and no schedule.
You can use the guides in Panajachel, San Juan La Laguna, San Lucas Tolimán, Santa Catarina Palopó and Santa Cruz la Laguna, or continue planning your trip through Guatemala.
Audio tours across Sololá
Every city below has a self-guided walk waiting in the app. Open Neywo wherever you are in Sololá and it builds the route around you.
