LIVINGSTON, THE CARIBBEAN OF GUATEMALA

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Day 10: Río Dulce - Livingston, the Caribbean of Guatemala - Río Dulce

We start the day in Rio Dulce at 6 in the morning by looking out the window and confirming that it has stopped raining after being all night crying sky, although it is still quite cloudy and it is that yesterday when we arrived in Rio Dulce from Semuc Champey, they told us that it had been days without raining until just that afternoon. We know that we are lucky with time, but sometimes the sun does not rise so fast, although we hope that when we are in Livingston, the Caribbean of Guatemala, look upon us.

After getting ready we go straight to the Marine Yatch breakfast room to work for a while, accompanied by a coffee, a breeze that gives life at this time of the morning and Julio Iglesias in the background, which we have to say that despite not liking us, It gives a touch of the most original to this beginning of the day, until the owners of the boats of the pier begin to arrive, which today have a kind of exchange fair in the lounge, something that truly baffles us being this the lounge of Hotel meals, where they are occupying all the tables without paying any attention to those who are there, with little education in the deal, even not speaking a word of Spanish with the hotel staff who does not speak English and it shows that they make a Real effort to be understood.

Our room at the Marine Yatch

How to get from Río Dulce to Livingston

- Shared boats: You can book them directly at the jetty, at an agency or at the accommodation. The journey takes approximately 45 minutes, with no intermediate stops and the price is $ 30 per person. They have regular schedules throughout the day.
- Private boat: This option can also be booked directly at the jetty, through an agency, we did it with Destinations Guatemala, like the rest of the transportation to the trip to Guatemala and Honduras or through your accommodation. Being private transport, you can use the time you want, both in the transfer from Río Dulce to Livingston (usually about 1 hour and a half) and in the time you want to spend in Livingston.
We compared prices with the agency and directly and with the hotel and they gave us the same price: $ 100 for the whole day.

We opt for the second option, both for times, since you can be as long as you want and make intermediate stops, such as the tranquility of going alone and being able to take pictures with more calm.
For this reason we do not know if it is possible to haggle the price in shared boats, although at first glance, we would say that it is possible, so it is convenient to compare prices.
As we commented we have opted for the option of Go from Río Dulce to Livingston, the Caribbean of Guatemala, by private boat, leaving at 9 in the morning at the Marine Yatch jetty right next to our room.
At this time the sky is again covered and a light drizzle begins, which we hope will disappear shortly, at least to let us enjoy the transfer from Rio Dulce to Livingston, the home of the Garífunas in Guatemala.

Marine Yatch Pier

Punctual, after a few minutes of 9 in the morning we are already accommodated on the boat, making way for San Felipe Castle, one of the icons and symbols of Río Dulce, just over 10 minutes from the jetty. The initial idea was to make a brief stop here, but seeing how the sky is, we prefer not to take a risk and go around the area, taking a perspective from the water of one of the fortress.

San Felipe Castle

The San Felipe Castle It was built to protect the people of the Izabal area from pirates in 1652, although in the end it ended up being burned several years later and rebuilt in 1956, as we can see today.
Surrounded by boats, we turn around, to put direction to Livingston, the Caribbean of Guatemala, going through several points, among which are the bird island and the bird island, both El Golfete, inhabited by hundreds of water birds.

Bird Island

From here we continue climbing upriver, surrounded by houses and luxurious villas, all with piers and spectacular views, surrounded by vegetation that as we move on begin to disappear, giving way to less luxurious homes, with small piers, with hammocks, which leave us some images that surely, we will soon forget.

From Rio Dulce to Livingston

Landscapes from Río Dulce to Livingston

The route from Río Dulce to Livingston It is becoming more and more interesting, seeing ourselves surrounded by tropical jungle, dotted with small villages, where they live from fishing in an incredible environment, which we understand many travelers have fallen in love with, staying in this area to live.

Speedboat from Río Dulce to Livingston

When we have been traveling for about 45 minutes, we arrive at the hot spring areas, where there is a source that pours sulphurous water from a cliff, directly to the river, where you can bathe in a kind of wells, specially prepared for tourists.

Thermal sources

As happened before with the Castillo de San Felipe, we chose to skip this visit, this time not because of the bad weather, if not quite the opposite. The weather is getting more sunny and with the forecast that does not last too long, we prefer to take advantage of it to finish the journey in good weather and if we have time and desire later, make the stop back to Río Dulce.

Landscapes from Río Dulce to Livingston

We continue the journey through the Cueva de la Vaca, a small cave in a gorge that is practically covered with vegetation, to continue to the Pintada, a large wall, in which in the distance we can see the graphites our guide tells us.

