Updated : 30rd October
After 3 weeks of protests, all block roads and streets has been removed.
It is possible to travel normally in Guatemala.
In a nutshell:
- October 14th : we are able to resume travel operations (with adjustments).
- October 20th : indigenous authorities announce the end of roadblocks.
- Octobrer 24th : 5 roadbloads remain in the department of Sololá. Alternative routes make it possible to bypass them and to access Lake Atitlan.
- October 27th : the last remaining roadblocks are lifted.
- Travel to Guatemala to Guatemala is now possible. We are monitoring the situation and its evolution on a daily basis.
The political situation:
After a campaign focused on the fight against corruption, social-democrat candidate Bernardo Arévalo won the August 20, 2023 presidential election with almost 60% of the vote against conservative candidate Sandra Torres.
The election came as a surprise, first and foremost to Guatemala’s politicians and ruling elites. Bernard Arévalo was only credited with 3% of voting intentions by the polls, in an election marked by the ousting of 3 opposition candidates who could have contested the second round.
Since then, the judiciary has persisted in preventing the president-elect from taking office on January 14, 2024. At the beginning of October, this situation and the repeated actions of the Public Prosecutor’s Office against the president-elect provoked a popular mobilization across the country against the authorities.
Protests in Guatemala:
Demonstrations in Guatemala are traditionally characterized by road blockades. LThese blockades are peaceful and pose no safety risk to travelers.
Our agency is used to deal with this type of situation: by keeping abreast of the country’s blockades on a daily basis, proposing alternative routes and modifying transfer schedules to avoid blockades. In the event of blockages, we are in constant contact with our travellers on the ground, as well as our drivers and guides.