More practical information to prepare your trip to Guatemala
- 10 essential places to visit in Guatemala
- 10 essential tips for traveling to Guatemala

We continue the journey getting closer and closer to Livingston, the Caribbean of Guatemala, noticing how the landscape around us is changing, becoming less dense and starting to appear again the buildings, this time with something more height, the closer we get to the town.

Approaching Livingston

Details of the shores of Livingston

We arrived to Livingston With a sky already very clear and as soon as we disembarked, we began to notice that Caribbean rhythm that we were looking for when we planned to get here, surrounded by small colorful houses that make this a unique environment.

Livingston Pier

As soon as you arrive and seeing that Livingston is small enough to travel in a few hours, we take the opportunity to stop at Buga Mama, a highly recommended restaurant, with beautiful views over the river, where we have coffee and a beer for 16 quetzals that we They feel great and encourage us to continue with the tour of the day when it is almost 11 in the morning.
We started to tour Livingston, the Caribbean of Guatemala for its main street, what we have to say is a delight for the senses, with a roll unique, with Caribbean music playing in the background and everyday scenes that continue to confirm the success that has been coming here.

Main Street of Livingston

Details of Livingston streets

Visit or not Livingston?

We cannot say that we have found a lot of information on the internet about this place, since there is not much. What we had read is that many people come to Río Dulce, but do not travel through river to livingston.
After our experience, we have to say that one of the reasons to reach Río Dulce, if not the only one, would be to arrive later until Livingston. If you do not have time to spend the night here, you can do the day trip, it is totally recommended and in 3 hours you can visit this Caribbean population, which we assure you will not leave you indifferent.

As we go along the main street of Livingston we are entering more in this town, without access by land with the rest of the country, home of the Garifuna, shipwrecked of the African slave ships that ended up mixing with the natives of the area and that we have to confess, we are more like Every step we take.

Livingston

We recommend that you not only focus on the main street of Livingston, if not you enter the parallel streets, where you can see the local life and those details for which this place is an incredible corner of Guatemala and also a totally different place than what we had seen so far on the trip to Guatemala and Honduras for free.

Livingston

Streets of Livingston

It is after 12:30 when we decide that it is time to go to eat and see how good was the letter of Buba Mama, the restaurant overlooking the sea where we were drinking coffee this morning and considering what they say about him serving Livingston's best seafood, don't doubt it and choosing it as a place to eat. We ordered some shrimp quesadillas (prawns for us) and a plate of fish plus water and coke for 190 quetzales that we have to say are more than justified and we have eaten fable.

Eating in Livingston

Eating at Buba Mama has been a success, although yes, we recommend that you do not come in a hurry, in LivingstonAs in almost all of Guatemala, we must assume that the Caribbean rhythm is present in every corner, so it is best to adopt and enjoy it.
It's almost 3 in the afternoon when it's time to say goodbye to Livingston and undertake the return in boat to Rio Dulce, where we will spend our last night in Guatemala, before making our way tomorrow to Honduras.
The way back we do it under a spectacular sun and clouds that adorn a sky that at times reminds us of the spectacular landscapes we met in the Amazon, saving distances.

Return from Livingston to Rio Dulce

Landscapes from Livingston to Río Dulce

The journey back to Rio Dulce from Livingston We do it in just over 50 minutes, enjoying spectacular landscapes that remind us at every step, the many reasons why traveling makes us so happy.

We notify our boatman to leave us at the Rio Dulce jetty, instead of at the hotel to be able to walk around the main and almost unique street of Río Dulce, and also cross its emblematic bridge, where there is always someone standing to admire the incredible views from there of the river and the incredible panoramic of the surroundings.

Rio Dulce Bridge

Main street of Río Dulce

As we go along the bridge, under a scorching sun, we find more and more beautiful views of Rio Dulce, which can not be had from any place other than from here, so we recommend that if you can , make a stop in this area, if possible on foot, to enjoy a beautiful perspective.

Rio Dulce from the bridge

Views from the Rio Dulce bridge

After this improvised walk along Río Dulce and a stop to buy some snacks for tomorrow, we arrive at the hotel when it is almost 6 in the afternoon, somewhat later than expected, but still with time to enjoy a few hours of relaxation, which We will not deny, we feel great.

Sweet River

After a few refreshments, a while of reading and swimming pool, you have to go through the room to leave everything collected for tomorrow, before going out to dinner at the Marine Yatch restaurant where we order some nachos, grilled chicken with pasta and two lemonades for 247 Quetzales, which we have to say, are very good.